#364
6.26.23
8:35p
In one month, I got to meet Damian Lillard and Francis Chan. I never thought I’d get to touch an NBA player on the shoulder and look him in the eye. Let alone one of my all time favorites! Then two weeks later, Francis Chan is in my office, sitting 3 feet from me, giving out advice like pots of gold. I hung on to every word. I could not take my eyes off of him. Wow. How cool is it to be famous?
I want to be famous.
How I met Damian Lillard:
My pastor texted me saying Damian Lillard is coming to town. “Get on over to this gym now!” What?! Damian Lillard? Logo Lillard? Putting Portland on his back Damian Lillard?!
There’s this one clip of him sinking a buzzer beater that I can’t stop replaying. Watch this and tell me how can you not fall in love with this man.
So I skipped my workout, rushed across the city, even called an Uber which I never do! The Uber driver completely did not see me when I was waving my arms like a lunatic at him, so I called him and yelled at him on the phone! “I was waving at you bro! Get your ass here!” I don’t do that. That’s so unlike me. But he was causing me to be late for Damian Lillard!
I finally got there and word had spread. There were so many teenage boys wearing his jersey. Dang. It was going to be hard to meet him. When he entered the gym, everybody swarmed him.
They all treated him like an object. Running up to him, grabbing a selfie, and running off. When he was shooting 3s and half court shots, nobody was cheering for him. It was just my voice in the gym! But when he brought out some free gifts, that’s when everybody started clamoring around, swarming him, barely giving him space to move, arms outstretched, twitching like they needed a fix. It kind of sucked.
Cheering for Dame
I really felt bad for him. But he had such an influence over these people. He had such an influence over me! I really wanted to shake his hand, talk to him, get a picture with him.
For those interested, you can watch these 2 videos and see what he was up to in HK.
Then came Francis Chan. My pastor is friends him, so he came to our staff meeting. At the meeting he talked about being obedient to God, happy father’s day texts that made him cry, God making the impossible possible, ditching para-church strategy and just focusing and being with Jesus, and other things. I really clung on to every word. After reading his book Crazy Love, I went on a 5 day fast. I didn’t eat for 5 days! Crazy how these celebrities have so much influence.
Then I think about Jesus. What if he came to Hong Kong, just waltzed right in and word spread quick? Would I behave the same way? This man drove out demons! Healed a woman who couldn’t stop bleeding! Healed a man who was stuck on the ground for 38 years!
I really hope I would. Seeing the way I reacted towards Dame and Francis, I thought, “Damn, why am I not more like that for Jesus?” Jesus does so much more than shoot three pointers. He does so much more than write books. He looks at me for all the flaws I am and loves me. Whereas Francis asked me to repeat my name because he’s never heard “Kiubon” before.
Then there’s the part of me that actually wants to be famous. I make films. I could be a famous director. I just won a fat grant. I have a compelling story to tell. I could use my influence to love people and spread the Gospel. But only after I get applauded on stage for winning a bunch of rewards and really wrestle about when I mention Jesus in the speech.
So being famous is cool. But making Jesus more famous is where it’s at. That’s where I won’t get disappointed. That’s where I find satisfaction. That’s where truth is. It was really cool I got to meet those two people. But it’s even cooler I get to pray to God and talk with him. I get to be with him all the time. He’s always with me. And he’s taking ubers and running around the city just to see me. Wow. In Jesus’ eyes, I am famous! He wants to be with me more than anything else. He’s just waiting to see if I feel the same way.
Kiubon