Jeff Iorg Blog

Mexico Was Awesome

Mar 05 2014

We have returned from teaching at the Mexican Baptist Seminary and leading the conference for seminary leaders from across Mexico. It was a very rewarding and fulfilling trip. The Preaching class had 42 students! The conference had leaders from 15 different seminaries or Bible schools. Golden Gate has a growing reputation of academic leadership in Mexico. I am grateful for the faculty and PHD students who have been to Mexico to teach. We are making a solid contribution to improving the work they are doing training future ministry leaders.

The best part of the whole week was the students (and the food!). They are so enthusiastic. By the end of the week, we were sitting around telling jokes – and trying to explain to each other how the humor worked cross-culturally. I’m not sure which was funnier – the jokes we told or the attempts to explain them. But this kind of exchange reveals something important – the students feel comfortable “being themselves” around “Golden Gate people.” That tells me we are being part of their community – which is a very good thing.

The work we are doing with the Mexican Baptist Seminary is strengthening their efforts…and making us a better seminary. When we get our focus off ourselves, and help others, it always does more for the giver than the receiver. I’m glad I’m part of a ministry team that understands it’s not all about us – it’s about fulfilling our mission and partnering with others who are aligned with us.

 

A Moving Experience

Nov 18 2013

A few days ago, while in Hong Kong, Ann and I worshipped with the Kowloon International Baptist Church. We were fortunate enough to be with them on “International Sunday,” the day their church celebrates their multiculturalism. Like most “international” churches in cities outside the United States, they worship in English. They minister to the expatriate community and others from various countries who want to worship in English. Many “international” churches have leading businessmen, diplomats, educators, and other professionals who are working in foreign settings. For many, English is their second language but there is no church available in their first language. Kowloon International certainly fits that description. 

Their “International Sunday” celebration included a flag display with persons standing when their country’s name was called and flag displayed. We lost count around 30 countries represented in the service! The service also included a scripture reading, just one verse from a Psalm about God’s work among the nations. The verse was read in succession by several people, each reading in their country’s mother tongue. It was powerful to hear the verse read, among others, in Russian, German, Kazakh, as well as several Asian languages and dialects. Interspersed in the scripture reading, we sang a hymn – also in various languages as we all tried our “phonetic best.” 

The service was emotionally moving – perhaps because it reminded me so much of home. Golden Gate is a truly multicultural ministry setting. We have moved beyond tolerating cultural differences to embracing and celebrating them. We practice a wide-variety of worship styles in chapel, eat all kinds of food on our campuses, and recognize cultural overtones and influences in our teaching/learning environment. We relish the messiness of it, rather than react to its challenges. 

God has been good to move me beyond monoculturalism to the richness of relating to and working with all kinds of people. If you are still in “mono-mode,” take the risk to branch out. Meet some new friends, eat some new food, worship in some new ways, and get over thinking your way is the best way or the only way to do life (or church!). God will enrich you when you develop these relationships and discover how he works differently through people in other places or cultures.

 

Honoring Others

Nov 04 2013

While studying the “one another” verses in the New Testament, I discovered an interesting perspective. The Bible tells us to do things like love, serve, care for, and pray for one another. There are more than a dozen of these “one another” directives but one has become particularly meaningful to me – “honor one another.” There is never a bad time to honor another person by giving them well-deserved recognition or thanking them for contributing to your life.
You may be thinking, “But what if recognition leads to pride?” Not your problem. A person receiving honor is responsible to handle it appropriately – smelling the flowers, not eating them! Interestingly, the Bible never tells us to “humble one another.” It does say, on multiple occasions, “humble yourself.” We are responsible to humble ourselves (keeping our pride in check) but honor others (recognizing them for their service, character, and contribution).
My new book, Seasons of a Leader’s Life, is dedicated to five men who have mentored, encouraged, and coached me along the way. They helped teach me to lead, followed my leadership as their prominence waned, and supported me honestly and faithfully. As part of launching the book, I have been meeting with these men (or their families since some are in heaven) and expressing thanks for their contribution to my life. Giving honor where honor is definitely due has been a pleasure and a privilege.
What about you? Who can you honor for helping you become the person you are? You don’t need to wait until you write a book to express honor to them. Write a real letter (remember what those are?), send a card, make a plaque, or otherwise communicate what a friend or mentor has done to help you along the way. Give honor now, not when you finally get around to it, to thank and encourage someone who has made a difference in your life.

 

That Was Fun

Sep 09 2013

This past weekend, I had two days at home in a row. That’s a rarity during the Fall. The seminary is at full speed and my traveling schedule is always packed this time of year. So, for some weeks, Ann had reminded me to keep those two days free – not allowing anything to get on the calendar. This should have alerted me something was up. Ann is usually very flexible and understanding about my schedule. But this time she was insistent those days remain free.

Then, on Friday, she “invited” me to take her to dinner at a certain restaurant at a specific time. That was also weird! By that time, I knew she was up to something so I went along with the plan. After we arrived at the restaurant, two old friends – 30-year friends – walked in and asked if they could join us. They had set aside two days to spend with me as an early birthday gift.

We went to Giants games, watched the Oregon Ducks dismantle Virginia, ate a lot of good food, told funny stories about each other and on each other, and caught up on all the goings-on of our children (and for those old guys, grandchildren!). It was a great time.

Today, one measure of a person’s popularity is their number of Facebook friends. Nothing wrong with Facebook! I appreciate how social media contributes to staying connected. Facebook friends are fine. But face-to-face friends are better. And, longtime face-to-face friends are the best. They have proven themselves as steady Christians – men who love their wives, sacrifice for their families, and serve their churches. They are the kind of guys you can count on, tell anything, trust to do the right thing, and tell you the truth when you need to hear it. These friends are friends indeed.

If you are under age 30, here is the recipe for having lifelong friends when you hit 60. Find some quality friends now and then grow old together. Pretty simple.

Thanks Guys for giving me such a great gift. Not just the weekend together, but 30 years of friendship that has made my life so much the richer.

 

Good times in LA

Aug 19 2013

One of the best things about being president of Golden Gate is working in our multicultural community. As the most multicultural seminary in the United States, we are a mosaic of languages, cultures, and ethnicities. While diversity has its challenges, the advantages and blessings are so numerous the negative aspects are almost eclipsed. We learn so much from each other and are so enriched by each other – there’s just no way to really explain it unless you experience it.

One outgrowth of three decades on this path is our network of multicultural ministry partners. This past weekend, it was my privilege to speak multiple times at the annual Missions Conference for the Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles. What a church! Many mono-cultural church leaders/members think of ethnic or language based churches as “mission churches” or as objects of missions. While some are, many are not. Not by a long shot!

MBCLA is a vibrant, strong, mission-sending church making global impact. They are celebrating fifty years of ministry this year. Their church meets on two campuses, with seven weekend services, in four languages. They sent out seven short term mission teams this summer to work around the world. They have ongoing mission projects among Native Americans, with special needs children in California, in Mexico, and in various places in Asia. The church is swarming with college students and young professionals. Their pastors are highly trained, biblically-centered, and missionally-driven men who intend on making a dramatic impact in their community and around the world.

In California, some of the largest Southern Baptist churches – attendance 1500 or more – are Chinese, Korean, and Russian churches – not to mention several very large African-American churches and others that worship in English but are multicultural in their make-up. These churches – and their pastors – are leading voices for biblical values, missional advance, and spiritual revival. Several of them are Golden Gate graduates – which makes us proud.

If you are in a mono-cultural church, take the risk to meet pastors and members from other backgrounds. Learn to eat new food, sing different songs, worship with a different order, and operate on a different schedule. It might be unsettling, even intimidating at first. But once you start making a few friends, you will never be the same. Your stereotypes will vanish and you will have many fun surprises. For example – guess where my Chinese hosts liked to eat? Italian! Then the next day, Hawaiian! And, of course, one really good Chinese banquet too!

Gotta love diversity – especially when the dinner bell rings.

 

Korean Partners

Apr 30 2013

This past month has included several ministry opportunities with Korean Baptists. I have spoken at a pastor installation service, a memorial service for the founding pastor of the first Korean Baptist church in the U.S., a major church planting conference in Georgia, and a church revival in Washington. These four events have included about a dozen messages, along with countless conversations about ministry strategies and leadership challenges.

These events are the result of more than 20 years of developing significant friendships in the Korean Baptist community. We have shared ministry and meals, trips and conferences – all while learning how to work together as partners to advance God’s kingdom. During my time in the Northwest, the Tacoma Korean First Baptist Church became a favorite partner. I have spoken there several times, including this past weekend, and have marveled at their graciousness and receptivity to my ministry. They facilitated so much of my understanding of Korean culture and helped me learn to enjoy Korean BBQ. Thanks for serving me this way!

After moving to Golden Gate, my relationships broadened to include pastors and other leaders around the Bay Area and across California. These new friends have helped us expand our seminary’s ministry to include bilingual degree programs – from our most basic diplomas to doctoral degrees. We now have more Korean students than at any time in our history.

Recently, I was asked to participate in a strategy session with leaders from other schools about improving multicultural educational strategies among Southern Baptists. Step one, as I communicated to the work group, is simple. Stop thinking of ethnic groups as objects of mission and start thinking of them as mission partners. That means they get a seat at the table and a voice in the decision-making processes.

While recent immigrants may still need a missionary focus, established churches in many groups now have hundreds – if not thousands – of members. The SBC has several ethnic mega-churches that receive little to no denominational recognition – but they are healthy, strong, influential churches. They are no longer “missions,” but thriving enterprises with multi-million dollar budgets, beautiful facilities, and highly trained pastors. We will be a better denomination when we learn to be better partners with these awesome churches.