Entry #3

What do missionaries do for these people?

Missionaries are helping. Missionaries are achieving their goal, to spread God’s Word. Missionaries are doing what they believe is right. Missionaries are choosing to risk everything to relay the message of Jesus Christ to others around the world. To me, missionaries are brave, strong, and determined. They risk their lives, their jobs, their homes, their family member’s lives, they risk a lot. As Christians, we are able to recognize that missionaries are good and doing right, but non-Christians, may view missionaries as “destroyers of culture”. A missionary’s goal is to spread the good news and express, to the greatest amount possible, that there is a God who loves. I don’t believe that missionaries go to a third world country, or anywhere else for that matter, to destroy the culture that is currently there. I believe that they are trying to get through to largest number of people. If a culture, the Sawi for instance, voluntarily is able to understand and experience having a relationship with Jesus, then they will begin to 1) grow in that relationship and spread what they know to others, and 2) begin to change and live their life for God. Once they have started to live for God, they won’t have the desires of their previous culture, like cannibalism or head hunting… they will want to honor God with their lives…they will more voluntarily stop their ways this way than if government police came is with brute force and commanded them to stop. I absolutely agree when Don Richardson says that someone will eventually come…no matter what, and now it is just, who do we want to get there first. This is why Christian missionaries risk their lives to get to those hurting first, because they believe they are more sympathetic agents of change than profit-hungry commercialists (Don Richardson). Commercialists like farmers, lumbermen, miners, hunters, military leaders, and drug peddlers...who would come and probably arrive with unexpected force, and harshness. Missionaries are trying to radically transform the hearts of the people, not the culture.

Entry #2

What does God expect us to do for other cultures and faiths?

Acceptance, respect, knowledge, love, share. God expects us to learn about other cultures and faiths, to become familiar with them, to show respect and to share respectfully the aspects of our culture. Once we become knowledgeable about other cultures, we can understand why they live by those beliefs, and from there, spread love, hope, and new tactics to those cultures. In Don Richardson's, The Peace Child, Don and his wife, Carol, had to become aware of the Sawi culture. They gradually placed themselves on the level of the unique, Sawi culture in order to gain acceptance from them. Don and Carol's ultimate goal was to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to the Sawi people, but in order to do that, they first had to find ways to gain respect and understanding. After all, they were like "aliens" to the Sawi's. One way of learning about a culture is becoming familiar with the language. When I look at The Peace Child, I can clearly see that language was an immense step in learning the culture. Don and Carol, were required to figure out an unknown language, and create a dictionary, grammar rules by themselves. Wow! That requires much patience and time on both the Sawi and their parts.

When observing Don and Carol, I see bravery and utter determination to seek God's will. I value their commitment, courage, and understanding towards facing the unknown...Sawi and other cultures and the different faiths found within them. They are a wonderful exemplar of pursuing what God wants us to pursue when we face other cultures and faiths. I hope that while I use my life to serve God, I can successfully achieve having commitment, courage, and understanding towards others...not only in culture differences, but in differences between people, careers, and activities...with life. Since I have chosen to live my life wholeheartedly for God, I can strive to seek Him and his glory. To seek the acceptance and understanding, knowledge and love, towards differences in life…to have willingness and embrace those for whom they are, as God would view them.

Ultimately, God expects willingness. Willingness towards other cultures and willingness to work hard and try. Willingness to share with others His precious word. God expects love. Love towards other cultures and love towards serving him. Love towards others, no matter who they are. I don’t believe that God expects us to change the beliefs of those who don’t believe in him, but more so encourages us to expose others and then embrace them, despite what happens…He has the power to handle the minute details.

Entry #1

What factors of your native culture have informed your religious world view? Explain the impact of these factors.

Today I have the daily pleasure of walking with my Creator...but, thinking back in my life, I am not really sure where I acquired the religious world view I have today. As far back in my family history as I am aware of, we were Christians. Starting from immigrants with an Amish-Mennonite background, and gradually moving into the Nazarene denomination which I am most familiar with. My grandparents grew up in Nazarene homes, my parents grew up in Nazarene homes, and now I am growing up in a Nazarene home. The influence of my family is immense.

Growing up in a home where prayer before meals, reading the Bible, and going to church were important has definetly played a huge role in the religious views I have today. Growing up with family members who encouraged, made good choices, laughed, and cared and continue to show me how to become the person God wants me to be. Even though I grew up in a Christian home, went to church on Sundays, and sang praise songs, I had yet to fully comprehend what God meant to me. Until the summer of 2007. I finally got to experience the astounding peace that came with having a intimate relationship with the Almighty One.

During July of 2007 I had the amazing opprotunity of attending a Nazarene Youth Conference with 10,000 other teens who were ready to dig deeper. I attended the two-week trip not having any idea how much closer, or how much clearer God would become to me. Driving for four long days in a bus from North Idaho to Missouri, meeting new people, feeling first hand the power of Christians gathered together, and being overwhelmed with an imense joy that swelled from within me...was truly the first time I was certain I had a great God that was looking after my life.

With the religious views that I have acquired and chosen to pursue, I am able to see and experience the glory of God with each breath I take. The beauty and diversity of this universe astounds me day to day. When I look at all of the intricate details in my life...I know that only God is capable of adding so much, so perfectly, to this world. I am aware that there are numerous religious views surrounding me each day, but I think agreeing on the "perfect view" is not as important as believing. Believing in a God who was, who is, and who will always be. Most importantly, I have come to realize that Christianity is not a religion, but an amazing relationship with Him...the Savior who moves mountians!