Tanzania Medical Team, part two from Sun., June 22, 2008

So this is what I've been thinking..
Education – noun : the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially at a school or university.

I began thinking about this word and what it means this morning as we participated in a worship service in the local village of Lukangazi. Even the cities here are what we could call poe-dunk towns back in the states, but we were in village. Imagine the most primitive society that you’ve ever read about or seen in a movie or television program. That’s where we were. Mud huts and straw roofs. The whole nine yards. Which is exactly why I began thinking about the word education.

Missioning (as I like to call it) is always an interesting experience, especially once you are submerged in a completely different culture. Observing and helping others in their own society immediately makes you think of your own. We have a set standard of “what you shoulds” and “what you shouldn’ts”, “how you shoulds” and “how you shouldn’ts”. Probably the most important standard included in our culture is “knowing what it means be successful and how you should attain that goal”. This puts education at the center of everything in our culture. A culture cannot be passed on or continued without educating the next generations of past rituals. In fact, nothing in our world would continue without education. We sure wouldn’t have any idea that there was a man named Jesus, or know anything about what He did two thousand years ago.

Our culture likes to define things a certain way and frown upon anyone who disagrees (which is usually a great way to keep everything in order and maintain a healthy, pure society). However, when it comes to education, I think we have made an incorrect assumption. Someone is almost always there to frown upon ending education early. Here’s the question though. Who is to tell someone what kind of education makes success? Who has the right to tell someone they cannot be successful if they don’t go to college? or don’t get a useful degree immediately applicable upon graduation? Maybe this would be better. Define success. Does it not look different to every single person?

It seems as though the American dream could be defined as making a good living and retiring young with as few worries as possible. Living a comfortable life with few peaks or troughs, steady and even-keel for most of the way. But as Christians we’re called to go out and help the poor and needy, called to serve others who are less fortunate. Take a chance in failing miserably in order to possibly accomplish something amazing. To certain Christians, success could mean making yourself poor in dramatically improving the lives of the destitute. What if you’re calling doesn’t work out though? Shouldn’t you have something to fall back on? Couldn’t that comfortable lifestyle just be there as a backup, just in case everything doesn’t work out?

This is a long tangent, but when you’re in a two hour church service that is led in a different language you’re mind begins to wander. I guess what I’m getting at is this: I’m tired of the comfort=success dogma. Forget what the American culture says you should do, and forget the conviction that going against the grain is failing. There is so much to be done in this world, going out and doing something seems so much more important than guaranteeing a fall-back, comfortable life. What does that accomplish? There are villages in East Africa that flourish with so much joy (more than some Americans will ever see), and what is their highest educational degree? I am not against studying or degrees in any way. I think we just need to be sure and use it proactively, and turn the focus to helping others.

I have a new respect for people who go out into the world with the mindset that God has specific intentions for their knowledge and skills; the people that won’t postpone accomplishing great things just to get a diploma and make others happy. I think sometimes I myself need to just let God bring me into his own plans rather than try to put myself into certain roles.

Oh yeah, Tanzania is great by the way. We went to a church service this morning, got back at about 3:30 and will most likely pack more meds tonight.

God bless,
Stephen

(Oh and don’t worry Mema and Papa, I’m still going to go to college.)