I have a confession to make.  When the movie Fireproof first came out,  I was a little wary.  A lot of it had to do with an aversion to Christian evangelical subculture, which is a good thing at times, but a bad thing as well- aren’t I just being like a Pharisee at that moment, a snobby religious person just like the “subculture” I am turned off by?  Oh how big our “planks” can be when we judge… (Matthew 7:1-6)

Anyhow, I digress.  My neighbor Mark- a single guy in his mid 20s who is not a part of Christian subculture because he’s new to Jesus- saw it and passed it along. And well, I am now a fan.   Its strengths include:

1) a pretty realistic take on some of the hell that can break loose in marriage- from a sex-life (or lack of) to hard-heartedness, and a lot of things in between

2) a no-nonsense approach to how, if we truly follow the ways of Jesus without making excuses, things in us can change (not necessarily things beyond us like other people or circumstances in life)

3) an honest attempt at trying to be both courteous of non-religious people, yet pretty blatant about how God/Jesus can make a difference

Again, I realize that there’s a lot more to say about it (the comments at amazon.com have quite a bit of content), and I realize that some who maybe identify as more “progressive” in their view of “Christianity” and such might find some of it quite laughable and even repulsive.  But it’s worth a look.  Props to those who have used it well- I think of my sister’s boyfriend (and potential husband) who pre-ordered 20 to give away…

1) the friendships I am developing with various African leaders (15 total)- from a former Ugandan soldier to a pastor who endured the war in Sierra Leone, from a former engineer to a regional director of parachurch ministries in East Africa, etc. The discussions have been enlightening; the friendships, fun and encouraging; the future dreams and possibilities together, inspiring.

2) the time I get to hang out with world-renowned scholar/strategist/statesman Ray Bakke (google his name and try to discover as much as you can about this guy). He’s courted people like King Hussein and the Pope, but I (along with other students) get to have one-on-one conversations with him while we spend hours driving around Ghana. Pretty cool.

3) the validation and continuation of the vision of church/church planting I have- global/multicultural/multisocioeconomic churches in all the cities of the world (note: there are 500 cities around the world that have over 3 million people). Accra needs a global/multicultural/multisocioeconomic church reaching out to the diverse pockets here. Anyone interested?

Be sure to visit my flickr site for daily pictures from ghana.

Earlier this month (January 12, 2009), the only grandma I had growing up passed away.  This is the eulogy printed at her memorial service.  I am blessed to be a part of her lineage.  (Ahma is chinese for grandma.  Ahzo is chinese for great grandma)

Ahma, Ahzo:: a eulogy

Recently my wife Yen-Yen asked her father to write his story of faith, for the sake of our daughters.  I was privileged to read a draft, and was humbled and amazed at how God works through the Bible and the courage of young people.  And I was struck by how his generation still lived in the shadow of colonialism.  Wow.  If you get some time, check out his story…

My Last Confession

I’m sure many of us are still reeling from the results of the election.  There is so much to absorb, so much to do, beginning today.  I’m eager to see how we- referring to both the community of Jesus followers, and the larger people of the US- will respond to the challenges ahead.

Some random rants about the results:

- Finally, the reality of our global, multicultural world is reflected in our highest office.   There’s a whole lot of work to do, though, in terms of racial/ethnic/cultural reconciliation.

- People cannot be pigeon-holed into one political platform.  I think of my state of CA, where Barack Obama won easily, and yet traditional marriage was (so far, with 95% precincts reporting) upheld.  I think this “contradiction” reflects the new reality of who we are as a people.

- John McCain was and is a good guy in many ways.  In another situation, with a different incumbent and a different opponent, he probably could have won.  Did you watch his SNL opener on Nov 1?  It was great.

- Barack, thanks for what you’ve given so far.  We are eager to see how you will lead.  We will pray for you, and support you as best as we can, all the while giving to God what is God’s.

This week my journey takes me to Singapore, and to some of the mega-ministries there.  It’s pretty amazing how “amazing” these ministries are; being in the US, we think of ourselves as being the best and most innovative way too much, and we fail to see what really is going on (granted, ethnocentrism and the sins associated with nationalism plague every people group).  Anyhow, this week my travels take me to these three churches:

Faith Community Bible Church

Hope Church

Agape Baptist Church

Tim Stafford, author of numerous books including the NIV Student Bible

William P. Young of The Shack

Larry Osborne of the forthcoming Sticky Church

James Choung of  True Story

I am amazed at their earthiness and humility, and am glad that God has them where they’re at; these are some truly Jesus-focused people who don’t care too much about themselves.  Good stuff.

Earlier this month, both of my grandpa’s passed away. This is a tribute to the second one.

Dr. Peter Hsiao, or Ah-Gong (grandpa in Mandarin), was my mother’s father. The earliest memories I had of him were embedded in our annual Christmas adventures. Vague memories of long car rides from Salt Lake City, UT (1978-1982), and then long flights from Madison, WI (1982-1986) would culminate with time spent at Ah-Gong and Ah-Ma’s house in Torrance, CA. The times were sweet, with numerous memories with my siblings and cousins: building little kingdoms and rivers of dirt in Ah-Ma’s famed backyard garden, picking peaches from the tree on the side of the house, trips to Leco-Seco Park, afternoons on the sands of Redondo Beach, messing around with the foot-long skateboards with roller-skate wheels Ah-Ma got from one of her regular garage sale trips, doing numerous chores (sweeping, playing piano, math problems) for the reward of a few cents each chore, wandering through the huge Del-Amo mall, trips to Service Merchandise (remember that store?), camping out in Mike and Jelin’s backyard, trips to Jimmy and Kenny’s big house in Palos Verdes. Ah-Gong and Ah-Ma’s house was memorable as well: there was the sliding door that divided the living and family room, the extra TV in their bedroom with Japanese soap-operas constantly on, the pink bathroom with a drawer for a door lock and a toilet that never seemed to flush (thankfully the toilet has been changed since those days in the 80s), a layout that worked well for hide-and-go-seek in the dark.

And then there was Ah-Gong. In those early years, everything was about eating well (or else we’d go to Ethiopia!), which included meals with liver, clam chowder with veggies, and his ketchup/mayo dressing mix with iceberg lettuce. Later, the diet included salmon or white sea bass marinated with miso, along with the traditional plate of sashimi (usually a full plate of surf clams, yellowtail, or tuna).

But there was much more going on, much more. I never got it as a kid- I think it’s pretty typical. But there was love, a lot of love, being poured out in those moments. As I grew, this became clearer. I mean, who packs marinated salmon steaks for his grandchildren when they’re in college? What drives a man to never forget a grandchild’s birthday, sending a card every year? Bigger yet, who stays married with his bride for over 60 years, cherishing her with the same, if not more, devotion? What drives a man to give millions of dollars to the cause of Christ, to lend money to his children, to always have a red-envelop for the grandchildren on special days?

The moment of love most unique to me- all of us grandchildren have a different one of these moments, I believe- came during my seminary years. Having chosen a path that was unique to the family, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from Ah-Gong. Not that he would unsupportive. But having been a successful doctor himself, when all of his children succeeding in the medical and scientific fields, I guess I just didn’t know. Or I didn’t expect him to be so involved with his love. Each time I was over, it seemed like Ah-Gong had something new to share about what He had learned, either from the Bible or from some Christian book he was reading. He would have his copy of Our Daily Bread next to his recliner, Bible open, eager to engage in a conversation with me. And he would have books on his shelf, typically biographies, there to share. In fact, he gave me a number of books, including my copy of Just As I Am (Billy Graham’s definitive autobiography), numerous monographs by Mother Teresa, and even a copy of The Pursuit of Happiness by the Dali Lama. Love delights on the other, taking on their interests and passions. Here was Ah Gong, father and grandfather to so many, taking time to delight in just one of many.

I know there is so much I never got to know about Ah- Gong. And I know there is so much I will never fully “get” about Ah-Gong’s life, including those amazing times of WWII history in the Pacific. I am thankful, though, that His great Savior knows about every moment and every moment of love. And I am glad that He has begun to receive His reward for it all.

Ah-Gong, thank you for your unending grace and love to all of us. We look forward to seeing you again.

On June 26, 2008, my father’s father (Ah-Yeh in Mandarin) passed away. Here is a tribute I wrote in 2006 on his 90th birthday.

One of the most vivid memories of Ah-Yeh was from my early teen years. I was sleeping over at my parents Tomich Road house, the one Sixth Aunt used to live in. I think Ah-Yeh resided there as well; I can’t remember it clearly. In any case, I was staying overnight, and made my bed in the family/TV room, somewhere on the floor.

I must have slept relatively lightly because at around 4am (from my guess at that time), I was suddenly aware of Ah-Yeh. He had woken up and was making his way to the back yard, passing through the family/TV room in the process. What was he doing? I can’t remember when I figured it out, but at sometime I realized his reason for going out – he needed to pray. And so my picture of Ah-Yeh, who he was, began to grow from here.

Prior to this, I can’t remember much, but I can imagine. In preparation for this essay, I spent some time looking through my old photographs of Ah-Yeh and our family. There was Ah-Yeh, in the early 80s, full head of dark hair, tan, and… I’m not sure. There was something deep in his eyes, some unspoken emotion. Perhaps it was from his years going through what the rest of us could never imagine: a world war, loss of a homeland, loss of a spouse, immigration. There’s a reason why the famed news anchor called those in Ah-Yeh’s generation the “Greatest Generation.” It’s true, it really is.

But the pictures changed. I don’t have a whole lot of them with me in San Diego, but the next set of photos of Ah-Yeh were, well, different. They’re from the mid to late 80s, when Ah-Yeh would purposefully not look into the camera. Instead, he would look away with a solemn, flint-like gaze. What was he thinking? More importantly, what was going on in his soul? Was he grieving and dealing with the radical changes going on in his life and family as time kept passing? Was there a dream forming through the brokenness and change he was going through, a dream born of the Spirit?

I don’t know what was going on in those pictures, but those photos remind me of something: Ah-Yeh was and is human. He was and is a human being like the rest of us, full of hope, hurt, desire, passion, and grief. It’s hard to remember this at times, at least for me, because grandparents (and parents) always seem like static figures- they’re the same day after day, year after year. But they’re not, and that’s the truth.

And that brings me back to this phase of being cognizant of Ah-Yeh, this phase that began one early morning on Tomich Road. Who is Ah-Yeh? He is a man, a true man, who has grown and matured with each passing season. He is a man, a true man, who has felt love and pain, life and death, youthfulness and age. He is a man, a true man, who is living a true life, a life of Spirit and flesh, a life of body and soul. And he will become a man, a full man, one day when his decaying body will be resurrected- perfect, invincible, void of all pain and sorrow.

Ah Yeh, thank your for showing us how to live. Keep on living- not just physically, but with your soul. I can’t wait to see you once again when the imperishable comes, and we finally get to see the One we’ve been longing for all these years.

Love,
Yucan
May 2006