Two kinds of people...

"There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Thy will be done.’ ” 


~ C.S Lewis

Doing development: Ideal vs. Reality

By: Miriam Papps

The Leaving Eden Series: The One

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mn1t5Jyn3pQ]

I really do like Brandon Heath – his music, that is. He's cute too, but that's not the point. He comes across as a real person and doesn't sugarcoat following God while living in a broken world.

After hearing this song however, I asked myself: does it really just take one to turn this all around? I am skeptical. I do believe we need The One (Jesus) to help us, but thinking of ourselves as single people who can change this world I think is slightly unrealistic. Let me try to explain.

I recently came back from Colombia, serving with the first 'round' of MCC's SEED program. SEED focuses on education, service and advocacy in a 2 year MCC term (http://seed.mcc.org). This program is unique in many ways.  I was part of a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and theologically diverse team from 5 different countries and had a unique 3-month orientation to Colombia – its politics, economics, the state of the churches there, and the social situation and ongoing armed conflict. After the 3 months, we divided up and each went to a different church or community across the country. We served individually with a local community or congregation, then met every 3 months to reflect on these experiences and deepen our understanding of community development, peacebuilding and advocacy in Colombia and in our home countries.

All this sounds pretty neat? I think so. It was a very grounding experience, but throughout the 2 years, my expectations didn't match up with the reality 'on the ground'. Perhaps a few examples would help:

Engaging in Politics

This is the first election that I have been involved with in any real capacity other than voting.


Among other things, I spent a whole lot of time helping to organize an all candidates meeting  on behalf of the 21 Stouffville churches.  Our aim for the All-Candidates Meeting was to provide an information forum to hear where candidates stand on issues of concern to the churches and the local community. This event was an opportunity for the churches and parishes of our community to positively engage the political process.


I would be curious to know what others think: As Christians, is it worthwhile to put a whole bunch of energy into politics?  Or should we use our energy/gifts elsewhere?