Don't Count On It

The Indian culture and country has so very much going for it. Two of its obvious strengths are generosity and hospitality. If you want to be looked after and even “babied”, come to this great corner of God’s earth. This remote, northeasterly corner specializes in these essential qualities. I have often commented to those who have been here that I fear the day when visitors from here would drop in on me in Canada… because I would never match their care and concern for the guests’ welfare.
I’m repeating myself (if you’ve read what I’ve written recently) but it deserves repeating. Mizoram is a gorgeous place and the people, in general, are fantastic. So, anything I say now is not meant to demean this culture or country in any way. I love them both.
But things are different here, and contentment comes not from trying to impose changes, but from the blessing of that old gem--acceptance. The electricity comes and goes and frequently fades and then spikes! The telephone follows much the same routine. Water supply ebbs and flows. Internet… well, the last few days it has been unable to supply a web browser. So….
I got to wondering this afternoon: “How and when did these utilities take over my value system?” Last Sunday our class looked at the beatitudes of Matthew 5. Even now, after many readings of this passage, it shocks my Canadian mind-bent to be reminded that our God smiles on “the poor”, “the mournful”, “the meek”, “the hungry and thirsty”.
Could it be that we often long for, pray for, and preach about things—health, wealth, safety—that represent a skewed value system? “Consider Jesus,” the encourager urges: Was rich, became poor. Was safe, underwent the worst of tragedies. Was exempt from pain, endured the excruciating cross.
You might experience comfort, consistency, health, wealth, predictability, security. But… don’t count on it (them). I doubt that these are the destinations of our journey. Last evening, with our class, grade ten students, I worked through Charles Dickens’s “Christmas Carol”. Ebenezer Scrooge came so close to missing the essence of it. So might I. Might you?
In brief, we are called to be different and to make a difference. I am grateful to the opportunity to do just that here in NE India… with God as my strength.