Often, when I tell people that I work with the Asian American Christian Fellowship at Penn State, they look at me quizzically while nodding. Some note the obvious: “But you’re not Asian.” I usually point out that two other staff members for the Fellowship are also non-Asian. Nonetheless, as an ethnic and cultural misfit, I feel compelled to give some explanation.
On one of my other blogs, I wrote in 2007 about the Epic Conference, a gathering of students and staff from Epic ministries all along the east coast, and some of the things I learned there. I’m fond of that posting and the explanation I gave at the time, so I am reproducing it here.
Epic and wcs?
Whereas I would like to say that my ministry with AACF is very “normal” and I fit right in, of course this is not true. Messages at the Epic Conference focused a lot on Asian American culture. I continue to learn a lot about Asian American culture, and enjoy the fun (maybe even challenge) of what might be called “cross-cultural ministry.” Several years ago, a guy I had been friends with for a short time invited me to a Christian meeting. He was cool and I was craving some fellowship with Christians so I went. And except for a bearded guy who sat in the back and the group’s advisor, the whole fellowship was Asian American. Whoa. I had never seen so many Asian people in one place before.
“And you may ask yourself, ‘well, how did I get here?’”
Today I am considered an advisor of this Asian American ministry; how odd! I have no qualifications specific to ethnic ministry. All I have is Christ and a desire to serve God and openness to a culture that is not my own, and that’s good enough. Plus, I really like the group–that personal invitation to come to the meeting for the first time was a huge factor in this. (Invite your friends!)
Today, the group is much the same as it was several years ago when I first attended as a student: dynamic, loving, welcoming, and fired up in their Christian faith. When I made the decision to stay at Penn State after graduation, I was eager to continue to build into this group that had helped build me up in college.
Above: hanging out at the lake with the Bible study guys, fall 2006.