A few years ago I was teaching a leadership conference for church leaders outside of Bangkok, Thailand. The conference had not officially begun. People who had walked and rode commuter buses, a very long distance, were assembled in the auditorium and they were singing acappella. There was no appointed leader. Various attendees spontaneously led out in a song and everyone else joined in singing. When that leader was finished someone else would lift their voice in praise and everyone would follow. In traveling throughout 25 plus nations around the world I have observed this same amazing scenario. I always get a big lump in my throat as I listen to the expression of my dear heavenly family members worshipping the Ancient of Days. The sound was glorious that day and I wept as I imagined what heaven would be like when nations gather before the Throne of God to worship the Holy One who created all mankind.
What language will we sing and declare those songs of adoration in when we are finally home? Who knows, but one thing is certain, it will be more glorious than anything we could ever imagine.
Rev.7:9 – After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.
Jesus said, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. While we enjoy the multi faceted expressions of the gifts that He has placed in His Church, it is my conviction that more tolerating is done than cherishing and often more enduring than encouraging takes place.
On another leadership training opportunity, this time in Africa, I was listening to the African facilitator of the conference speak in his own language to the audience. I was the only person there, that I am aware of, who did not understand the language. The facilitator stopped speaking in his native tongue and spoke in English while taking the opportunity to welcome and introduce me to the several hundred leaders gathered. I will never forget that moment or what was said that day. After he explained why I (Richard) had come to Africa, he had a sustained pause. Then he spoke with a sober, kind tone concerning me – “you can trust this man, my brothers, he does not possess an apartheid spirit.” A greater compliment could not have been given to me than those words. I thought to myself, how did he know that? We certainly did not know each other well. He knew because we can all sense when someone interacts with us who has a condescending or superior attitude.
Living in Africa taught me a lot about what it feels like to be the outsider. I did not know the language, manners and customs when we first arrived. My wife and I were taught the African culture by people who loved and nurtured us because they saw something of value. Making a place for someone fundamentally begins by valuing him or her in your heart. Like grace, it then is seen in the reflection of a person’s life.
I learned a lot about what an “Apartheid Spirit” was and how it impacted the inner workings of people groups. I asked some people the other day what words came to their mind when they heard the word apartheid? Here are some of their responses; superiority, elitism, lording, strife, division, anger, tension, mistreatment, and on and on.
The official definition for the word apartheid is a political system in South Africa from 1948 to the early 1990s that separated the different peoples living there and gave privileges to those of European origin. Apartheid is racial segregations, a policy of segregation and political and economic discrimination. The first part of this word addresses clearly the definition… “apart!”
The struggle of “apartness” is not new. It has been an issue of great import throughout the Bible. The greatest battles in the history of the world had to do with this word apartheid; the drive to be superior, to conquer or lord authority over others.
In recent decades the challenges in South Africa have brought the issue of apartheid into world awareness. Lets draw back from connecting the word apartheid and South Africa for a minute. Lets look at the possibility of this apartheid spirit in Anchorage, Alaska or in the State of Alaska. Is it possible that we may possess the apartheid spirit? How about the attitude of a larger congregation referring to a smaller congregation or vise versa? Is it possible to have an apartheid attitude when referring to a geographic location in our city or state? How about a specific people group who hold differing cultural values than yours? This attitude could radiate from the transplanted people of Alaska to indigenous Alaskans or for that matter one Alaskan tribe against another. The harboring of such attitudes weakens the very fabric of our great state, the place that God has assigned for us to live. An apartheid spirit does not belong in Alaska!
Having distinctives in Christian doctrine and methodology between church denominations or fellowships is not wrong, but the attitude that sometimes accompanies them can be. It is often contrary to the spirit of the heart and the display of unity that should be modeled in our city.
What is interesting is that we can all be blind to our own apartheid attitudes. In our city and state there is no place for arrogance, superiority or elitism. All these attitudes are contrary to Godly love, humility and meekness.
The Body of Christ in Alaska needs encouraging, collaborative, edifying attitudes that foster holy partnerships for the expansion of the Kingdom of God. This is what God says about these matters.
1 Cor.12: 12 – The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Now the body is not made up of one part by of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to he body, it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17 And if the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, I don’t need you. And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you. 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. because I am not the eye I have no place. God puts the members in the body as it pleases Him. We are the ones who need to adjust our attitudes from apartness to partnership, from separatism to inclusion. There is one body, one faith one lord and father of all.
Lord, open our eyes to those things that may prevent the very prayer (John 17) and great commandment (Matthew 22:37) of Jesus from being fulfilled. Help us love one another as we love ourselves. By this attitude and action the citizens of Alaska would know that we belong to the redemptive God who reconciles and restores that which is broken. There can be no unity without humility. Humility holds no space for an apartheid spirit. After all, one day we will all (of many colors and customs) stand together and proclaim, with one voice, how great God is!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Humility - Part 3
I have had the privilege to travel to 25 plus nations as part of my ministry experience. I am fascinated by cultures, manners and customs. One of the greatest challenges in the social interaction is in the understanding of the worldviews that are prevalent in any culture. I love sitting in airports just observing people coming and going, cherishing conversations with people that are very different from my cultural orientation.
Some years ago my wife and I had the privilege of serving as missionaries in Swaziland, Africa. My primary ministry focus was leadership training. Not long after settling into African life, I began meeting Christian leaders and attending as many events as possible. While visiting my first pastor’s conference, I experienced a delightful cultural learning opportunity.
I arrived at the plenary conference session late and seated myself in the back row by the door. I listened very carefully to the speaker. I was anxious to be an “incarnate missionary” though I did not know what that meant yet. I was endeavoring to learn the language to be more effective in my interactions with others. I was straining at getting the drift of the teaching being spoken in the SiSwati language. After a few minutes the speaker whispered to one of the other pastors on the front row. The man on the front row took his place on the platform and began interpreting into English what was said in SiSwati. It was then that I was introduced and warmly welcomed to the gathering by the speaker. I felt very honored being that I was the only non-African in the room. I felt very privileged to even be there. That day, I was in the midst of some of the kindest and most gracious people I had ever met.
During the lunch break I stood in line patiently waiting to eat my meal with the rest of the pastors gathered. There was an elderly, gentle, man standing in line in front of me who turned around to speak to me. He began the one sided conversation by informing me of how to address people with proper protocol in Swazi culture. I thought this interesting since I made no reference to wanting this instruction. I chose to listen intently because I really did want to learn the culture and hear the wisdom of this seasoned man.
He explained to me that if I had something of serious importance to say to another Swazi man that I needed to follow the following protocol. 1) Go to the persons home, make yourself comfortable and have conversation with them but do not say anything about what you came to discuss. I thought this odd since I am use to direct conversation, like any forward American. 2) Come back for another visit in a couple of weeks; repeating the same steps, still not bringing up the subject in conversation you came to talk about. 3) Come back again some weeks later and only then hint at what you wanted to talk about. Eventually you are able to address the original issues that prompted the initial discussion pursuit. Eventually I would be able to talk about what I wanted to talk about in the first place.
I remember thinking to myself…what a waste of time and energy, especially since I could have taken care of this on the first visit or even made a phone call. (Well, maybe not a phone call - the phones often were not in working order because of the high lightening activity. More than once I had to climb the telephone pole outside our home to fix my own phone.)
As this important instruction that came from my new friend, he then made a statement that I will never forget. “We Africans value people more than tasks.” I was momentarily stunned and certainly caught off guard by what he said. At the time I would have said that I too valued people more than tasks but have learned that is not always the case with many westerners including me. You see, that thoughtful, humble, pastor was instructing me, another fellow minister trying to find his way, in this new culture. This conversation would likely be one of the most valuable interactions I would ever have regarding building relationships.
Another lesson learned in Swazi culture was the personal introduction in meeting people. When a person met up with someone else along the roadside trail, bus depot, at a conference or anywhere else, they would shake hands. They used the left hand to grasp the other person’s hand while lightly holding their right elbow. The hand now holding the other person’s hand would remain clasped. Often there was little “personal space” between the two people.
Now, me being the redneck son of a logger, I struggled with this concept of men holding men’s hands while having conversation or for any other reason for that matter. (By the way, my neck color is more of a faded pink these days.) I have come a long way. I learned the reason for holding hands was that it communicated heartfelt engagement in conversations. When visiting with Africans the person I was speaking with rarely distracted me. They would not be looking ten other directions avoiding my eyes or simply not being present in their presence.
Though this manner of communication was once again very foreign and uncomfortable to me, the Swazi men used to thoroughly enjoy making me uncomfortable and squirm while holding hands with me. This was all about the communication of fondness and concern expressing itself differently than I was used to. I did finally become accustomed to this manner of communication and value it even today.
Not long ago our church elder team had a meeting where we ordered in a catered meal. It was going to be a long night of making eternal and not eternal kingdom decisions. I was standing in line at the food table, again with ministers, only this time I was in Alaska, USA. One of our elders walked in to join the feeding frenzy. He walked up to me while I was standing in the line. I reached out my hand to shake his. He then did something I was not used to…. He pulled me close and hugged me and then remained in the embrace for what seemed like a long time. I again wanted to draw back and then while I was pondering his unprecedented action by my friend I realized what this was about. You see my fellow elder, friend, motorcycle riding partner and minister of the Gospel, was in the middle of a battle with cancer. He was honestly not sure he would be here on this earth much longer. The typical male, “two pat” and slap on the back was not going to communicate what was in his heart. His action said to me that our relationship was more important than the agenda that night that we were so intently setting our focus and conversation on.
Since that encounter, I have come to refer to the “two pat” greeting. I make fun of it now and in fact, I find myself holding hands a lot longer in greetings and more importantly hugging instead - even if it makes the other person more uncomfortable. I now secretly enjoy making other men un-comfortable and squirm in their manliness.
The definition for humility is “possessing a modest or low view of one’s own importance.” Humility is bearing the mark of caring, it is about placing yourself in someone else’s shoes. It’s about putting your preferences in the background and valuing people more than tasks. It’s about being concerned more for and about someone else than your agenda or list of tasks. It’s about honoring cultures; not just tolerating one another in our manners and customs but, more importantly, learning to value and even embracing one another. After all, did God not create us distinctly and wonderfully? Did Jesus not pray that we would be one as He and the Father are one? How is that possible without cherishing and embracing our distinct differences? Unity and community is God’s plan but it cannot be accomplished without humility - yours and mine.
There is no unity without humility!
Some years ago my wife and I had the privilege of serving as missionaries in Swaziland, Africa. My primary ministry focus was leadership training. Not long after settling into African life, I began meeting Christian leaders and attending as many events as possible. While visiting my first pastor’s conference, I experienced a delightful cultural learning opportunity.
I arrived at the plenary conference session late and seated myself in the back row by the door. I listened very carefully to the speaker. I was anxious to be an “incarnate missionary” though I did not know what that meant yet. I was endeavoring to learn the language to be more effective in my interactions with others. I was straining at getting the drift of the teaching being spoken in the SiSwati language. After a few minutes the speaker whispered to one of the other pastors on the front row. The man on the front row took his place on the platform and began interpreting into English what was said in SiSwati. It was then that I was introduced and warmly welcomed to the gathering by the speaker. I felt very honored being that I was the only non-African in the room. I felt very privileged to even be there. That day, I was in the midst of some of the kindest and most gracious people I had ever met.
During the lunch break I stood in line patiently waiting to eat my meal with the rest of the pastors gathered. There was an elderly, gentle, man standing in line in front of me who turned around to speak to me. He began the one sided conversation by informing me of how to address people with proper protocol in Swazi culture. I thought this interesting since I made no reference to wanting this instruction. I chose to listen intently because I really did want to learn the culture and hear the wisdom of this seasoned man.
He explained to me that if I had something of serious importance to say to another Swazi man that I needed to follow the following protocol. 1) Go to the persons home, make yourself comfortable and have conversation with them but do not say anything about what you came to discuss. I thought this odd since I am use to direct conversation, like any forward American. 2) Come back for another visit in a couple of weeks; repeating the same steps, still not bringing up the subject in conversation you came to talk about. 3) Come back again some weeks later and only then hint at what you wanted to talk about. Eventually you are able to address the original issues that prompted the initial discussion pursuit. Eventually I would be able to talk about what I wanted to talk about in the first place.
I remember thinking to myself…what a waste of time and energy, especially since I could have taken care of this on the first visit or even made a phone call. (Well, maybe not a phone call - the phones often were not in working order because of the high lightening activity. More than once I had to climb the telephone pole outside our home to fix my own phone.)
As this important instruction that came from my new friend, he then made a statement that I will never forget. “We Africans value people more than tasks.” I was momentarily stunned and certainly caught off guard by what he said. At the time I would have said that I too valued people more than tasks but have learned that is not always the case with many westerners including me. You see, that thoughtful, humble, pastor was instructing me, another fellow minister trying to find his way, in this new culture. This conversation would likely be one of the most valuable interactions I would ever have regarding building relationships.
Another lesson learned in Swazi culture was the personal introduction in meeting people. When a person met up with someone else along the roadside trail, bus depot, at a conference or anywhere else, they would shake hands. They used the left hand to grasp the other person’s hand while lightly holding their right elbow. The hand now holding the other person’s hand would remain clasped. Often there was little “personal space” between the two people.
Now, me being the redneck son of a logger, I struggled with this concept of men holding men’s hands while having conversation or for any other reason for that matter. (By the way, my neck color is more of a faded pink these days.) I have come a long way. I learned the reason for holding hands was that it communicated heartfelt engagement in conversations. When visiting with Africans the person I was speaking with rarely distracted me. They would not be looking ten other directions avoiding my eyes or simply not being present in their presence.
Though this manner of communication was once again very foreign and uncomfortable to me, the Swazi men used to thoroughly enjoy making me uncomfortable and squirm while holding hands with me. This was all about the communication of fondness and concern expressing itself differently than I was used to. I did finally become accustomed to this manner of communication and value it even today.
Not long ago our church elder team had a meeting where we ordered in a catered meal. It was going to be a long night of making eternal and not eternal kingdom decisions. I was standing in line at the food table, again with ministers, only this time I was in Alaska, USA. One of our elders walked in to join the feeding frenzy. He walked up to me while I was standing in the line. I reached out my hand to shake his. He then did something I was not used to…. He pulled me close and hugged me and then remained in the embrace for what seemed like a long time. I again wanted to draw back and then while I was pondering his unprecedented action by my friend I realized what this was about. You see my fellow elder, friend, motorcycle riding partner and minister of the Gospel, was in the middle of a battle with cancer. He was honestly not sure he would be here on this earth much longer. The typical male, “two pat” and slap on the back was not going to communicate what was in his heart. His action said to me that our relationship was more important than the agenda that night that we were so intently setting our focus and conversation on.
Since that encounter, I have come to refer to the “two pat” greeting. I make fun of it now and in fact, I find myself holding hands a lot longer in greetings and more importantly hugging instead - even if it makes the other person more uncomfortable. I now secretly enjoy making other men un-comfortable and squirm in their manliness.
The definition for humility is “possessing a modest or low view of one’s own importance.” Humility is bearing the mark of caring, it is about placing yourself in someone else’s shoes. It’s about putting your preferences in the background and valuing people more than tasks. It’s about being concerned more for and about someone else than your agenda or list of tasks. It’s about honoring cultures; not just tolerating one another in our manners and customs but, more importantly, learning to value and even embracing one another. After all, did God not create us distinctly and wonderfully? Did Jesus not pray that we would be one as He and the Father are one? How is that possible without cherishing and embracing our distinct differences? Unity and community is God’s plan but it cannot be accomplished without humility - yours and mine.
There is no unity without humility!
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