Today is Ash Wednesday and marks the beginning of Lent.

Some of you are considering giving something up like chocolate, coffee, Facebook, obsession with Jeremy Lin, or sweets. That’s nice…but take a moment to read this as a reminder that Lent isn’t about you:

“I didn’t ask you to give up coffee. I asked you to give up your life.” ~ God

Have a blessed Lent.

Unless it’s Justin Bieber I don’t get star-struck, but I have to admit, it was pretty cool to meet President Barack Obama earlier this month. During his visit to Seattle on the weekend of February 16, I had the opportunity and privilege to attend one of the events he was speaking at. Specifically, it was an event at Boeing Everett to celebrate the work of American workers, Boeing, and the culmination of the work of the Dreamliner 787.

Light to the World.

As you know. I don’t run in these circles.  Sitting in a special section with dignitaries and politicians including mayors, various council members, business bigwigs and the Washington governor was awkward to say the least.  How I got invited to this event is a little unclear but over the past couple years, I’ve been building relationships with the White House via their Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. It’s also from a commitment I’ve had – as a Christian, a pastor, and a leader – to be a light to the World and not just merely light to the Light. Translation: As we serve and love the church, we must also look outward and engage the larger culture. Folks notice and when opportunities arise, they sometimes ask for input and involvement or just merely your presence and that’s what happened.

Because of this theology and ecclesiology to be a light to the world, I’ve tried to obviously love and serve my church but to also engage both local issues and national issues – including the messy business of politics.

Why Politics Matter

I care about politics not because I obsess over politics.

Rather, politics is important to me because it involves policies and policies, ultimately, impact people. We have no choice: we must be engaged in our civic responsibilities and affairs.

I am a staunch independent when it comes to political parties and urge Christians to not be played, swayed, and seduced by the powers to be. For this reason, I’ve tried to urge others to be cautious of the politicization and manipulation of Jesus, Christians, and religion.

But back to the story.

After the larger event to feature the Dreamliner 787 and listen to President Obama’s speech, a small group of folks were invited to a more intimate gathering (more like meet & greet) with the President. I was told I was going to be invited but I had no idea what to expect.

A conversation about Prayer

In my mind, I had envisioned the opportunity to share some convictions of my heart that would dramatically impact President Obama and alter the trajectory of his leadership, presidency, and country. Go big or go home, right?

Unfortunately, the opportunity for a long conversation wasn’t to be. Had I had that opportunity, I was hoping to talk policies, justice, human dignity, womb to tomb, Linsanity, family, marriage, compare pictures of our kids, and challenge him to a one-on-one basketball game.

Rather, it was a few minutes amongst a small group. When folks were introduced at this smaller gathering, they all had “important” titles. I was simply introduced by “Eugene Cho” and I’m certain many were asking, “Who is this and why is he here?” In fact, President Obama, himself, had a puzzled look as he said, “Hello Eugene.” So, I had to introduce myself to him and explained to him that I was a pastor here in Seattle and involved with some other work. We chit-chatted briefly about stuff  but there is something I very specifically remember and I don’t know if I’ll ever forget this portion of our conversation.

I shared with President Obama that I occasionally but regularly prayed for him and this is how he responded:

“Thank you, Eugene. I really appreciate that. Can you also please pray for my wife and children? Pray for their protection.”

His demeanor changed. Perhaps, this is just me. Perhaps, I’m reading and analyzing too much into all the non-verbal cues but then again, I’m a pastor and after 21 years of doing ministry, you develop a “pastoral sense” and I genuinely sensed his gratitude for prayer and his request for prayer for his family.

I haven’t been able to stop thinking about our short conversation – and a sense of the burden and weight of his job and the ‘calling’ of the Presidency. In many ways, we ought to commend the courage of all those who step into leadership – on any level – including the highest level. We can criticize all we want about our current presidential candidates but we must commend them for their courage to place themselves in such vulnerable positions.

On a more micro level, I too have experienced harsh pushbacks and criticism in my leadership as a pastor. Several years ago because of a controversial blog post I wrote (and a subsequent public spat with a cultural figure in Seattle), we had a rock thrown into our church building, phone call threats to my home, and anonymous hate email. It was a scary time and after assessing the potential danger to my family, I called the police to explain and seek advice, deleted our home phone line, and removed all pictures and names of our kids from the interwebs.

Now, imagine that. Multiply that 100,000,000 and then, consider that every day. Imagine this not just for yourself but for your spouse and for your children.

You see, it doesn’t matter what your political leanings, affiliations, and affections may be. I’m always amazed by those who so often quote 1 Timothy 2:1-4 as an encouragement to pray for our leaders but we hesitate when it’s someone we disagree with and instead start quoting Psalm 109:8

“May his days be few; and let another take his office.” 

This of course was the recent (and nebulous) encouragement of Kansas GOP House Speaker Michael O’Neal to his supporters. As you can imagine, a great deal of brouhaha erupted because that verse (if you read onto the next verse) is literally about “may his days be few.” It’s about death…

And then there are those absolutely crazy stories like that of Pastor Wiley Drake who shared and continues to share very publicly that he is praying for the death of the president of the United States. Wow. Dude…

An endorsement for prayer

This post isn’t an endorsement for President Obama or a political party. As an active pastor of a congregation, I believe it to be wise not to make endorsements but rather, I’ll talk about issues – particularly from the framework of my Christian faith.

However, I am making an endorsement on this blog post and it is an endorsement for prayer and specifically, prayer for President Obama, First Lady Michelle, and his daughters – Malia and Sasha.

As we shook hands and shared this brief conversation, I was reminded that despite President Obama being arguably “the most powerful man in the world” – beneath it all was simply another broken and fallen man with doubts and fears – just like me and all of us. All in desperately need of the grace of God. All in need of the comfort and strength through prayer. Our brief conversation reminded me of the words I heard from President Obama himself when I attended the 2011 National Prayer Breakfast (Feb. 3) in Washington DC:

“And like all of us, my faith journey has had its twists and turns. It hasn’t always been a straight line. I have thanked God for the joys of parenthood and Michelle’s willingness to put up with me. In the wake of failures and disappointments, I’ve questioned what God had in store for me and been reminded that God’s plans for us may not always match our own short-sighted desires.

And let me tell you, these past two years, they have deepened my faith. The presidency has a funny way of making a person feel the need to pray. Abe Lincoln said, as many of you know, ‘I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go.’”

Agree or disagree. Like or dislike. Republican or Democrat. Tea Party or Coffee Party. It doesn’t matter. Lift a prayer for President Obama and his family. Lift a prayer for this fellow brother-in-Christ. Pray for strength, conviction, and courage. Pray for safety and peace.

——————————————————–

Have you heard this story? Yes, its’ true: I’m talking about Victoria’s Secret models on my blog. [gulp]

In light of some recent posts I’ve written, “Media and Commercials: Women are Objects to be Objectified and Exploited for Consumption” and “The Dangers of Being a Woman”, this is a relevant and compelling read and discussion.

Truth be told, I don’t quite know what to make of modeling to begin with which is why I personally left modeling years ago.

For one Victoria Secret’s model, Kylie Bisutti, she’s decided – in response to her convictions as a follower of Christ – to no longer model lingerie and leave Victoria’s Secret altogether:

“For all of you that were looking for me in the Victorias Secret runway show this year, I wasn’t in it. I have decided not to model lingerie because I personally feel that I am not honoring God or my husband by doing it. My marriage is very important & with divorce rates rising I want to do everything I can to protect my marriage and be respectful to my husband. God graciously gave me this marriage and this life and my desire is to live a Godly faithful life, I don’t however judge others for what they do. Everyone is convicted on different levels.”

Compelling stuff but the part of the story that got me was about her 8-year-old cousin:

“I was doing my makeup in the mirror one day and she was watching me,” Bisutti said.  “She looked at me and was like, ‘You know, I think I want to stop eating so I can look like you.’”

Hits very close to home. Couple years ago, one of my daughters was celebrating her 8-year-old birthday and had about 9 of her friends from school at a sleepover party. While they watched movies, talked, laughed, and played games, I tried my best not to interfere but on one occasion, I slowly walked down the stairs to the basement where they were playing and was absolutely heartbroken over their conversation.

These 8 and 9-year-old girls were going around and sharing with each other…how much weight they wanted to lose.

Let’s be honest:

• Most Christians will praise  this model and wholesome Christian woman.
• Some Christians will cringe that this elevates the wholesome Christian woman.
• Haters will hate this righteous and judgmental Christian woman.
• Cynics will point  out that she hasn’t left modeling altogether and call out the hypocrisy of this still-model woman.
• And lastly, some of us will google her name to umm…read other stories (and find some images). Research.

We can all be critics and cynics. Marriage is hard enough and I applaud Kylie for her mutual commitment to her husband, marriage, and covenant.

Convictions & Courage

And I’m grateful that the Holy Spirit still speaks through convictions and I applaud Kylie for the courage to honor these convictions. Courage is what we need to live out our faith.

Look inside:

While we ponder and express our opinions and views, it would be stupid for us not to look inside and consider the convictions the Holy Spirit has and is placing upon our hearts. I completely agree with Kylie on this: “It’s a heart issue.”

Here’s the article from ABC News:

Model Kylie Bisutti, 21, has decided to leave Victoria’s Secret because it clashes with her Christian beliefs.

“I just became so convicted of honoring the Lord and my body and wanting to be a role model for other women out there who look up to me,” Bisutti said today on “Good Morning America.”

The California native beat out 10,000 hopefuls in 2009 to win the Victoria’s Secret Model Search. She was 19 and recently married at the time.

But wearing the coveted angel wings and walking the runway with Adriana Lima and Miranda Kerr wasn’t quite what Bisutti had hoped for.

“I was growing in my relationship with the Lord and my faith.  I’m a strong believing Christian,” Bisutti told “GMA” of how her thoughts on the job she has described as her “absolutely biggest goal in life” began to change.

“It was more of just a heart issue for me,” she said.

Though Bisutti has cited her husband and her desire to keep their marriage special as factors in her decision to leave her lingerie modeling days behind, she said the decision was hers alone.

“He was so, so supportive of me and I’m so thankful that he let me grow and let me come to this decision on my own,” she said of her husband.

Bisutti’s decision to leave the lingerie company was also spurred on by an encounter with her 8-year-old cousin.

“I was doing my makeup in the mirror one day and she was watching me,” Bisutti said.  “She looked at me and was like, ‘You know, I think I want to stop eating so I can look like you.’”

“It just broke my heart because she looks up to me and I didn’t want to be that type of person that she thought she had to do that to be beautiful,” she said.  “Thousands of girls that think that being beautiful is an outer issue and really it’s a heart issue.”

On Dec. 1, one day after the nationally televised Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, in which Bisutti didn’t appear, aired, the model posted to her Twitter page, “For all of you that were looking for me in the Victorias Secret runway show this year, I wasn’t in it. I have decided not to model lingerie Because I personally feel that I am not honoring God or my husband by doing it. My marriage is very important & with divorce rates rising I want to do everything I can to protect my marriage and be respectful to my husband. God graciously gave me this marriage and this life and my desire is to live a Godly faithful life, I don’t however judge others for what they do. Everyone is convicted on different levels.”

Bisutti says her headline-making decision does not mean she is giving up her modeling career altogether.

“I’m definitely going to pursue modeling,” she said on “GMA.”  “I just want to be more wholesome about it and the jobs that I am going to choose are always going to be honoring the Lord.” (original link)

Ugh.

Did you see Michigan Senate candidate Pete Hoekstra’s political campaign ad during the Super Bowl?

As you read in my previous post, I had some choice words about Go Daddy, Teleflora and other companies that continue to objectify and exploit women but I hadn’t seen Hoekstra’s ad.

Well, I just saw it…and I almost vomited in my mouth. Almost. Those chicken wings I consumed during the Super Bowl wanted to come back up. Check it out:

I know the questions you’re asking:

Is Hoekstra racist? No. And I’d rather not go there in this post because once you do, you miss the deeper conversations we all need to have.

Was the commercial racist? One could debate back and forth but one thing that’s absolutely clear is the complete lack of  cultural sensitivity and cultural intelligence displayed in the commercial. If you click on the actual website, it gets even worse. Yes, I said worse. – as in “I’ve never seen anything like this from a public official – ever” worse. Complete with caricatures that will make up for some great material for sociologists.  Absolutely mind-boggling.

And yes, I just did vomit that chicken.

Why does this matter? Why is this so critical – including for the Church? Yes, it’s true: These portrayals will likely continue to happen. Incidents like Lady Chinky Eyes – sadly – will continue to take place but imagine the pain of these incidents happening in the Church. I recently spent some time discussing and sharing with my good friends Helen Lee and Soong-Chan Rah about the important but not often discussed topic and commitment of cultural intelligence. Helen Lee is a writer, journalist, and author of the book, The Missional Mom: Living with Purpose at Home & in the World. Soong-Chan Rah is a professor at North Park Seminary and the author of The Next Evangelicalism and Many Colors: Cultural Intelligence for a Changing Church.

Here’s a summation of what we wrote together. It’s a must read introduction to a very critical conversation for all – but especially to leaders, pastors, and influencers:

What is your Cultural IQ?

Imagine this scenario occurring in your workplace. It’s your company’s annual corporate retreat, and in a misguided attempt to inject humor into the event, your leaders present a skit in which they all pretend to be disabled in some way.

They hobble around with awkward positions, as if paralyzed or unable to use particular limbs; they exaggerate their speech and behavior to grossly characterize those who have communication difficulties, and all these representations are done in a mocking and demeaning way, to garner a few laughs.

How about the Church?

No modern-day corporation would do this. And yet, in the context of Christian organizations and churches, similar situations still occur.

We recently witnessed a sermon video in which the pastor of a large, multi-site church in Minnesota brought an Asian man on stage representing a “samurai” and had him sit before the congregation, stone-faced and silent, while the pastor flailed his arms in a cartoonish imitation of karate moves while yelling random Asian-sounding gibberish, then banged a loud gong in an attempt to rattle the “samurai’s focus.”

As word of the video spread through the Asian American community and beyond, the church took it down but chose to ignore repeated overtures for dialogue from Asian-American Christians. In our fictional scenario above, this would be equivalent to the company leaders hearing rumblings from people who were offended with their dramatic representations and responding:

“It doesn’t matter what you think. We are the leaders, and it’s our choice how and what we want to communicate. If you didn’t like it, it’s not our problem.”

The church’s motivation may have been well intentioned; like many others before them who have co-opted another culture to serve their own purposes, they were aiming to be “relevant,” “engaging,” “creative,” “cool,” “hip.” But this sermon reflected none of those qualities, revealing instead an extreme lack of cultural intelligence.

For those who are passionate about the future of Christian leadership, for those who seek to or who already influence a group of followers, we have a prediction: more so than “emotional intelligence” or cognitive ability, your leadership prowess will be largely affected by how much cultural intelligence you possess and demonstrate.

What is cultural intelligence?

Our nation is moving rapidly towards racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity, and American Christianity is bearing witness to these dramatic changes. Workplaces, congregations, conferences, and readerships are all changing to reflect this reality, but Christian leaders are lagging behind in attaining the cultural intelligence they need in order to navigate through this multi-cultural reality.

Cultural intelligence is not merely gaining intellectual knowledge about another culture. Just because you like samurai/ninja culture and have seen Kung Fu movies does not mean that you possess cultural intelligence. Instead, a leader with a high cultural IQ has developed a sensitivity to other cultures and handles those cultural contexts with honor and respect.

Without cultural intelligence, a leader runs the risk of caricaturing other cultures, as in the church’s example above. You cannot appropriately represent a culture that you have not taken the time to know or understand. And when you attempt to do so, you not only dishonor those who are a part of the culture you are diminishing, but you also dishonor the One who has created every tongue, tribe, and nation to begin with.

None of us can claim perfect understanding of the wonderful diversity that exists both around the globe and even within our own country. But Christians are called to be ministers of reconciliation, and Christian leaders are the ones who need to step forward in the hard work of developing cultural intelligence.

What are steps that leaders can take to increase their cultural IQ?

Here are three simple ways to begin:

• Step out of your comfort zone and expose yourself to new cultural experiences that you have never tried–foods, styles of worship, entertainment, for example. As you normalize the discomfort of new cultural experiences, your sensitivity for those cultures will increase.
• Examine your personal relationships: how often do you spend time with those from a different cultural background? If your relationships overly homogeneous, how can you expand your relational horizons?
• Ask someone from a different culture to mentor you. As you meet leaders who speak into your spiritual and emotional life from a different cultural context, your understanding of our changing world will expand.

Cultural change is not a possibility, but an inevitability. The leaders who will have the biggest impact in this shifting cultural landscape are those who possess a teachable spirit, flexibility, and humility.

You can be “relevant” or you can be a reconciler: make the intelligent choice.

I don’t want to be about censorship but at some point, some things deserve to be thrown in the garbage.  Commercials that exploit and objectify women aren’t only offensive and disgusting…but they’re dangerous.

First, some background:

Who watched the Super Bowl? Perhaps, a better question might be: “Who didn’t watch the Super Bowl?”

In 2011, the game drew the largest audience ever in history:

Last year’s Super Bowl drew the largest audience in American television history, averaging 111 million viewers. All total, 163 million people watched at least part of the game. That’s more than half of the population.

Yesterday’s game likely drew about 120 111.3 million viewers. This – in part – explains why the cost of a 30 second commercial was set at $3.5 million dollars.

Wow.

And while there were some good, funny, witty, and brilliant commercials, there were (and have been for some time) a growing number of commercials that are just downright offensive.  It’s not new but each year, they seem to be getting worse and worse – so much that the commercials are the things I least look forward to. After noticing couple of those commercials, I couldn’t help but send this tweet to Go Daddy:

Dear @GoDaddy: Your objectification and exploitation of women disgust me. #HopeAnElephantStompsAllOverYourServers

Because my wife and I were watching the game with our three young children, we had to switch channels constantly and only heard about the repulsive message of Teleflora. So repulsive that I’d rather not  link their commercials on YouTube.

But here’s my question:

How is it that there were so many companies (aka Wikipedia, Craigslist, ICanHasCheezburger, Reddit, etc) and grassroots support to stop SOPA and PIPA and yet, these companies (and others) don’t give a darn about these overt objectifying and exploitative commercials from Go Daddy and others.

What we’ve learned in recent years is that money talks. Numerous companies threatened to boycott and move their domains from Go Daddy because of their support for SOPA and after some additional threats, Go Daddy backed down.

Why? Because they were afraid to lose clients.

Translation: Money talks.

And yet…none of these companies ever speak up about the crass and disgusting objectification and exploitation of women via these Go Daddy commercials (and others).

We have to do our part:

While we can do our personal part to not support these businesses, we also need to put pressure on these companies that simply don’t believe it to be important to make a fuss about these kind of ads.  Sure, there’s fury over SOPA and PIPA but the objectification and exploitation of women? Not that much.

How about the church?

I have no idea but is it possible that many churches host their domains via Go Daddy? Can you imagine the impact that we could make together by saying and demonstrating: “Enough is enough?! We must fight and turn tables for the dignity and value of women – because it impacts all of us.”

Why is it important? Read this.

It’s becoming increasing dangerous to be a woman. And this impact everyone: boys, girls, women, and men.

I’ve contended before on my blog, the treatment of women is the oldest injustice in human history. It’s so old and so taken for granted, that we don’t quite understand what’s at stake – not just for women, but really, for all of us. In more nuanced and simultaneously graphic ways, women are objects to be objectified and marketed and packaged for consumption. And these messages start early and often in human development and identity.

“Girls are taught at a every young age their worth is dependent on what they look like. Their body and not their mind.”

Watch this. Please watch this:

On February 1, 1997, Minhee and I exchanged vows and committed ourselves to Christ, one another, our families and community –  the journey of loving, serving, and growing as followers of Christ and as husband and wife – in mutual submission to one another.

Today, we celebrate our 15th anniversary.

Wow. 15 years of love, mutual submission, forgiveness, and love.

I know that it is customary [and wise] to speak well of your spouse on your anniversary but Minhee truly is an expression and embodiment of God’s grace and beauty to my life. Our marriage – while clearly not perfect – remains focused on the three pillars I often share with others:

Passion.  Vision.  Mission.

Here’s our wedding photo that still continues to amaze people. Minhee looks her usual photogenic self and I’ve been told I look “very different” - so different that people ask if it’s her “first husband.”

We’ve learned a great deal and have much more to learn. We’ve loved and have much to love. Couple years ago, I wrote a post and taught a sermon (with Minhee) about some of our best & worst practices and decisions in marriage.

Marriage is important. And while I’ve had the great privilege of officiating numerous weddings, I’ve also experienced the devastation of destructive relationships, marriages and divorce.  There’s just too much at stake to worry about your self-image preservation and projection of marital bliss.

And it’s not just merely for the sake of others. Marriage is important to Minhee and me. She was a counselor when I first met her nearly 17 years ago and after taking many years off to be home with our children, she recently went back to grad school and completed another Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy last year.  But this isn’t about being a pastor or a marriage counselor, marriage is important to us because we have a covenant with God and with one another as husband and wife.

You can watch the entire sermon below but here are the three biggest mistakes I’ve made in our marriage:

Solo Decisions & Convincing

This is pretty dumb and insulting. My wife and I are a team but there have been several occasions where I’ll basically make a decision on my own and then I’ll take it to Minhee and attempt to spin it as a group decision when what I’m doing is…trying to convince her to agree to my decision.

Who can resonate with this? Raise your hand.

A Secret – aka Lying

During the 2nd year of our marriage, I made one of my worst decisions that to this day, I’m not quite sure why I made that decision. Bluntly, I lied. I made a financial decision alone (see above) but this time, I withheld it from my wife until that financial decision backfired and I had no choice but to tell her.

The incident set us back and devastated Minhee. It wasn’t the financial aspect that she was distraught over but the fact that in essence, I had lied to her. Needless to say, we had some very intense conversations and I needed to apologize, repent, and re-build trust.

Don’t lie. And don’t have secrets.

Not being fully present

As a long time recovering workaholic, it’s easy for my mind to wander about ministry, cafe, church, ODW, my ‘to-do’ lists, etc. On top of that, I’m equipped with my smartphone – both an ally and an enemy. While I’ve gotten much better, I’ve made the mistake in my marriage of not being fully present when we’re together and that’s not cool.

Be careful folks. The smartphone can make us look like stupid fools. Not cool at all.

Love & Forgiveness

Through it all, we’ve learned again and again that marriage is a rhythm of love and forgiveness. Love endures. Love heals. Love redeems. Love reconciles. Love pursues.

And yet, we all know that our love isn’t perfect. We all make mistakes…which is why the commitment to forgiveness may be one of the most significant pursuits in marriage. In fact, I feel very strongly that you can’t love without forgiveness.

I deeply resonated with this quote from Ruth Bell Graham who was married to Billy Graham for 63+ years before her passing in 2007:

“A happy marriage is the union of two forgivers.” ~ Ruth Bell Graham

So true. So true.

Here’s the sermon we taught together last year about some of our best and worst:

How do you define a successful church?
How do we measure success as a pastor?

I’m come to realize that part of my calling as a pastor and leader is to be an encouragement to other pastors – but especially to those that don’t “measure up” to how we in the church subculture often directly or indirectly elevate stories of successful pastors – aka ‘celebrity pastors.’

This post isn’t a criticism of celebrity pastors. Hardly at all. Instead, it’s a post to accentuate the importance of all those who serve and lead in the church – but especially those pastors you’ll never hear of; Those that are not part of the preaching circuit; Those that don’t have publishing deals, etc.

I am not a successful pastor. I don’t pastor a mega-church or a large church. I don’t facilitate astronomical budgets, earn a huge salary, travel with huge entourages, fly on private jets, and have thousands upon thousands of sermon subscribers.

But nevertheless, I have influence.
We all do.

I’m simply trying to be faithful to the things, to the people, to the city, to the convictions, and to the Kingdom work that God has placed before me.

I want to be faithful.

That is all and that in itself, is so important.

Our church recently hosted our Annual Meeting where I shared my Lead Pastor Report. In addition, we published our Annual Report, shared some major changes and possibilities, and also shared and explained all of our financial reports. While there are mentions of numbers, budgets, and such, what I was most encouraged by was our pursuit to be faithful to the things that God has placed upon the hearts of our church.

I invite you to take a few minutes to read through our Annual Report. I share it in hopes that it might encourage some of you.  My intent isn’t to be boastful but rather to convey, a sense of deep profound joy in knowing that God is working amongst our church – even our little church.

Why is this important?

Well, perhaps, it’s because some of us might struggle with pastor envy – or more appropriately – celebrity pastor envy. Let’s be honest: We’re often comparing sizes. Yes, I just went there.

But we do. Pastors and leaders are no different and for many of us, we simply don’t measure up. Don’t be obsessed with measuring up to measurements. Measure up to faithfulness.

You matter. Your leadership matters. Your influence matters.  Your church matters. While you and I will never make any list of “the most influential” or “the fastest growing” or “the largest” or “the baddest” or “the whatever”…

We still matter. Our leadership and ministry matters. Let’s be faithful.

Speaking of success, many of us have love affairs with “success” which is why we can so easily fall susceptible to a spiral of insecurity. If we’re honest – no matter who we are and whatever discipline of work we’re involved with – we have some  perception of success. That in itself isn’t bad but what if our perception of success becomes like a love affair?  An obsession of value and self-worth?

That would be dangerous. Borderline idolatrous.

When we’re immature

…when our rootedness is not in the Gospel of Christ, then it leads us into dangerous and lonely places – where we find ourselves constantly comparing or seeking the approval and affirmation of others or via:

• budgets.
• attendance.
• size.
• buildings.
• # of followers, readers, etc.

Trust me…When our sense of calling and security is guided by such things, they will never satisfy you.

It’s never enough. Never.
You want more…

because your soul is satisfied by lists, praise, adoration, and ultimately, a worldly sense of success.

Hear this well:

You don’t have to be “the most influential” in the nation. Just seek to be the most influential and loving pastor and leader to the church you’re called to. That will not likely get you on any special lists but you’ll serve your people well. You’ll be faithful to your flock and calling.

Metrics have their place. But don’t get lorded over by numbers and metrics. Numbers don’t guide us. Rather, the Holy Spirit is our guide. Be faithful.

I think Mother Theresa said it so well:

“God does not call us to be successful, but God calls us to be faithful.”

I’m sorry if this post depresses, discourages, or disturbs you. It’s not my intent but a reminder of the arduous work ahead for all of us.

It’s the day after…

The day after this nation (and many in the global community) celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We march, share inspiring quotes, and listen to compelling speeches.

It’s a feel good day.

But today is the day after – and the awareness of reality. A reality of certainly a better world from the days of Rosa Park and Dr. King but a reminder of  the long road ahead. Oh,we have a long way to go.  Anyone that wonders if racism still exists in America simply need to look at our incarceration and education system. Broken would be an understatement.

But it’s not just merely an issue of race or more specifically, Black and White. Rather, it’s about the larger issue of Strong vs. Weak. Perhaps, it’s always been about this dichotomy and it gets played out via the arenas of race, class, economics, gender, age, orientation, etc.

The question for us – as human beings – and especially as people after the heart of God as Christians is to not merely understand the heart of God but to pursue and do the heart of God.

I often wonder if those that are so eager to celebrate and applaud Dr. King actually read the same Bible that Rev. Dr. King read.

By this, I mean, do we understand how on so many occasions, God conveys His fierce passion for the widows, the orphans, the poor, the weak, the sick, the exploited, etc. Do we know that God takes sides?

We might not like it. We might not agree with the politics. We might want to hide from it. We might want to spiritualize it. We might want to theologize it, disneyize it…but this I know from reading the Bible and following the life of Jesus:

God takes sides of the weak

I know some of you will disagree with my usage of the word ‘weak.’ There’s something undignified about labeling people as weak and I agree but semantics and language aside, I guess that’s what I mean: We live in an unjust, unfair, and broken world where there are distinctions of strong and weak and the weak after often, if not always, exploited on some level or another. Why? Because we can.

One of the more compelling verses from the Scriptures that inform and transform my world view comes from Psalm 82:3-4

Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy…

Two stories – an article and a video – recently came to my attention.  I’m aware there’s always many angles to a story but for me, they are stories and example of the strong destroying the weak. I’m not sharing these stories because the weak in these stories are Asian and as such, trying to elevate Asian plight. Nope, my point is much broader: Strong vs. Weak.

If there’s one thing you’ll read this month, I want to humbly suggest you read this article from the New York Magazine. It is a feature and the story of Private Danny Chen (1992-2011) – “He was 19 yars old, a scrawny six-four, and wanted nothing more than to join the Army…”

But things got bad:

The eight men later charged in connection with his death are all white and range in age from 24 to 35; they include one lieutenant, two staff sergeants, three sergeants, and two specialists. Members of this group allegedly harassed and humiliated Chen from almost the day he arrived at The Palace. They belittled him with racial slurs. They forced him to do push-ups with a mouthful of water, refusing to let him swallow or spit any out. And, on September 27, a sergeant allegedly yanked him out of bed and dragged him across about 50 yards of gravel toward a shower trailer as punishment for supposedly breaking the hot-water pump. He endured bruises and cuts on his back. Army officials told Chen’s family that although the leader of his platoon found out about this incident, he never reported it as he was required to. [read full article]

Read it. I dare you. I challenge. Please, I invite you. I don’t know what more to write but to share sadness and pain for the lost life of Danny Chen, the desolation of his parents, and the heinous behavior of those in power who preyed on his ‘weakness.’

Desolation for others who are bullied, beaten, and belittled – simply because they are “weaker” – however defined.

And then yesterday, I saw this YouTube video entitled, “Helpless Asian man attacked and jumped by 7 others behind school.” Apparently, this took place this past week in Chicago. I know that there’s always some context that’s missing but what I see is the (physically) strong attacking the weak and it is absolutely sickening and disgusting. If you watch this video, be warned of the extreme violence and language.

It’s the day after…and I’m discouraged. The world is so fallen and broken. Like, really broken.  And so perhaps, this quote again from Dr. King is especially appropriate for “the days after”…

“When our days become dreary with low hovering clouds of despair, and when our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, let us remember that there is a creative force in this universe, working to pull down the gigantic mountains of evil, a power that is able to make a way out of no way and transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows. Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.”

Yes, the feel good fuzziness of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is over. I’m reminded of the work before us – the work of mercy, justice, and humility; the work of reconciliation and restoration. The work of defending, rescuing, and fighting for the weak – and this work to be done with dignity.

We’ve got work ahead and so, I share a prayer once prayed by Dr. King with you all:

Most Gracious and all wise God, Before whose face the generations rise and fall, Thou in whom we live, and move, and have our being. We thank thee for all of thy good and gracious gifts, for life and for health, for food and for raiment, for the beauties of nature and the love of human nature. We come before thee painfully aware of our inadequacies and shortcomings. We realize that we stand surrounded with the mountains of love and we deliberately dwell in the valley of hate. We stand amid the forces of truth and deliberately lie, We are forever offered the high road and yet we choose to travel the low road. For these sins O God forgive. Break the spell of that which blinds our minds. Purify our hearts that we may see thee O God in these turbulent day when fear and doubt are mounting high give us broad visions, penetrating eys, and power of endurance. Help us to work with rewed vigor for a warless world, for a better distribution of wealth, and for a brotherhood that transcends race or color. In the name and spirit of Jesus we pray. Amen.

If you’re reading this and read this far:

Thanks for your life, your work, and your commitment to the whole Gospel including: “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy.” – and Let’s Do it With Dignity.

I’m honored to be laboring together with you.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an extraordinary person.  Not perfect but nevertheless, extraordinary.  While we remember his legacy again on this day…let’s not make the mistake of forgetting the God behind this extraordinary man.

It’s way too easy to talk about MLK because so many people and groups of people want to own him as their own.  But they often don’t want to take or acknowledge all of him.  At the core of his life, Martin Luther King Jr. was a follower of Jesus Christ. His faith in Christ informed all that he sought to do as a civil rights leader.

And that is precisely why his dream did not die upon his assassination. Because it wasn’t his dream.  This dream is bigger than one man, one race, one gender, and one generation.

God is behind it all…
And God is still stirring.
And God is still speaking into our dreams.

Dr. King was not a perfect man. Far from it but he was a great man as he pursued to live out his definition of greatness: a servant of others. While many are familiar with his more well known speeches such as “I Have a Dream,” another one that I’m particularly drawn to is his last “speech” – delivered the day before his assassination.

“I just want to do God’s will…as a people, we will get to the promised land…I’m not fearing any man as mine eyes have seen the coming of the Lord.”

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day today, may we acknowledge and celebrate this amazing dreamer but also acknowledge the Giver of such dreams.

..and dare to dream as well.

And every now and then, I love “preaching” one of his sermons. Last year (2011), I read one of my favorite Martin Luther King Jr. sermons at Quest Church entitled, “The Drum Major Instinct.” This sermon was preached at Ebener Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia on February 4, 1968. He was assassinated on April 4.

Below is the video of the sermon and you can also read the entire manuscipt here.

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice.
Say that I was a drum major for peace.
I was a drum major for righteousness.
And all of the other shallow things will not matter.
I won’t have any money to leave behind.
I won’t have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind.
But I just want to leave a committed life behind…

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I’m sharing one of my favorite MLK Jr. quotes:

“When our days become dreary with low hovering clouds of despair, and when our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, let us remember that there is a creative force in this universe, working to pull down the gigantic mountains of evil, a power that is able to make a way out of no way and transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows. Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Question: What’s your favorite MLK quote?

Wait! Before you decide not to click or read this blog entry because I’m talking about Korean Pop (K-Pop), I want you to do yourself a favor and read this.

Actually, see this and more importantly, hear this song.

I know. I know.

You’re not K-Pop fans nor fans of ballads. I’m not either.  Heck, I don’t even know what’s popular in the States. I’ve never even seen an episode of American Idol or X Factor or The Voice or whatever else it’s called now.

But couple days ago, I was working and stumbled onto YouTube and saw an episode of K-Pop Star – perhaps the equivalent of American Idol  and then, I couldn’t stop watching.

There were some decent talent and then this guy sang and I literally…

pushed play 6 consecutive times.

Who is this guy?

His name is Soo Hwan Kim (or Kim Soo Hwan in Korean).

For his 2nd round audition, he sang a cover of a song called “I’m so Fortunate.” I guess the title and content of the song is particular moving in light of the fact that Soo Hwan was born blind. The 19-year-old contestant (maybe 18 in Western age?) barely made it past the 1st round because one of the judges was particularly moved by his attempt to hip-hop dance despite another judge giving him a “No.” He was definite fortunate in that way as well.

But for the 2nd round, Soo Hwan literally mesmerized the judges. I think they all got a little teary-eyed. I may or may not have teared up watching this in my pajamas in my office late at night. Maybe. After watching his audition, I may or may not have dreamt about being a K-Pop star.

One of the judges, J. Y. Park, asks if he had a girlfriend and if he thinks of his girlfriend when he sings a song like this. He answers:

“Yes. I do have a girlfriend. And I do think of her. She’s really cute. We’ve been dating for seven years. She’s also blind. Her condition is worse than mind. I was in 6th grade and she was in 4th grade when I first started courting her…”

I’m a sucker for these kind of stories – even at the risk of losing any remnants of the man-card I have left. Stories like Susan Boyle and Sung Bong Choi (an orphan boy who is discovered in a similar kind of audition and who blows everyone away). I love these stories because vocalized or not, we all have judgments about what people can or can’t do. Perhaps, no one experiences this more than those who are physically challenged or to be more politically incorrect…disabled.

But as we learn again and again…

Everyone has dreams. Everyone.
Everyone has gifts. Everyone.

There’s power and beauty when we pursue those dreams with the gifts that we have…

I know. I know. You don’t understand Korean. But just listen to it. I have a feeling you’ll understand at least the crux of the song:

“I’m so Fortunate.”

We are all so fortunate. We just need to have the sight to understand this.

If you don’t want to watch the intro, forward to 1:26.