The
President¡¯s Dog
Once
the Democratic candidate Obama became the
president-elect, he embarked on fulfilling the very first campaign promise that
he had officially made which was to get his daughters a dog. Since such news
came out, there was such a buzz as to what kind of breed the White House dog
needed to be among those well-educated about dogs throughout the States. The
two conditions that the president-elect Obama put out
were first the dog shouldn¡¯t shed because his daughter is allergic to dog¡¯s
hair, and second the dog will be adapted from the animal shelter.
A
mixed breed, a mutt carries no value, and it takes an effort even
to just
give it away. On
the other hand, a dog with a mixture of different breeds for a clear purpose
has a higher value and becomes a favorite among people. In fact, the results of
a mixture of two different breeds are the same, but the difference is whether
one was made with a certain purpose in mind or not.
A
right mixed dog can result from mixing two breeds in accordance with the needed
characteristics of the breeds. President Obama¡¯s dog
should be one whose hair doesn¡¯t fall out. In other words, the dog¡¯s hair must
be sheared occasionally. For example, a Poodle belongs to that category. When
their curly hair is not sheared, their hair turns into a fur ball. If one¡¯s
choice is not a Poodle, but still can overcome allergy when a dog doesn¡¯t shed
hair, all one has to do is to mix this Poodle with another breed. Those who
know something about mixing breeds recommend a mixture of a Poodle and a
If a Labadoodle is decided on to fit in the White House, there
is another task President Obama needs to overcome. It
is to find the dog among the homeless dogs as he declared before Americans,
instead of having a professional breeder just mix the two breeds together. Even
though they are politically correct words, the problem is that it¡¯s hard to
find such a dog.
If
one wants to make a breed with the right chemistry, it takes a very experienced
dog breeder to have a sufficient amount of time to do it. If this doesn¡¯t
happen, the mixed breed can be a Poodlelaba with a
projected face that sheds hair, or it can be a very big Poodle, or a
ridiculously mixed dog. That¡¯s why one has to pay a high price to purchase a
dog with such picky conditions. However, Mr. Obama
declared that he would find his dog among the homeless dogs. Since it was the
president¡¯s declaration, there is a chance that just such a dog might be found,
but it¡¯s not going to be easy.
Many
churches in the States go through the same process when looking for a second
generation minister. The picky qualifications to meet are that they have to be:
America-born, have a good command of English, and have a good understanding of
Korean traditions and culture, etc. Not only that, they add one more condition:
a part-time minister who is willing to receive a small salary. While compensating
them financially as if they were seminary students or people who will only stay
for a short while, churches complain that ¡°EM folks don¡¯t stay long but leave
immediately.¡±
We
have to reflect and see whether we are intentionally raising
up second generation ministers. Any senior pastor or any incoming senior pastor
would make the promise, ¡°I will make the EM a good and strong ministry¡¦..¡±
However, how do they explain that effective and vibrant English ministry
constitutes less than 1 percent among 4,000 Korean churches in
This
might not be a correct answer, but I have been involved in second generation
English ministry for years, and these days I have been serving on the board of
a Christian university. Based on my many years of service and involvement, this
is how I summarize my thoughts on the topic. The Korean churches in the States
must wake up from the fact that a random Seminary student would suddenly
receive a calling from heaven, and devote himself to the church for the rest of
his life without pay. That¡¯s a ridiculous miracle. Instead, they have to
actively raise up second generation ministers without
delay. When raising up second generation ministers,
the very first thing that needs to be done is that churches need to know their
own unique conditions. They have to either have a professional breeder
(seminaries) mix two breeds that meet their conditions, or invite a ready-made
breed after paying the right price.
What
I mean by paying the right price is that the church takes on the responsibility
of paying, for not only university education but also for seminary education,
in the form of investment for homegrown young adults. Also churches must make a
long-term investment in raising up future leaders by
establishing a scholarship system or setting up fund for scholarships. On
average, youth pastors leave churches within 18 months. One way to prevent this
from happening is to raise a homegrown minister, or to pay the right price.
A dog
that is obtained easily is not a breed mixed for a need, but a mixed dog that
is wandering around randomly on the street. If we understand this principle, a
bright future will dawn, even slightly on the reality where there is less than 1 percent of successful second generation
ministries. Who would have expected that a president with mixed blood,
especially the blood of an African-American would be produced? The Providence
of God is truly beyond my comprehension. That¡¯s why I become more excited about
what God will do in the future.