I spent so much time with George and Carolyn Snyman this past week listening to his stories, that I almost wish I could write a book about his life and journey of trust in Christ. It was a pleasure to listen to this couple tell me about how God led them from a place of physical comfort to eternal joy in bringing the Gospel to the poorest of the poor. What a privilege it was for me to listen and learn. In many ways, his voice truly is the prophetic voice for the Western Church, calling us away from the blatant consumerism and self-centeredness that plagues Western culture. And of course, I am by no means immune or innocent of this self-centeredness.
He was sharing with us a story. He told some of us that many Western college students come to Africa to help out. Many come from the most elite schools (Harvard, Yale, Stanford) because AIDS in Africa is on the radar screen of the elite these days. So when George tells them, “Come and invest your life here,” they say they can’t. The reason: they respond, “I have too many options I want to explore.” We are the land of options: job options, social options, food options, grocery options, etc. And so for the moment, AIDS in Africa is hot and “sexy.” Madonna is “doing it.” Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are doing it. But one thing George pointed out to us that most people say to them when they first come to help out, “I need an exit strategy.” People do not like things for life. We look for the options, for the 3 year plan. But when that plan is over, what happens to those we aid, we help?
Doug Hayes (thanks to Tim K to point me to this article) wrote an article entitled, “Suburbia vs. Social Justice.” In it, he writes:
When it comes to compassion for the poor, most of us sincerely care… it’s just that we often act like six month-olds. Before you write that off as a gratuitous insult, humor me by trying a little experiment. Next time you have opportunity to spend time with an infant, hold a brightly colored toy in front of the baby’s face until it grabs his attention then move it quickly behind your back. At 6 months of age, the infant will simply move on to something else as if the object no longer exists. At 9 months to a year, the child will look for the toy and possibly even crawl around behind your back to find it. That’s because at that age, he has acquired what child development experts call object permanence: the knowledge that an object continues to exist even when it is out of sight. Prior to the development of object permanence, it is truly “out of sight, out of mind.�
That’s essentially what George was saying. By having options, by looking for an exit strategy, we want to be involved so long as there is no real sacrifice (or at least a time limit on the sacrifice), and so long as there is no lasting commitment (ah that ugly word). We think of caring for the poor and the oppressed like the war in Iraq, to use Donald Rumsfeld’s words, “an ugly slog.” No one wants to be stuck in a slog.
But I think of our Lord who was stuck in the quagmire of human sin and rebellion. Is there anything more disgusting than the atrocity and horror of sin in this world? According to Paul in Romans 1, it is so terrible, that God can only see sin and us as an object of His wrath. But Christ lived in this slog of sin and he bore our sins TO THE END! Oh those wonderful words, “It is finished.” There was no exit strategy for Jesus. I thank the Lord that He did not say to Satan when H was being tempted (Matthew 4), “Hmmm…thanks for the options, I think I’ll take option 1.”
The Lord is a gracious God and He is concerned for the poor. My love for Christ and response to the Gospel is that I want to care for the poor and not only feed them, but point them to a wondrous Savior who can free them from the power of sin. This might be a lifelong process. But it will be well worth it.
Our desire for “exit strategies” and time limits do speak volumes of our need to contain or control “how” we serve and give to the needs of the poor, unreached, etc. By God’s grace alone are we able to continue on in the fight where God would take us.
Posted by Hamster | November 2, 2006, 1:35 pmHello! I came across this site through google and I think I will be stopping by more often.
Personally, this topic of “options and exit strategies” has been on my mind for quite some time now and I’ve finally come to my own conclusion that they’re not necessarily indications of a weak character though they may be of spiritual immaturity.
It takes a great clarity of purpose and vision for one to make lifelong commitments – especially where the demand for sacrifice is very high. Without such certainty in God’s calling, it is impossible and even unadvisable for anyone to continue that path for life. God calls some to be missionaries, some to be teachers and some to be businesspersons, etc. One kind isn’t valued over the other and all is necessary in His church to powerfully deliver the Gospel to all of society.
Though I’m sure the need for permanently committed missionaries is dire and unfortunate, I think it’s also valid for a young Christian to explore other options and start ministry work with a good exit strategy as long as one’s personal allegiance to God remains unchanged. Just my 2 cents.
Posted by Julia | November 3, 2006, 12:06 amHi Julia, thanks for stopping by and appreciate your comment. I think you are absolutely right. It does take great clarity of purpose to make a lifelong commitment to anything.
May I humbly add though that I don’t know necessarily that George was saying that people should make a lifelong committed missionary to the dire and unfortunate. But he was saying that there is such a need for people to make a lifelong commitment for the dire and unfortunate themselves. This could mean through prayer, or through reading the news and staying aware, financial support, or going on short term trips regularly. Maybe it means when we eat a meal, we are mindful of what we have. Or perhaps when our kids are complaining about the toys they have, rather than giving them a new toy, we teach them about what is going on in the world. He was emphasizing a perspective change.
But the reality is that 99% of Christians explore other options and use exit strategies as a means to be comfortable and without risk. We are naturally prone to protect ourselves against discomfort. I think it speaks volumes that we worship a God of a brutal cross and then he called us to take it up ourselves.
Posted by admin | November 3, 2006, 11:16 amYes, I see what you mean. Each of us is already called to be a missionary in our own way and our crosses may differ in appearance but what we have in common is the ultimate goal of effectively getting out the Gospel to as many people as possible. This definitely takes perseverance and sacrifice. So yes, being an active Christian can be a costly endeavor but it’s also rewarding and joyful, nonetheless. Thank you for sharing that last input.
Posted by Julia | November 3, 2006, 4:40 pmYes, it is definitely rewarding and joyous, though it can also be painful as well. Thanks Julia.
Posted by admin | November 3, 2006, 4:48 pmI think one thing part of the context that George also mentioned is that he issued the challenge to people who were clearly moved and stirred by God during their time and service. I don’t know if I’m being overly practical and just not spiritual enough but I honestly think that God could be calling lots of people simply by showing them the great need and that he has a heart for the orphans, widows and suffering.
Something I’ve noticed back in college and post college in a lot of discussions about “calling” specifically into ministry or otherwise is that it was always centered around “what God wants for me and my life”. It was very me driven, about what I can accomplish or I can do to serve God or the picture of what God wants my life to be.
A challenge I heard back then was not to necessarily focus on what spectacular special plan God had for my life (not that he doen’t have one), but instead to understand God’s heart, where he is moving and what he is doing in the world and to go join him in that work. We live in such an individualistic western society that focuses on our own unique specialness. I think this translates into our ideas of God’s calling and plans for us. I think God may be calling a lot of people all the time, perhaps in very practical ways to stop what their doing to go feed hungry children in Africa (I’d like to think that God wants to do something about that problem), but I don’t think we are often open to listen because we feel like we’re destined for something better than to give up an ivy league education or six figure income to do something like that.
While I think the issue of calling is legitimate, I think we’ve made it so subjective and mysterious that it could become a smoke screen to deflect the obligation to actually commit to anything. I actually met very few people who are doing what they are doing because of a strong sense of calling. Yet calling is still used as an excuse to not commit to anything else (not having a calling for it). I can’t say that I feel like I necessarily have a special calling to commit my life to Africa, but I do feel God’s burden and sadness about the situation and perhaps that is enough to make a commitment to it.
This reminds me of the metaphor of the man throwing back starfish on the beach. I think many of us could be content to be that man for a while feeling like we made a difference to a handful of starfish but could we do that for our entire lives knowing that we would never really make a dent into all those dying starfish? I see in myself a tendency to want to rescue starfish but feel destined to find the beach where I can save all the starfish. That doing that small task of service isn’t big enough for my entire life and I can do it for a while but ultimately, I’m destined for something greater and need to keep those options open. It’s the fear of picking something too early and missing out on something better (the general description of fear of commitment) and ending up feeling like a sucker (similar to a long term cell phone contract). I think I crave some assurance that I’m am 100% on track for God’s sovereign plan for my life within which I can’t go wrong. However if that’s how calling came all the time, where would the need for faith and trust be? Am I the only one who has this conflict?
Posted by BT | November 9, 2006, 12:29 amThanks BT. I’ll see you in SA and Zambia!!!
As for calling, your thoughts are appreciated. I would say this about calling and sovereignty. On this side of heaven, we must pursue and yes, shall I say, make decisions as to how we should serve Him. I think the problem often lies between our vocation and our calling. Vocationally, I might be a systems analyst, but my calling is to enjoy God and to serve Him in whatever I do. I don’t see any where in the Bible where God has a specific calling to a vocation. Paul was not called to be a tentmaker, but an apostle. Christians are called to be fishers of men and Paul was called to be an apostle (one sent by God). But there is no calling mentioned of Luke as a physician or Peter as a fisherman. So let’s first distinguish calling from vocation. Our calling is to be a disciple of Christ, to go and make disciples of all nations you might say (Matt 28:18-20).
I think once you separate the two, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Posted by admin | November 9, 2006, 10:50 am