Why not just send money?

"Why not just send money?" I get this question a lot. I ask this question a lot - especially while I'm there. Usually on the third or fourth day of the trip, still adjusting from jetlag ... why didn't I just send money?!?!

This is my sixth trip to Kenya. Each trip has a high cost: a few thousand dollars, back-to-back 9-hour flights each way, social unrest in country, somewhat uncomfortable living conditions, heat, bathrooms that require great care and balance, vigilance to keep hydrated with filtered water, and for me, trouble sleeping and other physical challenges. No air conditioning, no ice, language barriers, and at least once during the trip, chicken droppings somewhere in the bedroom. Of course, there are the weeks apart from Lynne and limited communications. It consumes not only the two weeks there, but several weeks of preparation and at least a week afterwards to recover and sort through the tasks that have piled up.

Are all the various costs worth it? Wouldn't it be more cost effective to just send money for needs that they have? My best answer is: the costs are very likely worth it. But I can't completely quantify it.

There are both objective and subjective reasons why I continue to believe so.

Objectively, there are some resources that we have been blessed with that we can turn around and share with those in Kenya, such as seminary-level education. That's something they have scarce little of, and it's too a great privilege to not share with others. I don't have to be an exceptional seminary-level teacher in order to share that blessing.

Furthermore, some of their leaders need encouragement or a break. Having a guest teacher allows them some down time, a chance to receive instead of give, a chance to catch up on student records or grading, and so on.

Considering that a seminary multiplies the good that the church can bring to a society, these are investments that pay good dividends. I taught my students Leviticus in 2006, and still graduates can explain how it benefits their current ministries.

One of our projects this year is to train and equip one of the villages to use water filtration systems. The good folks there have all the will, smarts, ability to run this program, but someone has to acquire, deliver, and initially train them for these systems. We've got to send someone over to do this - just sending the kits and some written instructions will not create a successful implementation. But once we deliver and train, then we can eventually pull back and simply provide the kits. They can take it from there. How much money is a million gallons of clean water worth? How about 30 million gallons? That's the capacity we're bringing over in just this first delivery. Worth every penny.

Just sending money cannot meet needs like these. We do need to send money to resource the Kenyans for things they are far more qualified to do than we are, such as classroom teaching of the orphans, construction in the Kenyan way, and training school teachers (our teaching methods don't always translate well).

But the Kenyans will tell you why they think it's worth it, and their reasons are far more subjective. We simply have a hard time comprehending how valuable the ministry of presence is. They will tell you over and over again that they'd rather have a visitor for two weeks than the money it took to get that person there. Visitors, especially those who visit several times, can do wonders to remind them that they are not forgotten, they are not alone, and they are loved. We are doing life with them, not doing things for them or to them. It conveys the fundamental truth that they are valuable primarily because they are created in the image of God, no less than anyone else, regardless of life circumstance.

Yes, we do projects when we're there, but none of the projects seem to be as valuable as spending time with our friends in Kenya. Which means that task-oriented people like me need to keep reminding themselves to put the project aside and spend time with people. Talk with them, listen to them, laugh together, embrace their hurts and share your own, learn some of their words, sing their songs, and just be there in their space with them.

Sometime between the fourth day and the last few days of each trip, I am reminded again why it's all worth it. And as much as I want to be back home again, I do have to peel myself away, too. (And then that's followed by a couple of months of "I'm never going back" and then later "I can't wait to get over there again.")

Neurotheology

I’ve written a few times recently about how brain science informs us about issues related to discipleship and compassion. We’re learning how trauma affects the brain at a physiological level, explaining some of the difficulties children who’ve been through trauma have in regulating their behavior (which can be misinterpreted as sinful defiance). We’ve learned that the brain are also altered by repeated lies about one’s worth - flat out lies can damage your brain.

What about on the positive side? So far, we’ve looked at some negative impacts on the brain, but what about good things? Are there ways to positively affect the brain particularly in ways that relate to matters of faith?

The answer is not only “yes,” but “amazingly so!”

There is a branch of brain science called Neurotheology (there are also other names for it). One of the primary researchers is Andrew Newberg. Researchers in this field are not advocating for any particular religion or religious tradition, but examining the impact on the brain of religious practices - even practices that many Christians may object to. In other words, they are not trying to prove anything religious, but to describe the physiological impact of various religious practices.

What research is showing is that the kinds of things God calls us to do actually have a positive impact on the brain. The practices we typically call spiritual disciplines contribute to a healthy brain - practices like prayer, meditation (e.g. meditating on God’s Word, but also non-Christian practices of meditation), simplicity, memorization (e.g. of Scripture), community, and so on.

We often look to the spiritual disciplines as things we do to have some sort of direct impact - I pray to get answers or feel closer to God, I meditate to learn and understand, I practice simplicity to have less stress and more margin, and so on. The trouble is that if I fail to see those direct benefits, I soon fall out of the practice of spiritual disciplines. Why keep doing it if I’m not seeing the results I expect in a timely fashion? I have other things to do.

But perhaps we’ve been completely underestimating the value of the spiritual disciplines! Not to take away one bit from the direct benefits, but it’s completely possible that God encourages us to practice these disciplines because He, the creator of the brain, knows that these practices contribute to healthier brains! Perhaps He wants us to practice the spiritual disciplines for the additional, indirect, physiological benefits that come with the disciplines. He would also know that healthier brains are part of healthier lives, choices, attitudes, and practices.

It’s amazing to me that God directs us to do something that brain science is discovering to be healthy for our lives at a physiological level. Why wouldn’t He? Why wouldn’t the manufacturer give instructions on how to keep the product in good repair? And that’s just the brain - it’s quite possible that there are many other physiological benefits to the habits God teaches us to have.

Communion with God is vital for the spiritual life of a Christian, and the spiritual disciplines are time-tested habits to foster that closeness. But it very well may be that the disciplines are also intended to make our lives better by making our brains better. And inasmuch as non-Christian traditions practice the same disciplines or reasonable facsimiles, it stands to reason that they would also see some of the same physiological benefits. God causes it to rain on those who do not follow Christ just like He causes it to rain on those who do.

If you have fallen out of the habits or have grown stale in them, reconsider what God’s goals may be. It’s not always for a mountaintop experience - changing the oil and rotating the tires rarely is, but it sure makes the drive better and last longer.

Daniel 2016

Last year, we went through the book of Daniel together, and we paid particular attention to a few recurring truths about Daniel:

• God specifically gifted Daniel (and his friends) in ways that would help others flourish.
• Daniel used his giftedness diligently to make his (pagan) boss, the king, very successful.
• Repeatedly, God elevated Daniel further into the pagan structure to have even greater influence on the pagan culture.

We also noted that God's sovereignty extends over all kings and all kingdoms. He even allowed Nebuchadnezzar to desecrate the temple in Jerusalem and take His people captive, but note well, by means of His sovereignty over both nations in order to accomplish His purposes on earth.

How, then, does Daniel inform the ugly, confusing election season of 2016? As much as I detest the phrase "the evangelical vote," this election cycle has sharply divided evangelicals more than I ever recall, so are there lessons here that we can collectively hold?

First, we must remember that the God who was sovereign over kings and kingdoms in Daniel's day is the same God today with the same sovereignty and the same End Game. No matter who is elected, no matter what they do, no matter how much they embrace or how far they depart from God's wisdom, He is still sovereign. Completely. And with that sovereignty, He's still playing to that End Game. No matter how involved you might be in the political process, He is involved completely.

Second, and closely related to the first, is that things may look like they are completely under the influence of those who deny God His rightful place, but that doesn't mean we're "losing." Let there be no confusion - I do not use the terms "win" and "lose" politically. In no way do I suggest one candidate or party is this "winning" that I'm referring to. Daniel's context had no sense of this. I'm speaking in terms of those who follow God, and the feeling that we're "losing" if unbelievers gain more power and influence. But that feeling is a false one - God steadily marches toward His purpose through horrible and wonderful leaders alike. Daniel wasn't losing, and neither are we.

Third, no matter who our leaders are or what kind of government looms over us, we have the same charge as Daniel. Be God's people without compromise, apology, or unnecessary contention. Use your gifts for the welfare of the culture. Daniel did not draw the line at losing his culture. He drew the line only around dilemmas of loyalty, and then he drew the line definitively. He used his God-given gifts to help a pagan culture prosper up until the point of loyalty to God. But at that point, he did not compromise even under threat of certain death. His contemporary wrote, "Seek the welfare of the city," referring to that pagan city of Babylon - seek the welfare of Babylon (http://ref.ly/Jer29.7)! You have been gifted by God to cause others to flourish ... whether they follow God or not. Draw the line at the right place.

The church can be the church regardless of government. The church must be the church regardless of government, or it's not the church! No matter what happens politically, the church must love God, neighbor, and "enemy"; the church must hold up God's truth without adding to it or taking away from it; the church must seek justice and humbly serve the vulnerable; and the church must be willing to walk into the lion's den rather than compromise her loyalty (but the church must never confuse the lion's den with losing the perch of cultural dominance).

I will not suggest how you should vote. I won't even try to guilt you into voting or being involved politically. I will, however, echo Jesus' words that you seek first His Kingdom.