Christian. Asian-American. Creative.
Ethnically, I’m Taiwanese. Two byproducts of this identity are a strong work ethic, which is proportionally tied to the amount of pressure one feels when exercising said ethic. My parents are first generation immigrants to the United States. As my Dad recounts to us children, “When I arrived in the US, I came with a few dollars in my pocket, and a dream, that was it.” This is the story of my parents, along with a vast majority of others who immigrated during that time too. If my Dad did not work hard at learning English, then he would not last in this country for very long. If he did not attain a level of success, then he would return to Taiwan a failure, shamed by his own father. If he didn’t try his hardest to assimilate to American culture, then he wouldn’t achieve success (by success, I mean the American Dream success, which is different than the definition of success in the Bible). So naturally, with his elbows dyed black from grease, and his knees weak from the hard work he has put in, these values fell upon me, along with the pressure to do better than him. My dad, by American standards, has done really well for himself. He’s managed to acquire a large house in the suburbs, save up for retirement, and put three kids through college debt-free.
Inherit within the Asian community is a drive for success, this manifests itself in you becoming a doctor, lawyer or engineer – you don’t have another choice. Naturally, these positions are prized among societies because of what you need to know in order to perform the job. They are also higher paying jobs, which plays a part into Asian parents being taken care of during retirement.
But, why is this any relevant to this blog? What does this have anything to do with Arts and Christianity?
As a product of the previous generation, it’s imperative to understand how their culture impacts you, positively and negatively, as a Christian creative.
Right from the start, I picked a profession that doesn’t merit favor from the hardline traditional institutes of parental consent. And to add insult to injury, I became a believer in Jesus Christ. I was going to “give my life away”, as the rhetoric goes.
So the double whammy of being a Christian Creative, seeking to further God’s will on the earth by creative means. Could it get any more antithetical to the standard American Dream? Could it be any harder as a Christian Asian-American? Daily die to self, pick up my cross and follow Jesus.
The more and more I got involved with Christian ministries, churches, organizations, the less and less people were interested in high quality standards in the arts. They viewed art purely as a utilitarian component, a means to an end. It was with this discovery that I realized the uphill climb for the elevation of arts within the Church. This requires much work. Enter in my cultural values.
On a personal level, I am committed to provide the best of my abilities to the Church. Whether that’s my day job as a video editor/graphic designer for Dallas Theological Seminary or for my freelance business. This commitment is not only biblical, as my gifts are for the edification of the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27-28), but also rooted in my cultural values, to work hard.
There are many people out there engaged with this type of thinking, Collide Magazine, Relevant Magazine, STORY:Chicago, ECHO Conference, Passion Conference, Catalyst, North Point Media, the list goes on and on. These people don’t need to be Asian-American to understand the value of hard work, but from a personal level, this cultural value has inspired me to implement the culture that God has purposefully placed me in to bring Him glory through the gift that He has also equipped me with.
If you’re an Asian-American Creative reading this: the work you’ve put in to get recognition from your parents is not in vain. Even if they don’t notice your sacrifice to get the skills you need to do what you love, God sees it. God has equipped you with a very special skill set to see and interpret the world around you with a different set of eyes than of the world. Come to Jesus Christ. In Him, you will find perfect satisfaction, that does not need to be earned, but rather given without anything you can provide. You can be still be creative, in fact, you’ll probably be more creative knowing that you have the Holy Spirit indwelling inside of you to create more.
