In a world that sometimes makes you feel invisible, we want you to know that God sees you and takes great delight in you. 

Your blood carries the stories of your ancestors. Your shoulders bear the hope of generations before you. 

You try to honor your family, even when it’s difficult. But at times you have had to carve your own path, which has taken faith and courage. 

From childhood, you have learned different ways of communication. You can read power dynamics and understand what is not being said. 

You are a bridge that spans cultures and generations. Even though you sometimes feel “rootless” in both your motherland and the country you call home, your arms stretch wide to embrace people from both sides of the ocean. Yet you wonder if you truly belong anywhere. 

In every place you’ve gone, you have worked hard and excelled. But some of you have hit a bamboo ceiling because your gifts have not been fully recognized. Others have followed the expected path to the detriment of following your own dreams and passions.

There has been a silent toll that you feel as you grow older that comes with navigating cultural tensions: How you raise your kids. How you care for your parents. How your gifts don’t always align with Western leadership models.   

Some of you have outgrown the church spaces of your youth. Some of you have even been hurt and betrayed by spiritual leaders. Some of you are still seeking safe spiritual spaces, where you can fully use your gifts. 

God sees it all—your joys, your struggles, your longing. He offers you a spacious place where you are free to come as you are. 

You have permission to let go of all the “I should’s.” You have permission to let go of conformity and people pleasing, for the sake of acceptance. You have permission to let go of having to achieve more to earn approval. You have permission to let go of old frameworks and beliefs that no longer work in your life. 

God is inviting you to slow down and enter a new space. Here you can draw strength in the values of your family and culture. Here you can seek the good of the collective and form deeper communities. Here you can celebrate freedom and new ways of being and leading. Here you can receive more grace and acceptance. Here you can find ancestral hope. Here you can rest in His presence. 

God wants you to know that you are a gift to the larger church and world. You can integrate autonomy and submission, personal conviction and loyalty, creativity and receptivity, flexibility and strength. You can use your voice, your creativity, your talents, your leadership in a way that is uniquely you.

Joyce Koo Dalrymple is co-founder of Khora Collective and serves as Chief of Content and Engagement. Additionally, she is CEO at Refuge for Strength, is on the teaching team at Church 360, hosts the podcast called Adopting Hope, and is a regular preacher. She

is the author of several books including Jesus’ Passion Week and co-author of Redeeming Eden (forthcoming 2025). She previously served as a television journalist and attorney. She holds a JD from Boston College and MDiv from Metro Atlanta Seminary. She and her husband, Tim, live in Wheaton, IL and have 3 children.