Canadian Asian Missional Podcast

Episode 104 - Race, Capitalism, and The Divine Economy (feat. Jonathan Tran) How do we engage and develop a framework of understanding for the topic of race in our times and how does it intersect with capitalism? Especially from an Asian experience in North America, how do we learn to unravel these assumptions and scripts that have formed our identity and relations to others? The invitation of God...

Episode 103 - A Hybrid Future Hope (feat. Amos Yong) How does the Holy Spirit guide us toward a newness in theology and practice of being the church? Reflecting on his immigrant heritage and his continuing development of Pentecostal Theology, Dr. Amos Yong shares about discovering the value of a hybrid approach among a plurality of voices that help us discern what God may be revealing for our plac...

Episode 102 - Modernity Gone Mad: Churches Without God? What happens when we take the logic and wager of modernity to shape who we are as the church? Do we lose the presence and activity of God working among us? Join us for a fascinating conversation as we share what we've observed and wrestle through how this era of thinking has impacted how we live as His gathered and sent people. --------------...

Episode 101 - To Be Or Not To Be (In A Denomination) Being a part of a denomination connects us with a rich history and tradition, as well as provide us with needed support and oversight. At the same time, there can arise difficulties in how we interact and associate with one another amidst theological and philosophical differences. Join us for our discussion as we unpack some of our denominationa...

Episode 100 - Reflecting On Our Journey What an amazing number of years of conversations, learning, and navigating through being Canadian, Asian, and missional! In our 100th episode, we take some time to commemorate reaching this milestone and ponder if our views are still the same or perhaps have shifted. Join us as we take a look back and imagine where we go from here! --------------------------...

Episode 99 - Christian Higher Education: In Touch With The Church And The World? How do seminaries and Christian higher education form their students? Are they in touch with the local church and shaping people to engage the world? We reflect on our past and present experiences and consider the role and relevance of these institutions in preparing people for ministry. Join us on our conversation as...

Episode 98 - A Practice of Remembering: Our Tribute To Rev. Dr. Tim Tang In this episode, we create a space around a table for remembering a friend and a colleague who had been an advocate for Canadian Asian ministries and left an indelible impact on the way we envision leadership, pastoral vocation, and following Jesus.  Join us as we reminisce and are challenged to continue to forge ahead with i...

Episode 97 - The Effects Of Individualization On Faith & The Church Culture has been moving in a direction of becoming more and more individualized and this notion has had an indelible effect on how we conceptualize faith and the church. In our conversation today, we share observations, unpack its impact, and consider what practices we might need to resist against the negative effects. A timel...

Episode 96 - Doing Local Contextual Theology How is theology understood and practiced in our culture and context? When we see that the places we inhabit and the people we interact contain rich histories and meanings, we can begin to witness God's work and purposes breaking through, not in a universal or general way, but in the particulars and specifics of our contexts. Join us as we explore the ha...

Episode 95 - Rest In The Midst Of Busyness When asked how we are doing, how many times have we heard or said that we are busy? But have we ever stopped and re-evaluated about what it means to be busy? Even more importantly, how do we practice rest and Sabbath as we follow the ways of Jesus? Join us for the conversation as we unpack and explore this crucial topic! -------------------------- Please...

Episode 94 - Women In Leadership (Series Finale) - The Ongoing Journey (feat. Lisa Pak) We wrap up our series with the guest who started us on this trajectory years ago, Lisa Pak! As we reflect on all the stories we heard from our many guests, as well as Lisa's own journey through ministry and her Doctorate of Ministry studies focusing on Korean women in the church, we look forward with hopefulnes...

Episode 93 - Sharing Lives In The Places We Are Called (feat. Paul Sparks) What will be our presence in every day life in the neighbourhoods we inhabit? We talk to author Paul Sparks about his experiences and what he's learned about being intentional familial community with those around him and the importance of being formed as we witness and join with God in what He is doing in the spaces we live...

Episode 92 - Discernment: Being Right Or Being In Relationship? (feat. Mee Yun Kim) Do we approach discernment as merely decision making out of a drive to discover the right answer? What if this practice is less centered on the outcomes, but rather how we discover the depths of living in loving communion with God and building the relationships with each other? We're joined by Mee Yun to dive deepe...

Episode 91 - Churches Together For The City (feat. Dave Witt) What would it look like if churches came together for the good of the city and saw each other, not as competition or divided by theological differences, but as essential parts of how God was working among and in various locations and people groups? We are so honoured to have Dave Witt join us to share his experiences and insights of hea...

Episode 90 - The Church After Innovation: Questioning Our Obsession With Work, Creativity, and Entrepreneurship (feat. Andrew Root) It is not uncommon to have the pressure to innovate the church to engage the world, but do these feelings help or hurt? Can our relationship with work, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit become obsessive and distract us from what God is doing? Are we trapped in a...

Episode 89 - Churches and the Crisis of Decline (feat. Andrew Root) As we observe decline in denominations and local churches, how do we make sense of this trajectory? What are our fears revealing about our understanding of the crisis and shaping our responses? Dr. Andrew Root joins us for the conversation to unpack these questions and provides a helpful perspective to diagnose, process, and navig...

Episode 88 - The Megachurch: Metrics, Management, and Mission How do we make sense of the megachurch phenomenon in Canada, especially among Asian churches? In what ways can their organization and structures engage and empower people to live on God's mission? Can their size be a detriment? We tackle these questions and more as we unpack the metrics, examine potential dangers, and hopefully consider...

Episode 87 - Let's Talk About Burnout More frequent than ever, pastors, leaders, students, and those in the workforce are expressing a sense of burning out. In today's conversation, we share about our own experiences, talk about where burnout comes from and what it looks like, and suggest some ways to honestly face and combat its sources and effects. Join us for this very important episode! ------...

Episode 86 - Stories of Canadian Christianity (feat. James Robertson) How has the history of Canadian Christianity shaped our faith and churches today? Understanding where we have come from gives us a greater sense of what it means to be faithful today and hopeful for tomorrow. We're joined by Dr. James Robertson who gives us a valuable insights on our past and how it provides an awareness of the...

Episode 85 - Deconstruction: What Does It Mean For Us? The age of deconstruction has dawned as it has become a common practice and ideological approach in regards to faith and the church. How has it affected who we have become and where we are going? Should it be embraced or feared? And what should be our posture be as communities of belonging? We dive into these questions in our latest conversati...

Episode 84 - New Season, New Questions [Season 5 Opener] Jumping into our new season, we share about the questions on our hearts and topics that we're wrestling with, how they are shaping our perspective on this upcoming year, and some of our hopes about where this conversation will go! Plus, we talk about what we've been reading! Join us as we continue this journey! -------------------------- Ple...

Episode 83 - Reflections On Season 4 [Year End Wrap-Up] 2021 has definitely been one for the books!! As we head toward the end, we take a moment to reflect back on our 3 major series, conversations, and lessons learned from the fourth season of our podcast journey. Join us as we dive into the stories that have challenged us and continue to form us personally and in ministry, what's been going on i...

Episode 82 - Women In Leadership (Part 8): Writing To Make Space For Gathering, Evolving, and Opening Doors (feat. Sarah Bessey) The world of writing and blogging has opened up unique opportunities to share journeys with one another. On the topic of women in ministry and leadership, it has been a gift to many to find others who are wrestling through the same questions and matters, to take those st...

Episode 81 - Women In Leadership (Part 7): How The Past Re-elevates And Unsilences Women (feat. Marion Taylor) The models of women in the Bible and as church leaders & Bible interpreters over the centuries give us reasons to unpack and reconsider the dynamics between men & women and the decisions that have shaped the church. How might history restore the voice and place of women in our midst? Join...

Episode 80 - Women In Leadership (Part 6): Not Alone - The History of Women and Bible Interpretation (feat. Marion Taylor) The voices of the past call out to us as a reminder of how women throughout history have been part of forming an understanding of the Bible and how reclaiming their often untold or silenced testimony can paint a fuller picture of women leading the way in ministry today. We're...