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Last Friday, we had an open mic for people to share their testimonies and brag about Jesus. It was probably one of the best set of testimonies that I’ve heard in a long time. People shared vulnerably and openly about their weaknesses and their situations, but the best part of it was that each person made much of Jesus. I love hearing stories of transformation, which are directly connected with the Gospel story.

Also that night, I laid out HMCC-HK’s vision for the future. Pretty much, I explained the “whys” of what we are endeavoring for here in Hong Kong (HK). Even though it is not the first time sharing the vision, it is more pertinent and critical now to understand the vision at this season of time. In order to move forward this coming year, it is paramount that the vision is clearly and explicitly explained.

HMCC-HK wants to reach HK because we believe that HK is a very important city. If we can reach HK, we can reach the rest of the world. The vision is divided into four crucial parts (the 4 M’s): (1) Multiply LIFE Groups in HK universities, (2) Multi-site churches throughout HK, (3) Missions to “The Circle,” (4) Mobilize church launch teams.

Each of these four parts can be illustrated and further explained with some pictures:

1. Multiply LIFE Groups in HK universities. In order for us to reach HK, we must reach the key universities within HK. When people experience genuine biblical community, their lives will be transformed. As people are experiencing transformation, they will start reaching out to other people and impacting their sphere of influence. We believe that as LIFE Groups grow healthy, it will begin to multiply in number. Even though we are starting on the university campuses, we believe that LIFE Groups will multiply in every life-stage ministries in our church (i.e. single adults, married couples, families, etc.) throughout the whole city.



Photo Credit: HMCC-HK Media Team
 
 
 

2. Multi-site churches throughout HK. It is our hope that our LIFE Groups will multiply on each of the campuses. Then, we can start to form a strong core group of people who will have a passion for their “mission field” or region of HK. We are praying that each region of HK, where there is a key university, will multiply to about 6-7 LIFE Groups. Once we have about 50-60 core members in each area, we can start a multi-site church to target that particular neighborhood. This will help the church to be more missional and to live out the Gospel in their area of residence. As multi-site churches are being launched all throughout HK, we will be able to reach fully engage and saturate HK with Gospel-centered communities. God used this next picture to speak to me about the importance of reaching HK. It is a simple in-flight magazine that shows flights originating from HK; nevertheless, God used it to give a visual picture of the importance of reaching HK in order to start future churches all throughout Asia.



Photo Credit: Cathay’s in-flight magazine
 
 
 

3. Missions to “The Circle.” It is incredible how God can use a simple map to help ignite a vision for HMCC-HK. This vision became more of a reality when God used two more informational pictures to solidify His calling for our church. It is estimated that 52% of the world’s population lives within the circle (the first picture below). If you look closely, you will notice that HK is right in the center of the circle. This reminded me of the in-flight magazine and how God spoke about the importance of reaching HK and then we will be able to reach the rest of the world. The other picture shows how every city in “the circle” can be reached from HK by a 4-5 hour plane ride. We believe that God has strategically placed us in HK to make an impact on this side of the world. First, we will build our relational connection with people who are located in different cities within the circle and who have a heart for an HMCC church to be launched. Secondly, we will engage various global cities via missions projects and possible LIFE Group start ups within this circle and prepare to plant Gospel-centered churches. Thirdly, we want to build a strong network of relationships so that we can continue to teach, train and equip Kingdom workers to reach “the circle.” Lastly, it is our desire to start up a School of Ministry in HK and in other cities within the circle so that we can raise up the next generation of Kingdom servants who will transform the world. This will entail training up future pastors, church planters, and leaders who will engage the world through the Transformasphere Movement.



Photo Credit: Designed by valeriepieris
 
 


Photo Credit: InvestHK
 
 
 

4. Mobilize church launch teams. As we remain faithful to the vision that God has given, we believe that He will open other doors for us to bring the Gospel to the rest of the world. We want to mobilize future church launch teams so that we can focus on planting Gospel-centered churches in other global cities within “the circle.” One thing that God is doing is using China’s Belt and Road Initiative to open up access to many different countries around the world. Some people see this as an engagement of the old Silk Road, which was the network of trade routes from Asia to Europe. God is opening up transportation routes so that people can travel conveniently from Asia to the Middle East, and all the way to Europe. We believe this is going to give us new access to places where we can take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Once again, it will all have to start with reaching HK.



Photo Credit: Hong Kong Trade Development Council
 
 


Photo Credit: China Xinhua News

 
 
 
When I think about what God is calling us to do here in Hong Kong and beyond, it is something that no human being can accomplish on their own strength, wisdom or talents. It is a supernatural work; therefore, we need to stay connected to our Supernatural God.

As we look ahead to this new season of ministry, we need to depend on God more and continue to abide in Him. Those of you who are a part of our church, I want to challenge you to grow this coming year. Don’t lose sight of the vision. May the God-given vision motivate you, students to study hard. For those of you who are working professionals, I pray that you will be a great witness in the workplace. Let’s always stay hungry, humble, and hustle for God’s glory.

For the rest of you, we would love for you to join us in prayer and even consider giving financially to God’s work. Also, if you some of you want more information or want to participate in God’s work here in Hong Kong, please contact our church at hongkong@hmcc.net

Soli Deo Gloria

Photo Credit: The University of Hong Kong

From the beginning of HMCC-HK’s journey, our purpose has always been about life transformation and the glory of God. It is hard to believe that we are slowly approaching the end of the two-year mark of our church plant. So far it has been a whirlwind experience, to say the least, but through it all, God has been faithful and good.

Over the last two years, we have seen many people come to know Christ for the first time, get baptized, experience biblical community, find purpose in life, and commit to living for the Kingdom of God. I get overwhelmed with a great sense of gratitude for God’s grace over my life, as I have the privilege of seeing God’s work of transformation firsthand.

With so much happening, it is always important to stay rooted in the Gospel. It is only by God’s grace that we have come so far. In September 2015, we started off with two LIFE Groups – one on the Chinese University of Hong Kong campus (CUHK) and one on the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus (PolyU). Since then, we have seen each LIFE Group multiply on both campuses. Then in 2016, we started two LIFE Groups for our City Ministry – one for the single working adults (Focus ministry) and one for the married couples (Covenant ministry). God has been growing our church, one life at a time, one family at a time, and one university campus at a time.

In order to reach Hong Kong with the Gospel, we have concluded that we need to reach all the universities in this great city. Therefore, back in October 2016, we started another LIFE Group on our third university campus of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). As we saw more lives experience transformation through the power of the Gospel, we started to pray for other university campuses that do not have an HMCC LIFE Group. In particular, we have been praying for the University of Hong Kong campus (HKU), which is the oldest university in Hong Kong and the most influential.

After lots of prayers and patiently waiting for God’s open door, in September 2017, we will start our first LIFE Group on the HKU campus. All four of these university campuses have a significant role in our greater vision of reaching Hong Kong. Therefore, we know that it is God who is going to help us start and sustain this LIFE Group.

I want to further explain the specific steps that went into making this decision. In December 2016, the Executive Team and I met together to have our bi-yearly summit, where we spent some time to pray, plan and prepare for the new year. As we talked about HMCC-HK’s greater vision, the topic of reaching other campuses came up. Back then, the talk about starting another LIFE Group in another campus seemed absolutely ridiculous in light of everything that was going on in our church. So, we decided to come up with some marker to gauge and see if starting a LIFE Group on another campus was even possible. Consequently, the SCOPE acronym became our measurement to discern and guide us in our decision.

Now, looking back at our conversation, we are truly amazed and humbled at God’s sovereignty. We know that God orchestrates all things for His mission and His glory. The SCOPE acronym entails:

1) S – Strong LIFE Groups. We knew that we could not start another LG if the other LGs were not healthy and strong. Therefore, we made it a clear goal to see our most recent LG on the HKUST campus grow in health and in number. We also wanted to raise up a person who will be qualified to lead the HKUST LG in September 2017, since I would no longer be able to lead it. Since that time, we have seen the HKUST LG grow in health and in numbers; but most importantly, we have raised two leaders to lead the LG for next year.

2) C – Core Group. Another factor that we needed to consider was developing a strong core group of people who were committed to the mission and vision of the church. We realized that without a core group of committed people, an LG can easily implode. Therefore, we made it our goal to develop and train up a core group of people who will be the foundation for the future LIFE Group on the HKUST campus. At our last LG, we were all humbled to see that God indeed formed a strong core group for next year.

3) O – Opportune Moments. One thing we wanted to make sure about was that we were discerning God’s timing with the launch of a LIFE Group on HKU campus. We started to do some research to be more aware of the needs of the HKU campus, as well as to see what other Kingdom work is happening. Also, we realized that if this is something that God is leading us to do, then, He would need to raise up someone who can help me lead this LIFE Group. Recently, one of our church plant members stepped out in faith and applied to the graduate program at HKU, which was in line with God’s calling on their life. About 1.5 months ago, this person found out that they got accepted into the program. All the pieces were coming together; therefore, we decided to respond in faith to God’s opportune or kairos moment.

4) P – Potential Partners. If we were going to move forward on this endeavor, we knew that God had to bring the right people to start this LIFE Group. We found out that there were a few people who went to HKU but attended a PolyU LIFE Group this past year. In order for these students to be missional, they should reach out to their own campus. Therefore, the need to start this LG on HKU was more pressing. Also, we started to find out that several other people got accepted to HKU and they were coming in as a 1st year student in September 2017. This was truly God’s handiwork in bringing these people to our context. We believe that some of these students will partner up with us in reaching HKU for God’s glory.

5) E – Equipped Leaders. The leadership guru, John Maxwell said, “Everything rises and falls with leadership.” When we have well trained and equipped leaders, we can accomplish a lot of things. Therefore, we wanted to make sure that the leaders who will lead HKUST and the other LG leaders on the other campuses are well prepared to lead this coming year. We have spent the whole summer developing and raising up the next generation of leaders with our summer LGs. I will continue to help train and develop these leaders throughout the year. Also, the person who will be partnering with me to lead the HKU LG has a lot of experience in LG ministry, but throughout this year, I will help further develop this person to be even more effective in leading LG.

Living a life of faith is exciting but at the same time, it is scary. I told people that listening to God’s voice and stepping out in obedience is really “scary exciting!” We don’t know everything that will happen, but one thing we do know is that God will go with us. He loves the campus and the people of HKU more than we do; therefore, all we can do is pray and trust that God will use us for His glory.

If you know of anyone who is coming to HKU as a new student or even a current student who is not connected to a biblical community, then please let us know. We want to reach out to them and invite them to be a part of the LIFE Group experience. We will start reaching out to students at the end of August and start the LIFE Group in the beginning of September.

We would greatly covet your prayers in this new season of ministry. We know that this mission cannot be accomplished by ourselves, but we need God’s people to rally together in prayer. Will you join us?

 

 
 
My wife, Christina, keeps reminding me, “As we get older, we should be more unselfish, more humble and more loving.” In theory, this makes a lot of sense. But in reality, it is a whole different issue altogether.

As we get older, we should realize more of our sinfulness. As we get older, we should become more humble and loving. The older we get, the more we should have testimonies that point to the experience of God’s love and grace. Then what seems to be the problem? For me, it can be summed it up in three simple words: I. Am. Forgetful.

I forget that I was once spiritually lost and dead in my sin (Eph 2:1-3).
I forget that I was chosen and predestined for God’s purpose (Eph 1:4-5; Ro 8:29-30).
I forget how God redeemed and rescued me through the blood of Jesus (Eph 1:7).
I forget how God’s grace was richly and abundantly poured out on me (Eph 2:4-7).
I forget how God adopted me into His family because of His love (Eph 1:5; Ro 8:5).
I forget all the spiritual blessings that I now have in Christ (Eph 1:3).

Forgetfulness. So many of us know this all too well.

This is the reason why I reacted in annoyance and frustration when Christina mentioned that God might be calling us to foster a 4-month old orphaned baby, who has a physical disability. Instead of remembering who God is and His Father’s heart for the orphans and the lost, all I could think about at that moment was – me. I forgot about all that God did in my life. The only thing that took center stage was my selfishness.

For the next 30 minutes I was in a back-and-forth discussion with Christina. I tried to help her to see all the reasons why this might not be a good idea. But the more I talked, the more forgetful I became of God’s love and grace. I was so consumed with myself that the only thing that kept coming to mind was the inconvenience and the discomfort of going through sleepless nights and endless diaper changes. Everything inside of me cried out, “What about me? Didn’t I pay my dues with our three kids? Why do we have to go through it again?”

It was in that moment that God had to remind me of His Father’s heart towards me.

I remembered how spiritually dead and hopeless I was.
I remembered how I was separted from God because of my sin.
I remembered how God reached out to me, rescued me and redeemed me.
I remembered how God loved me and adopted me into His family.
I remembered how God graciously and lavishly poured out so many blessings.

I knew what God was trying to say to me. I had a choice – to obey God or to obey my flesh. I’m thankful that through Christina, God reminded me of His Father’s heart. With the short amount of time we will have with her, I think it is going to transform our family for good. We are thankful that today, our family will have the privilege of welcoming a little 4-month old girl from China into our home.

For some reason, things feel different already, as God has been preparing our hearts to receive her into our home; but most of all, welcome her into our hearts. We would greatly appreciate your prayers and we can’t wait to introduce her to all of you.

In the last 2 weeks, I have been reminded of the song, “Good, Good Father.” The lyrics are:

Oh, I’ve heard a thousand stories of what they think you’re like
But I’ve heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night
And you tell me that you’re pleased and that I’m never alone

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Oh, and I’ve seen many searching for answers far and wide
But I know we’re all searching
For answers only you provide
Cause you know just what we need
Before we say a word

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Cause you are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways to us [2x]

Oh, it’s love so undeniable
I, I can hardly speak
Peace so unexplainable
I, I can hardly think

As you call me deeper still [x3]
Into love, love, love

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Throughout history, whenever a need arises, the people who take action are the ones who transform the world. Instead of idly standing by, they decide to do something. Their actions, often times, stem from a conviction or a burden. They count the cost and take steps of faith in order to make a difference. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

The challenge that people from HMCC of Hong Kong faced was the suicide crisis on university campuses. Within a short period of time, news of students committing suicide became a frequent occurrence in HK. As the number of suicides began to rise, we realized that something was happening and we needed to do something about it. Therefore, with our limited resources, we decided to bring awareness and spread hope by letting students know that they matter. It was a small gesture, but it had a big impact on people’s lives.

We began to meet people and hear their stories. Some people personally knew those who passed away. As our hearts began to break, we asked God to show us what our next steps should be. This is when a South China Morning Post article brought greater clarity to the suicide crisis in HK. We know that the problem has many factors, therefore, even topics such as mental health must be considered. But for now, we are going to continue to bring awareness and link up with other organizations that are involved in suicide prevention.

As we move forward, we are praying for wisdom and God’s favor to open up doors of opportunity to bring the message of hope and love to every student on the university campuses of HK. We are going to do this by 3 specific steps: Be aware. Act. Advocate.

So much of what is going on can seem so daunting, but we are confident that for such a time as this, people are rising up to speak hope and love to this generation. Every conversation and every prayer that is spoken can have an incredible impact on someone’s life. It is our sincere desire that we will not shy away from this situation, but rather, speak the truth and offer hope to anyone who is struggling to believe that they matter to God and to others.

Mother Teresa once said, “We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.”

Let’s do our part!

#youmatter on website, Instagram, and Facebook

It has been over a year since I wrote anything on my blog (sorry); but recently, with various things going on in Hong Kong, I felt compelled to write and share some things that are on my heart.

In the last seven months, there have been 24 suicides committed by young people in Hong Kong. This is one too many. Each person ended their life due to various circumstances, but the story line is the same – they felt hopeless and could not see a way out. At an age where a person has their whole life ahead of them, it is hard to believe that their circumstances won over and the hope of a better future was eliminated. But this is the sad reality and we can no longer just ignore the situation.

The Hong Kong government and school officials are trying to address the issue but many people are saying that their efforts are not enough. While there are different available organizations and health services, it seems like the students are not seeking help. I know that it is a complicated issue with many different factors such as family background, mental health issues, school pressures, etc. playing a part in the overall problem.

Therefore, we have to approach this situation from many different angles; but the first major step is to bring awareness to the crisis. When people are not aware of the problem, there is no sense of urgency nor a willingness to get involved. We can only become part of the solution when we acknowledge that there is a problem and something has to change. We also want to somehow communicate to the youth of Hong Kong that there is hope and there is something greater to live for.

As I personally reflect on this crisis, my heart is burdened for this generation of youth. If you stumbled across this blog and you are struggling with thought of suicide, I want to say 4 things to you:

 
I’m always inspired when I hear about God using a person’s messed-up past to advance His mission. We have to remember that God never makes mistakes. Even through some of our deepest pains and trials, God can use it somehow for His glory.

The best part of God’s creative work in redemption is that He uses our experiences and personalities to reach many people with the Gospel. Due to my personal experiences and personality, I am able to reach a certain segment of the world.

In the same way, your life, which is probably very different from mine, can reach out to another segment of the world. Can you imagine what would happen if we shared our stories with people that can relate to us?

God is always in the business of turning our ashes into something beautiful (Isa 61:3). This story is about how God turned a bad boy into a warrior for Christ.
 
 

 
It is interesting how the Apostle Paul uses the illustration of adoption when he describes our relationship with God, our Father (Eph 1:3-14).

There is something very powerful about knowing that you are chosen and loved unconditionally. This is part of the core of the Gospel message.

Sometimes through an earthly adoption, people are able to know the love of the Father. May our love for people overflow.
 
 

 
I realized that it doesn’t take much to see a child laugh or smile . It brings great joy to anyone who see the sense of wonder in a child’s eyes.

This is why when people are willing to go out of their way to make kids happy, it makes me smile.

I pray that we will never lose the sense of wonder and amazement as we get older. God smiles when He see a heart of a child in us.
 
 

 
After having a daughter, I have become more sensitive and tuned into how girls are treated in our society, especially in the Church. It is amazing to see how a girl’s self-esteem is shaped by their relationship with their father.

It is my hope and prayer that Karissa (a.k.a. KiKi) will grow up believing that she can do anything she puts her mind to. The world will tell her otherwise. The world will put barriers and limitations in front of her. But I want her to know that with Christ and my full support, she can do anything.

I want to be her greatest cheerleader and supporter. I want her to know that she can be a world shaker, history maker!
 
 

 
I do quite a bit of counseling throughout the week. I guess it comes with the calling of a shepherd (pastor). After many hours of listening and talking, I have come to the realization that a lot of things come down to perspective. If a person is able to gain God’s perspective in the midst of their situation, then it’s a huge win – both for the counselee and the counselor.

It is hard to see God in some of the difficult situations of our lives. Unless we believe in a Sovereign God, who is in complete control and working out all things for our good and His glory (Ro 8), it is easy to become disillusioned and even bitter at God. It is humbling when we get a glimpse of our theology (what we believe about God) by the way we respond to things that we have no control over.

I am constantly encouraged to see Christ-followers who struggle to understand God’s purposes, but at the end of the day, they realize that they are not God. This is when we all have a choice to either trust God or to trust in ourselves. As we get older, we begin to learn that choosing the former is far greater. Why? Because God has proven Himself to be faithful time and time again to make something beautiful of our lives, regardless of how messy it is.

What appears to be a life of ruin, God has the audacity and the capacity to turn things around to something that is “gloriously ruined” for our good and His glory.
 
 

 
It is always exciting to see two of my passions come together.
The heart of a samurai and the heart for soccer.

I cannot wait for the World Cup to start!
 

 
When you see a father so passionate about protecting his daughter, it reminds you of how love and security play an important role in a relationship. As I watched this video, I couldn’t help but to resonate with this father as I thought about my daughter.

Then, I thought about God’s love and protection for His children against Satan and his evil forces. No matter what we are facing in life, we can be confident that God will persistently protect us because He passionately loves us.
 
 

 
God is the Greatest Artist of all time. We, as human are able to create beautiful things because the Creator created us.

Whenever I get inspired by a musician or an artist with their talent, I am reminded that they are just a reflection of the Greatest Artist.

Therefore, keep on creating great music, art and other creative pieces because it will keep on pointing to the One who alone deserves all the glory!
 
 

 
I am constantly reminded that in order to experience true freedom, we have to let go of everything; but it is always easier said than done. Living a life of complete surrender to Christ is hard.

We love ourselves too much, even to the point of being narcissist and full of pride. The times when I have been able to fully let go of things and “withhold nothing” from Christ is when I saw how worthy He was of my everything.

The more I focus on Him and less on me, the easier it is to step out in faith and let everything go. There is no other way in this life of following Christ.

This song by William McDowell called, “Withholding Nothing” has been on repeat throughout this whole week. May this be the prayer of our hearts.