We have learned a lot in three full weeks at the Center for Intercultural Training (CIT)! It takes a lot of time to process everything, but I've been reviewing my top take-aways from the lessons.
(Note: you'll notice that some friends' identities have been obscured for confidentiality reasons.)
1. Mindstyles: The Mindstyles website can explain better, but there are 4 different combinations of thinking patterns. I am Concrete Random. That means I am a risk-taker, competitor, independent problem-solver... and have a lot of fun :) It was interesting to learn about the differences between the styles and how to best work with people who are operating under each pattern.
2. Contextualization: we learned that adopting the local customs/traditions of the culture helps us to speak to the hearts of the people. We should trust the Holy Spirit as He speaks through local believers, regarding which customs to keep and which to jettison. One of my favorite things about traveling is learning how and why people do the things they do, and I desire to see God's presence in each culture! One of the things I appreciated about the Pakistani women that we met at the Islamic Center of Asheville was their hospitality; they insisted that we share the delicious chicken-and-rice lunch they had prepared!
 |
| My classmates and I with way too much food! :) |
3. Confrontation: conflict is an opportunity to let God be glorified.
In case you don't believe me, the Chinese word for "conflict", seen above, includes the character for "opportunity"!
We have had some fun in our downtime, too... during our first weekend, several of us visited a church called Father's Vineyard, and were welcomed up front by the lead pastor (Pastor Terry). He invited the elders of the church to pray over us and the countries to which we are going--the 3 of us actually represented 3 different continents! The next weekend I made an excursion into the nearby town of Black Mountain, which reminded me of downtown Geneva, IL, with tons of craftsy and antique stores and boutiques. It was gorgeous weather! Lots of people were out with families and dogs, which helped my puppy withdrawal :) Then it was Easter, and we held an egg hunt for the kiddos around the back lawn/playground. I kept my streak going... 31 years of participating in egg hunts! :)
This week we had a ladies' night (which was an act of faith, leaving all 11 kids with their dads...lol), so we went into the nearby town of Rutherfordton for Thai food and a CVS run. Yeah, I know, wild!!
* I received my visa for Niger! Woohoo!
* A spot opened up for me to take the Trauma Healing workshop at the end of April, woohoo! Please pray that I can book tickets and reserve lodging ASAP.
* Stormy is having a rough time at home and I still have 1 more week at CIT... Pray for him & my parents to persevere without me...
* In addition to learning more about cross-cultural ministry and team dynamics, part of CIT is self-study. Please pray for my spiritual and emotional growth.
* I'm thankful for additional supporters that have joined my team in the past month!! I only need about $190/month (or another $7000) to be fully supported!!
No comments:
Post a Comment