In Search of Kingdom Living

By discovering the best and most valuable narratives and qualities of an organization, participants can construct a new way that has the most important link to the past and the most hopeful images of the future.

It is good to be back.

After over a month away from blogging, I feel like I'm missing out an important part of my life journey. I'm thankful for the rest and busyness and the last while and I'm eager to share my stories and I hope you will share yours with me someday. Since there's just too much to list in one blog (including several book reviews), I'll just include a few 'episode capsules' about the last month.

7th Inning Stretch
Thank God for a wonderful softball season. This year, I was actually able to join team RECONCILIATION from my homechurch, TCBC. It was a struggle skillwise because I haven't played for nearly 2 years and haven't done any type of extended physical activity for nearly 6 years (I'm using flowery language to cover up my lack of working out). Aside from the frustration of ability, I think I did improve (at least got more healthy towards the end of summer) and enjoyed practicing with the team.

The great part of the game this year was that our team was becoming a community. It was neat to see all these different people with differing life experiences, life stages, beliefs, eccentricities come together and really desired to BE together. My thoughts drift through many memories: from our typical friday night practices by the beach (after 45 min driving dt), Wally's pink socks, bowling, Steve the HULK, Davin's kung fu stretches, after practice dinners, winning a bat at the CCSA banquet, making the playoffs… and so many more. As summer has come and gone, and so too did our time playing softball in the sun – I know our team is seperated by distance but I think we'll still carry the sense of community that will last at least another year. All blessings to you guys on the team. Let's not wait til next season to reconnect.

TCBC Recon Leaders – thx for everything. You guys did a great job. God bless.

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
Some of you may not have heard, but my brother Shu-Ling is now studying in Louisville, Kentucky @ Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He's doing a Masters of Divinity majoring in Worship, and I pray that God will equip him for the work that has generated so much passion in his ministry and in his heart. Those of you who did not know me and him when we were younger… well, let's just say the title to this is quite fitting. He was always the 'heavy' little brother (as he didn't get his growth spur til much later). He was always the goofy one, the joker, the misfit.

Through our lives as brothers, we've had our moments of warm intimacy, of cold distances, of asian-prideful-respect. But in spite of it all, I think we've grown more closer now then before (even compared to the days when our parents dressed us in the same outfits). I have to confess that so much of our conversations are usually me telling him why this messed up, or why that won't work out the way he thought it would. Really, I can only recall one moment when we prayed together, just the two of us, over the phone, and it was one of the great memories that I will cherish. So as we're both stumbling towards where we think God may be leading us, here's hoping that there will be more moments like that one phone call.

Dai – All the best to your growth in knowing Jesus – that your relationship with Him will not be self-serving, but that it will grow exponential in your own heart as well as rest of the world.

Memories, Hopes, and Conversations
Recently, I came back from a retreat over the long weekend with my english congregation. It was a good mix of fun activities (high ropes, rock climbing, TRAMPOLINE), quiet times (physical rest, meditation), sharings (in SG, by the campfire), and challenges (AI! AI!). The Retreat Committee had asked the EMC to prepare a program for the last night of the retreat… something that will challenge the attendees to 'take the next step'. Man… so vague, no direction, aw well – I love it that way. So what happened was that I proposed a process for organizational changed called APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY (AI). this was taught to me in my leadership class with Greenman and I thought it was so wonderful, so revolutional, so… Christian… hmmmm.

In very big brushstrokes, the AI process basically harnesses God's gifts of memory, gratitude, and stories. Through very positive sharing, we would hear one another's positive stories about the church, and strive to build our ministries around these stories. The more typical fashion of problem-solving is done by tackling the problem. Yet often when we problem solve in that fashion, we end up becoming overly negative, criticizing one another, and then we create a culture that is based on condemnation and defecit-based thinking. Well, that was not going to happen at this retreat. We basically asked each other 6 questions:

1)Reflect on your entire time at Toronto Chinese Baptist Church (TCBC). Remember a time when you felt most alive, most motivated and excited about your involvement. Describe the circumstances and your involvement. Who was involved? How did you feel? What was happening?2) Don?t be humble ? this is important information: What are the most valuable ways you contribute to TCBC ? your personality, your perspectives, your skills, your activities?

After asking these questions, having massive brainstorming sessions, we tried to articulate possible visions, ministry implementations… possibilities that the english congregation can pursue. It was so refreshing to hear the potential of our church based on people's life stories. I'm just dreaming right now, but I'm hopeful that this method of conversation can develop the proper attitude so that all of TCBC can come together and really desire to move where God may be leading us.

Me Defined
So now, wut's up with me? huh… well, I had my Tyndale orientation on weds and I met the faculty as well as my fellow class of 05. It's definitely different from univ as I probably won't even see the people in my major (due to taking core courses at different time slots). In many ways it's so much easier to develop friendships and community, yet in some other ways it's harder… you're expected to be 'spiritual', and I find myself easily trying to 'front' on a spiritual way. This leads to other challenges/tensions that I have felt serving at AFC and TCBC's EMC that I need to work on ASAP (I should just use acronyms for this entire blog).

Because of my increasing understanding about the modern/postmodern debate, I'm becoming more frustrated by my co-workers/peers and their attitudes. When I try to create dialogue or offer my position (in regards to all matters being affected by modern/pomo tendencies), I'm either misunderstood, labelled as a heretic, or even worse, personally growing bitter/resentful due to their complaints. I'm not so frustrated that I want to squeeze the life out of people. I think I'm at the level of frustration that Hybels describe as 'holy discontent'.

What hurts my pride as well as my spiritual development, is that I know this holy discontent is coming from God. I believe God shares my frustratings by the lack of generous dialogue/understanding between christians over issues as minor as admin, and as big as belief/attitude. Yet while I'm trying to paint my criticizing attitude as righteous, I know I'm not being generous with my fellow bros/sis as well. Not being generous with their modern way of thinking. So right now, I'm praying daily for a pure heart – a heart that includes sexual purity, purity of motives, of attitudes, and of speech. It's going to be tough times but definitely exciting times. I'm really thankful for this verse right now, and I'm hoping to 'incarnationalize' it into my very being.

Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious–the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Tune in again when I start compiling the book reviews.