Posted by C. Holland on Jul 28, 2010
The other evening we were invited to attend an outreach meeting. Located in a place that has no evangelical influence for a 15 mile radius, we were encouraged to hear that the monthly service was drawing around 30 people. But when we walked in the door, it became clear to me that we had stepped into a different time. It was this nation’s interpretation of a good, old-fashioned tent revival. And it couldn’t be more out of place.
At first I thought that maybe I was being too judgmental or too quick to think, “Hey, church isn’t done this way anymore”. God forbid that I was trying to push current ministry or worship trend for trend’s sake. Seriously, that not me. But then I realised that it wasn’t that they weren’t modern, it was that they were speaking in the voice of another generation (the oldest generation, mind you), yet they hoped to engage the young generation, most of whom have never heard the Gospel. Ever. What I was witnessing was a generation gap.
As we were introduced to people before the service, it became obvious that the room was filled with people further afield from the general village or area (actually, there were people from the next county in attendance). Perhaps three or four lived in the village. It also became apparent that all attendees were believers and church attenders in their home area. With the average age of 70 (and I’m being really, really polite here), we were some of the only “youngsters” in attendance, and, since we’re already saved, I believe that there were no non-Christians in the room. Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Jun 09, 2010
Of all the lessons that foreign missions ministry has taught me (and continues to do so), the top of the list has to be that we are shaped by our location and culture more than we realise. Most anyone who has lived in a foreign country for a decent stretch of time would probably recognise how true this is.
When you meet a fellow Christian from another country, there are some great similarities and kinship that’s experienced through our Family in Christ. It’s difficult to describe to others, but there is an understanding of what it’s like to press on with life as a Christian in this fallen world. They know what you’ve seen, and usually understand how fellow Christians experience life.
Then there’s the point that you realise that their Christian experience has differed than yours. Their “favourite songs” are ones you’ve never heard, or methodology in worship services is, well, just different. Nothing wrong or sacrilegious, but jarringly different to your exposure.
Who and what you are surrounded by is bound to influence your perception and choices. Even when I’ve worked with missionaries who are firmly resolved to not lose one bit of their “American” accent, actions or attitude, over time even they begin to start using phrases here that wouldn’t ever be used “back home”. They don’t notice it, and can become alarmed when informed of this, yet for all their determination to resist, the phrase or action creeps back in. Bear in mind that these are things that are completely inoffensive both here and to Americans, nor would they be anything wrong in God’s view at all. They hear it used over and over again, or perhaps people here understand them better when they say that phrase. It just happens, even if they purposely try to stop. Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Mar 22, 2010
Recently, a woman in my church sought counsel on a possible marriage. On the surface, it sounded pretty standard-issue stuff: they’d met on an Internet dating site a couple of months ago and, both being young and impatient, wish to hurry things along and get married quickly. The woman was concerned as she felt he was pressing things really quickly, including premarital intimacy. I’m sure you already know what needed to be said considering Biblical standards, and it was. However, when you bring their respective cultures into the picture, there’s more to the story.
She, being from Eastern Europe, was viewing this as a transaction. After answering a few questions, it became clear that she had essentially the same attitude of a mail-order bride: I’m trying to escape bad living conditions. There also seemed to be a bit of loneliness adding to the situation, plus a cultural attitude from her country that women at her age who were married with children were much more revered and respected than a single woman.
He, being from an African nation, was also viewing this as a transaction. In my mission field, sham marriages to avoid deportation are not illegal, and he made it clear that he needed her help to stay here. When she described some of his actions and reactions to her, a quick view of his country’s cultural norms on the (mis)treatment of women showed me that she had no idea what she might be getting into. Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Feb 16, 2010
My church elder was talking about the latest conference he attended. As he described the speakers and the books he bought, his face lit up when he remembered something. “They’ve got this brand-new approach that they’re trying now, and it shows a lot of promise. People in some areas are really excited about it. Have you heard of a Coffee Shop Ministry?”
Sigh. Yes. Ten years ago in the States.
I’ve been involved in ministry and church planting now for almost half of my life. It feels like the whole time has been peppered with the next new book, angle, approach, tool, technique, item or worship style. Every idea has the aura of “this is the thing that will really work”. And it seems like more conferences are popping up every year, each with their own subtle twist or perspective on how to “do church” the best way to get the best results. I fear I’m at the point of programme overload.
I’ve come to this point in my life for two reasons: 1) the sheer quantity of programmes over a long period of time are too much to process, and 2) seeing ministry in a different cultural context has made me realise how culture-specific virtually all of these approaches seem to be. I have no doubt that, for each of the methods or techniques available in ministry today, there is a place or people group that have responded really well and have become Christians through this. Praise God! I’m honestly glad that this has happened in that situation. But I’m startled by the attitude that most Christians have: “If it worked there, it’ll work here!” Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Feb 10, 2010
Early in our fact-finding trips to our mission field, we kept getting the sense that the nationals held a bit of a reservation about working with us. They were certainly friendly and accommodating, but their comments and facial expressions held a barely discernible air of skepticism. We knew that their interactions with a large majority of American missionaries had gone very poorly for a number of reasons, so we figured they were understandably hesitant to interact with us.
Fast-forward to about six months into living in the mission field, and the real reason for their hesitancy began to crystalise in my mind. We had been here long enough to watch several short-term mission teams funnel in and out of the church, plus there were several other long-term missionaries attached to help. Watching the interactions from the sidelines, I began to see what the nationals saw: most missionaries would only do ministry at arm’s distance.
This is going beyond the unfortunate handful of those with bad attitudes; actually, the majority were polite, respectful, and generally good people who were willing to help and work in many ways. Yet even in the group of good-natured, well-intentioned people, there still existed a trace element of distance from the nationals. Read More…
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