Let Your Light Shine

South Africa Team 1824 Blog #3

10-12-2018

“Let Your Light Shine”

I expected to learn a lot going on a mission trip. I underestimated, though, how much I would learn preparing to go! There’s the packing list, the cultural differences, pre-trip bible study, and more. Remember as you read this that I’ve never done this before, so some of the things I’m surprised at might not move you to a sense of wonder. But some might.

What I’ve learned from the packing list:

·        In our carry-on bags, we are to bring a small roll of toilet paper. Apparently, some foreign airports don’t supply TP. Holy smokes! Glad to know in advance. Imagine me, a rotund middle-aged woman, bowling other passengers over to reach the ladies’ room only to find that I have no TP with which to finish the job. The others would wonder where I’d gone, and once found, I would have to explain why I’m now wearing only one sock.

·        In our checked luggage, we’ll each bring a fresh, fat roll of TP. Probably enough said on that subject.

·        No purse, no wallet. I have a thing to wear around my neck inside my clothes which will house my passport, eTicket, license, credit card, international shot records, medical insurance card, and cash. We’re told to dress in layers to insure comfort on the long flight. I’m chuckling, picturing eleven people going through security together and all fishing their tickets and IDs out from deep inside their layers of clothing.

·        Bring your own passport. A lady once showed up with her husband’s passport and somebody had to get hers and bring it to the airport for her. Wrong passport - that’s the kind of thing I would do. So it was kind to mention it, and on my personal packing list there’s now a reminder to check inside the passport for my own name and face.

·        We are to wear closed-toe shoes only, except when in the guest house, where we may wear sandals but by no means go barefoot. This is because of parasites. Parasites, I said. But God already knew about the parasites, and He has a plan.

·        We’ll each bring a flashlight, because there may or may not be electricity at any given time of day. It goes on, it goes off, we might not know a schedule, so we’ll each have a flashlight and it’s all good.

·        When you take the daily dose of malaria medicine, you must have food with fat. In case I’m eating carbs and veggies when it’s time to take the meds, I’ll bring Clif Bars with hazelnut butter, along with other healthy snacks.

·        For the safari (!), we must wear neutral colors. Black and blue attract the tse-tse fly, which carries some awful disease or other. White makes it easy for the WILD ANIMALS to spot us. We don’t want that. I think the color red whips them into some sort of missionary-eating frenzy, which we also don’t want. I returned the lovely powder-blue safari hat I bought, and exchanged it for a beige one with a mosquito net attached. I’ll be beige from head to foot. Go ahead and laugh, but the big scary beasties will hardly know I’m there. God was able to close the mouths of the lions when Daniel was thrown into their den, so I’ll just keep calm and trust Him. LOTS of people go on safaris and don’t get eaten, I’m pretty sure.

·        Absent from the packing list is Phil, my husband. He won’t be there when there’s something large, alive and spidery-creepy-crawly in the shower (thank you to my son-in-law Jason for pointing that out). So I’m packing a brick.

·        Also absent from the list is a watch or other timepiece. That’s because sometimes time doesn’t matter. More on that under cultural differences.

What I’ve learned so far about cultural differences:

·        Sometimes time doesn’t matter. At home, we can reasonably expect Pastor Gruenhagen to wrap up the 8:30 worship service by 9:45, give or take 10 minutes. In South Africa, nobody is apparently interested in what time it is. There may be an idea as to what time an event should start, but the end time is entirely organic and unscheduled. So we’ll go with the flow!

·        In the South African culture, there is more emphasis on ‘collectivism’ vs. ‘individualism.’ Decisions are often made as a group rather than each person deciding on their own. The example given is that if someone is to be baptized, it might be a family decision rather than the independent choice of the individual.

·        Communication styles are different. If you were to ask a South African in one of the villages we’ll visit a yes-or-no question, you might be met with silence rather than an answer. That’s because to say ‘no’ to someone may be considered rude, or disappointing. “Would you like a piece of pie?” could earn a “Yes, please,” or silence with head bowed. We are to take that as a “No, thank you.”

·        Being vs. Doing: Americans tend to want to DO. In other cultures, including the one we’ll be immersed in, the black South Africans would prefer to simply be in the moment, and be content; not always having to do something. So again, we’ll go with the flow.

·        When we greet a South African, we are to give a firm handshake, and look the other person in the eye. We are not to touch them anywhere other than their hand. No hand on the shoulder, no pat on the back, no hugs. I suppose it’s considered bad form, and invasive. I’m a hugger, but I shall squelch it. Even with the cute little kids, I guess. <sigh>

·        We should never point with our fingers. We may gesture with our whole, outstretched hand. So if it’s time to send a patient to the next room, I shall not point and say, “You’ll go to that room next.” I’ll gesture with my outstretched hand to have them continue on to the next station of the eyeglass clinic.

·        In our culture, when a man and woman arrive at a door at the same time, the man waits for the woman to enter first. In South Africa, the man enters first. I’m surmising it’s for safety, like, “Wait a moment, my dear, and I will make sure there’s nothing on the other side of this door which might harm you.” Or maybe it’s a sign of respect to pause and let the man go ahead. Whatever the reason, I’ll try to remember ‘NOT ladies first.’

·        Gift giving is not allowed at all. We may give a small offering of 2 or 3 dollars during the church service at the appropriate time, but if someone admires my scarf I’m not permitted to say, “Well Sweetie, it’s yours then!” Giving gifts sets up expectations which might not be met in the future, and therefore puts an unnecessary burden on the next team. So I’ll smile and say thank you.

·        We must ask for permission to take a person’s picture, and then must take the pic so as to present our South African subject in the very best light. We are not the paparazzi, and we don’t want to make our hosts look foolish, or embarrass them in any way.

The bible study we’ve been doing in preparation for ‘being missionaries’ is outstanding. We were told by Sandy, our team leader that it’s the “heart and soul of MOST Ministries.” We are continually reminded that Jesus came to serve; that the way to truly be His disciple is to serve others, and bring the Gospel to them. Each of us on Team 1824 has been tasked with writing and presenting a 15-20 minute devotion for the group. I have so much material I could write 3 and not be done! Thanks to God and whoever wrote the bible study, I’ve grown in my faith life during this time of preparation. I’m so blessed!!

We aren’t only going to South Africa to run an eyeglass clinic and help people to see better. We go to Africa to let our “light shine before men, that they may see [our] good deeds, and praise [our] Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16 

Please pray for us and follow this blog to see what we’re up to during our 12 day expedition for Jesus. I’m trying to figure out whether to bring my iPad or laptop, phone or camera (Charmin or Quilted Northern!), but there will be regular blog posts, whatever device I decide to use. Sarah Depriest says she wrote her posts in the evenings, when others were using the bandwidth, and waited to post them in the mornings when not too many were online. That sounds like a good plan to me, so if it works out, that’s what I’ll do.

The time difference is 6 hours from Michigan to Middleburg SA, so if I post at 6am (I won’t, but it makes the math easier) it will go up at midnight at home. Or… noon? I’ll never get that right. Anyhow, if you scroll ALL the way down to the bottom of the whole blog, you can enter your email and get an alert when there’s a new blog post.

Thanks so much for your support and encouragement, and for keeping up with us!

Respectfully Submitted,

Linda Meier

Missionary (!)