"What you do has to flow out of who you are... "

not the great words of our amazing leaders here at MTI in Colorado, but the words of our own Matt Krick that continue to resound in my mind while we are here in missionary training. This has been an intense week, filled with moments that are designed to challenge our value structure and perhaps even (perhaps hopefully, because you do know how I love things to be shaken) perhaps even our view of God Himself. We've spent much time in this first week at Missionary Boot Camp dialoging, role playing, simulating, and exploring our very souls. This first week has been a strong focus on admiting there is often a difference between biblical absolutes and cultural values. In cultures where preserving group harmony and the dignity of someone is held highly, is it a sin to lie to that person? In a culture where it is highly offensive to say "no" to someone... can you maintain your integrity and christian morals and say "yes" to respect the person and the culture even though you are fully aware you have no intention of following through on that yes? What do you do in a country where polygamy is the norm? And what is your response when you are pointed out that nowhere does the bible speak out against having more than one wife, but it specifically says divorce isn't God's plan? How, as a cross cultural foreigner do you maintain your own value structure (for me, my highest social values were intimate relationships, family, and freedom in creativity) in a society that might not hold those values as tightly as you do? How do you sift and sort through biblical absolutes and cultural values? For real it is an interesting question and the black and whites aren't as clear when you truly start to sort it all out.
I feel that Billy and I have been on this road for years now... discovering what is truth and what is simply a product of religon taught in our american churches...I think because of our history, and the church we decided to journey with. Mars Hill has taught us that it is essential to question... to explore.. to wrestle with doubt and come out on the other side stronger. I find myself cheering on the tough questions even though I see the struggle and tension on the room. I find myself countering even the basics.
"You must give at least 10% of your earnings back to God"

- yes, but if you are going to pick that out as an absolute, musnt you also hold true to the concept of jubilee? Or leaving the edges of your harvest for the widows and the poor to collect. Why do we say one is an absolute and not the other when both are very biblical?

and yet, there are other questions that I struggle through. Is this absolute? I've been taught this, but have I really looked through the story of scripture and found the answers on my own? Do I KNOW why I believe it is an absolute? Am I basing my arguments on the whole of scripture or on soundbites?

So... that was one day of our training here at MTI... the next day we dove into entry posture, concepts of Sabbath (which again, I am thankful to Mars Hill for teaching well) next week we will explore conflict resolution... each day is 7 hours of another HUGE concept that wraps us up inside and out... and then an evening filled with conversations, wrestling through the days topic, a lot of processing, group games, line dancing, walks in the mountains, children running everywhere, pingpong, and flopping down on couches sharing stories of God's amazing hand. I'm thinking that when we get back from South Africa, we are going to buy a big resort and live in community like this. Wanna' join us? Just so you know... I might ask you hard questions just to get the conversation started.