“What in the world are you doing here?”
Having lived in Wilmore, Kentucky; Rome, Pennsylvania; Lynchburg, Virginia; and Greenfield, Indiana, my wife and I have had people in these four locales walk up to us — having heard our accent, seen our complexion and heard of our Caribbean roots — and ask us this question a thousand times.
The question is, by no means, one of disrespect. Nor have we ever never taken it that way. Its intent is to gain clarity, to make sense of what doesn’t make sense: Why would anyone leave the beautiful Caribbean to come to live here?
We usually respond by saying that we are here because of my work. If the question is followed up by another that asks what that work is, we would tell them that I serve as the lead pastor of a local church, in this case, the Brown’s Chapel Wesleyan Church here in Greenfield.
If I am allowed to take that answer even further, I would say, for this particular reading audience, that we are here because, for reasons known only to God, he has called us, as he did in the other states where we’ve lived, to serve a church that is of an entirely different demographic.
Being immersed in a foreign culture can be uncomfortably awkward. There is so much to learn and unlearn, so many adjustments to be made, and so much misunderstanding to correct.
But this existential enterprise can also yield so much dividend. Living in a different culture has allowed me to grow as a human being and as a Christ-follower. It has also allowed me to further develop my craft as a “man of the cloth.”
I’d like to think that it has also proven beneficial to the churches we’ve served. Many in these congregations have never had any interactions with someone of my ethnicity, much less to be led by them. This is a God thing, which is why I was careful earlier to assert that we are here for reasons known only to Him.
In his book “Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church,” Mark Deymaz gives the following pointers, which also happen to be true of a multi-ethnic community:
Embrace dependence. If dependence means that no one group has all the answers to our existential realities and that no one group is complete in themselves, it is correct to say that we are all dependent upon the One who made us all different. However, Deymaz’ assertion needs to be expanded upon to include interdependence. We need one another. Our lives enrich and are enriched by the experiences of one another, especially those who are different from us.
-Take intentional steps. In his book “Walk Across the Room,” Bill Hybels asserts that communicating the gospel of love requires intentional steps. He challenges us to leave our “corner” and walk across the open space to get on unfamiliar, uncomfortable turf. If this idea is true of evangelism, it is true of community, which is the best expression of the gospel of love. Intentionality allows us to build bridges of understanding across stereotypes that keep us divided in our own corner of the room.
-Develop cross-cultural relationships. This expands upon the point of being intentional. Getting to know someone from another culture, demographic or ethnicity requires intentionality. In cultivating these relationships, we discover a depth of understanding, empathy and mutuality that we never knew we were capable of. We discover a common humanity that the God of heaven intended.
-Pursue cross-cultural competence. This competence only comes from shared experiences. Eventually, we become comfortable with the cultural idiosyncrasies of others so that we are not using names, language and expressions that are culturally insensitive and offensive.
-Promote a spirit of inclusion. If none of us likes to be excluded from community, then learning how to be inclusive rather than exclusive is the way to promote unity and community.
What are we doing here? We hope that in some small way, we are fulfilling God’s purpose for being here. Would you join us in helping to fulfill this Biblical mandate of loving our neighbors as ourselves? This is God’s work.
The Rev. Theodore A. Griffin is lead pastor at Brown’s Chapel Wesleyan Church in Greenfield. This weekly column is written by local clergy members.
