A student of students! (Becoming a missiologist!)

As an American church-planting in Italy, I’ve discovered that nothing is quite as important as learning to be a good missiologist. We want to be effective Gospel ministers and know how to engage the culture that we live in with the good news of Jesus but that means we have to first know and understand the culture. Jesus is the answer! But what are the questions that the culture around us is asking? I admit I wasn’t particularly good at this for our first few years of ministry here (and I’m still learning how to do this well). I answered questions that the people simply weren’t asking and so the “good news” and message of hope I proclaimed fell on dead ears. So how do we learn what the culture is asking? That is the question... and I don’t think it has a simple, clear cut answer but I can share some of what I’m learning.

One of the things that I’ve been given the opportunity to do here is to teach English. These classes aren’t “bait and switch” evangelistic events. No, they are standard conversational English classes organized by a non-christian association that I’m a member. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be incredible opportunities to engage and study the culture of this great city. What do the people care about? What are the good things and bad things they see in their lives, in this city, in the current economic crisis? What do they struggle with? Where do they go to find happiness? Contentment? What do they think and believe about God? Or do they?

Here’s what I did. I learned to ask good questions and take notes. Here’s an example. I recently gave a homework assignment to one of my classes. I asked the class to come to the next lesson prepared to answer the following question. “If you could change one thing in the world what would it be and why?” Honestly they both hated and loved the assignment because it challenged them to think but also to defend their position and it gave me some great insight into the world they want. Little did they know the world they want is the world Jesus came to create.

Here were their responses and how Jesus brings good news:

• We should stop injustice. - Jesus is the just judge and under His reign injustice will cease.
• People shouldn’t be tortured, treated unfairly, and punished unjustly. - See above.
• We should care for the planet and take a stand against pollution. - Jesus is the creator and sustainer of all of everything and we are called to care for what He has made. The effects of sin and selfishness have ravaged this world but He is making all things new.
• We need to find our identity and stop wearing masks, we should be who we really are. - Jesus allows us to see who we really are and in Him we find our new, true identity, one we can wear proudly.
• We should end world hunger. - Jesus calls His followers to care for the poor and the hungry.  There will be a day when, under His rule, hunger will not exist.  We get a glimpse of this with Jesus' miracle in the feeding of the 5,000.
• We need to change our attitudes by focusing on positive things every morning. - Only knowing Jesus can give us a new beginning every morning and a reason to have hope and joy despite our circumstances.

Join me in being a student of our culture(s) wherever you are and discovering the questions that are being asked. Jesus is the answer but if you don’t know the question then your “good news” may be falling on deaf ears.