The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. This Japanese expression characterizes the attitude of many Asian Americans. We are often taught not to put ourselves forward--not to stick out. But the Western concept of leadership is all about stepping up and standing apart from the group. Is that appropriate for Asian Americans? Or can we lead out of our own cultural strengths rather than being pressed into the Western mold? Paul Tokunaga has been a leader in Asian American, white and multiethnic contexts for many years. He has been active in ministry and in his community. In Invitation to Lead he offers, with surprising transparency, lessons from his own rich experiences--both successes and failures. Many of us aren't sure whether we can or should lead. We are waiting for someone to ask. Or we are just beginning to take on new roles and responsibilities at church, at work or in our neighborhoods. Here, at last, is our invitation to lead.

Do you want to live for Jesus but struggle with what that means day by day? The deep desire of our hearts to be close to God is so easily sidetracked by daily realities. This book is designed to cover the areas of faith and life that you most want to bring together under God's leadership: decision-making dating and relationships racial reconciliation suffering experiencing God loving your parents emotional healing time management everyday evangelism hope for times of failure Following Jesus is a wild and wonderful journey. It is perhaps the riskiest choice you will ever make. And the most rewarding. Come and see.

Go to the right school. Become a doctor or a lawyer. Marry a nice Asian. These are some of the hopes of our Asian parents. Knowing that our parents have sacrificed for us, we want to honor their wishes. But we also want to serve Jesus, and sometimes that can seem to conflict with family expectations. Discovering our Asian identity in the midst of Western culture means learning to bridge these and other conflicting values. We need wise counsel on our parents' ways of loving us vocations that show respect for our parents and allow us to serve God the "model minority" myth and performance pressures marriage, singleness, and being male and female racial reconciliation spirituality and church experiences unique gifts Asians bring to Western culture This book, written by a team of Asian American student ministry workers who have been there, can serve as our guide on a difficult journey. The authors represent a variety of perspectives, including the immigrant experience of a Korean man, a third-generation Japanese-American's understanding of his parents' experience in the internment camps during World War II, and a Chinese American woman's struggle to communicate with her parents. Their accounts of humorous, frusrating and heartbreaking personal experiences (as well as stories from other Asian American students and adults) offer support and encouragement. And their ideas for living out the Christian faith between two cultures show us the way to wholeness.