Working Without a Job Description

So what do you really do? … This is a question I actually ask myself more than others ask me. It’s a question that seems so important in an age where what we “do” seems to define who we are. I can’t get past this defining aspect of my life, specifically because people are giving good hard-earned money for me to live my life here. That being said, today I thought I would describe to you what I actually do. Many of you haven’t lived in my situation so its difficult to imagine my life here…I hope this helps in giving you a better picture of what I do….

Job Description (Open door, Open calendar, Open heart) –

Must keep a house clean with food prepared at all times in order to be ready to host guests at any unexpected time.

Must keep schedule open for unexpected needs that may arise among friends

Must maintain a healthy aspect of life amidst constant struggle and reminders of being incapable.

The first requirement for my job here reminds me of JC’s illustration as recorded in Luke 11:5-8. A man goes to his friend and asks for three loaves of bread because he has a friend who has arrived un-expectedly to his house. It is surprising to see that he asks his friend for THREE loaves, at first glance it seems kind of extravagant to bother someone for not just one but three loaves of bread. I forget who commented on this verse, but I read somewhere an explanation for the three loaves and it completely makes sense….

One loaf of bread was for his friend, the second loaf was for the host so that his friend didn’t have to eat alone and the third was to give his friend as he left as a gesture of generosity. Now I don’t know how this explanation holds up in an exegetical sense but it reflects perfectly in the culture I now live in. Here, hospitality is explained in these very “three loaves”. Whether or not their visit was expected, to be able to provide “bread” (here it is literally, “bread” or “naan”) and eat with your guests is a big deal. Most of the time they won’t even take a bite unless you have started eating too. And then at the end of our get-together, if I can give them an extra loaf or some extra cookies for them to take home shows to them that I value and care about them.

That being said, man am I thankful for my deep freezer! It has saved me countless times in this form of hospitality. Any time someone comes over it is expected to have tea, snacks and fruit out on the table no matter how short the visit.  My goal is to keep loaves of various breads and cookies in the freezer ready to dish out at any given time. Now as I write you I am on my last loaf but that is just to say that I am not perfect. I can totally understand the desperation this man (probably sent by the wife!) must have felt to have his friend give him the loaves of bread. No one wants to be caught with nothing to give and here there is not a TomThumb to run to!

All that to say… it is extremely important in this community-focused min. to have my home ready. Which means, I have to have the time to bake and clean a lot during each day. I have recently hired a local b to help with the cleaning. She has become such a valuable asset to me. We are constantly battling with dust here and so moping and dusting is an every-other day affair and if I am cooking for multiple families a week it is a huge relief to have her come in and help. She comes on Wednesdays which has ended up being perfect as Thursdays-Sundays are when we have the most guests. She is able to do the deep cleaning and then I can keep up after each night we host (which usually requires a re-moping and a ton of dishes).

The second description to my “job” sounds a little bit counter productive….Keep an open calendar. The American in me wants to plan out meals with people and schedule get-togethers days if not weeks in advance. I want to plan out everything so I’ll be able to be as productive as I can be.   Then when people ask “So what are you doing this week?” I can actually have stuff to say that makes me feel important and useful. But…

Henri Nouwen once said, “My whole life I have been complaining that my work was constantly interrupted, until I discovered the interruptions were my work.”

The culture here is not prone to planning. In fact, many times locals will cancel because someone else invited them to something and the last offer is usually the one taken. Which brings me to my second job requirement…I need to be available to host a meal, a get-together or a playdate at any time. Thankfully, hosting can mean cooking while they are here (many times locals won’t start cooking until you’ve arrived) but if I’ve packed my week with activities then I won’t have the time or energy to have someone over who is in town just for a couple of days or a neighbor who got the night off.

Living like this though means that every Monday seems like an act of faith. We have no idea what our week is going to look like and sometimes we can have an incredibly boring week. Those weeks are hard because so much of my worth still comes from being productive and useful. But I am learning that many times, those weeks that I have nothing that comes up are opportunities to rest in Him. Part of being His witness to others means I need to be able to see Him and what He is doing here (we cannot witness what we do not see!). I need to spend enough time with Him to know whose heart He is working on, and how to pray for those He is calling to Himself. I am in desperate need of His strength to do anything in this life. Pryer seems even more magnified as so much of what we encounter has a spiritual battle element. And so slowly, as I learn not to find my worth in works, I am able to take the days of non-local interaction as times of refreshment as I sit with the Father and wait for His “interruptions.”

And finally the last description…a healthy aspect and hope for the future. This can be extremely hard here. The darkness and depravity of this place can become exceptionally oppressive. I am sure I will write about it in a later post, so all I will say here is that I am in constant need of the Father’s sheltered wings to find encouragement in my surroundings. There is so little I can actually do to help these people and their pain and struggle is difficult to watch as we wait for the Father to move. We are in the process of finding things to celebrate. There is rarely a time where we can say “we finished, well done!”. There isn’t an end to the work that would allow for appreciation banquets, or going out to celebrate a job well done. Because there is never really an end in our quest for hearts, its important we keep our eyes focused on Him the giver of hearts and the God of all comfort. Because there is still one final aspect of the job description that can be debilitating and can take away our hope….language learning.

The language barrier…“barrier” is such an accurate way to describe speaking different languages. Language learning is such a barrier, mentally and emotionally (and don’t be fooled it can be hard physically too!). There is so much that I want to communicate and the work it requires to get to a point to be able to say what I want is immense. It is the most humbling aspect of living here. Knowing that everyone you talk to can’t help but see you as a 1^st grader because your vocabulary is at that level is tough. Mentally, language is exhausting. I have a tutor that comes for two hours twice a week and when she leaves I just want to lie down and take a nap because my brain is so incredibly tired. Hosting means something completely different when I know that I’ll be speaking Mandarin for the next few hours. When I am with my local friends, my brain is constantly analyzing the situation trying to completely understand what is happening or being said and trying to think about how I would respond with what vocabulary I have that I could use to get my own thoughts across.

At the same time, language learning is a challenge. It is something that provides amazing insight into the culture and how they view the world. “Why do they use this word for Gd, and not that word?” How “gift” is translated in John 3:16, is different than normal because this word for “gift” specifically means that it was not earned. So, while language learning is a great reminder of how we are incapable to show His love on our own, it is an amazing way to see the Father in a new light.

There you have it! My job description. It’s a challenging job to accept. But I’ve seen those posts on a “mother’s job description” and on paper that job doesn’t have much of an appeal either. But we all know the blessing and gratefulness that comes in taking on the job (whether or not we are a mom or have had a mom). And so it is with this job, it’s hard and it comes with lots of tears and inconveniences but it’s worth it. It is worth it to obey what the Father calls us to do, it is worth it to suffer for His name because He is worth it.