Cultivating Leaders

I love being able to work with a people from a variety of different backgrounds.  One of my favorite things in life it to help people understand that they are much more than what their circumstances say they are.  I consider it a privilege to walk alongside people and help them better understand their gifts, passions, and what Dad is calling them to do.

One thing that I have encountered recently is that people have very limited perspectives of leadership.   For most of the world, the leader is the person in the front, with all the power and authority to make decisions.  This is particular true for China.  Not to say that there is not a truth in the above description, but it severely limits the definition of leadership.  Some of the most powerful leaders are quiet people, diligently doing their work and being strong examples for change. They never said anything from the front but their character and influence has massive effects.  Take the Son, for example. He was not considered a leader by His contemporaries, but He clearly had influence and changed history.  

I am currently walking alongside a number of women who do not see their own leadership abilities.  I am trying to encourage them not to limit their definition of leadership, but look at the different ways that people follow their example.  I am longing for the day when these women can boldly say “I am a leader” and believe it. That is why I love this quote from John Quincey Adams:

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, become more and do more, you are a leader.”

This is the type of leader I want to be and actively encourage those around me to be.  Who are you leading?  In what ways are you inspiring others?   

GuanXi 关系

One truth that prevails across all cultures is the old phrase “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”  This is particularly true in China.  Loans can be issued, documents approved, businesses opened/closed, complaints investigated all on your connection to the person in charge at the moment.  The word for this in Mandarin is 关系 or relational capital. You can only make new contacts when your关系 or relationships is passed on by the mutual acquaintance.  Without relational capital almost nothing can be done.

I have seen this play out at the political and city wide level but I was able to have my own personal experience wit关系 this week.  Friends of mine from my Sunday fellowship heard about a pregnant women clear across the country who needed help.  Knowing no one personally in the city we was in, I reached out to my contacts to see if anyone knew of anyone who lived in that city and could possibly help this woman. After obtaining the email address for a Sunday fellowship leader in that city, I asked if anyone in his congregation to assist this woman.  Immediately he responded with two names, one of a local organization who can help and the other of a fellowship member.  As I was contacting the local organization (who I would never have heard about any other way because of security issues), I contacted Susan.  A few minutes into the phone call she said that my last name sounded familiar and asked if I was related to my Aunt.  Turned out this woman and my Aunt were language school classmates over 20 years ago.  From there, the conversation flowed naturally and we devised a plan to visit this woman in need and then collect resources to help her in the future.  The woman ended up being well cared for by this fellowship and local organization.  My关系 via my Aunt lead the people down in this city to assist a random stranger from across the country.

It blew me away how quick to help these people were.  They are following Him and doing what they can for the least of these in their city. I am sure they would have helped this woman if they discovered her without my phone call, but my involvement speed up the process.  This week I am reminded about the power of the Church Universal.  We have such a diverse group of people all over the globe that are called to love and serve sacrificially.  I got to personally witness strangers in another city physically help when I could not. Friends back in America donated money to assist this woman with medical costs.  Friends in Beijing collected donations to send down.  I am so grateful to know such an incredible group of quick responders who are willing to help anyone in need. 

Building Bridges

Yesterday was the last day of Eid, the celebration to celebrate the end of Ramadan and a month of fasting.  Eid is the biggest holiday and religious festival for Muslims, like Easter is for Christians.  New clothing, making favorite dishes, and celebrating with friends and family are central to celebrations of both major religious holidays.

I had the privilege of visiting my Muslim friends yesterday to celebrate Eid.  While visiting, a new family to the community began asking questions about Christianity. He has never asked a person from another faith what they believed before. He knew what the Qur’an talked about the Prophet Isa (Jesus), but was uncomfortable with some of the things that surrounded Isa’s life.  He then proceeded to ask me and my friend about our beliefs.  He wanted to clarify our theology.  A common misconception for Muslims is  Jesus’ birth.  In the Qur’an the word to describe Mary’s miraculous conception is the same word used to describe the physical act of conception.  Because of this wording, many Muslims believe that God and Mary had a physical relationship that resulted in Jesus or that God and Mary were actually married.  Obviously it is a horrendous idea to think that the Creator of the universe had physical relations with a human being.  As I explained that Isa’s conception was a miracle, not a physical act, my friend began to nod his head in approval. 

Next he ask why Christians believe in 3 gods.  Again, a common misunderstanding because of inaccurate translations of key words.  The Qur’an often refers to the “Breath of Allah”, something close to the movement of the Spirit. I said that much like in the Qur’an when you read “The Breath” you know it is talking about Allah, when I read the name of Father, Isa/Son or the Spirit I know the word is talking about God. As I explained that we believed in one God, with 3 different names to help us better understand the various aspects of His character, I could see him physically relax.  

After he asked a few more questions, he smiled and said “Our religions have much more in common than I thought.” I wholeheartedly agreed with his statement.  Not to say that there are not major differences between our religions, but we have more common ground than most people assume--the Prophet Isa is highly respected in the Qur’an.  He said that he no longer considers Christians infidels because we believe in blasphemous things.  It was such a great statement to hear.  This brief, twenty, minute conversation did so much to overcoming prejudice, misunderstanding and judgement for others beliefs.  Clarifying my beliefs and emphasizing the commonalities between our faiths built a bridge that is going to allow for deeper relationship. 

Today I received a message from my friend thanking more for clarifying my beliefs.  He said that we can truly be brothers and sisters now because we have so much in common.  Praise Him for a great conversation and the more to come.