One of the most important lessons I’ve learned from mission trips in general, but from the recent Cambodia trip in particular, is: when it’s over, it’s just beginning. For example, during the trip I was reminded of how much I take simple blessings for granted. When I get up and brush my teeth in the morning, I generally take for granted that I can rinse my toothbrush and my mouth with the water from the sink. I couldn’t do that in Cambodia. That gives me an opportunity to thank God every time I brush my teeth. If you aren’t a follower of Jesus, you may be thinking, “That’s silly.”
Whether you follow Jesus or not, it’s still a great reminder that we are so blessed or have life so much better or easier than so many others in the world. I could add to the simple example of brushing one’s teeth with tap water, having a hot shower everyday; having food that doesn’t make me sick at every meal; having a clean, modern toilet; and the list goes on. You may not think any of these things matter, but that’s probably because you take them for granted. Living without any combination of these conveniences for a couple of weeks always helps me remember that I am a blessed person, and starting from that position puts me in a grateful frame of mind. Countless studies have shown that whether one is a follower of Jesus or not, gratitude is an attitude that enhances one’s overall capacity to live and lead.
Another reminder I’ve been given every time I’ve gone on a cross-cultural mission experience is how much I take it for granted that I can communicate effectively, because everyone understands my language, and how much I expect others to speak English. What does that have to do with leadership? It’s impossible to lead without communication. While no one can learn the language of every culture one will visit, as Americans most of us have not sought to learn any other language. I don’t mean that we have taken a couple of years of Spanish, German or French in high school, I mean that we have taken communicating in another language seriously.
Every time I go to Cuba where they speak the language I took in high school and college, I’m reminded that had I continued to practice Spanish over the past year, I would be able to communicate with everyone, and not only the ones who have taken it upon themselves to learn my language. I can communicate well enough to get by in Spanish, but with a little effort on a daily basis from now until this coming February, I will be able to communicate well in Spanish, not just well enough. I make that commitment every time I come back from Cuba, but somehow life has always seemed to get in the way.
I just set out the remainder of my September schedule yesterday and it includes studying Spanish six days each week. My trip to Cambodia reminded me once again me how important communicating in the indigenous language of a people is, since I couldn’t do it at all there. I haven’t added learning Khymer to my schedule, because I don’t have time to learn a whole new language that is nothing like English. I do have time to become truly bilingual, and to be prepared to communicate in dozens of additional countries, and to communicate with visitors to our country whose primary language is Spanish.
While in Cambodia, I was reminded once again how important it is to start my day with time in prayer and reflection, and to rely on God throughout the day. The biggest reason for that is the pace of life is so much “slower” there. I put slower in quotes, because I’m not sure that’s the right word to describe the difference. What I mean is the technology I’m used to having doesn’t work as well there, because I didn’t pay for all the upgrades to make it work. I didn’t have the routine of life I have here to follow, and in a number of the areas we visited life was slower. Now that I’m home, I’ve been making efforts to wake up early (not hard with the adjustment from the eleven hour time difference) and invest the first part of my day, whether a half an hour or an hour with God. I’ve sought to check my technology less often. I’ve sought to “take a breath” and simply let life come at me at a slower pace. This is hard. It also makes life much more effective.
I could name many other aspects of my life that are being impacted since coming back from Cambodia, from the way I am relating to those around me, to the people in Cambodia for whom I’m praying more fervently. The point is simple: leaving my everyday life and routine for a couple of weeks and living in a vastly different culture helps me to consider, which of the aspects of my everyday life and routine add value to me and those I lead, and which do not. Then the challenge is to determine what to do about that. Do I adjust what I do? Do I adjust how I do what I do? Do I eliminate some of the things I do? Those questions cause me to examine my life, and as our friend Socrates reminded us so long ago, that is a major key to a life worth living. I would add it is a major key to becoming ever more effective leaders.
Here’s to leading better by examining what we do and why–today!