Will you join us in embracing the call for the Asian American Church? For years, the church has said indirectly and directly to the Asian American faith community that they must find a place in a multicultural church or even the majority culture church disguised as a multicultural church. The collective voices in this 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.
Interviews
Steve S. Chang and Aaron Lee discuss the story behind how the book idea began, and how it all came together. Check out the video and transcript. You can also read an interview with graphic designer Jessica Lee on the art and design behind the book.
Book Overview
Part I: The Asian Immigrant Church
1. Hidden Beauty: Finding Beauty and Opportunity in the Immigrant Church
by Faith Chang
2. Unraveling Diversity: The Surprising Gift of the Asian Heritage Church
by Enoch Y. Liao
3. Every Tribe and Tongue: The Challenges and Blessings of Multilingual Churches
by Jason M. Tarn
4. Safe Spaces: Providing Counsel in the Asian Immigrant Church
by Monica M. Kim
5. Bridging the Gap: The Key to Thriving in Immigrant Ministry
by Michael Lee
Part II: The Asian American Church
6. Rediscovering Joy: How I Learned to Love the Asian American Church
by Owen Y. Lee
7. Hopeful Exiles: A Theology of the Asian American Experience
by Aaron J. Chung
8. Exegete Your People: Understanding the Heartbeat of Asian American Congregations
by Steve S. Chang
9. Finding Our Voice: Unleashing the Power of Asian American Preaching
by Hanley Liu
10. Shepherding Singles: Reimagining God’s Family in the Church
by Soojin Park
11. Creative Legacy: Navigating Ministry in a Changing World
by Cory K. Ishida
Part III: The Asian American Leader
12. Heart Matters: Unmasking Idols in Asian American Leadership
by Kim N. Kira
13. Silencing Shame: The Fear of Not Being Good Enough
by Harold Y. Kim
14. Called to Lead: A Woman’s Path to Church Leadership
by Heidi Wong
15. Steadfast: Persevering Through Difficult Seasons of Ministry
by Joey Chen
16. FOBO in Ministry: Navigating the Temptation of Greener Pastures in Ministry
by David Larry Kim
Contributors
Our book was written by faithful practitioners affiliated with SOLA Network:
Faith Chang (BS Cornell University; Certificate in Christian Studies, Westminster Theological Seminary) serves at Grace Christian Church on Staten Island where her husband is a pastor. She is the author of Peace over Perfection: Enjoying A Good God When You Feel You’re Never Good Enough and cohost of the Westminster Kids Digest Podcast at the Westminster Bookstore. She enjoys writing on theology, ministry, and the Christian life.
Steve S. Chang was born in Korea and immigrated to Los Angeles at the age of nine in 1971. He studied computer engineering at UCLA and worked in the industry before going to Dallas Theological Seminary (ThM). Steve founded Living Hope Community Church (Brea, California) and has been serving as the senior pastor for more than thirty years. Steve and his wife, Hannah, have two married children, Christine and Janice, and enjoy grandparenting Evan and Titus. Steve also has his DMin from Talbot School of Theology and cofounded SOLA Network.
Joey Chen serves as lead English pastor of Sunset Church in San Francisco. He responded to a calling to ministry in his senior year of high school and went on to Cedarville University and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (MDiv). He has served at Sunset Church for sixteen years, starting as the youth pastor in 2007 and then becoming the lead English pastor in 2012. He received his DMin from Talbot School of Theology in church multiplication and is committed to missional work by serving on the board of OMF US and Stratum, a Bay Area church-planting incubator. He is married to Jeannette and is blessed with their two girls, Melia and Selah.
Aaron J. Chung is the founder and senior pastor of Exilic in New York City. He is a graduate of Westminster Seminary California (MDiv) and Westminster Theological Seminary (DMin). He guest lectures at Reformed Theological Seminary NYC and is a council member of the SOLA Network. He has written on a variety of subjects—from theology to sports—for media outlets like Relevant Magazine and The Bleacher Report. He is married to Hanna and is a girl dad to Logan and Hayden. They live in Manhattan and love doing life there.
Cory K. Ishida was born in Alhambra, California, in 1947. He grew up in Pasadena, California, and graduated from UCLA as a pre-med major. Cory was married in 1969 to his wife, Reine. They have three daughters and thirteen grandchildren ages five to twenty-three. He was called into ministry in 1972 and worked as a pharmaceutical representative for five years before accepting the senior pastor position at Evergreen Baptist Church in 1977. While serving, he completed his seminary education at Fuller Theological Seminary. Cory pastored Evergreen Los Angeles for twenty years. He planted Evergreen San Gabriel Valley in 1997 and served for twenty-two years before retiring in 2019.
David Larry Kim is married to Olivia and is the proud father of Emmanuelle, Elijah, and Elyse. He is the lead pastor of Harvest Church, an intergenerational congregation of house churches that was planted by the Korean Presbyterian Church of Orlando. He has served at Harvest since 2001. David grew up in Virginia, graduated from the University of Virginia and Reformed Theological Seminary, and serves on the Council of SOLA Network. He is passionate about communicating the truth of God’s Word and enjoys playing and watching sports. Before podcasts were invented, he cohosted a call-in radio show for teenagers in the Washington, DC, area.
Monica M. Kim (BA University of Toronto; MAR Westminster Theological Seminary; MEd Lehigh University; PhD Lehigh University) is a licensed psychologist who has been counseling for almost twenty years. She has taught counseling courses as an associate faculty member at the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF) and as a lecturer at Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS). She currently serves as an adjunct faculty member at Lehigh University and as a consultant providing counselor training at CCEF. She also has a private practice. Monica is married to Danny Kwon, and they have three adult children, Luke, Noah, and Caleb.
Harold Y. Kim (BA UC Berkeley; MDiv Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary; ThM Princeton Theological Seminary) is the founding pastor of Christ Central of Southern California since 2007. Harold is married to SunHi and has two daughters, Taylor and Elizabeth. He also serves as President of SOLA Network and Christ Central Network.
Kim N. Kira is the primary teaching elder at Lighthouse Community Church in Torrance, California. He loves being part of a church family that is committed to loving God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. Kim is driven by a deep desire to encourage people to experience the transformative power of the gospel. Beyond ministry, Kim loves spending time with his wife Jen and their four children.
Michael Lee serves as the lead pastor of All Nations Community Church. Michael moved from Atlanta to Los Angeles to attend the University of Southern California, majoring in philosophy. After USC, he attended Talbot Theological Seminary and earned his MDiv. Michael also serves as a council member and the executive director of the SOLA Network. He is a huge USC Trojan football fan, avid golfer, and donut aficionado. He and his wife Alice reside in Arcadia with their two children, Seth and Brooke.
Owen Y. Lee has served as the senior pastor of Christ Central Presbyterian Church (Centreville, VA) since 2012. He received his BA in rhetoric from UC Berkeley and his MDiv from Westminster Seminary, California. He is an ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America and also serves as the director of operations for the Korean American Leadership Initiative (a ministry of Mission to North America). His purpose and passion are to preach the Gospel and to serve the Korean American Church by encouraging and empowering Korean American pastors and leaders. He is married to Margaret, and they have three adult children—Abby, Caleb, and Lizzy.
Enoch Y. Liao serves at Boston Chinese Evangelical Church. He is married to Karen and they have three sons at home and one daughter who has passed on. Enoch received his education from UCLA and Talbot School of Theology. Enoch is also currently enrolled in the PhD program at Western Seminary. He is the author of In Reverence and Awe, a practical worship leading resource. He is a cofounder and director of the Chinese Heritage Church Collaborative. Enoch enjoys spending time with his family, running, martial arts, and playing the occasional video game.
Hanley Liu serves as the English lead pastor at First Chinese Baptist Church of Walnut, California (FCBCW) and serves on the SOLA Network Council. He is happily married to his wife Meryl, and they have two children. He is a graduate of Biola University (BA, 2003), Talbot School of Theology (MDiv, 2006), and the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (DMin, 2017).
Soojin Park (BA Cornell University; MDiv Reformed Theological Seminary) is the events manager for The Gospel Coalition (TGC). She previously served on staff at Christ Central Presbyterian Church in Centreville, Virginia, as director of youth ministry and adult education. Soojin is a member of the editorial board at SOLA Network and cohost of the Glo podcast at TGC.
Jason M. Tarn is the lead English pastor of Houston Chinese Church, a nondenominational Chinese heritage church in Houston, Texas. He received his bachelor’s degree from University of Texas at Austin and completed an MDiv at Regent College. Jason grew up at Houston Chinese Church as a teenager and has been pastoring there since 2011. His passion is to bring sound doctrine and missional vision to the immigrant church. He is married to Theresa and has two daughters, Talia and Maisie.
Heidi K. Wong (BS Cornell University; MABS Reformed Theological Seminary) is the executive director for Exilic Church in New York City. Prior to entering vocational ministry, she worked in management consulting and tech. She is a writing fellow for the Washington Institute for Faith, Vocation, and Culture and editor in chief for SOLA Network.
Endorsements
“Written by Asian American Christian leaders who are practitioners first, these stories of faithful resilience, contextualized ministry practices, and faith-led dreams will inspire readers by enabling them to see what God is doing in and through a wide range of Asian American churches today.”
Peter Cha, professor and editor of Growing Healthy Asian American Churches
“Asian American churches serve as creative communities of belonging and resolution to the constraints and opportunities tied to multiple identities. This engaging work is an important resource and contribution to the emerging literature on Asian American Christianity.”
Sharon Kim, professor and author of A Faith of Our Own
See more endorsements from Raymond Chang, Steven Chin, Dr. Daniel K. Eng, Matthew D. Kim, Rev. Julius J. Kim, Rev. Tae Kim, Danny Kwon, Daniel D. Lee, Esther Liu, Michael Young-Suk Oh, Soong-Chan Rah, Benjamin C. Shin, Pastor Albert Ting, and Daniel L. Wong here.
Terminology
Asian American (sometimes hyphenated) describes a person of Asian descent living in the United States. Those who are of East Asian, Southeast Asian, South Asian, Central Asian, and Western Asian descent can all be identified as Asian Americans (although not all self-identify in the same way). The term can also encompass those who are Pacific Islanders, adoptees, mixed race, or in the country temporarily. In most cases, the authors also are speaking about those of Asian descent who are in Western countries such as Canada, England, and Australia.
Asian American church refers to a church whose makeup is majority Asian American, whether it is expressly Asian American or not. Sociologists would say that the church must be more than 80 percent Asian American to be classified in this way, but most of our authors were not precise in this way. Also, Pan-Asian church, Multi-Asian church, Asian American church.
See more terminology here.