My wake up call was 30 hours ago. One 30 minute flight, one layover and a 14 hour flight ago, I reached over to pick up the hotel phone at the Phoenix Suyuan Hotel in Beijing, China. That being said, I offer my apologies in advance for any errors caused by sleep deprivation (or would it be delirium..?).
Aside from the lack of z’s, this trip was a first for me. I’ve been out of the country, but never to a second world country and much less one where English and Christianity were the minority. This was strictly a just-for-fun excursion, but there were a few things that I couldn’t help but tie in to The World Race. While I won’t be headed back to China, I will be returning to Asia as my route takes me to both India and Malaysia. So, yes, these countries are completely different than China, but I’m thankful for the little sneak peek of Asian culture including five things in particular.
1. Forgive. This goes in a few different directions. I first learned this lesson when I realized that there is no equivalent for the phrase “excuse me” in Mandarin. It took the entire first day to get used to living in a culture of impatience. Slowly I learned the ropes, but it was not easy to forgive immediately. When you can forgive the small things, it becomes easier to forgive the big ones.
2. Appreciate. Culture is a major part of one’s life. It was difficult to go into the trip not wanting to “Americanize” it. There’s a difference between sharing your culture and debilitating someone else’s lifestyle so that you can be comfortable. Part of the fun is in the experience! So while I did eat at the first McDonald’s I saw when we stepped off the plane, I also chose to order a Chicken Patty Rice Bowl off the menu. (it was sub-par but hey, cheers to the memories, am i right?)
3. Leave. This kind of goes hand in hand with #2, but no worries, there’s a twist. Like I wrote earlier, it’s okay to bring reminders and comfort blankets, but, yes, you should leave your desires to grip tightly to Americanism at the airport. The big thing here is that habits back home are habits abroad – even bad ones. Your choice of a new life doesn’t automatically grant you a new identity. Bad habits and addictions will follow you and that decision belongs only to you. I’m choosing to leave those in the driveway next time.
4. Love. One of my closest friends showed me this article: http://updates.theworldrace.org/?filename=god-loves-men-who-buy-women. You don’t have to read past the title (although, I strongly encourage you to) if you don’t want to because that alone should be enough. I like to think I’m pretty good at loving everyone – the totally innocent best friends of mine, my sunday school small group, the teachers at my Christian school…you know…“everyone”. But a murderer? A trafficker? A terrorist? And (my favorite) MISOGYNISTS? Loving that kind of everyone is a bit different. But how does God love them? Without effort. Without limits. And so shall I.
5. Look. Ask and you shall receive. God knows the desires of our hearts, but He still wants us to ask, to confide in, to talk to Him. I’ve been unable to uncover the reasoning behind why I can’t find Him anywhere. Then I realized it’s a bit difficult to find something if you aren’t looking for it in the same way that it’s a bit difficult to receive something if you don’t ask. I was surrounded by people who lived in a Buddhist state of mind and everywhere I turned there were temples and shrines and I’ve never felt so disconnected from Christianity. (I mean, lets be honest, I live in the Bible belt so if that wasn’t culture shock, I’m not sure I’ll ever know it). We are the church and the Holy Spirit is in the people. God is there but to share His joy with others, we have to know the people. We have to love the people.
