A Teacher's Greatest Disappointment

Have you ever poured your life into someone only to see them turn into just about the biggest disappointment possible?

I’ve had disappointments as a teacher and discipler. But none nearly as great as the one I am going to tell you about.

I won’t give you this prof’s name, because you would recognize it right away. Suffice it to say, he took on a very promising young man to disciple in the faith. The teacher’s reputation was such that if he were to let it be known that he was looking for someone to mentor, most people would drop everything to volunteer for the position.

There was nothing this prof wouldn’t do for his student. He took his protégé along on trips so the student could observe how the teacher handled some of the most challenging situations. The young man not only had the opportunity to hear many hours of teaching, but in private moments also had opportunities to ask his mentor any question and expect an answer.

Not surprisingly, the teacher had enemies. For some it was professional jealousy, others were offended by things he said. Perhaps his greatest mistake was in letting anyone, even his young student, get so close to him. Then again, maybe he saw it coming all along.

For it was through this student that the professor’s enemies found their opportunity and quite literally, crucified him.

OK, by now you know who I’m talking about and how it all turns out.

If you’re a teacher, if you’ve ever discipled anyone, what makes you think you might not have a failure or two? If you, as a discipler, make yourself vulnerable, why should you expect to not experience hurt, even deep hurt, on occasion?

“For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort, too.” (2 Cor. 1:5, ESV)

Remember, you and I trace our spiritual lineage back to the 11 disciples who did NOT betray Jesus. We pass along that legacy of love to those we disciple, who will in turn pass it along to their protégés.
And if you have a Judas in your life, remember, Jesus had one, too.

Bad News, Good News

“In order to share the good news you first have to understand the bad news.”

I must confess I had been sitting in this missions seminar wondering, “Why am I here?” Arriving late, I had stepped on a number of toes and stumbled over people’s conference bags on my way to an empty seat in the middle of the auditorium. No way to leave inconspicuously.

Then, all of a sudden, it got interesting. At first I thought the speaker was meandering, but as I got my mind in step with his, I caught a glimpse of his destination.

In order to share the good news you first have to understand the bad news.

This was exactly what I had been wrestling with for Entrust.

The good news doesn’t change, but the “bad news” in a slum in Calcutta is quite different than the bad news in an American suburb. In my own preaching and teaching ministry in the U.S., I always tried to define the contrasting backdrop of American culture to understand how to explain a particular biblical truth so people could understand. Obedience is usually a choice between embracing the world’s values and embracing Christ’s. But worldly values differ greatly from culture to culture, context to context.

There is no one-size-fits-all way to train church leaders around the world. It takes a very different sort of leader to lead a church in an American suburb than it does in, say, a slum in Calcutta. That would seem to be obvious, but so much training overseas is more American than Indian or African or whatever the context. When you hear about Christians in Africa massacring Christians from a different tribe, you wonder, “How can that be?” Quite simply, if anyone embraces the “good news” without understanding how the “good news” changes the culturally-ingrained “bad news” they grew up with – in this case, age-old ethnic hatred – then they haven’t fully grasped and been transformed by the “Good News.” That is why Jesus, in the Great Commission, stressed the aspect of “teaching them to obey all I have commanded you.”

How about you? Have you spent much time understanding the “bad news” of your own culture, sometimes so deeply ingrained you don’t even realize what it is? That is the essence of the warning Paul gives us: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.” (Col. 2:8)

In order to share the good news you first have to understand the bad news.

David G. Goodman

The Battle of Black Forest

A year ago we wrote about the Waldo Canyon fires in Colorado. No one expected this again . . .Day 9 of the “Battle of Black Forest.”  

"We're fighting what we call the 'Battle of Black Forest,'" Lt. Col. Mitch Utterback said. "The first Chinooks and Blackhawks you see every morning flying from the south to the north are coming from Fort Carson." (These aircraft dumped slurry and other fire retardants from the sky to complement the efforts on the ground.)

Our Chicago friends might wonder why we ever moved to such a dangerous place! In the space of a year we have experienced the two most devastating fires in Colorado history.

The Cause: A prolonged drought and hot windy conditions turning the Black Forest neighborhoods, just a few miles southeast of us, into a proverbial tinder box. This fire scorched its way to the top of the state’s record list with 14,280 acres burned and hundreds of military and firefighters from more than ten states joining forces to serve our community.

The difference for us this time was that we were earnestly contemplating what it would be like to return to a pile of ashes. It was so close that we were encouraged to make all the evacuation preparations we could. Last time, during the Waldo Canyon fire in June 2012, we had other people’s valuables stowed in our home. This time we were deciding what to pack and had it ready to go. We know 509 homes were destroyed, 28 more are damaged, and 38,000 people were evacuated from their homes. We are reminded of the biblical metaphor of our lives being like grass which so readily goes up in flames. This world is not our eternal home and such events serve as a dramatic reminder. Our prayers are with our city – as our neighbors, just a few miles away, lost their homes and its contents. Thanks for the calls and emails inquiring about our staff who, once again, was spared.

I love the note pictured above, left behind by firefighters, apologizing for the mess they made in securing a house from the Black Forest fire. 

Entrust staff can relate to this, having a number of things in common with first responders. We willingly go where most people would not dare, only to find ourselves in very foreign, unfamiliar settings as we bring God’s love to a lost world. 

This firefighter knew one thing. Those windows were a wide open invitation for a rampaging fire to come in and wreak destruction. He had to break into that house and shut them. It was the right thing to do, but he also knew his muddy boots would be stepping on some toes (along with that pristine carpet). In the final analysis, long after the carpet has been cleaned, I would not be surprised to find this firefighter’s note framed and treasured in the very house he saved.

It is almost impossible to go to a foreign culture without committing cultural blunders and finding oneself in messy situations. Anyone reaching across cultures becomes adept at apologies, taking a posture of humility and developing the art of asking the right questions to determine the needs before making any assumptions. Sometimes cross-cultural interactions can get a little messy, but in the end it is God’s love, seen through you, that wins hearts and meets needs.