As an Anglo-American pastoring a majority Asian-American church, Steve’s perspective has shaped my ministry and me in profound ways: 1) to open my eyes to greater degrees the structures of power and privilege within American society, and the way that many in our community experience that; 2) the way that the Kingdom of God subverts the bondage of guilt, shame and fear through the Gospel. I am so grateful for the ways that God has met us as we’ve committed to mutual submission.

Kingdom Rice rethinks and restructures paradigms and systems in light of Kingdom values with a prophetic voice. They provide a theological and cultural big picture and education and development to every level of the organization. They integrate emotional health, theology and cultural dynamics in all aspects of life and ministry.

Steve’s ministry gave me such a shock, in the best way possible. Sitting in class with our missions training students I was learning things I hadn’t heard before. Things like how the gospel relates differently throughout the world, and that when we push the guilt/righteousness mindset we are not relating Christ to other cultures. I was woken up to the reality that culture gives others a different perspective, and that it is good. Steve taught how the ‘honor/shame’ culture of Asia depicts a beautiful view of the Kingdom of God. The students learned to step into another culture, to understand their thoughts and what Christ would want to do in the lives of those we would be sharing with.

The students were given the opportunity to re-write their testimonies so they related to the Asian culture we would be sharing with, and it had such a deep impact. I saw students who had no words to share the gospel before Steve’s teaching able to relate what God has done in them to a culture they never knew before. I experienced a new and deeper friendship with people I had met on previous missions trips simply because I tried a new way of relating to their culture. The best part of working with Steve is that he doesn’t just teach from book material, but he invites others into living out what he shares. He brings everyone into an interactive format that is taught and experienced throughout his ministry. Through Steve’s teaching everyone was better equipped to share the gospel in a culturally relevant way.