I wanted to revive some more conversations on this site. I have left it alone for a little while caught up in my world of school.
i've been struggling lately wondering if Planting a second generation church really makes sence to me. I have found a great place of worship for my wife and I and we have felt like we have grown more then ever before.
Is this because we have found safe community and have committed to focus and learn there? Is that what it takes to learn and grow? Do we (Asian Americans) need to plant specific churches to reach our community or can we grow anywhere?
What do you think?
5 comments:
My roommate told me that the Baptists are looking for church planters for your area. So there must be a need for Asian churches there. My thing is I will not graduate for a few years.
I have not always felt this way, but I think one needs to be where God wants them to be. (Kind of vague)...I mean that at times I feel that the Christian community needs to be more diverse...I mean we should worship in our neighborhoods and for an Asian American in Texas that would be hard to do. Although I am attending a church minutes from where I live which happens to be a Chinese Baptist Church...anyhoo I believe most Asians commute long distances to go to worship with other Asians...but as an American, I wonder if this is what we should be doing...
I figure its about your calling. Church should be about community. So if you want an Asian community you go out and get that. But I wouldn't belittle or ostracize those who want to join other communities. And perhaps would encourage more assimilation into the broader culture. I wonder at times about ethnic churches...do they exalt Christ or Culture?
As to your question...I'm not sure. I would think that there is such a need...
I wonder about the socio-economics of church...and how income affects how we worship and join in community with others?
It takes all kinds of churches to reach all kinds of people. Multi-Asian churches will reach certain people that a traditional Asian church, a multiethnic church, a mainstream Anglo church, cannot reach. And an Asian American church can address certain contextual and cultural issues that help people to live out their faith in a holistic way that other churches cannot, would not, and does not. Spiritual growth can happen in any of those churches, but how broadly and deeply its ministry reaches into the nook and cranny of everyday life is the difference.
Sorry I haven't responded to your post. For some reason it didn't send the post to my e-mail and being so busy with classes and church I haven't been able to reply.
William~
I just want to push back and ask why you think that "the Christian community needs to be more diverse..."(I am not disagreeing with you...)
Is this something that we have been told over and over in church and in our society? or is their a real call in the Bible to be diverse?
I continue to ask myself thesee questions about planting a second generation Asian American church. One of the main reasons that I feel that one is needed is because the local community church may not be addressing the deep "cultural" issues that affect their spiritual life.
I agree that the church should be meeting the needs of the local community, yet with in the community their is so much diversity that I am unable to completely meet the needs of my Russian or even African American friends.
We have to admit that understanding culture can help us to meet the spiritual needs of the people.
So I don't disagree with you, but I think that we can sometimes be too idealistic about how it looks.
Hey BigTo,
I founded the only organization dedicated for Asian American church planting and we are rounding up all those who are passionate about the movement.
God is going to be doing great things and has already opened up huge doors. Please contact me at peterqnguyen@gmail.com. There are many others out there who see the crying needs of our generation to plant churches. Let's work together!
Peter Nguyen
Asian American Intercultural Ministry
Hey there Mr To! I got forwarded your blog link from Meagan. I was totally excited to see some of your thoughts on here. I'm struggling with some emergent church issues and ideas in my own church lately. Plus its just exciting to see you out on blogger world since I haven't talked to you since HS. Come check out my blog sometime... Glad to hear you are still working through all this faith stuff.
Katie Crawford
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