Different worlds

I have been gone from home for more than a week now and was realizing last night how amazingly different the worlds are that I move in. Our work in India is in obvious ways quite different from life lived in America, but I am realizing that impact in different ways on this trip for some reason.

While waiting for a flight at the airport and just observing how people interact (or more accurately how they don’t these days – each one with their eyes trained on their cell phone or pda, or a book or some other distraction), while looking at the plethora of choices on the menu of even the most basic restaurant and not knowing what to choose, while hearing conversations people have about various topics and how their world is so limited in many ways. None of these in and of themselves is a bad thing. I am just realizing how abnormal my life, and that of my family, is compared to many I see and meet along the way. That is not an arrogant statement in any way. I am not implying my life is better, just different.

In some ways, and at certain times I long for the simple life of not being aware of or caring about what is happening in other parts of the world. The toll these trips takes on me and my family is something I am becoming more aware of. In other ways and at other times I am so totally motivated to get the word out and get people motivated to get involved. Seeing someone really get hold of a vision for how they could make a difference makes me feel like maybe all the hard work is worth it.

In some ways that is the challenge of doing what we do. We need to live in different worlds at the same time. We need to know what life is like for most westerners and to be able to relate to them in some way, but at the same time we need to be keenly aware of what life is really like for many in other parts of the world and to articulate how people can be involved in making a difference.

I must admit that we as a family are quite spoiled. We have a core of friends and well-wishers who are faithful in making sure we know we are loved, cared for and our needs are met. We get the chances to be involved in things on a daily basis that we see as extremely significant. We get the chances to go places and do things and meet people that most simply don’t get in their lifetime. We are blessed. But we are challenged to live in different worlds, and to be effective in them all.

It is only with God’s help that we have the remotest chance of succeeding in this endeavor. That is an exciting place to be in many ways. Terrifying in some ways, but never lacking in excitement. What are you involved in that is drawing you deeper into your dependence on God?