Processing Paris, Refugees, Fear, Neighbors, Terrorism and Tired Huddled Masses

When scary, horrible things happen, everything in us wants to react in some way. We feel out of control. We don't understand why. And it is a horrible feeling, so we as humans have a tendency to make hasty conclusions and decisions in our attempt to avoid feeling the pain of reality. Unfortunately, those judgments and decisions are not always in our or anyone’s best interests. I dusted off this dormant blog and offer these reflections as part of my own processing in hopes that they might help others process these recent events as well.

Along with most of my countrymen and women and many people in other nations, I am still reeling in shock about the killings in Paris. Yes, I am well aware of the horrendous bombing in Lebanon - I was saddened about that. The mosque bombings in Iraq, the ongoing Boko Haram violence in Nigeria, oh, and the many others that don't even make the first row of headlines on my news app. So first, I want to address this meme I am seeing as people process and jump to conclusions. I will be honest, even though I am a global citizen, have lived over 10 years outside the USA, and have friends in over 40 countries, yes, the Paris killings hit me emotionally more than some of the other recent tragedies. I expect that's true for many (certainly not all) of my countrymen and women. Does that make us shallow? Perhaps. Ethnocentric? Welcome to the human race.

My brother lost two sons in a car accident 9 years ago yesterday. The grief was horrible. I still nine years later feel grief and emotion about that loss. I do not have the same level of emotional grief about other young men lost in hundreds of car accidents across the globe since that time, but I still grieve my nephews. Does that make me hypocritical? Insensitive? Do I not value all life? There is a difference in the intrinsic value of life that all have as children of God and the relational value someone has to me because of our closeness. Grieving more for my nephews does not imply that I think other life does not have equal value, but just that I am more impacted by their loss.

I think the same is going on with Paris for many (not all) in the USA. Many of us have been there. France is our nation’s oldest ally. To many (not all) of us, Paris itself represents love and romance, beauty and western culture. So the image of shooters killing young people in cafes in Paris not surprisingly will have a greater emotional impact on many (not all) than a similar event happening elsewhere. That says nothing about the intrinsic value of life or the intrinsic level of evil – it simply says the connection is stronger for many of us, thus the impact feels greater. I would anticipate most Kenyans grieved much more intensely and had much more news coverage over the horrible massacre at Garissa University than they did over the bombing in Bangkok.

So my suggestion – let people grieve and process as they need. There is ample time later for us to discuss the global challenges and, yes, our media’s tendency to imply varying degrees of value to life based on country of origin or ethnicity. For now, let’s stand with people in their grief – not scold them for grieving incorrectly.

Now to fear – yes, this is scary stuff. But even if an attack like this happened weekly in our country, it would still not match the number of deaths to car accidents. Yet we all still drive and don’t write excoriating posts about the stupidity of getting behind the wheel of our cars. I’m not proposing we don’t try to prevent attacks. I’m just saying we don’t always apply cold logic to risk, but respond more in fear and emotion. People often ask about risk to our missionaries and I remind that the number one cause of death among missionaries is car accidents! But we still allow them to ride in cars.

I have seen several governors, including my own in Georgia, stating that they do not want any Syrian refugees in their states. Oh, my Facebook wall is full of posts praising these bold actions as well as snarky posts saying it is stupid. Yes, the fear is real. Yes, one of the terrorists in Paris did come with refugees. So I understand the reaction and the sentiment and will not call any one coming to that conclusion stupid and will avoid snarky reactions.

That said, I ask you to consider that these refugees are fleeing from the same systems that produced the violence in Paris, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, and other places. They didn’t leave by choice. Should tens of thousands of refugees be punished because of the actions of a handful? Are the famous words on the Statue of Liberty now to be amended so that “huddled masses” are no longer welcome because they might have a bad guy among them? Perhaps we should take a big, deep collective breath and consider how we can reduce the risk of the bad guys while at the same time offering hospitality to the thousands who are dispossessed and have lost everything. If we meet them with hostility, all we do is give breeding ground for more marginalization and despair, which is fodder for the bad guys. Further, we might lose our own soul in the process. If, like me, you are a follower of Christ, then our marching orders on such matters are pretty explicit – welcome the stranger and protect the alien. Hard to get around that one!

Finally, another area of fear. Muslims in general. I’ll try to keep this brief although I could write pages about this, but there are articles that do better if people will simply take the time to read them. There are bad Muslims and they do use elements of the Islamic religion to justify horrendous actions. No question. And they are very scary. But they are a very, very small minority of the 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide. All the main streams of Islam and their scholars have denounced ISIS and Al-Qaida. All. They just don’t get much press since it doesn’t fit with the oversimplified narrative. There are many, many, many more Muslims dying at the hands of the extremists than Christians or westerners.

We lived in a predominantly Muslim country for ten years. We were embraced, offered hospitality and friendship. This is a very common experience for foreigners among Muslims except in those few places where extremists hold sway. It saddens me to know that Muslims who have suffered often at the hands of other Muslims, lost everything, spent years in refugee camps, and finally realize a dream of a new life in the USA are met with hostility and suspicion. And the irony is that it is hostility and suspicion that can lead to marginalization and vulnerability to becoming radicalized. That’s what the Paris attack planners hoped to create – more recruits.

This is not naivety – I know there are bad extremists who want to send people to kill. And they will do that until they are defeated. But I firmly believe they will be defeated much quicker if we can build bridges to the many millions of Muslims who just want to raise their families and live a peaceful life. If we think bombs are the solution, I’m afraid we are misguided – every bomb creates space for more extremists. The battle has to be fought equally fervently for the hearts and minds of these populations – and we have allies here among our Muslim countrymen and women if we will but reach out and build relationships.

Jesus said that perfect love casts out fear. And we know we are commanded to love everyone – neighbor and enemy. So if we are fearing our Muslim neighbors, that means we are not loving them and are thus disobeying another pretty direct command of our Lord.

Lots of stuff here – I don’t purport to have all the answers nor could I put it all down in two pages if I did. Only politicians can do that! But I do invite all to process thoughtfully, prayerfully, and reflectively. For believers in Jesus, what do His words and actions tell us? What do other words from the Bible speak in this context? Maybe invite a Muslim neighbor or coworker for coffee and listen to his or her story, what are his fears, what are her aspirations? You might find this exercise will help you process Paris, refugees. It might lessen your fear and help restore hope in humanity. And you might even discover a friend.

Final Reflections on Three Visits in Africa

Made it back home from the whirlwind trip to three African countries (and I managed to squeeze a day in France and a day in Uganda while at it). There were many observable differences in the three places I visited - South Africa (East Cape), South Sudan (Yei), and Tanzania (Morogoro). The people are visibly different in each location. Of course even though my eyes are getting better at seeing the distinctions, I still enjoy hearing the observations from various Africans that we white folk all look alike. It always makes me feel better to hear someone make that comment since, like many people, it takes me quite a while to get used to what are the distinguishing features between people of a given ethnic group if I haven't been around it much!

Each of these countries is dealing with different challenges. South Africa still dealing with the disparity that is an ongoing legacy of the Apartheid system, trying to deal with the disparity but not follow the path of neighboring Zimbabwe with has pretty much destroyed its economy. South Sudan is dealing with the aftermath of years of civil war. The country is only two years old and has minimal infrastructure or experience in government. There were no paved roads in Yei and most people do not have running water or electricity. Tanzania has been more successful than most African countries at forging a national identity and has been an example of peaceful relationships between their almost equal percentages of Muslim and Christian populations. Yet they deal with poverty and, unfortunately, are also dealing with outside forces that are working to foment militant Islam.

In each of these very different contexts it was good to see that the church in its various forms is working to address the challenges, both the church from within the country as well as the church from outside. It was clear to me once again how important it is that those of us from the outside LISTEN and find appropriate ways to be in solidarity to those trying to make a difference from within. We have to make sure our help is really help. We have to understand the legacies of these different histories, all of which have the common experience of colonialism as a backdrop. Yet I met so many people in all three countries from the inside and from the outside who are committed to doing the hard work of navigating these challenges. So I come home encouraged!

That will conclude my blog entries for this trip. I may do this again sometime as well as write the occasional blog entry in between, but I know better than to pretend that I will be a regular blogger. But it is always a helpful thing to reflect on experience and, for us extroverts, it helps us do it if we think there might be someone listening! So thanks for that.

Attitude Makes All the Difference

I am now in Tanzania in the city of Morogoro where we have worked for nearly 15 years with the local mission diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania. The bishop is a wonderful Masai man who I met on my first visit here nearly seven years ago. This is considered a mission diocese due to the area being a largely unchurched region of Tanzania with several people groups that have limited exposure to the Gospel.

Today I met with the bishop to greet him and thank him for our many years of working together. A couple who has been here for several years recently returned to the USA, completing their time of service here. And a young woman who has served for four years is transitioning to work with a different ministry here. So I wanted to celebrate our years of working together and explore ways we can continue in relationship even if we don’t have additional personnel here.

He said many nice things about the people we have sent who he has worked with over these years. He said they were not like many foreigners, but that they cooperated well with him and did not cause troubles. It made me thankful not only for the caliber of folks God sends our way to serve, but also for the training we provide to help them serve with the right posture and attitude.

One thing that can get many well-meaning people in trouble when they go to help cross-culturally is that they start with answers before finding out what the questions are. Or they are quick to draw conclusions about observations before they have taken the time to understand the culture. The training our folks get encourages them to enter as learners and gives them the tools to discern the culture where they are. It was great to see our missionary Kristen just chatting away with the bishop in Swahili prior to our meeting. She took the time to do the hard work of language learning so that she could serve more effectively with better understanding. 

When I hear comments like today from the bishop, after fifteen years of working together, I am very thankful for the training I had and that all of our missionaries get prior to moving to serve cross-culturally!

White guy, Give Me One Pound

"Kawaja. Give me one pound."  This I have learned is a common greeting when a local child here in South Sudan greets a white person. In fact, today I heard it from a young man. Kawaja is the word for "white guy." Nothing surprising there - every African country I've visited has its word of choice that is used for white folks. In many places it is screamed out by children when they see you. I've finally gotten used to that. But the second part is telling - "Give me one pound." (Pound is their unit of currency).

Evidently this has become so much connected that it is almost a form of greeting - something you say when meeting a stranger that without giving much thought to its meaning. As ordinary as "how are you?" In fact, our missionary here said that he has asked children in the local language if they know what "Give me one pound" means, and they actually do not. They have just learned it is what you say when greeting a white person.

While at face value this is kind of cute, it suggests an assumption that the relationship between the western foreigner and the local person begins with money or at least something that can be given. Some of this could stem from the fact that much of the population here has spent time in refugee camps during the civil war, where they were dependent upon things being given or provided by outsiders. This has certainly been fanned by many NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) who do humanitarian work here. And even short term church teams are often known by the fact that they give out stuff.

In our efforts to help people, we need to give careful thought to how our "charity" is received and what it communicates. Does it say simply that we have stuff and are willing to part with a little of it, but that pretty much defines our relationship? Is it possible that charity done even with a good motive but in certain ways can inhibit relationship? How might we relate to people so we are first seen as a friend and fellow human rather than a source of stuff? And what must our attitude toward others first be for this to happen?

Some things to think about!

South Sudan - Signs of Hope

I arrived yesterday in South Sudan after an overnight in Entebbe, Uganda and then a flight on a small prop plane here to Yei. First time I've come across an international border to a dirt airstrip with a small, one-room building as "passport control" where they handwrote my visa and sent me on my way.   

This has only been an independent nation for just over two years and that was only accomplished after decades of civil war and pretty brutal oppression of the people of the South. Many of the population of this city spent years in refugee camps across the nearby borders of Congo and Uganda or took shelter in the forests away from their homes. So infrastructure is pretty much having to be recreated from scratch.

Today I got to meet a young man named Justice (appropriate, given the history). He directs a small children's home that provides a home for 18 "double orphans" (meaning both parents are deceased and no relatives available to take them). He proudly showed me around the facility with the various innovations they have, including solar power to batteries since there is no access to central electricity, a cooking stove that uses firewood with high efficiency, drying rack and washing stations that reduce the likelihood of disease, and beds for the children each equipped with nets. He is studying business administration on line. I also found out that he works with our missionary doctors here as they do public health training, especially focusing on husband responsibility in helping reduce the high rate of infant mortality and maternal death during childbirth. He has a strong faith and also hopes to study theology so he can strengthen the church.

It is a hard place and there are many years of hard work that will be required for this new nation to get on its feet. But with folks like Justice, one sees that the seeds are already here.

Thoughts on Apartheid and Change

I can't help but think about the Apartheid system as I am in South Africa. As a college student, I was part of a student group called "Students United Against Apartheid." That was the cause for many internationally-minded young folks of my era. So I had read a lot about it, had written a couple papers on it, and continued to follow developments in South Africa through the next decade until the system was given a much-needed burial. So it is interesting being here nearly 20 years after its end and learning a bit about the aftermath.

Unfortunately, as with any injustice or conflict, the legacy of it extends far into the future. Certainly we in the USA understand that, as do most cultures of the world. Yesterday I had the chance to ask a older gentleman named Tony about his experience. He is Coloured. (Lest anyone think I've lapsed into racist language, that is a formal, acceptable designation for people of mixed race. Fortunately it no longer has legal ramifications as it did in the past, although with some aggressive affirmative action policies in place, categorizing still makes a difference here). His experience has been interesting. Under Apartheid, Coloureds did not receive as harsh treatment and restrictions as Blacks. In fact, when I asked him how most Coloureds felt about the closing of Apartheid, he said it was about 50-50. Many were nervous about what their status would be under Black leadership. Would they find themselves again outside of the "favored race?"

He is very matter-of-fact about the situation. There still are enormous disparities in the country. As the post-Apartheid generation moves into adulthood, it will be interesting to see how much the economic disparities remain connected to race. I also can't help but have a deep appreciation for the first non-White president, Nelson Mandella. When I think of the disparity and injustice, he very easily could have ridden a wave of popularity and anger and done to South Africa what has been done in Zimbabwe. But he came in with reconciliation as his platform, and while there are still huge challenges, thankfully there wasn't the level of violence that was certainly possible.

Anyhow, nothing earth-shattering, but just an interesting place to be since this place and the issues here gripped so much of my attention as a student 30+ years ago.  

When Passion and Vision Connect

Today we visited some ministry partners of the Stotlers (our missionary family) who serve in Bizana. It is a good-sized city in East Cape province. Tembe and Lucky are their names and they have a ministry and church called Arise and Shine. These are the sorts of people that just exude passion for God and for ministry. As I listened to them share their vision, it was as if they had just been reviewing the latest writing on ministry approaches, good church planting ideas, missiology, medical missions, etc. They have a church that is made up of tin sheeting with tent material on the inside. It can fit about 700 or so chairs and they said it is full every Sunday. They also operate a school. They are developing a microcredit system (something Elliott Stotler is helping with). And they want to open a medical clinic. When they see needs, they think of creative ways to address them.

Lucky talked about how each time they start something, they start small. "If you are trustworthy in the small things, the Lord will bless. So we start small." They seem to be completely outwardly focused as a church - a refreshing thing to see since churches in so much of the world tend to be inwardly focused. They involve the whole church in the ministry rather than having a pastor-focused ministry, again running counter to what is common especially in the African church. They really have a heart to see transformation in their community and beyond - even using English in their service in addition to Xhosa as a way to be open to the many foreigners who live in Bizana (Nigerians, Chinese, Pakistanis, etc). 

This is probably my favorite part of my job. It isn't the sights, the food, or even the cultures as much as it is seeing how God has placed key people all over the world. People who have true vision and passion, who have anointing, who aren't waiting for someone else, and with whom it is truly a privilege to work.

Thursday/Friday - Jetlag is a Wonderful Thing

Yesterday was pretty well a bust - I don't do jetlag gracefully. I was met by our workers here, Elliott and Katherine Stotler and son Cason. Pretty much talked incoherently, napped, and talked more incoherently. But slept 10 hours last night. It is midnight now and I'm still up - been working on work stuff (yeah, the office tasks aren't so kind as to just go away because I'm out of the country). Hopefully we'll sleep tonight, although my experience of jetlag is usually something like this:
First day: Sleep like a baby all night, albeit with crazy dreams. Get excited and think maybe I'm already adjusted.
Second day: Feel pretty good. Stay up too late hoping it'll make me sleep all night. Go to sleep, wake up around 2-3am. No chance of going back to sleep. 
Third day: Yeah, 2-3 hours of sleep means I'm toast. Do fine in the morning, start looking glazed by afternoon. Hosts make fun of me as my head droops while we are having serious discussions about ministry. I take a nap. Again stay up later than I should doing work.
Fourth day: Up around 4am. better, but still tired during the day. Jetlag hits in waves - you are sitting there feeling quite normal and all of a sudden a fog just drops.
Fifth day: Up again around 4-5am, but now feeling that I have gained a level of spiritual breakthrough that puts me in league with people like John Wesley and St. Francis. (Well, I don't know about St. Francis, but I'm sure all spiritual giants wake up early. That's bound to be in the Bible somewhere).

Etc. 

Well, blogs should be short and focused, so this one ended up being about jetlag. I promise to write about South Africa tomorrow. Stay tuned - for now I'll just say it is awesome and, like everywhere else, the kids are really cute.

Day 2 - Paris

I don't think I'll really type daily, but this is another airport entry. About the same time Paris time as it was Atlanta time on the last one - just after 10pm and about 15 minutes from time to board my flight for Johannesburg. Poor me had a 10-hour layover in Paris, so I stored my carry-on and headed on the train to town. Enjoyed a look around Notre Dame. They are celebrating 850 years since its construction began. 850 years! I can't really get my mind around that! As I look up at the incredible architecture, I cannot imagine the technology and infrastructure to build it. Not to mention the labor force (or should I say forced labor?). Anyhow, the result is breathtaking. Anytime I get in a setting with such a long, rich history, it makes me all reflective. I guess for those who live here year round, perhaps this becomes commonplace. I'm sure there is a point I could make regarding that phenomenon, but time to go board, so I'll let the reader draw his/her own point. :) 

Day 1 - And we're off!

This will be a short initial entry. I'm at the Atlanta airport about 10:15pm awaiting my flight. Actually I'm supposed to board in about 15 minutes, so this needs to be very short! Amazingly, I did most my packing yesterday, so today ended up being a fairly relaxed day. Usually I put off packing until the day of departure and usually departure is by mid-afternoon at the latest. So I had a whole day. Shawn and I had a lovely time since both had blocked it out for the trip and had nothing scheduled. We enjoyed a new restaurant, took our dog Lizzy on a 4-mile walk, and had time to just chat. Maybe we should schedule unscheduled time more often. Next stop Paris, then Johannesburg, then Durban. If all goes well I'll get there sometime, but to be honest, I really haven't done the math to figure out exactly when that will be!

Can These Old Bones Live?

Well, as I expressed in my initial post (see the left side of the blog page), my ability to be consistent with journaling back in the pre-blogging era has transferred to blogging. It's been over two years since I've posted anything here. So I doubt anyone will be reading this entry since, if they are following me, they either have no life or they have long since wondered what happened to me. But I wanted a buffer in here so it wouldn't look SO lame that the last entry was 2+ years ago since I plan to blog during an upcoming trip to Africa and will invite people to follow along. Maybe they won't notice the gap?

So I've updated my profile; yeah, my profile pic was 8 years old and I have "ripened" since then, and my title has changed as has our family. But otherwise, it's still little ol' me a couple years later ready to try again at this blogging thing. And I do still love ice cream - appropriately the most recent post...

In my defense, I do blog regularly for The Mission Society's blog so that took some of the air out of my creativity. Yeah, right.  

Magnum Bars and Wal-Mart

You don’t have to be around me long to discover that I love ice cream. It is genetic. One of my favorite quotes from my grandfather was “I think I want to have some ice cream.” He would open an entire box and cut it in slabs with a knife. Oh, the memories, but I digress. (BTW, my grandfather had a much deeper influence on my life outside of ice cream, but the subject of this blog triggered the memory!)

While living in Kazakhstan, our family occasionally enjoyed a type of ice cream bar called “Magnum bars.” They were very yummy. Then as I’ve traveled the world over the past few years in my role of missionary oversight, I have found that many countries have Magnum bars. Yet I never have seen them in the USA. I began to tell our missionary kids to find where Magnum bars were sold in their country so when I visit, I could treat the kids to one. Those who keep up with me on Facebook will attest to the many photos I have of enjoying a Magnum bar in different parts of the world. And I always joked how backward the USA was in that we were one of the few countries where you could not find a Magnum bar.

Well, recently a Facebook friend, well aware of my quest for Magnums, informed me that she saw them at a Wal-Mart in Nicholasville, Kentucky. At first I was very happy – Magnums accessible any time. But then I began to feel a bit sad. One of the things that have made Magnums so much fun to seek is that they were not readily accessible. They were different.

I remember when a very tasty treat we sometimes got in Kazakhstan appeared in Wal-Mart in the USA. We had the same sort of feeling – it just didn’t seem so special anymore. Wal-Mart represents the commonplace. If you can buy it at Wal-Mart, then is it really a special treat? The whole idea of quest is gone. Yeah, just pick up a box of Magnum bars on the way home from the office. In fact, I’ll be less likely to enjoy them while traveling if they become commonplace here.

Well, a blog on a mission page usually is not just about something like ice cream. What happens when the Gospel seems commonplace; when it is, so to speak, available at your local Wal-Mart; when it isn’t new, it doesn’t seem to require a quest, it isn’t surprising? The Gospel is by no means commonplace – it is incredible and life-transforming. Yet we risk losing that since we have the illusion that it is just part of the landscape. Often seeing the reaction of people for whom it really is new news or where it must be sought at great risk can help us in the USA get a reminder that it far from commonplace. Those of us in places like the USA need constantly to refresh our understanding of the Gospel and never relegate it to the shelves of Wal-Mart!

No, I’ve not been to my local Wal-Mart yet to see if they have Magnum bars nor have I decided whether or not I will allow myself to enjoy one on US soil. I’ll keep you posted.

January 12 - First Anniversary

January 12 may not be a day to stick out in most of our minds. But given that I am now in Haiti, it is a day that is very much at the front of the minds of the people here. One year ago, an earthquake caused devastation, especially in the densely populated capital city of Port-au-Prince. Estimates of 230,000 people lost their lives. Many bodies never have been recovered.

As we drove through Port-au-Prince upon arrival, I was floored by the countless buildings in varying degrees of collapse. Some are only known to have existed by the rubble in the lot. Some look OK at first glance, but then you see the cracks and realize it is not usable. A full year later, the evidence of the devastation is still clear. I cannot imagine what it was like shortly after the disaster.

Most of our time in Haiti so far we have been in the interior. In an area that felt the quake, but did not experience damage. Yet it seems nearly every family could tell of a relative or a loved one that they lost who was in the capital for work or study. The ministry we are visiting lost several graduates of their grade school, who were in university.

So I hope any readers will take some time to pause on January 12 in remembrance of the people of Haiti who lost their lives and to pray for the Lord to raise up a people to Himself from the rubble of the disaster. In the four days we have been here, we have seen so many indications that the Lord is doing just that - may we, their American neighbors, be prepared to stand with them in prayer, support, and service.

Tribute to a Life Well Lived

During all our years in Kazakhstan and in the four years since returning, we could count on receiving birthday cards and notes from Miss Gertrude Bloede. The cards were always unique, as she would cut the front of a card she had, then tape it to a blank index card, and personalize her note. A true missionary – do not waste anything! I later got to know other missionaries she supported, and found they had the same experience. Whenever we sent a newsletter out, we would certainly receive a hand-written note from Gertrude. When our son Keith served two years on the ministry ship Logos Hope, he received letters from Gertrude.

I just received word that this dear woman passed away last week at 99 years of age. Keith and I visited her in June at her room at a retirement village just outside of Lebanon, Ohio. We had a delightful time with this godly woman, whose mind was 100% sharp. She retold the story from her perspective of the tragic day 40 years ago at Red Bird Mission in Kentucky, when Shawn’s father, after whom Keith was named, was shot and killed. Keith Myers had been a missionary pastor at Red Bird. Gertrude had been a nurse at the mission at the time, and spent the days following with the family – Shawn was 5 at when this happened. I think that experience gave Gertrude a special bond with Shawn and all of her family.

Gertrude served for many years as a missionary in Sierra Leone, traveling to her appointment by ship in 1951. I loved hearing her tell stories of those years. She then moved to Red Bird Mission in 1965, and even upon retiring made frequent visits back until travel became impossible, but that was only after she was 96 years old!

To be supported by and prayed for by her and to receive frequent letters from her over all these years has been a special blessing to our family. We will miss her kind notes, notes that made it clear that she read every word or our updates and prayed for us accordingly. She now joins the cloud of witnesses in my life that we read about in the book of Hebrews.

Thoughts on Short Term Mission Trips

The focus of our most recent issue of our agency's magazine Unfinished is ministry in Central America. For my column, I decided to broach the subject of short term missions. I did this with fear and trembling. I have become known as a voice of caution among our staff in this whole phenomenon of short term mission trips. I've not wanted to be a wet blanket on what I know has been a very wonderful experience for so many people, but I've also sensed the need to speak truth in an area where wishful and romantic thinking sometimes dominates the discussion. What began as my usual column for the publication turned into an article. It was kind of funny for me to write on this since I've never actually been on a short term mission trip myself! (Well, it depends how you look at it. I spoke in a church a couple years ago and was introduced by the pastor as "The Ramsays who just returned from their mission trip to Kazakhstan." Hmmm - 10 years is one LONG trip!). Anyhow, upon joining the staff of The Mission Society four years ago, it did not take me long to realize that short term missions is a dominant them in missions especially in Central America. I've had several opportunities to see various aspects of the impact on the receiving end, still not having been a part of the "going" end of a short term team.

As I put my article together, I worked with our missionaries in Nicaragua since I had visited them a year and a half ago and was encouraged by what I'd seen them do with short term teams. It gave me the opportunity to approach the subject with honesty and to ask some of the hard questions that are often ignored, but to point to a case where those questions had been addressed. I was still nervous in submitting the article and begged our editor to change or even to reject the article if it came across as too harsh or judgmental. I really had no desire to throw cold water on something I know has rejuvenated the faith of so many in my home country. I've thrilled to see more people engaged in mission personally - not to relegate mission to a distant denominational department or a once a year mission focus weekend at their local church. It's great to see US church goers speak of personal experience of ministry in different cultures. Yet I wanted to invite those same people to a sober discussion of how these good intentions have created some real problems in the region as well.

Since the magazine came out a couple weeks ago, I've been relieved with the initial feedback. Our Church Ministry department plans to use the article in their short term mission training component. Some churches have asked for reprints. I am so thankful to the Lord that somehow my intent of writing the article seems to have been communicated. So I decided I would share this with my e-mail list as well in hopes that it might be interesting to you or a helpful resource to your churches. The link to the article is http://www.themissionsociety.org/magazines/unfinished/2010-47/198 . There are other related articles in the magazine by my colleagues and some helpful excerpts from books that are worth reading as well - you can see these by looking at the table of contents on the right side of the page. You can also subscribe to the magazine using a link at the top of the page. Our editor does a great job of making it an informative, teaching magazine, rather than a self-promoting, fund-raising magazine.

Easter Holiday from Church?

Yesterday I met with a couple who are preparing to serve as missionaries with The Mission Society. We talked about various possible directions, focusing on possibilities of working among the unreached peoples of southern Asia or working with the house church in a closed country to help them reach beyond their borders. It was exciting stuff, just thinking of being part of a movement to share the gospel with people groups who have yet to hear.

It is hard to imagine people who have no clue about Who Jesus is. They haven’t had the opportunity to make a decision about him, to answer that important question he posed to Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” As we were wrapping up our time together, we began talking about their children and how they were doing with the whole idea of packing up and living in a far-away place. At that point, they related an experience their 13-year old daughter, Mary, had recently.

Mary was talking to a friend a few weeks ago. The friend suggested that they should spend the night together that Saturday. But Mary, knowing the coming Sunday was Easter said, “It probably wouldn’t work out since Sunday is Easter.” The friend responded, “But Easter is a holiday – do you have to go to church on holidays?”

The discussion served as a reminder to me about how many people all around us in the U.S. are as clueless as to who Jesus is as those who live in places that have never had access to the gospel. Why is it that they are clueless? We can blame the media, the lack of prayer in schools, MTV, postmodernism, or whatever we want. But the fact is that the way people learn about Jesus is when someone who knows Him shares about Him in word and through their lives. In an unreached people group, the reason people don’t know is because there is no one there to do that. But in our U.S. culture, it suggests rather that the many who do know and believe are not being very intentional about telling those around them.

On Jogging and Mental Maps

I’m attending a missions week up at Toccoa Falls College in the mountains of NE Georgia. Today I decided to go for a jog. I looked at Google Maps to chart the course. And off I went. It didn’t take me long to realize I should have checked out the topographical version – the first mile went up, up, up – a 400 foot rise a later map check revealed. Then I came to a fork that was not on Google Maps. I went one way, up, up, up for about 10 minutes – dead end. So I came back and went the other way – another dead end. Oh well, I finally returned – so much for my nice, clean 5-mile loop!

Being the somewhat neurotic sort, I got back to my computer and turned on satellite view. Aha! There were more roads than the map showed, so I should have made a turn somewhere that just did not show being a crossroads. I also could see now that this was a mountainous trek, so I should anticipate some hefty hills.

This reminded me of what I learned way back in Missions 101 about world view. Our world view contains all the assumptions we make about how the world works, how we relate to one another, how we do the basic routines of life. My prof called it our “mental map.” When we go to another culture, it is a different “mental map,” which can cause disorientation.

Well, I knew I needed a different map here, but I didn’t take the time to look at all the dimensions of the new map. So I ended up with unexpected difficulty and I made wrong turns. If we head to cross-cultural ministry, however well intended, without doing the hard work of learning the various facets of the new culture – the new mental map – we are apt to run into all sorts of surprises and difficulties that just didn’t show up on the initial rendering. And we very well may end up getting lost in the process and create problems not only for ourselves, but for others. Most importantly, the very Gospel we came to share can get distorted or even just lost in the process.

That’s why good preparation for missionary work, whether for a 2-week trip or for a life time of cross-cultural ministry, is of vital importance. I get very concerned when I hear of a church group going to another country to “do ministry” with only an hour orientation before heading to the airport! They are going with a surface version of the new mental map at best. We need to show our love for the Lord and respect for the new culture by doing the work required to get a decent handle on the new mental map we’ll be using to negotiate the culture!

Tomorrow I’ll try my run again, this time armed with satellite imagery that should help me find the elusive loop!

A New Generation – Urbana 2009

I just finished attending the huge Urbana 2009 student missions conference. Over 15,000 young people gathered to learn about and explore commitment to God’s mission in the world. It has been an amazing time.

As I have listened to the sessions and had well over 100 individual conversations with students, I began to see an exciting pattern develop. It is clear that God is calling a new generation to His mission. No surprise there – every generation is called by God to His mission. Yet each calling has its unique characteristics – each generation has aspects of God’s mission that is revealed with more clarity than other generations may have had. They come with new passions and new ideas. The same Mission of God, but new facets and approaches.

There is an exciting passion among students to confront issues of injustice and poverty with the power of the Gospel. This isn’t a fuzzy “do-gooder” type of approach, trying to come up with human solutions – the approach that has characterized various “social gospel” attempts of the past. This generation seems to be gifted with a radical abandon to Jesus Christ and a willingness to confront systems of poverty and injustice with the light of the Gospel. They seem to experience the deep offense that such systems are to the Creator and feel compelled to challenge and change.

As I listened to them and felt this passion, I realized that it is not a negation of what has gone before, but it really is that God is stirring something new. Those of us who are a bit further along in years – parents, church leaders, mission leaders – need to recognize what God is doing and do all we can to encourage, to advise, and to release this incredible energy and passion.

Can Missionaries Have Fun?

One evening in Kazakhstan after a great team meeting, our kids were playing together with the usual banter. My friend and colleague, the late Joel Duggins, turned to me and said, “I think we’re having way too much fun.” Our years serving in Kazakhstan were full of experiences and times that were really fun – with our family, with our national friends, in our church cell group, with our mission team. We spent a lot of time laughing, enjoying life and enjoying one another. When asked what the most important characteristics are for a missionary, I include sense of humor along with dependency upon God and flexibility as the top three. I sometimes think that people were attracted to the Gospel as much by the enjoyment of life they saw within us as they did by the words we spoke.

I think it is better than it used to be, but somehow there still is that impression that Christian work – especially mission work – consists mainly of “suffering for Jesus.” It comes across as a heavy burden. And one gets the impression that the more miserable the person is, the higher up they are on the spiritual food chain. While Joel’s question was asked in jest, it can make those involved in missions be a bit nervous if they’re having fun! Somehow, I can’t really be doing God’s work if I’m having fun.

This past Sunday, our worship leader Aaron Keyes preached about joy. He did a great job of demonstrating the Biblical mandate for the Christian to have a deep, abiding joy. It’s not option – it’s a command! In fact, Christians should really be known as some of the most joyous, most fun people to be around. It doesn’t just mean that we are party animals. Nor does it belittle the reality of the challenges we may be called to face. But it does reflect a joy that enabled Paul to command us to “rejoice” even when he was in chains (Phil 4:4). “The joy of the Lord is our strength,” Aaron reminded us from Scripture, suggesting that the lack of joy makes us weak.

My experience has been that the phrase “you can’t out give God” is true in all aspects, not just financial. When I give myself fully into His service, He gives me an enjoyment of life that provides a different perspective on circumstances. The love and community He enables us to experience with our brothers and sisters reflect His joy – the result is that we really can expect to have fun together.

Certainly I don’t recommend a person become a missionary simply because it sounds like fun. But rest assured, if God does lead you into full-time, cross cultural ministry, while there will be hardships and challenges, you can also anticipate “having way too much fun” in the midst of it all.

A Day in the City of God

The City of God is a large, infamous favela (slum) in Brazil. As part of the training for our new missionaries, we break them up into small groups and spend a day in various favelas around the city. I was in the group that visited the City of God.

It was an experience that drew out a range of emotions. Our guide used to be a weapons dealer in the City of God, but became a Christian several years ago and had his life transformed. He is a successful account manager for a large firm – but he still spends much of his free time in the City of God, ministering to people, praying with people, and working to improve the situation there.

We walked past the tiny shacks – many no bigger than a college dorm room, built out of various scraps of wood and cardboard, with an asbestos slab laid across for a roof. Drainage water ran down the middle of the dirt path. As we walked, people saw our guide and came asking for prayer. When a woman came to me, I asked how I could pray with her. She said she has AIDS. I and others prayed with her, then encouraged her to seek help from people in the church who could walk alongside her.

We had many other precious and heart-wrenching times of prayer with people. Shawn prayed with a woman who had lost a child at 10 months old. Her 2-year old boy has stomach cancer and leprosy. She said she had been beaten a couple days ago because other moms didn’t want her boy playing with theirs. She said she was ready to take her and her son’s lives.

I could go on – it was one thing to pray with people, but the emotions were so mixed since I knew that in 2 hours we’d be back at our training camp and in 2 weeks we’d be back in Georgia. It was a powerful reminder that real transformation takes place when someone is willing to stay and be a part of people’s lives for the long haul. Drive-by missions feels great and I believe our prayers made a difference, but lasting, full transformation requires so much more. I got just a taste of the burden Christ must have felt when he looked at Jerusalem and spoke of the harvest being plentiful, but the workers few. I pray that He will call many people to the harvest in general, and that He will call some to the City of God – that it can be transformed and live up to its name.