The Problem With "We The People..."

Christian school principals in the State of Kentucky, where I was the guest of Dr. Randy Ross, Regional Director of the Association of Christian Schools International in the Ohio River Valley, who is standing with me in this photo (on the right).

 
This is what is missing in America today: Our children are being brought up in an environment without respect for God and His Word, and therefore no regard for what He has to say about anything. The outcome is a host of adults who have no regard for God or the Bible.

This is the problem with "We The People..." When the majority of voting citizens are brought up in an environment with no respect for God and His Word, they vote the way they see it. Naturally. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand why America is going the direction it is.

Last week I had the privilege of sharing with Christian school principals in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia on the topic of what makes a Christian school "Christian," and how to keep it that way. It's no secret that some schools, like Harvard and Yale, start out strongly Christian and end up...well, something else.

The case for authentic Christian education, and the compelling need for it, is stronger today than ever. By "authentic," I mean education that connects the dots, by "contextualizing" every academic subject within the bigger picture of a biblical world-and-life view. This doesn't mean we tack a Bible verse on the end of a lesson, or just open class with a word of prayer. It means helping students to see how every academic subject makes sense when it is viewed within the context of God's larger frame of reference. Putting all things in that context is the challenge, privilege, mission and mandate of every Christian teacher--and parent as well.

While visiting these principals, I gave them a small taste of what is coming to the Bible Belt. I did this by showing them a short clip of street interviews my wife and I did a couple of years ago in Seattle. In doing back-to-back interviews for well over an hour, with people who gave us permission to record their comments and share them with the world, not a single person made reference to the Bible, in response to a question that past generations most certainly would have. Even in Seattle.

Take a look. Then say a prayer for "we the people" who make this country home: http://youtu.be/jsHiSLgTLv4.  





 

Remarkable Courage

This map of Indonesia shows the locations of schools (elementary, secondary and post-secondary) that have been established by The Arastamar Evangelical School of Theology, also called "SETIA," located in East Jakarta. The lines go out to schools in rural, under-developed areas of the country that have been "left behind." They are also areas of recruitment by radical Islamic groups.

Why would a seminary in Indonesia be planting elementary and secondary schools? Shouldn't they just be planting churches? What's going on here?

What's going on is the Gospel of the Kingdom at work in Indonesia. By "Gospel of the Kingdom," I don't mean the Gospel of Personal Salvation (although personal salvation is included), but the Gospel of Reconciliation, that Christ may have preeminence in all things--in heaven and on earth (please see Col. 1:16-20).

This calls for reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic, because "things on earth" include business things, civil things, agricultural things, artistic things and family things. Neighborhood things. Educational things. Legal things. This is the wholistic Gospel, that not only provides blessed hope for eternity, but blessed hope for the here-and-now.

This vision has come at a high price for the Arastamer School of Theology. It is a price most Americans can barely conceive, and it demands remarkable courage. 

Such as the time when Dr. Matheus Mangentang, Director of the School of Theology, received word direcctly from the leader of one of the most radical Islamic groups in Indonesia that he was going to kill Matheus. What did Matheus do? He invited this radical leader to meet him for dinner. (What would I have done? I would have called the FBI and installed a serious alarm system around my house!) 

Matheus met his adversary face to face. When they got together, the radical Muslim leader wanted to know why Matheus was unafraid. This opened a deep conversation. When the Muslim leader saw that Matheus was working for the common good of Indonesia, the two men became friends. And they remain friends today.

But all has not been rosy for the seminary in Jakarta. In July of 2008, it was attacked by an angry mob, armed with metal clubs and machetes. As police evacuated students and staff, the attackers threw acid and slashed students with swords. The school was literally driven out of the city.

For a more complete account of this matter, and to find out what happened next, I urge you to view the stunning video contained in this link: http://www.memverse.com/stt_setia. If you think you have problems, take a look. More importantly, if you want to see grace in action, click the link.

With Matheus Mangentang and his wife, Ester, at the Business as Mission, Indonesian Economic Development Conference three weeks ago in Columbus, Ohio.

 

"They Showed Us By Their Faith And Lifestyle"

Jamek Masque, in Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, built in 1907.  [Photo from Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams (Earth), licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Generic, from Wikipedia.]

After reading last week’s post, David Oliver (British author of Love Work, Live Life!), sent me this note about his experience in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, immediately north of Indonesia:

"I went up the Menara tower overlooking the city and purchased an audio tour guide. As I got towards the end of the tour (station 12 in the tower) I realised afterwards that this had of course been carefully choreographed as I stood looking out over row upon row of golden topped mosques.

The commentary ran as follows: 'In the 14th century, Indian [Muslim] traders came to our land and showed us by their faith and lifestyle that we could be freed from the shackles of Buddhism. So we embraced their faith and their language and have done till this day.'"

Let those words sink in: "…[they] showed us by their faith and lifestye...” Traders? Sellers of widgets? Business people? “…so we embraced their faith…” Today, 61% of the population of Malaysia is Muslim.

Therein lies an important message for Christians. What's the message? I hardly need to say it. But on the other hand, maybe I do.

Let me start on a positive note, by sharing hope from Indonesia. I became aware of this two weeks ago, while speaking at a conference for Indonesians in America. The conference theme was "Business as Mission and Indonesian Economic Development." 

One of the other speakers was Dr. Matheus Mangentang, Director of The Arastamar Evangelical School of Theology, a seminary established in East Jakarta in 1987. By 2007, this school had become the largest school of theology in Indonesia.

As I heard Dr. Mangentang describe his work, I realized this school is not your typical school of theology, and Matheus is not your typical school director. They do not advertise for students, and their goal is not to raise up theologians. They are raising up nation-builders.

A wholistic approach to Christianity has led them to plant scores of elementary and secondary schools throughout Indonesia, among populations "left behind." This is where their students come from, and this is where their students return. They come from undeveloped communities and return to them, engaging as Christians.

This has made Matheus a target among radical Muslim forces. Next week I'll share how he responded when the leader of one of these notorious groups informed Matheus he was going to kill him. I was dumbfounded.

 

Not Part Of The Muslim Mindset

[This map of Indonesia is public domain.]

Indonesia is a fascinating country. It has some 17,000 islands (I say "some" because a few disappear at high tide─an Indonesian joke), with 240,000,000 inhabitants. It is the fourth most populous nation on the planet.

Last weekend I spoke at a conference in Columbus, Ohio, where Christian Indonesian college students and young working professionals currently living in the United States gathered to focus on how business can positively affect Indonesian communities, particularly underprivileged people in rural areas. 

Many non-Indonesians are surprised to learn that 88% of the Indonesian population claims to be Muslim. In fact, Indonesia has more self-proclaimed Muslims than any other nation on earth. The number of Muslims in Indonesia exceeds the number that are in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, Yemen, Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan combined! 

How did it happen that this part of the world, far from the Middle East, came to have such a large body of Muslims? Michael Baer, in Business As Mission, writes: 

"I once asked an Indonesian Christian why the country had become so predominantly Muslim...She said that when the Western Christians came, primarily from Holland, they built missionary compounds and missionary churches and expected the Indonesian people to come to them. The Muslims, on the other hand, came as traders, farmers, merchants, and businesspeople and simply lived among the natives."
 
Dr. Darrell Furgason, a friend of mine who holds a Ph. D. from the University of Sydney in Religious Studies, and is an expert on Islam, has this to say:  

"In places like Africa and Indonesia, the church has been intellectually crippled, with one hand tied behind its back. Western missionaries generally brought the Gospel in the way they learned it, as a purely soul-saving faith, with no real bearing on anything else--religion was a mostly personal matter, nothing to do with things like politics, science, law, economics...African people were given the Gospel, but not how to build a righteous nation, how to apply Christianity to everything...Muslims see their faith as all-encompassing..."

The "Sacred-Secular Split" [SSD] is not part of the Muslim mindset. Yet, regrettably for all nations, it is the mindset of far too many Christians. Take 2.5 minutes to hear what Dr. Aila Tasse told me about the problem of "SSD" in northern Kenya, where his organization, Lifeway Mission, plants churches in Muslim communities [http://youtu.be/o5qHFe6O1uU]:

 

I Could Have Used The Help Of A Freelancer

As is my custom, I’ll be taking a summer break from blogging to re-charge my batteries. 

I have enjoyed “peeling the onion” this past year regarding the role of education in preparing the next generation to make intentional connections between the biblical worldview and daily work. Not only in future work as adults, but current work as students.  Although it was once standard fare at early Harvard and Yale, "the doctrine of work" has disappeared from Christian education, at least in an intentional and systematic way.

I believe this is a big key to cultural transformation. When people go to work with a biblical Weltanschauung and apply it within every sector of society, God goes to work too.

In closing, let me say a word to Christian school leaders: 

I know what it’s like to be a busy school head, attending to "the urgent" and dealing with non-instructional matters demanding so much time and energy that the essential task of equipping teachers to integrate the biblical worldview throughout the curriculum gets lost in the shuffle. 

During the 14 years I served as headmaster of a Christian school, I could have used the help of a freelancer,  providing customized assistance to fit the needs of myself and my staff—as well as my budget. 20 years later, I am able to serve in ways I would not have dreamed possible when I needed this kind of help.    

Each school is unique, and the needs of its staff and leadership vary.  I will be happy to develop a customized plan with any Christian school principal who wants to work with me, to whatever degree of involvement is deemed most fitting for your school and your budget, until my quota is full.

If you have not considered developing specific standards and benchmarks for the "doctrine of work" throughout your elementary and secondary school curriculum, please take another look at David Oliver’s guest post: click here.  Whether you move to that level or not, I would count it a privilege to come along side you. My coaching services vary from as little contact as two hours a month, to as much as two hours a week. For more information, click here.  

The process starts with an exploratory chat. This costs nothing but a bit of time. To set your appointment, click here.

See you in September!

 

Questions That Stimulate Action

Two weeks ago we looked at questions that prompt reflection on how our work can be aligned with the bigger, grander picture of the biblical view of Creation and Humanity. Below are questions that stimulate action relating to the bigger, grander picture of Moral Order and Purpose.

Pick one that especially speaks to you, and take a moment (or two) to consider the personal ramifications for you and your work:

• What does the Kingdom of God "look like" when His Kingdom "comes" to my work? How can I move things further toward this picture?
• How can my biblically-informed faith turn __________ around? ...restore it? ...redeem it?
• With respect to __________, what has not been said that should be said? Or, not been done that should be done?
• What responsibility do I have toward God in this activity? 
• How does biblical teaching about poverty and wealth relate to my work? What more could be done in this regard?
• What might happen if my thoughts were carried to their logical conclusion at work?
• What are biblically acceptable goals and objectives for my work? 
• How does _______ relate to the First Commission of Genesis 1:26-28? …to the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20? …to the Great Commandment of Mark 12:30-31?
• How does my work relate to the future of Planet Earth? 
• How is God's will being done on Earth as it is in Heaven today through this activity?
• How specifically does this activity contribute to the reconciliation of all things to Christ? (Col. 1)
• What qualifies this activity to be called "the Lord's work?" What disqualifies it?

 

Under Construction Now For 130 Years

Last week we looked at ways we can bring meaning to our work by connecting it with something bigger and grander than ourselves. A dramatic illustration of this is the life and work of Antoni Gaudi. The people of Barcelona, Spain, affectionately dubbed him, God's Architect.

Antoni Gaudi designed a cathedral that he knew he would never see completed in his own lifetime. Imagine that! The building has been under construction now for 130 years--and is not expected to be completed for at least another thirteen years.

I hope I live long enough to see this finished work with my own eyes. It's on my bucket list. This stunning basilica is called The Sagrada Familia, or The Holy Family. If I don't see it in this current world, I believe I'll see it in the new one.

Please watch the episode of CBS 60 minutes below, to view an extraordinary example of what it means to bring meaning to one's work by aligning it with something much bigger and grander than oneself.

It also illustrates where visionary thinking can lead, when added to the commitment of people who keep the goal clearly in mind, working toward its realization with unified efforts, year after year, after year after year, come hell or high water.

Click the "full screen" icon in the lower RH corner to get the best effect. If the video does not play try this link: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50148541n

  

Something Bigger Than Oursleves

It's possible to bring extraordinary meaning to ordinary work by aligning it with something bigger than ourselves. This is where aligning our work with the bigger picture of a biblical Weltanschauung comes in powerfully.

Last week we looked at some questions that prompt reflection on how our work can be aligned with the bigger, grander picture of God. Below are some questions pertaining to how our work can be aligned with the bigger, grander picture of Creation and Humanity.

Pick one that especially speaks to you, and take a moment (or two) to deeply reflect: 

• What physical, emotional or spiritual needs of others are being met through my work?
• How does _________ [fixing cars, managing a grocery store, providing legal counsel] relate to the First Commission of Genesis 1:26-28, the "Cultural Mandate" to rule over all the earth?
• Why is __________ [water used to wash dishes, wood used to construct a house, electricity used to operate a computer] a part of creation?
• What unseen spiritual entities might be affecting this activity?
• What is particularly human about _________?
• When it comes to _________, what aspects of my mind need to be transformed by Christ?
• How does _________ unite people? ...divide people? ...fulfill people? ...minimize people?
• What character qualities can this situation develop or further strengthen in me? How might this be an opportunity for spiritual growth?
• How might this situation be an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to speak deeply to my co-worker [my boss, my customer]?
• How might this situation be an opportunity for me to be "salt" and "light" in the world in which I work?
• What about ____________ is in harmony with a biblical view of humanity? …in opposition to it?
• When it comes to making the best use of my God-given gifts and abilities at work, what is missing or being under-utilized?
• When it comes to the best use of the God-given gifts and abilities of others [my co-workers, boss, employees, customers, etc.], what is being under-utilized? How could I help in this regard?
• How does my work draw upon (or exercise) the reality that I am created in the likeness and image of God? 
• How does my work affirm the intrinsic value and inherent worth of others, as created in the likeness and image of God, whether they are Christians or not?

  

Intentionality

When it comes to bringing meaning to work, the challenge lies in making conscious connections between the work itself and the "bigger picture" of a biblical worldview that gives our work the meaning God intends.  
 
This isn't rocket science. But it isn't simple either. First, it requires the development of a sound biblical view of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order and Purpose. This takes some time and thoughtful reflection on what we read in the Bible. But in addition to this, it requires some focused intentionality.
 
Along those lines, rather than present you with a list of biblical truths that relate to work, a more helpful approach might be to suggest questions that prompt deep personal reflection on the connections between your own work and the bigger picture of a biblical world-and-work framework.
 
With that in mind, here are some reflection-prompting questions relating to the "God factor." Pick one that speaks to you, and take a moment (or two) to deeply reflect: 

• How does God look at _________ [my mowing the lawn, my managing a bank, my selling of real estate]?
• How does God feel about _________ [the way I treated that customer, the solution I came up with]?
• Is ________ really important to God? If so, why?
• Where was God when ________ happened? [i.e., something went very wrong] How did God reveal Himself when this negative thing happened? How could I have been more spiritually or emotionally prepared for this?
• With respect to _________, what practical difference does my biblical view of God make in contrast to an atheist's view?
• If I were God, what would I do about _________? How might I co-labor with Him in this?
• What has God said in His Word that relates directly or indirectly to _________?
• Why is God silent in His Word about _________?
• How does my work release God’s hand to freely work in the world? How does it limit Him?
• How does God participate in _________?
• How is God’s mercy and forgiveness evidenced through this activity?
• What assumptions about God lie behind _________?
• How does God’s ownership of all things relate to this enterprise?
• What about ________ is in harmony with the biblical view of God?
• What about ________ is in opposition to the biblical view of God?
• What joy might God receive through my involvement in this work?

We'll pick up next week with questions relating to "Creation" and "Humanity."

 

Ending Up As Greece

Everyone has a mental concept of what's "really real," even if one thinks the Tooth Fairy is real. A worldview, or as Immanuel Kant called it, a Weltanschauung, is a person's "take" on the deepest questions of life that serve as "compass bearings" for our big decisions, core values, and significant meaning in work. 

I'm convinced that the five biggest factors that make up the "compass bearings" of any worldview are: 

• the GOD factor [who or what is the ultimate power and authority?]
• the CREATION factor [what's really real ? how did it get here?]
• the HUMANITY factor [who are we? what gives us true significance?]
• the MORAL ORDER factor [what are the rules ? who decides?]
• the PURPOSE factor [what is the reason for all that exists?]

Beliefs in these five areas will shape a person's concept of what is ultimately "real." Whether or not that Weltanschauung is accurate (or, really true), is another question.

Now let me say something that is politically incorrect and deeply offensive to many in our post-Christian culture: some views of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order and Purpose are false.

Our current culture tells us one worldview is just as valid as another, and those who don't agree with this premise are now branded "intolerant." It's against the fundamental code of multi-culturalism. But if we buy into the idea that anything goes, we'll be ending up as Greece, when they came to similar conclusions 2,500 years ago.  

Consider this description of Greece in her latter stages of decline, given by Will Durant in his book, The Life of Greece, under a subsection titled "The Morals of Decay" (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1939, pp. 565-568):

• Cults from the East have been accepted.
• Astrology is practiced.
• Patriotism has declined.
• Men practice manners which have previously been considered effeminate.
• The upper class is consumed with the pursuit of pleasure.
• Education stresses knowledge more than character, and produces masses of half-educated people. 
• Public athletic games have turned into professional contests.
• Homosexuality is popular. 
• The dramas of the day are full of seduction and adultery.
• A women’s liberation movement has brought women into active roles in a previously male-oriented culture.
• Motherhood is devalued, and the bearing of children is viewed as an inconvenience.
• Abortion is commonly practiced, as well as infanticide.

Sound familiar? Could there be a reason for this resemblance to our current condition?

 

Weltanschauung

As Bonnie Wurzbacher pointed out last week, she was able to bring meaning to her work with Coke only after she understood how it connected with the bigger picture of a biblical worldview.

When it comes to bringing meaning to work, having a handle on what a "biblical worldview" is, makes all the difference. You may have noticed the name of this blog is "Worldview Matters." This is also the name of the educational service organization my wife, Kathy, and I founded back in the year 2000. Your worldview really does matter.

I am convinced that the ability to make connections between the bigger picture of a "biblical worldview" and our everyday work is essential for bringing meaning to whatever we do. A "worldview" provides a larger frame of reference that enables us to make sense of everything around us. Without a biblically informed worldview, the task of bringing real and lasting meaning to everyday work is impossible. That's a strong statement, but let me support it by providing some definition to the word "worldview." 

The word "worldview" was first coined by the German philosopher Immanuel Kant, in the eighteenth century. The word he coined was: Weltanschauung. As the Germans often do, Kant combined two German words into one: Welt, which means "world," and Anschauung, which can be translated into English as "conception," "idea," "opinion," or "view."

If two German children are resting on the grass looking up at the clouds, and one child points to a particular cloud and says, "Look at the horse!" and the other child looks at the same cloud and doesn't see a horse, he might reply: "That's your Anschauung!" In other words, that's "your take."

This brings us to a major characteristic of "worldviews." Everyone has a view of reality, but not everyone's "take" on it is the same. Some people see a Designer-Creator behind the existence of all things, while others (who are looking at the very same things, mind you) see nothing but impersonal matter, functioning by pure, blind fate. Some people see a Higher Law Giver behind "right and wrong," while others (who are looking at the very same issues) see only varying degrees of human preference. 

In the next few weeks, we'll take a look at the basic essentials of a biblical worldview, and how these essentials can bring remarkable meaning to all human endeavor.

 

A Pause That Refreshes!

Last week I mentioned an interview I did several years ago with Bonnie Wurzbacher, Vice President of Global Accounts for The Coca-Cola Company, in which this committed follower of Christ told me, "We don't find meaning in our work, we bring meaning to our work.” 

I invite you to hear Bonnie's explanation of this statement in her own words. The videos below are short, the first one being 2 minutes, and the second being 1.5 minutes. If the clips do not play, click here and here.

You'll find Bonnie's perspective a pause that refreshes!
 

 

The Coca-Cola Company? Was She Joking?

Last week I quoted Behnamn Tabriai and Michael Terrell as saying one of the biggest reasons people struggle to find meaning in their work is because they “aren’t aligned.” The way they put it is: “...people don’t build an external reality that is in line with their internal selves and values. When your inside world and your outside world are misaligned, it’s easy to feel frustrated, unhappy, and adrift.”

Tabriai and Terrell are touching on something very fundamental: “aligning” our behavior with our core values. When we don’t do this, we certainly do feel uncomfortable with ourselves. Conversely, when we do this, we have a sense of satisfaction. This is true whether it’s in the context of the workplace or anywhere else. And, as Tabriai and Terrell point out, the feelings of satisfaction that come when our values and our behavior are in alignment “contribute significantly to how well we perform and our sense of meaning.”

So what happens when a person’s a line of work constantly rubs against his or her deeply held values? If the “rub” is big enough, it may require a change of location. That is, a different job. A follower of Christ who is making a living through the propagation of pornography, should be uncomfortable.

But I suspect most of the readers of this blog are not dealing with that degree of misalignment. For most followers of Christ who suffer from a lack of alignment between their everyday work and their inner values, the issues are much more subtle. I am of the opinion that many followers of Christ who lack fulfillment and deep meaning in their everyday work are in this condition not because their job is in need of adjustment, but because their ideas about work itself are in need of adjustment.

I once interviewed a high-level executive in a famous worldwide company who told me, “We don’t find meaning in our work, we bring meaning to our work.” These profound words came from the lips of Bonnie Wurzbacher, then Senior Vice President of Global Accounts for The Coca-Cola Company, who, as a follower of Christ, learned to bring meaning to her work with The Coca-Cola Company by seeing how this work “fulfilled and advanced God’s purposes for the world.”

The Coca-Cola Company? Was she joking?

Not at all. I’ll pick up from here next week.

He Escaped A Life Of Toil?

Last week, a beloved man of God passed from this life to the next at the age of 104: George Beverly Shea, the long-time associate of Billy Graham who always sang an inspiring song just before Billy preached.

Mr. Shea’s obituary in the New York Times caught my attention. The first line declared that George Beverly Shea had “escaped a life of toil in an insurance office to become a Grammy-winning gospel singer.”

What’s this? He escaped a life of toil in an insurance office? If you happen to work in the insurance industry, I hope you’re not saying to yourself, “Congratulations to Mr. Shea. I’d like to find my escape before I turn 104!”

The fact is, many people feel trapped at work. Many don’t want to be doing what they’re supposed to be doing at work, and endure the situation until the weekend. Many are not engaged. How many? Research by The Gallup Organization suggests 55% of the US workforce is “not engaged,” and another 16% are “actively disengaged.”

If Gallup’s findings are correct, then 71% of US workers are not engaged in their work! The “not engaged” folk are described as those who “hang back and don’t commit themselves [to their job],” while the “actively disengaged” employee is described as one who is “not just unhappy at work…[but] acts out that unhappiness.”

The big question is, “Why?”

In response to last week’s post, one reader, Alex Brubaker, sent a link to an article in the Huffington Post, from April 15, titled: “Why Are We So Frustrated at Work and at Home?” written by Behnamn Tabriai and Michael Terrell, who are affiliated with the Stanford Business School. Here is their answer to the “why” question:

"Though our society-wide struggle to find greater meaning is certainly attributable to a variety of nuanced factors, we have found that one of the biggest reasons is that, simply, people aren't aligned. By that we mean that people don't build an external reality that is in line with their internal selves and values. When your inside world and your outside world are misaligned, it's easy to feel frustrated, unhappy, and adrift. However, when they move into alignment, our lives are pervaded with a sense of satisfaction and happiness -- feelings that researchers have shown contribute significantly to how well we perform and our sense of meaning."

Could "alignment" be a key to meaning?