Our new video series, Answers about Teens from Ministry Leaders, was filmed during the SOLA Network x Rooted Ministry Asian American Youth Worker Training Day on March 15, 2025 by Alex Park (CTS America) and hosted by James S. Lee (SOLA Network). The project was co-produced by SOLA Network and CTS America. Our first video is out now: “What Parents Should Know about their Teens” featuring Gower Lee, Kevin Yi, and Monica Kim.
In our latest Leaders’ Line newsletter, Hanley Liu wrote on Leading with Love and Dan Hyun wrote on Pastoral Pain. In case you missed it, our editorial newsletter At Month’s End was sent out earlier this week. Subscribe to keep connected with everything happening at SOLA Network!
Keep in touch on X and Instagram. For more, check out my Asian American Worship Leaders Facebook group and TGIF Playlist on Spotify. This weekly newsletter is one of the many ways you can get connected with SOLA Network. Find us on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
Aaron Lee, Editorial Curator
Enter our giveaway! Thanks to Crossway for providing, in partnership with @diveindigdeep, SOLA Network, and FCBC Walnut. One winner will receive this outstanding book!
From the publisher: “‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.’ This simple but powerful statement has been a cornerstone of John Piper’s ministry for nearly 40 years. Laying out the principles behind this ‘Christian Hedonism’ Desiring God has proved to be a source of rich theological insight for countless readers through the years, guiding them to the fullness of joy found in Christ.”
First published in 1986, this newly revised edition is bound in printed caseside to celebrate 40 years of this beautiful book! From the Publisher’s Preface: “In 2023, the Piper family’s not-for-profit Desiring God Foundation reacquired the publishing rights to the book, and Crossway is now pleased to present this new edition of Desiring God in 2025.Before narrating the audio version of the book, Piper reviewed every line, making final adjustments and revisions for what he plans to be the book’s definitive edition.”
ARTICLES FROM AROUND THE WEB
1. Jackie J. Hwang: Looking to the Future of Diasporic Chinese in Cross-Cultural Ministries
“In conclusion, the two-pronged thinking for the Chinese diaspora to engage in cross-cultural ministry is a promising perspective that can propel them toward increasing participation in God’s mission. This model calls them to look beyond existing ministry or cultural patterns and allows the gospel to reorient their priorities. It has the potential to rejuvenate stagnant ministry habits and revitalize diasporic Chinese Christian communities.”
2. Hannah Hagarty: What Chon Believers Teach Us About Gospel Transformation
“It took eight years before there was one Chon convert. Today, God has transformed the Chon believers, transferring them from the misery of moral relativism to the joy of commitment to Christ. God uses stories of change like theirs to shake us out of our own comfort with moral relativism and to lead us to rejoice in the freedom we have in Christ.”
3. Andrea Lee: China’s Quiet Revival, One Handwritten Bible Verse at a Time
“A church sought 1,200 participants when it launched a Scripture-copying initiative. Millions of believers across the country responded.”
Our Books and Reviews page is your one-stop resource for all of your reading needs. It features Asian American authors and issues, recommendations, and interviews.
BOOKS, PODCASTS, MUSIC, MOVIES, AND MORE
1. Paul Kim: In a World of Clamor, the Gospel Brings Calm and Courage
“Jesus is the powerful Lord. The same Lord who was with Daniel in exile is with you and me in our exile. And one day, Jesus will bring us home out of Babylon. Until then, may the gospel fill you with courage and strength, even in a world of calamity and clamor.”
2. Brett McCracken: The False Hope of ‘Rebrand Yourself!’ Identity Shifts
“You can reinvent yourself as often as you change your profile pic. What you were yesterday matters little; the internet is about the now.”
3. Aaron Lee: Related Works
Book reviews: The Clay Pot Conspiracy: God’s Plan to Use Weakness in Leaders by Dave Harvey, Faith, Hope, and Love in a Time of Loss: A 90-day Devotional through Grief by Katrina Larson, One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church: A Biblical Doctrine of the Church by Guy Waters. Listen to our TGIF playlist on Spotify. Join my Asian American Worship Leaders Facebook group.
On Kindle Now! A Letter to the Asian American Church.
The collective voices in our book argue that there is underappreciated beauty, diversity, joy, benefit, and place for the Asian American church. Asian American leaders need to joyfully embrace the call to serve the Asian American church, not only for the emerging generation but for the broader church. Find a sample, links to purchase, and a free discussion guide at sola.network/book.
FEATURED THIS WEEK ON SOLA NETWORK
1. Asian American Parenting Podcast: Episode 13: Christianity, Race, and Asian American Teenagers
“In today’s political climate along with Asian American teenagers living as bi-racial and bi-ethnic people, race and ethnicity issues do impact them. Hence, it is important for parents to consider these issues and even begin to have conversations about these issues, along with their intersections with faith as Christians.”
2. Answers about Teens from Ministry Leaders, Question 1: “What Parents Should Know about their Teens”
Gower Lee – Don’t Just Parent, Pursue Your Teen’s Heart; Kevin Yi – Church Is More Than Sunday: What Kids Really Need; Monica Kim – Connection Before Correction: Understanding Teen Emotions
“‘If we are faithless, he remains faithful’ (2 Tim. 2:13). In this season of reflection and tempered regret, my faith is not in my faith, but in God. He will bring good even where my faithfulness has faltered.”
4. SOLA Network: I’m Considering Seminary. What’s Next?
“Going to seminary doesn’t guarantee a difference in personal godliness (though sanctification would be an ongoing goal), nor does it qualify anyone to pronounce judgments on the current state of the Church or cultural discourse.”
5. TGIF: Roundup for August 29, 2025
The End of New York / Learning to Forgive the Country That Oppressed Mine / I Miss the Pews / Artist or Engineer in Corporate Worship? / Loving Your Craft
6. SOLA Network: TGIF Subscription
Get our TGIF installments delivered straight to your inbox for free every Friday. Join today so you never miss out.
General disclaimer: Our link roundups are not endorsements of the positions or lives of the authors. Header image by Cloris Ying on Unsplash.
Aaron Lee is our Editorial Curator. Aaron also serves as the Social Media Officer of First Chinese Baptist Church of Walnut in California’s San Gabriel Valley, home to the largest concentration of Asian American communities in the United States. Visit him online at DiveInDigDeep.com.