Listening to the Spirit? Part 2.
About the Author
Ben spends most of his time working with underprivileged kids in Tijuana, Mexico, encouraging them to continue their education. He's an unofficial member of Iglesia Bautista Monte Horeb, which runs the elementary school, Centro Pedagógico Didaque.
Four articles ago I wrote about commentaries, and I think I’ve successfully offended my audience. Please let me rewrite my thoughts.
The last article went something like, “don’t tell me what to do, I know what I’m doing, etc”. Wrong direction. This article will take us down the hopeful and intended path: The error of attempting to do things in the 3rd World, as you do them in the 1st World.
A missionary overseas once stated: “What takes a day in the U.S. takes a week here; what takes a week in the U.S. takes a month here; what takes a month in the U.S. takes a year here.” The quote continues by saying after you’ve been overseas a while, “write down what you would like to achieve in 2 months time. This now becomes your 2 year work goal.”
This all comes from the perspective of overseas ministry with regards to time, obviously. And although I’m not overseas from the U.S., I’ve experienced similar truth. In Tijuana, I would generally say that things move at an inefficient, slow pace, OR they move with a speed that defies all possible red tape. Both scenarios are personally challenging for me.
An example of the latter:
I work with a child sponsorship program. Prior to this scholastic year, the sponsored children attended whatever school they so desired. In August of 2005 I had a half-hour conversation with our Mexico program director about the ineffectiveness of our program for a slew of reasons. I then stated that one possible solution to the problem would be to have (in a perfect world) all of the children attend the same school. The program director agreed. Nothing more was said, and we went about our days.
However, less than three weeks later, I was advised that we were going to move as many of the sponsored children into a single school ASAP!!!
In theory I agreed with the idea, WITH a 2-year plan in mind. However, I was quickly outvoted, and the wheels started rolling immediately. Logistically I was unable to see how it was going to work for at least a dozen solid, U.S.-mindset, reasons, and I fought it pouting on the sidelines for over a week.
It didn’t take much longer than that to realize that I was the only one (in Tijuana) against the change. I could resist and not be a part of the potential, or I could dive in headfirst like the rest of the gang. So, against all rational fibers within me, I dove off the high-dive — and it hurt a little. But it was also exciting and new and risky and eventually it became right.
We suffered lots of growing pains and are still feeling the stretch. We are facing major psychological problems (with the children…well, maybe us too!), logistical and administrative nightmares, and a full financial fiasco. But, it was still the right thing to do.
Had our team been filled with a bunch of Bens’ from the U.S., nothing would have ever occurred.
So, back to the top, am I open to commentaries? Definitely. But the comment: “The way you should do this here (in the 3rd World) is X, Y, and Z, because that’s the way it’s SUPPOSED to be done (i.e. done in the 1st World)”, will usually ring hollow.