The SOLA Conference is back. After being canceled in 2020 because of the growing Covid-19 crisis, the conference has returned as a digital event, which will be released on the SOLA Network website beginning May 24. 

This week, we will be previewing some of the content for the 2021 Conference. Today, we will begin with an interview with SOLA Conference Joshua Lim, who oversaw the canceled 2020 Conference and this year’s digital conference. 

Aaron Lee, social media manager for the SOLA Network, interviewed Joshua Lim about both conferences, as well as what it takes to run a conference.

Shownotes:

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/l7ovc-rkKeA

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article/preview-for-sola-conference-2021-interview

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

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Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

2020 looked promising for David Yoon, also known as Kindred Worship. He had dropped his EP, Edmund, the previous year, and he would be leading worship for SOLA Conference 2020. Then the pandemic hit. 

The church where he was the worship pastor went into lockdown, and he had to lead the congregation in song remotely. SOLA Conference was canceled. But through it all, David continued to serve his community and create music. 

Aaron Lee, SOLA’s social media manager, caught up with David Yoon in April 2021. They talked about David’s journey in creating Kindred Worship, leading worship through a pandemic, and how the church can better support worship leaders and worship artists. 

We hope this conversation will encourage worship leaders and remind churches to love and support the artists and musicians within their midst. 

Shownotes:

Kindred Worship: 

https://www.kindredworship.com/

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/MGWQ0bazx24

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article/worship-artistry-leading-covid-19

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

This is Part 2 of a conversation between four Chinese American pastors about the future of the Chinese heritage church. The pastors talk about how their Chinese heritage has helped shape their identity, whether Chinese churches should become multiethnic, and their hopes for the Chinese heritage church.

This conversation was moderated by Casey Young, who currently serves on the English staff of First Chinese Baptist Church in Los Angeles and is a SOLA Conference Team member. The three participating pastors are: Hanley Liu, the English pastor at First Chinese Baptist Church of Walnut; Ben Pun, lead pastor at Anchor Community Church in Walnut; and Joey Chen, lead English pastor at Sunset Church in San Francisco.

We hope this conversation will be informative to the church and especially encouraging to fellow Chinese American Christians who have grown up with or serve in Chinese heritage churches.

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article//future-of-chinese-heritage-church-part-2

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

What is the current situation with the Chinese heritage church? What does its future look like? How can it grow more leaders and encourage its pastors?

While Asian American churches tend to get lumped together, they are actually important distinctions between them. To facilitate more dialogue about the needs and growth of ethnic-specific churches, the SOLA Network hosted a conversation with four Chinese American pastors about the Chinese heritage church.

A Chinese heritage church is ethnically Chinese with congregations that speak in Chinese dialects while also developing and growing in an Asian American context.

To this end, Casey Young, who currently serves on the English staff of First Chinese Baptist Church in Los Angeles and is a SOLA’s Conference Team member, moderated a discussion with three other Chinese pastors: Hanley Liu, the English pastor at First Chinese Baptist Church of Walnut; Ben Pun, lead pastor at Anchor Community Church in Walnut; and Joey Chen, lead English pastor at Sunset Church in San Francisco.

We hope this conversation will be informative to the church and especially encouraging to fellow Chinese American Christians who have grown up with or serve in Chinese heritage churches.

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/1D0tIkIxZ-U

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article/future-of-chinese-heritage-church-part-1

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

The rise in anti-Asian violence has shown how difficult it is for our churches to talk about race. The dialogue can be so complicated that oftentimes we forget to address these issues with our children and youth students. But if the church does not address these issues to the next generation, then rather than learning a biblical view of these issues, they will be educated by the world.

In this vein, the SOLA Network is pleased to present a talk from Christ Central Presbyterian Church, in which two church leaders discuss how they processed the rise in anti-Asian racism and the violence in Atlanta in March 2020. SOLA Editorial Board member Soojin Park, who is also youth director, has a conversation with Pastor Huey Lee, education pastor at CCPC, on how they were processing these events as well as addressing their youth students about how to deal with the complex emotions and questions that arose from these tragic events.

We hope this conversation will be edifying and educational for youth workers so that they can begin conversations about race and other difficult issues with their students. We also believe this will be helpful for parents to bring up the issue with their children.

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/RvbuAHTi9tY

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article/how-to-talk-about-anti-asian-racism-youth

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

What does the Bible say about our different ethnic backgrounds? Where do I begin to talk about race? What is code-switching? How can building cross-cultural relationships help churches to evangelize? 

In this interview, Dr. Michelle Ami Reyes talks about her new book, Becoming All Things: How Small Changes Lead to Lasting Connections Across Cultures, which seeks to answer these questions to help the church have constructive discussions about race. SOLA’s social media manager, Aaron Lee, asked Dr. Reyes about her experiences as an Asian American woman, the fear around the issue of race, and how we can “become all things” for the sake of the gospel.

Michelle Reyes, PhD, is the Vice President of the Asian American Christian Collaborative and the Co-Executive Director of Pax. She is also the Scholar in Residence at Hope Community Church. Michelle's work on faith and culture has been featured in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Missio Alliance, Faithfully Magazine and more. Her book on cross-cultural relationships is called Becoming All Things: How Small Changes Lead to Lasting Connections Across Cultures (Zondervan; April 27, 2021). 

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/SPBFNmAs-0U

Read the transcript:

https://sola.network/article/road-map-to-becoming-all-things-interview

Read the book review:

https://sola.network/article/the-love-of-christ-compels-us

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Shownotes:

https://michelleamireyes.com/

https://zondervanacademic.com/products/becoming-all-things

https://www.asianamericanchristiancollaborative.com/

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

"During this time of the pandemic, maintaining and growing relationships have been difficult. Being stuck at home without our normal routine has brought weaknesses, insecurities, and shame to the surface. So here are some encouragements for all as we navigate through our changed relationships."

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/CLDGcK3pD64

Gabe Lee is a Pastoral Intern at FCBC Walnut.

This video sermon clip was provided by FCBC Walnut:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h1sm35Pbus&list=PL_vN-vM53O-9u8jg8SMDA8GJz-gJqfZDv&index=1

Read the article:

https://sola.network/article/clinging-to-christ-during-relationship-friendship-struggles

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

❝Father God, we pray you will take these broken hearts and make them more like yours. Although we pray for comfort, we pray for hope, we pray for healing upon a most broken, hurting world in Atlanta, in Boulder, and right here in California. We confess and grieve and pray that we would follow you better.❞

This past Sunday, Harold Kim, senior pastor of Christ Central of Southern California and president of the SOLA Network, shared this lament concerning the violence and deaths in Atlanta and Boulder. 

We are reposting it here with permission, and we hope it will be edifying to the church.

Article:

https://sola.network/article/grieving-for-lives-lost-local-church

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/0G5Ds4NidHk

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

The last year has seen a massive rise in anti-Asian hate crimes across the United States. Last week's Atlanta massacres have driven us to lament and prayer. But as Asian Americans, is there more that we should be doing?

SOLA Editorial Board Member Kevin Yi, the youth and education Pastor at Church Everyday in Los Angeles, speaks with Pastor and President Raymond Chang and Dr. and Vice President Michelle Reyes from the Asian American Christian Collaborative - AACC.

Michelle Reyes, PhD, is the Vice President of the Asian American Christian Collaborative and the Co-Executive Director of Pax. She is also the Scholar in Residence at Hope Community Church. Michelle's work on faith and culture has been featured in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Missio Alliance, Faithfully Magazine and more. Her forthcoming book on cross-cultural relationships is called Becoming All Things: How Small Changes Lead to Lasting Connections Across Cultures (Zondervan; April 27, 2021).

Pastor Raymond Chang is the president of the Asian American Christian Collaborative, a pastor, and writer. He regularly preaches God’s Word and speaks throughout the country on issues pertaining to Christianity and culture, race and faith. He has lived throughout the world (Korea, Guatemala, Panama, Spain, China), traveled to nearly 50 countries, and currently lives in Chicagoland, serving as a campus minister at Wheaton College. Prior to entering vocational ministry, Raymond worked in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors, and served in the Peace Corps in Panama. He is currently pursuing his PhD. He is married to Jessica Chang, who serves as the chief advancement and partnerships officer of the Field School.

Watch the video on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/Rc6-Oq04d64

Shownotes:

https://www.asianamericanchristiancollaborative.com/

https://www.asianamericanchristiancollaborative.com/rally

https://www.facebook.com/aachristcollab/

https://twitter.com/aachristcollab

https://www.instagram.com/aachristcollab

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network

SOLA Network Editor Hannah Chao asked, “What if Church Doesn’t Go Back to Normal?” We went LIVE on Instagram to discuss her new article, give suggestions for reopening, and reflect on changes in the church this past year.

This video was originally recorded LIVE on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CMf5UxKlTpa/

Watch on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/m_dpipyG-YQ

Read the articles:

https://sola.network/article/what-if-church-doesnt-go-back-to-normal

https://sola.network/article/god-has-not-forgotten-to-be-gracious

Email us your questions or conversation topics: 

[email protected]

Links:

Weekly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/tgif

Monthly Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/sola/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/thesolanetwork

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thesolanetwork

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesolanetwork

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqsoKbSYBbZZoovA24PhqAg

Podcast: http://anchor.fm/solanetwork

Website: https://sola.network