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TGIF: Roundup for September 4, 2020


TGIF: Roundup for September 4, 2020


Aaron Lee

I interviewed author and speaker Trillia Newbell, and we talked about Christian worldview and cultural engagement. Watch, listen to, or read our conversation. Soojin Park interviewed Joyce Kang, a Letters for Black Lives translator. Find their discussion on our website. Our monthly newsletter highlights our most popular resources. Read it and…



How To Engage The World: An Interview with Trillia Newbell


How To Engage The World: An Interview with Trillia Newbell


Trillia Newbell and Aaron Lee

What does it mean to live in this world with Biblical wisdom and winsome confidence? What does living out the Gospel look like in our daily lives? I interviewed author and speaker Trillia Newbell about her new book, Beautifully Distinct, and we talked about engaging our culture with a Christian worldview. She answered those questions…



The Only Person Who Saw 2020 Coming (And Can Fix It)


The Only Person Who Saw 2020 Coming (And Can Fix It)


David J. Schuman

If you look up #myplansvs2020 on Instagram, one of the top posts is a balloon on one side (my plans) and a needle on the other (2020). This year has taught us two important lessons: 1) We don’t know what the future will hold. 2) We definitely can’t control it. A tiny little virus, a teeny fraction of the size of a human hair, brought the entire world…


 

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  • TOP TRENDING

1


Why Asian American Leaders See COVID and Church Lockdowns Differently

Steve Chang

2


Translating for Justice: An Interview with a Letters for Black Lives Translator

Soojin Park and Joyce Kang

3


Why I Love Pastoring the Immigrant Church – And Why You Would, Too

Stephen Chen

  • EDITOR’S PICKS

1


How To Engage The World: An Interview with Trillia Newbell

Trillia Newbell and Aaron Lee

2


The Only Person Who Saw 2020 Coming (And Can Fix It)

David J. Schuman

3


Loving Our Kids in this Coronavirus and School Season

Wayne Hu

If you're going to speak or say something, the manner in which it is said can show love. Now people are going to be against truth. Jesus said that if the world hated me, why wouldn't they hate you? So there is a chance that you're going to be rejected as you speak something that is true.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @trillianewbell @thegoodbookcompanyusa⁠ @diveindigdeep @fcbcwalnut

In this edition: Are Christians More Confident in Politics Than in Christ? (@TheGospelCoalition) / 3 Strategies for College Outreach During COVID-19 (@TheGospelCoalition) / Should Churches Defy State Orders? (@LivingHopeCCBrea)⁠ ⁠ We also share new worship music from NewStory Church (@NewStory.LA) and a new episode from The Greater Story Podcast (@The_Greater_Story) (@HeidiTaiWrites) on the Broadway musical Hamilton.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @diveindigdeep @fcbcwalnut

What does it mean to live in this world with Biblical wisdom and winsome confidence? What does living out the Gospel look like in our daily lives?⁠ ⁠ I interviewed author and speaker Trillia Newbell about her new book, Beautifully Distinct, and we talked about engaging our culture with a Christian worldview. She answered those questions by saying Christians can offer love and hope to a lost and hurting world. She also gave some encouragement to writers. Read my review of her book, and watch our interview on YouTube or listen to the audio on Spotify and Podcasts.⁠ ⁠ My prayer is that our conversation helps you think clearly, speak carefully, and act courageously in faith. May we engage the world with the grace of Jesus.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @trillianewbell @thegoodbookcompanyusa⁠ @diveindigdeep @fcbcwalnut

God rules history, and he has brought it to its climax in Christ.⁠ ⁠ Through our rebellion against God, mankind has made him our enemy, but while we were still sinners Christ died for us (Romans 5:10). He makes us his friends and conquerors all our enemies, even sin and death itself.⁠ ⁠ Our hard hearts resist God, but he has given us a new heart and worked in us repentance. He overcomes our every obstacle.⁠ ⁠ And although we deserve God’s wrath and curse for our sin, in Christ we have received every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3). God abundantly provides for our every need.⁠ ⁠ No matter what the rest of 2020 brings, we can face it with quiet confidence and a deep inner peace because we know that our good and powerful God rules history.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @davidjschuman @exilicchurch

If you look up #myplansvs2020 on Instagram, one of the top posts is a balloon on one side (my plans) and a needle on the other (2020).⁠ ⁠ This year has taught us two important lessons: 1) We don’t know what the future will hold. 2) We definitely can’t control it. A tiny little virus, a teeny fraction of the size of a human hair, brought the entire world to a standstill.⁠ ⁠ No one saw this coming, right?⁠ ⁠ Isaiah 41 was written almost three thousand years ago, but it has a lot to say to us in 2020. It says we might not know what the future holds, but God does. Not only did he know what 2020 would bring, but he’s the one who brought it to existence. Even though we can’t control the future, God rules over history, and all of this is part of his plan.⁠ ⁠ What a tremendous comfort that brings us! In the midst of a pandemic, a faltering economy, and societal changes, we can have a deep inner peace because we’re confident that our good and powerful God rules history.⁠ ⁠ Here are three ways God rules history and the encouragements we can hold onto.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @davidjschuman @exilicchurch

Pastoring an immigrant church is both demanding and a delight. In nearly every American city, such churches exist—almost always in anonymity. ⁠ ⁠ Have you ever considered partnering with or praying for a nearby immigrant church? Have you ever considered pastoring one yourself? ⁠ ⁠ Ministry in the immigrant church will likely not result in accolades, nor will its pastors be lauded among broader evangelicalism. But the labor is a joyous necessity—at least until the final ingathering of “every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev 5:9).⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.

The last church I wanted to pastor was an immigrant church. I’d just graduated from seminary. If I had to tier the types of Silicon Valley churches I wanted to serve, the “Google Church” would have been at the top of my list. This is the established, healthy church with great ecclesiology, vibrant elders, and a good reputation. I would have also relished the “Tech Startup Church,” a cutting-edge church plant where I could shape its various contours and be at the center of evangelistic energy.⁠ ⁠ You know what would have been at the bottom of my list? The immigrant church. I thought my newly minted MDiv deserved “better,” that pastoring an immigrant church felt like joining “Yahoo,” a passé and suboptimal organization.⁠ ⁠ Twelve years later, I realize how wrong I was. I’ve happily served as the English pastor of an immigrant Chinese church, and I have learned to love it. It thrills me to serve here; there’s no place I’d rather be.⁠ ⁠ Below I’ve written three reasons I love ministering in an immigrant church. My hope is that you too will discover its distinctive beauty in the mosaic of local churches God has designed.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.

I challenge Asian American churches to call out anti-Blackness and uncover biases within our own leaders and congregation. For example, reflect on which theologians we read and quote, consider whether we elevate certain non-Asian American members over others, and analyze how we decide which organizations and missionaries we support.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @_soojpark @christcentralpc @lettersforbl

Because of the conversation around racial injustice and police brutality sparked by the deaths of individuals like Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor, many of us have wrestled with how to better educate ourselves and how to tangibly work towards supporting our Black brothers and sisters.⁠ ⁠ It can seem overwhelming when we don’t quite know where to begin, and it seems the systemic issues are so much bigger than what we can grasp. But in the midst of the wrestling, I leaned on a dear friend and sister who exemplified effective and intentional allyship to me who was able to help me learn and process.⁠ ⁠ Joyce Kang has been a voice for and with the Black community long before it took over our social media feeds. Joyce has been speaking out against systemic racism and pleading with the Asian American community to care for our Black friends long before the national wake up happened in 2020.⁠ ⁠ As those in her community, including myself, were trying to catch up, she gave us a tangible place to start: having conversations in our own Asian American communities. Joyce took part in the relaunch of the Letters for Black Lives and helped bring a tool for Korean Americans specifically to dialogue about racism and police brutality. I wanted others, particularly in the Asian-American community, to be encouraged and challenged by her passion so I decided to ask her a few questions regarding her experiences.⁠ ⁠ Read more at SOLA.NETWORK. Link in bio.⁠ @_soojpark @christcentralpc @lettersforbl

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