A stumbling block that prevents many people from ever trying to live a life in pursuit of any kind of mission is that we are overwhelmed by all of the needs in the world. We see poverty, famine, diseases, and social injustice and feel that we are too insignificant or lack the skills necessary to make any impact. I think the main problem here is that we are focusing on what the world needs when a better approach might be to focus on what we have to offer.
I am preparing to go on a mission trip to a country that was once part of the Soviet Union, where I will teach English classes. Many of the people there already speak English, but their training came from people who learned English as a second (or 3rd… or 4th) language. The students are very eager to converse with people for whom English is their native language.
I made this trip last winter and it was remarkable. Here are few things I noted:
First of all, we have it very good here. The economy may be in bad shape by our standards, but we still have it pretty good.
Secondly, you have no idea how much the students value these classes. I remember, as I was preparing for the trip last year, thinking that the students would be disappointed. I wasn’t a teacher, I wasn’t an English expert, I couldn’t speak Russian, and I knew very little about their country and culture. What I found was that the students were thrilled to have a “teacher” who was born in the United States and spoke English as their native language. They didn’t care what my credentials were, what my teaching style was, or if I slipped in a “ya’ll” periodically.
Finally, I was amazed by the relationships that I built with my students over a very short period of time. I grew up during the Cold War and the realization that I was building friendships with people from a country that was once considered my “enemy” was startling.
This particular country where I am teaching has been named one of the “Outposts of Tyranny” by Condoleezza Rice. Its government is corrupt and its people lack many of the liberties that we take for granted. If I were to only look at all of the social, economic, and political issues that the people of that nation face and then was asked to do something to help them, I would be paralyzed by the overwhelming need. But that is not our approach. We are focusing on what we have to offer – in this case speaking English as our native language. How simple is that?
What do you have to offer?
