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David's Reflections

Everyday, we encounter the Good News crossing many boundaries. I invite the readers to explore with me the many nuances of cross cultural experience and the multi-colored dimensions of the Gospel touching lives and moving people to discover God's love and healing in fresh ways. Whether in Taiwan or Midwest America, or traveling in Southeast Asia or Japan, join me in seeing God's work in this world through this blog and its many personal reflections.

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Who Do I Follow?

Jesus. Of course! (I do not need to elaborate on this since this whole blog of mine is my attempt to approximate Jesus' life and ministry and incorporate this to my pilgrimage and reflections.) Seriously though, after Jesus, both in his manhood and divinity, I follow a few authors, writers, artists, and musicians.

Henri J. Nouwen is the one I consider to be my foremost teacher and mentor. I probably have all of his books. Some of his books I have read several times. I make it a point to re-read one of his books at least once a year. He is a Catholic priest, writer, counselor, and Christian theologian. His work among the physically and emotionally handicapped people is a great demonstration of God's love and healing for all of humanity.

Paul G. Hiebert is one of the leading theologian and missiologist in America. I have most of his books and articles. I did not really know him personally, but has followed his life and teaching. His passion for contextual theology and cultural relevance are some of the stuff that drives me in my work as a seminary teacher and student of the Bible. I agree with many of the issues he proposes in the area of "Gospel, Culture, and Church." His latest work on"Worldview" have given me inspiration and encouragement to write more on the area of missiology and missional church.

Other authors I admire are Leo Tolstoy, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Howard A. Snyder. From time to time, I make it a point to read one of their works within a given year. There are other authors of course, but these are the few that I follow.

I have a deep fascination for the work of the songwriter Paul Simon. His songs, music, and poetry reveal the depth of human wisdom and sensitivity. I have all of his albums in my music library. With a guitar or piano, I can sing a bunch of Paul Simon songs to anyone who would like to listen for an hour, even two.

Others songwriters and musicians that I appreciate are Bono of U2, Joey Ayala (a Filipino songwriter), Dan Haseltine of Jars of Clay, Rich Mullins, Michael Card, Eva Cassidy, Natalie Merchant, and the piano player, George Winston. Their art work speaks of the beauty of life and the many wonders of God's creation.

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Some Things About Me

  • A Little About Me
  • About the Books I Read
  • Who Do I Follow?

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  • Family

Clemente Newsletters

  • July 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • February 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • September 2021
  • June 2021
  • March 2021
  • November 2020

WHAT I AM CURRENTLY READING



Books I Read in 2023

  • Learning from Henri Nouwen and Vincent van Gogh: A Portrait of the Compassionate Life
  • Becoming
  • American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
  • Rootbound: Breaking Free from a Discipleship Ecosystem That Hinders Connection with God

Books I Read in 2022

  • Journey into Newness: The Soul-Making Power of a Wilderness
  • Where the Light Fell: A Memoir
  • Toxic Discipleship: Toxic Churches Produce Deadly Disciples
  • Christianity In Oceania
  • A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene H. Peterson
  • Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
  • Experiencing God: A Theology As Spirituality

Books I Read in 2021

  • Early Christian Mission (2 vols.)
  • A Spirituality of Fundraising
  • Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices That Transform Us
  • I Bring the Voices of My People: A Womanist Vision for Racial Reconciliation
  • Reconstructing the Gospel: Finding Freedom from Slaveholder Religion

Books I Read in 2020

  • Discernment: Reading the Signs of Daily Life
  • Spiritual Direction: Wisdom for the Long Walk of Faith
  • Experiencing The Trinity
  • Spiritual Formation: Following the Movements of the Spirit
  • Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage Our Multicultural World
  • Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ
  • The Call to Holiness: Pursuing the Heart of God for the Love of the World
  • The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom
  • The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives

Books I Read in 2019

  • The Story That Chooses Us: A Tapestry of Missional Vision
  • Discipleship Ecosystem: Developing the Fruit of the Spirit by the Presence of God
  • Completing Project Me: How Understanding God's Perspective Changes Yours
  • Holy Sexuality and the Gospel: Sex, Desire, and Relationships Shaped by God's Grand Story
  • Hearing the New Testament: Strategies for Interpretation
  • Living and Telling the Good News
  • The Bible in a World Context: An Experiment in Contextual Hermeneutics
  • The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila
  • When Justice Just Is: Confessing Brokenness, Cultivating Joy, and Creating Space for Authenticity in the Justice Movement

Books I Read in 2018

  • The Kidnapping of an American Missionary
  • Henri Nouwen: His Life and Vision
  • First Theology: God, Scripture, and Hermeneutics
  • Mission In Motion

Books I Read in 2017

  • Bible, Gender, Sexuality: Reframing the Church's Debate on Same-Sex Relationships
  • Disciples of All Nations: Pillars of World Christianity
  • The Sayings of the Desert Fathers
  • The Changing Face of World Missions

Books I Read in 2016

  • Knowing the Holy Spirit Through the Old Testament
  • Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth
  • Making Disciples Across Cultures: Missional Principles for a Diverse World
  • Make the Words Your Own: An Early Christian Guide to the Psalms
  • Planetwise: Dare To Care For God's World
  • Working The Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

Books I Read in 2015

  • Theology in the Context of World Christianity: How the Global Church Is Influencing the Way We Think about and Discuss Theology
  • Missions And Money
  • Diaspora Missiology
  • Slave Hunter: One Man's Global Quest to Free Victims of Human Trafficking
  • Outside In: Ten Christian Voices We Can't Ignore
  • The Way of the Heart
  • Foundations For Mission
  • Overrated: Are We More in Love with the Idea of Changing the World Than Actually Changing the World?

Books I Read in 2014

  • Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation
  • Global Missiology for the 21st Century: The Iguassu Dialogue
  • The Deeper Journey: The Spirituality of Discovering Your True Self
  • Sanctuary of the Soul: Journey Into Meditative Prayer
  • Longing for Community: Church, Ummah, or Somewhere in Between?
  • Missionshift
  • Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-earth
  • Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King

Books I Read in 2013

  • The Hobbitt
  • Silmarillion
  • Learning To Love: Exploring Solitude and Freedom (The Journals of Thomas Merton)
  • Finding Your Element: How to Discover Your Talents and Passions and Transform Your Life
  • Adam: God's Beloved
  • Globalizing Theology: Belief and Practice in an Era of World Christianity
  • The Way of the Heart: The Spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers
  • Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Cross the Road?: Christian Identity in a Multi-Faith World
  • Miraculous Movements
  • The Wisdom of Whores: Bureaucrats, Brothels and the Business of AIDS

Books I read in 2012

  • Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church
  • Global Cinderellas: Migrant Domestics and Newly Rich Employers in Taiwan
  • Emerging Churches: Creating Community in Post-Modern Culture
  • Cultivating a Life For God
  • Invitation to World Missions
  • Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative
  • Transforming Discipleship: Making Disciples a Few at a Time
  • Constants in Context: A Theology of Mission for Today
  • Salvation Means Creation Healed: The Ecology of Sin and Grace

Books I Read in 2011

  • Yes in Christ: Wesleyan Reflections in Gospel, Mission, and Culture
  • Missional: Joining God in the Neighborhood
  • A New Kind of Christianity
  • Church 3.0: Upgrades for the Future of the Church
  • The Mission of God's People: A Biblical Theology of the Church's Mission (Biblical Theology for Life)
  • The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's Grand Narrative
  • Transformation: How Glocal Churches Transform Lives and the World
  • Becoming Nehemiah: Leading with Significance
  • The Missional Church in Perspective
  • Confident Witness--Changing World: Rediscovering the Gospel in North America
  • Paul, The Missionary
  • Chinese Leadership: Moving From Classical to Contemporary
  • Evaluating The Church Growth Movement
  • Transforming Worldviews: An Anthropological Understanding of How People Change
  • When God Laughs With Us
  • Decoding the Church: Mapping the DNA of Christ's Body
  • Church Planting the Next Generation

Books I Read in 2010

  • When Helping Hurts
  • The Glass Palace
  • Paradigm Shift in Christian Witness
  • World Mission in the Wesleyan Spirit
  • Third Culture Kids
  • Live To Be Forgotten: D. E. Hoste
  • The God of Intimacy and Action
  • Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China
  • Half The Sky
  • Whose Religion is Christianity
  • Witnesses to Power
  • Longing For God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion
  • Jesus in Beijing
  • China's Christian Millions

Books I Read in 2009

  • The New Asian Hemisphere
  • Holiness Manifesto
  • Quitting Church
  • The Seasons of Life
  • Dreams From My Father
  • Chasing the Monsoon
  • Jesus Driven Ministry
  • Multicultural Leader

Categories

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Archives

  • March 12, 2023
  • February 22, 2023
  • February 19, 2023
  • February 18, 2023
  • February 12, 2023
  • February 5, 2023
  • February 4, 2023
  • February 3, 2023
  • January 30, 2023
  • January 29, 2023

More...

Highly Recommended Readings



Books Everyone Should Read At Least Once

  • Cost of Discipleship (by D. Bonhoeffer)
  • Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger (by R.J. Sider)
  • The Jesus I Never Knew (by P. Yancey)

Reference Books


  • These are resources I revisit from time to time.

Other Websites


  • Click here if you want to give toward our support and/or download mission resources for your local churches and study groups.

Featured Links

  • 菲律賓短宣 (Philippine Missions Trip) 2013
    This is a 10-minute video of a mission trip to the Philippines by students from the Holy Light Theological Seminary, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. We visited various ministries from different Free Methodist churches in Butuan City, Philippines.
  • A video of our Mission Trip to Cambodia
  • Harvest Ministry Team in Taiwan, 2009 January
  • Mission Trip to M-country

great blogs everyone should visit and read !!!

  • Chadwick Anderson
    Chadwick is a pastor, writer, worship leader, youth worker, missionary, and a loving family man.
  • Matthew Thomas
    Matt is a grandfather, writer, church planter, Bishop Emeritus of the Free Methodist Church (USA), and a passionate prayer warrior.
  • David's Reflections •
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