This interview is part of our series of getting to know the speakers who will be at the Midwinter conference for pastors and ministry leaders in January. We asked them some questions about our theme for the year, “Follow Me.”
Greg is senior assistant to the president and director of diversity and external partnerships at InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. He is also a member of the Covenant Executive Board.
Where do you currently live?
Elmhurst, Illinois
Can you describe a pivotal moment when you responded to the call to follow Jesus?
I was invited to attend an Awana meeting at my friend’s church. I hated the games, but I found the gospel presentation to be so clear and so sensible, that I said “Yes.” I also remember being at Urbana ’87, InterVarsity’s mission conference, where Floyd McClung casually mentioned that “Missionaries have always buried their children on the mission field.” I suddenly recognized that my faith in Jesus as a Chinese American was (at least in part) the fruit of missionaries who had buried their children in China. I realized that any concerns I had about security (for myself or my future family) had to be understood in light of their sacrifice. So I said “yes” to following Jesus wherever he led—even into mission.
How has your understanding of what it means to follow Jesus changed over time?
On one hand, it hasn’t. Very early on in my faith—and certainly in college—I knew that Jesus was Lord, and his Lordship extended over every aspect of my life. Jesus was inviting me to declare and demonstrate his Lordship everywhere I went and in every context I found myself. At a minimum, that required me to do justice and to love mercy. But it also required me to go further: to think Christianly in areas of study; to attend to and to nurture beauty, truth, and love in creation and culture-making; to witness and pray faithfully; to participate fully in church. In my current roles with InterVarsity, this has meant deeper immersion into the implications of diversity (around gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, ability, etc.), faithful political witness as someone who leads our First Amendment initiatives, and missional partnership. The fundamental call for me hasn’t changed. But the implications have been expanded and enriched.
Who is the most interesting person you follow online (social media, blogs, podcasts, etc.), and why?
For the past year or so, my social media engagement has fallen by the wayside a bit. I do appreciate “Writing Excuses,” a weekly podcast by four people who write, edit, and agent fantasy and science fiction, because it helps me think about how we tell stories and structure narratives. That helps me in both cultural and biblical exegesis, as well as in the task of telling stories as part of change leadership.
Just for fun: What was your last Google search?
Jesuit retreat houses.
