The greatest of these is love

Today was a wonderfully relaxing day – finally. This week has been pretty tough mentally – a lot of things to work through and think about. So far, CIT has been more about bringing up more questions and not really answering a whole lot for us! We’re getting a lot of tools so we’ll know how, but not a lot of just blatant black and white answers that we were hoping for. So, today, instead of just giving us more stuff to think about, they decided to kind of put it into context. We spent the morning talking about how everything you say, do, sing, smell, etc., is filtered and interpreted by everyone you meet. Therefore, it’s extremely important to know how you’re coming across! Especially in another culture. So, everything we’ve been studying this week was brought down to – how do YOU want to come across? Culturally ignorant – or full of love?

At the end of class, we watched the whole live Steven Curtis Chapman concert where he brings out Steve Saint and the Waodoni Indian who helped murder the men in the ’50’s who were trying to reach them (Nate Saint, Jim Elliott, etc.). The entire purpose for having us watch this video clip was to help remind us of WHY we’re doing this. No one has twisted or arms. No one is making us go. This is our choice. This is our personal calling from God. But, why are we obeying? Can we say with Jim, Nate, Ed, and the rest of them that we truly LOVE the people we are called to minister to and that they are WORTH dying for? Is the Gospel message still just as urgent? Can we honestly leave behind family and life and risk our lives for a people we’ve never met who completely different from us? It all comes back to love.

Our instructor this week has been reading missionary versions of 1 Corinthians 13 and I thought I would share my favorite one with you. It really sums up everything we’ve been studying since we’ve gotten here.

1 Corinthians 13 – A Guide to Culture

“If I speak with the tongue of a national, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I wear the national dress and understand the culture and all forms of etiquette, and if I copy all mannerisms so that I could pass for a national, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor, and if I spend my energy without reserve, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love endures long hours of language study, and is kind to those who mock his accent; Love does not envy those who stayed home; Love does not exalt his home culture; is not proud of his national “superiority,” does not boast about the way we do it back home, and does not seek his own ways. Is not easily provoked into telling about the beauty of his home country, does not think evil about this culture. Love bears all criticsm about his home culture, believes all good things about this new culture; confidently anticipates being at home in this place, endures all inconveniences. Love never fails; but where there is cultural anthropology, it will fail; where there is contextualization it will lead to syncretism; where there is linguistics, it will change. For we know only part of the culture and we minister to only part. But when Chirst is reproduced in this culture, then our inadequacies will be insignificant. When I was in America, I spoke as an American, I understood as an American, I thought as an American; but when I left America, I put away American things. Now we adapt to this culture awkwardly; but He will live in it intimately; Now I speak with a strange accent, but He will speak to the heart. And now these three remain: cultural adaption, langague study, and love. But, the greatest of these is love.”

-Unknown Author via a missions worker in the Ukraine regarding cross-cultural endeavors.

What is truth?

Yes, the question that Pontius Pilate grappled with the day he consented to crucify Christ was the question we grappled with today. It’s horribly confusing and I’m not going into it all here. But, basically, what they brought up was that what looks true to us has actually been greatly influenced by our culture, not necessarily by solely the Word of God. So, truth looks different in every culture. In America, we consider cheating on a test as a form of stealing. In the Far East, they consider not sharing your answers a much, much bigger sin than sharing your answers so everyone does well. What is truth? What is sin? Is it culturally defined or is it all clearly laid our in Scripture? Here’s the end to the “Reflection Paper” I wrote today about it. It won’t clear anything up, but at least you can see a tad of what Brian and I (and the others here) are working through.

So, “what is truth?” Christ. He is the only truth and He is the only One that can reveal truth to each individual heart. He’s molded my view of truth many times; I’m sure He’s not done yet. I’m excited to work with another culture because I hope that it will broaden my view of truth – which, in reality, will broaden my view of Christ. Isn’t my goal to know Him better and more fully? I cannot imagine a better way to do that than to enter another culture, another worldview, another epistemology, and learn from them. It’s not going to be easy, but God never promised that either. He did promise me a Helper Who will guide me into all truth, regardless of what country I happen to be in at the time.

Culture Theory

Today, we just brushed the surface of Culture Theory. Basically, we talked about how our view of a culture will establish our strategy for reaching that culture. Let me just basically copy my notes because they say it better than I can.

The Scriptural Perspective on Culture:

 God created Adam and Eve – all are created in the image of God. God ultimately started a culture. Sin affected all of human culture – God was grieved by culture and decided to wipe out all but a small group. God multiplied human languages and scattered speakers throughout the world – diversity of culture was part of God’s plan! Abraham moved cross-culturally with a new message – his moving out was the start of a new God-ordained culture. Jesus was born into a specific culture – God used a specific culture to orchestrate His plan of redemption; the virgin birth, the census, the Roman empire with roads and general world peace. The Great Commission is the mandate for us to go cross-culturally – Jesus did not command us to change the people groups, just to bring the Gospel to them; no particular method of obedience, just obedience to God. And lastly, Revelation assures us that one day, representatives from every human culture will be present among the redeemed of God before His holy throne – still worshiping God in their own language!

These quotes sum up everything:

“There is also a synergy of the church universal, across time and culture. A local assembly takes strength in a world full of local assemblies, diversified in practice, united in the Spirit. The cloud of witnesses in Hebrews 11 joins a storefront congregation in the South Bronx. The South Bronx communion unites itself, by faith and in mutual indwelling, with an underground church in China, one in Christ with the congregants in the National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. Charismatics join with sacramentalists, grape juice mixes with wine, drum sets harmonize with pipe organs, formality links with informality, rich unite with poor, and so on throughout the past, present, and future world of the redeemed and the assembled. In each local gathering a synergy of son goes up to God through Christ. Corporate confession, corporate prayer, corporate hearing (both of Word and homily), coroporate grief, corporate praise, corporate Communion, corporate giving of gifts, corporate alleluias, and corporate hush – all of these combined into a not-to-be repeated whole by the work of the Spirit.” – Harold M. Best

And…

“We are not called to reform the culture as such. We are called, rather, to transform the world by living out a radical altyernative that the world cannot know apart from the lives of God’s people. Certainly we will influence the culture. How, in view of the resurrection reality can we not do so? For God’s people, influence on the culture is a by-product of their transformed lives.” – Alice P. Matthew/M. Gay Hubbard

And lastly…

“…It’s interesting to note in Revelation how distinct languages are still used in heaven. Our bodies have changed – we don’t even know what we will look like when we enter heaven! Our marriages no longer exist. Our sin has been completely eradicated. But, our languages, our nationalities, our culture, if you will, remains the same. God created each people group for a distinct purpose. He rested after creation only after He created man and woman and said it was “very good.” Just like men and women use their differences to glorify God, so also do different cultures use their differences to glorify God in a way that some of us have never seen. Worship is expressed differently in every culture around the entire globe and God is glorified in all of it. Why would He change that in eternity? More importantly, why would we want to change that now?” - Me. 

Church Project

Talk about stepping out of my comfort zone! We attended the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church this morning for Sunday mass. I won’t go into great detail, but basically, it was just very, very different being in a place where they appear to worship the same God, but really do not. We did not participate except when we could follow along. We observed and it was fascinating to compare notes in the restaurant afterwards. The Father/Priest/Pastor (not real sure what to call him….) read Scripture and one of the verses he read was the one where Jesus says to look up and see that the fields are white unto harvest. I felt the Holy Spirit tug at my heart and say, “Lisa – look up now! See? The fields are white. Now, go.” They keep telling us here that if you can’t love the people here in America, you won’t be able to love the ones overseas. If you can’t attend a service of the religion of the country you’re going to and feel love for the people here, you won’t there. I’m not perfect, but I know I’m called to love these people and share the love of Christ with them, using whatever means possible. I just wish standing up, interrupting the service, and preaching the Gospel right then and there would’ve been appropriate, but alas, that probably would’ve been unproductive.

We’re gearing up for another week and I did not realize how tiring this was until we slept in until 9am yesterday and today and I took a nap this afternoon. This is definitely mentally tiring! So, if you could keep us in your prayers, that’d be wonderful. I know some of you are friends with others that we’re attending classes with – keep them in your prayers as well. It’s hard to remain focused and retain all this information that’s going to be so vital to our future ministries.

We appreciate SO MUCH your comments, prayers, and emails!! We look forward to reading them each and every day. Have a wonderful week!

The Weekend!

It’s finally the weekend! And here we are…doing research. Well…supposed to be doing research. That’s kind of the plan for this afternoon.

Yesterday in class, we went over different “tools” for ethnography. We really can’t use most of it until we actually get to our countries. The premise of the day was to be ready to intentionally study the culture once we get there. We have lots of ideas on how to go about that and we’re excited about the process. To help us get started, we have an assignment that some are really, really nervous about. We are supposed to interview three people who were not born in the US. Everyone wanted to know if I counted, but apparently I don’t. Bummer. Anyway – we’re to go in teams (so Brian and I can do it together) and just approach people that are obviously not American and find out different information about their home country and the culture. It’s supposed to be very informal, not pressuring them at all. Our instructor said that some students have even been invited over to people’s houses for dinner after this project! The goal is actually to get us used to going out of our comfort zone and talking to people we don’t know. See, one of the steps to figuring out how things work in another country is by asking several nationals about what’s going on. We need to get used to it now, at home, or it’s going to be ten times more difficult overseas. Brian and I are actually very excited. We had to approach people during Bible school about their worldviews and that seemed harder. People generally like to talk about themselves and they love it when they’re asked questions about their home. I loved sitting down with people from our church in Montreal and just drilling them with questions. It’s fascinating what you learn just by listening! Hopefully this will go well. I think we’re going to try to interview people next week since we have a longer weekend.

Tomorrow, we are going to go to a Catholic church and get that assignment done. We need to do a “physical map” of the building and take notes of how they conduct the service, dress, decorate, etc. Should be interesting!

Last night, we all went to Old Fort, North Carolina, to attend the Old Fort Mountain Music. Here’s the link: http://www.oldfort.org/music/  It was so fun! It starts around 7 and goes til around 11. All different bands come in and play a set for about a half hour. There’s clogging and line dancing and it’s so cool to see the mix of ages all mingled together. Brian and I had a great time just observing and seeing how everyone interacted. There was a whole group of what we would’ve called punk kids that had a blast clogging and dancing with the older folks that had come. There were even little girls up there clogging! The bands mostly consisted of a fiddle, a guitar, a bass, a banjo, a mandolin and singers, or some combination of the above. One group had all guys – 3 were brothers. The youngest was 14 and holy cow, could they sing! It was such fun. We left around 10:30. Check out the website – it was really a neat experience. We may have to go back.

I’m going to add just a couple more pictures to Facebook. I did not get a chance to get a picture of the nursery area, but I will get that done. We didn’t take pictures in Old Fort because we really felt that would be inappropriate. We were the only tourists, as far as we could tell, and we didn’t want to offend anybody. But, take a look at the website; some of the bands they have pictured we actually got to see. If you search “North Carolina clogging” on www.youtube.com, you can see short video clips of stuff similar to what we saw last night.

Hope you all have a nice weekend! Drop us an email, send us a letter (or a package filled with cookies…), give us a call, or comment on our website. We enjoy hearing from all of you!!

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