Tag: missionary
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The Death Of John Allen Chau: Rough Rider Or Reject?
I’ve been involved in cross-cultural mission work for almost 20 years and have lived overseas for the last 11. When I first heard about an American missionary dying on a remote island at the hands of the tribe he was trying to reach, I was immediately confused and critical. I thought this was another classic…
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10 Reasons Why Mission Matters in a Post Missional World
Last week I was with persecuted Christians. A young mother was taken away in handcuffs and placed in leg shackles and put in a dingy wooden village jail, treated like a common criminal. Her only crime…refusing to sign a paper that would effectively deny her faith in Jesus. This week I’m with privileged Christians. After…
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Why Easter is Meaningless (For the Unreached)
The dust and heat of Southeast Asia in March and April is unbearable. It’s Easter Weekend and I’m on my third pair of sweat soaked underwear for the day. But if that’s what it takes to hide Easter eggs in the front yard for my kids to find then I’ll get sweaty. I love bringing…
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The Way of the Ninja: 6 Ways to Define Our Missional Role
Every Asian kid growing up has one time played ninja. You take a black t-shirt, wrap it around your head, make some paper throwing stars and hide in the closet to get the drop on your unsuspecting brother or sister. Movies and pop-culture show the ninja to be a bad-ass warrior. But real life ninjas…
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Bonfires VS Forest Fires: Sparking Church Movements
I once started a forest fire. As a teenager I always had a lighter in my pocket to smoke a cigarette or a joint. One day, when I was a bored novice monk in Fresno, CA, I wanted to see if sparks could light some dry grass behind the Buddhist temple. Yea, I know, really…
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What Dreams May Come: Pornography and its Effect on the Mission Field
(Special thanks to Inheritance Magazine for originally publishing this story. Much gratitude for telling stories worth telling.) I HAD A CRAZY, vivid dream during my first year on the mission field in Southeast Asia. In it, I was surrounded by attractive women lavishing me with attention. It was a feast of carnal entertainment, and I…
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The Kingdom of Who?…Model, Assist, Watch & Leave
I walked into an immaculate church building recently and was blown away. It was brand spankin new. You could still smell the sky blue colored paint. It was equipped with everything you would need to do traditional church stuff; sound system, keyboard, projector, laptop, new kitchen, open cafeteria, all-you-can-drink powdered coffee and guestrooms with air…
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Dear Tobias…What’s the Worst & Best Thing about Being a Missionary?
November 23, 2014 Hi Tobias, We’ve never met before but I’ve heard a lot about you from some mutual friends. My wife and I spent this past weekend with some missional families stateside and I know God has broken our hearts for the lost, especially for those in the 1040 window. I just wanted to…
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The Lack of Cultural Diversity in the Missional Movement: Where All My Colored People At?
I was a ghetto Asian-American juvenile delinquent, fresh in the faith, when I first walked into a southern California mega-church with a group of other knuckleheads wearing saggy Dickies and oversized t-shirts. This church was located in the heart of one of the most ethnically diverse cities in America and we were excited about connecting…
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6 Reasons Why Asian Americans Make Great Missionaries (Part 2)
The last post gave you 3 reasons why Asians can be strategically positioned to fulfill the Great Commission. Here are the final 3 reasons why you’d make a great ninja for Jesus. Reason 4) Pioneering Opportunities: Caramel Faces Just the other day we sat in a thatched house in a tiny little village at…
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6 Reasons Why Asian Americans Make Great Missionaries (Part 1)
Have you ever asked yourself if engaging the lost in some far-off country was something you could do? Have you ever considered being a cross-cultural worker for the Kingdom? Your parents, as refugees and migrants, might think you are insane for even considering going back to the country they left. But don’t fret, all things…
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Training Trainers: A New Paradigm for Discipleship
No one likes to be told they are doing something wrong, especially leaders, pastors and church planters. We’ve devoted our lives to growing the Church but have we been doing it all wrong? I hate it when I’m wrong. My pride always says that I am right. But my pride can’t argue with results. The…
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Easter Doesn’t Exist…For The Unreached
Last week I found myself with a broken motorbike surrounded by jungle and stranded in a mountain pass with no cell phone reception. There was no other choice but to split the group up and push the heavy ass bike back the way we came – up and down the mountain in the heat of…
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When Failing Feels Like Crap
We spend a lot of time cleaning up crap. You know…the mess we make as a result of our own selfish decisions. It doesn’t matter if we are leaders, missionaries, or pastors, we all fall to pride, lust, anger, self-righteousness, worry and self. In those times that we fail to triumph over sin we feel…
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Church Sucks
It’s safe to say that more than half the people on this planet feel that church sucks. They see it as an institution – one that is intolerant, irrelevant, hypocritical and completely out of touch with culture. It’s also safe to say that the other half of this planet have no official opinion of church because they’ve never formulated…
The Asian Rough Rider 