A three fold test from The Office for honoring dignity and sustainability

In last week's episode of The Office, Michael and Andy find themselves joining up with a church youth group on their mission trip to Mexico.  Inspired by the group's joie de vivre, they spontaneously decide to head out for a three month mission.

Forty-five minutes in, Michael starts to have his doubts about the idea.  After verifying with Andy exactly what it is they are "building down there"--is it a hospital, a school for Mexicans, a gymnasium--Michael has a few questions:

1.  Why aren't they building it themselves?

2. (Upon hearing that they don't know how) Do we know how?

3. (After sharing that Michael, himself, doesn't know how) Do you know how?

This line of questioning might provide insight into why we do what we do when it comes to missions and mission trips.  What exactly can they do and what can't they do?  What are we actually qualified to do and what are we not capable of doing?  What are the roles and expectations of our group and their community?

We can just as easy find ourselves a labor and funding source as a paternalistic dignity dashers if we don't do some critical thinking about why we do what we do and how the people we seek to engage understand our motivations.

A visit to a women's prison points up the fact that though some of the inmates might have considered themselves good mothers at some point, most of them don't know how to know that.
They need to be reminded that God created them to be good mothers and that is what he still has for them to be.  There are precious few of us who know that well enough to proclaim it to them.  But maybe, just maybe one of us knows that and is willing to help them to know it.

Few people come to a seminar on addiction and recovery out of curiosity.  Most in attendance know something is wrong and what they end up hearing at your addiction recovery session is that the addicted can't recover until they give in.  To the disease.  To their inability to control it.  To their ability to battle it.  They don't know how and not too many people do, but you find someone who does.  And the recovery begins.

That group of people in Peru has forgotten or maybe never knew health because they have never had clean water.  There are simple ways to purify the water.  But they don't know how to do it.  You don't know how to do it either, but somebody organizes the training up to Kentucky and a group of you learn how to do it and then go down to Peru and help the people who have the well to understand it.  And then people learn about being healthy because they have clean water.  And now that they know it...

Ultimately, few of us know about how to build meaningful relationships that don't come to us naturally (family, friends, coworkers, etc.).  They don't how, I don't how.  Do you?

And, anyway, those few of us that do: we need each other to do it.

And unfortunately that's what Michael and Andy may have never learned.

They got off the bus too soon.