Vivian Mabuni knows what it’s like to be living in two different worlds. Growing up in a predominantly white community as a Chinese American, a lot of her early life was lived with the purpose of trying to conform as much as possible, knowing it would never be enough. Yet when she finally found the missing piece in Christ, everything changed. God used Viv’s story to shape her heart to share his precious truth with college students and prepare her voice to be a light for the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
Guest Bio:
Vivian Mabuni is a national speaker, author, Bible teacher, and podcast host. With over 30 years on staff with Cru, Viv loves teaching about the Bible and its practical application to ministry and life. Author of Open Hands, Willing Heart, she also serves on the board of trustees for Denver Seminary and is the founder and host of Someday Is Here, a podcast for AAPI leaders.
Viv loves drinking coffee with her husband of 31 years, Darrin. They serve together as speakers for FamilyLife’s Weekend To Remember marriage conferences. They are proud parents to three young adult kids, and recently welcomed a daughter-in-law to the family!
Notes & Quotes:
I remember getting into the car after one of the [play] rehearsals and my dad just saying, “It’s just too bad you’ll never play Juliet because you’re Chinese.” That just underscored for me, growing up in Boulder, that there were things that were going to not be possible for me because of how I looked.
These little prayers were lifted up to the Lord in Hong Kong of all places. Wouldn’t you know … God came through in Hong Kong.
I dream in English, my values have been shaped by growing up in the United States. My identity is still not true of this country of origin, even though Hong Kong wasn’t my country of origin, but being with other Chinese people did not make me feel like I fit in either. There’s that tension again of like, “Well, where do I fit in?” When I read material about third culture kids, that resonates as an Asian American. That resonates, like … I don’t feel like I fit in neither here nor there.
What I picture the body of Christ in a healthy way is that we are all linking arms facing out. So we have each other’s backs, but we're not so bent out of shape about the music. Yes, music is important, and I don't want to downplay that, but there was something bigger going on, that we would make a little bit of a difference in our university but have our whole vision shifted to live for more than just our own happiness.
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