Essay #2 Spiritual Food

In 2002 I visited Europe for the first time: 28 days in Austria and Germany. I fell in love with pastries that were perfectly squishy and not too sweet. A whole large pizza to myself, even if I could not finish my entire plate, could not be compared to Pizza Hut. Then there is the gelato at Zanoni & Zanoni right around the corner of St. Stephan’s Cathedral in downtown Vienna. And if you got off the underground a little bit later, there was fresh hummus and “Fladenbrot,” for which I have never heard a proper translation, but it is certainly some of the best Turkish bread and hummus that can be found at the market. Priceless. I believe it was my second trip to Vienna where I experienced Kaiserschmarrn for the first time. I was never a fan of pancakes until I tried the favorite of Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph I; Kaiserschmarrn is no more than scrambled pancakes with raisins and powdered sugar, topped with apple sauce or another fruit sauce. Apple studel is another typically Austrian or Bavarian treat that I am absolutely incapable of turning down. Austria and Germany have a culinary style all their own, but the Swiss also have a way of making my taste buds sing.

The Swiss know how to do anything and everything with potatoes. Hash browns, known as Rösti, potatoes baked with Swiss cheese and veggies in an individual “oven”, called Raclette. And fondue, more pastries, more cheese, and chocolate. The list just goes on and on. On all of my travels I allowed myself to find a pastry somewhere, but my loyalties always remained with Austria, Germany and Switzerland. However, there are a few wonderful things that these three countries do not have and that means a trip to Central America is necessary.

There is a fast food restaurant in Honduras called Coco Baleadas. They call themselves “The Mother of Baleadas” and claim that you have not been to Honduras if you have not been to their restaurant. Baleadas look similar to a burrito one would purchase at Taco Bell, so I thought they were perhaps exaggerating just a bit until I tried one myself. Then I knew…I had officially arrived in Honduras and they could not be compared to Taco Bell by any means. I also really enjoy pupusas, which are corn tortillas filled with cheese, served with spicy cabbage salad. There are other delicious foods like plantain prepared fried or cooked and banana bread from the Garifuna people that simply make my mouth water.

When I leave a country that I love, I not only take memories with me, but I take the food as well. I remember the blessings God has provided so that I could be a part of so many different cultures. I am reminded of the friends He has put in my path to encourage me on the Christian journey. I think of meal times in the cafeteria in Austria where we would sit around share our thoughts on theology and life. I remember the women who worked in the kitchen who knew how much I loved Kaiserschmarrn and apple strudel. I always went back for seconds, sometimes for thirds. I reminisce about the days on the patio in the warm Honduran sun with fried plantain, beans with cilantro and rice on my plate after a morning of hard work. I cannot forget the times when we went to the capitol and indulged ourselves with a trip to eat baleadas or pupusas. And we also supported the village economy by purchasing fruit popsicles from one of the church members for five cents a piece after unloading a truck full of bricks in the heat of the day. There are so many good memories - simple signs of the grace of God - and preparing those delights in my own tiny kitchen remind me of how thankful I should be for His faithfulness and love, knowing that He communicates His love to us in so many ways, just one of them being through food.

Saved to Serve, Part II

Essay #1

Money cannot buy you everything. That is a reality that must be reckoned with. Money cannot buy me joy or peace. Those things depend on my attitude and surrendering to the will of God. It cannot buy me love, although it can be a sign that I love or am loved. It cannot buy me salvation. As a Christian, I believe that the Bible is true when God says "every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills" (Psalm 50:10). If anyone would have had enough money to save me, it would've been God. But nothing that belongs to Him is worth enough to pay for my salvation except the blood of His Son. Without sacrifice, there is no reconciliation. There had to be sweat, blood and tears on my behalf. That was the example we were given as Christians. That is the example I must follow.

If I die to self, if I offer up myself as a living sacrifice, God is able to use me to show the beauty of reconciliation between humanity and the Creator. There are many wonderful organizations that can do amazing things with my donations, but the donation of a living sacrifice will always go beyond the value of the dollar. All the money in the world would do no good to help the poor if there was not a human being to put that money to the right use. And when I serve, I am served. That is the perfection of the process: God asks me to go out on a limb for His glory and then He forms my character in that process so I can become more like Him. Even then I can only have the slightest understanding of Christianity when I give of myself and not just my money. It is a win-win situation when I serve in a direct way. Jesus knew there was the potential for many win-win situations upon walking this earth. Not only would the person He served be saved, but He would eventually be able to secure their company in Heaven with Him.

As a Christian, and having wrestled with the concept of the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20, I have come to the conclusion that my life is about service. In my junior year of college I responded to a call to go as a student missionary with the understanding that I should give God a year of my life. At least that is what I gathered from many of the appeals related to missions. In my time as a student missionary in Austria, I realized that the Great Commission never spoke about serving Jesus for one year of my life or even a few years of my choice. The gospel has always been about complete surrender from Adam to Armageddon. Abraham was asked to surrender the son of his promise while the woman at the well was asked to surrender her five previous lovers and her distorted perspective of love to drink from the Well that never runs dry.

Jesus is the best example of surrender I have experienced although He was perfect while on this earth. One might think that He had nothing He needed to surrender, but even Jesus “grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.” He experienced character development while humbly working around the carpenter shop. His ministry was not primarily about giving money to causes because He had very little money and what He had was under Judas’ care. Even the money He paid for taxes to Caesar was taken out of a fish’s mouth. If someone needed healing, He did not give them money to go to a doctor because He was the highest rated Doctor in town. If Jesus is my example, then the playing field has been leveled out when I call myself a Christian. I am to give of myself and if I happen to have money, I can give of that, too. And perhaps I will be happier if I do, trusting that God will provide for me. What a joy it would be to find out in Heaven that someone there was saved because I served, not just with my money, but with all my means.

Acumen Fund and Education

The story of the elderly Kenyan woman who had the privilege of using an Ecotact toilet instead of crouching behind a bush was touching and also brought back some memories. It is those little things in life, like being forced to go to a soup kitchen or sleep in a shelter or crouch behind a tree that can be so humbling, especially when you recognize that not everyone has to live that way. Driving a Toyota Camry instead of a Ferrari may be humiliating to some, however I believe that to be a small percentage of the world. At least you can get from point A to point B without being forced to walk. But that I should have to use a tree as a toilet on any occasion besides a week long backpacking trip in the Appalachians remarkable. I appreciate the fact that Acumen desires to give people a common dignity.

What I appreciate most about the Acumen fund, however, is probably their aim to educate people to change their lives and help them run their businesses more efficiently, for example. The Indian farmers that are earning $400 more a year have a simple irrigation system that they can pass on to further generations. It isn't just about a handout; it is about empowering and enabling someone to have a better, yet still simple life. They don't have to win the lottery and live in the lap of luxury. They can, however, enjoy the beauty of efficient work and steady food on the table.

Saved to Serve

Money cannot buy you everything. That is a reality that must be reckoned with. Money cannot buy me joy or peace. Those things depend on my attitude and surrendering to the will of God. It cannot buy me love, although it can be a sign that I love or am loved. It cannot buy me salvation. As a Christian, I believe that the Bible is true when God says "every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills" (Psalm 50:10). If anyone would have had enough money to save me, it would've been God. But nothing that belongs to Him is worth enough to pay for my salvation except the blood of His Son. Without sacrifice, there is no reconciliation. There had to be sweat, blood and tears on my behalf. That was the example we were given as Christians. That is the example I must follow.

If I die to self, if I offer up myself as a living sacrifice, God is able to use me to show the beauty of reconciliation between humanity and the Creator. There are many wonderful organizations that can do amazing things with my donations, but the donation of a living sacrifice will always go beyond the value of the dollar. All the money in the world would do no good to help the poor if there was not a human being to put that money to the right use. And when I serve, I am served. That is the perfection of the process: God asks me to go out on a limb for His glory and then He forms my character in that process so I can become more like Him. Even then I can only have the slightest understanding of Christianity when I give of myself and not just my money. It is a win-win situation when I serve in a direct way. Jesus knew there was the potential for many win-win situations upon walking this earth. Not only would the person He served be saved, but He would eventually be able to secure their company in Heaven with Him. And what a joy it would be to find out in Heaven that someone there was saved because I served.

"Cafe-cards" and Spoiled Beans

When I was working as a missionary in Honduras, I had the equivalent of a cafe-card to keep track of how much I was spending on food. I was actually the one in charge of hole-punching every missionary's card at every meal: 15 lempiras (79 cents) for breakfast and dinner, 30 lempiras ($1.59) for lunch. A little over $3 a day if you ate every meal. Every once in a while, a missionary would want to know how much they owed the ministry. I always received a grim response in return. "Carolin, you owe around 1400 lempiras," I said. "¿Como?" That was basically the expression on her faces. And that's when things got extreme. "I'm going to fast for a week!" Easier said than done. She would've disappeared.

I fell into that plight myself. I was discussing with the president of the ministry that I could save x number of dollars that I owed the ministry in food if I were to just eat breakfast and dinner from then on. He hated the thought of missionaries skipping meals because of lack of money. I technically never should have had any conversations with people about how much money they owed the ministry for food because we were all supposed to pay in advance. But who had the money?!

Another experience I will never forget is helping out in the kitchen Friday afternoons. Every Friday we would prepare the food for Sabbath. Usually enough beans to serve 20+ people. This may not seem like a big deal, but there was no electricity at the mission station. We had to pray that the beans wouldn't spoil by the next day, and we used every trick we could think of to ensure that. Bring them to a boil in the evening and in the morning again before heading to church. Some Sabbaths we'd return from church and find a tasty pot of beans ready to put on our rice. Other Sabbaths we had to unfortunately dump the entire pot because it had gone sour. We'd mourn for just a moment and then try to keep in mind that God would provide for us. And He always did.

In Honduras I came to understand what Jesus prayed when He said, "Give us this day our daily bread." We'd sometimes worry that we might not have enough food to serve the guests that joined us on Sabbath. Or we might be told that we had no more money to buy groceries that week. We'd have to get it on credit from the village. No matter the challenge, none of us ever went hungry. God was, is and will continue to be faithful!

Tea Party!

I like a good cup of tea with some honey and a bit of lemon and vanilla. I can enjoy it in warm or cool weather, no matter where I am. But the next best part about a hot drink is the mug it is in. Not only do I like a good cup of tea, but I like a good mug as well. When Mr. Davis asked us to consider what kind of a carbon footprint we leave behind when we drink out of a styrofoam cup or a mug, I was pretty sure I could guess the answer. That was until he ended his statement with, "You might be surprised." Then I thought, "Oh no..."

It turns out that my hunch was correct: mugs are more environmentally friendly, but only under certain circumstances. If I simply buy mugs to admire the creative quality that went into their production and drink out of a styrofoam cup, I would be doing less harm to the environment by leaving those decorations for the people who will use them for a drink. One source stated that a mug is the most environmentally friendly option if it is used at least 46 times. Mugs have a way of collecting themselves so I am certain that I have some mugs that have not been used 46 times, but when winter rolls around, there is no reason not to host a tea party from my apartment on a regular basis. However, there we have a new problem. The honey I buy comes in a plastic bottle.

Fascinating how a plastic cup is easier to transport and better on the environment than styrofoam. Although some plastic cannot be recycled, it can be reused. And that paper cup that produces the most carbon emissions can at least contribute to a vegetable garden's compost pile in most cases. Inspite of the carbon emissions, it can help the environment. Nonetheless, I'll stick with the mug.

Common Wealth: Chapters 1 & 2

This is a manifesto for change and it is refreshing think seriously about how change can take place. We have experienced enough crisis to know that the problem we face today isn't brought about solely by the United States or Japan or whatever other country, but the entire world has dug itself into a hole. And Jeffrey Sachs is indeed innovative about how we can get ourselves out of this hole with goals toward ending world poverty and over-population and saving the environment. We not only have a responsibility as humans, but as a Christian, I have a responsibility as well. I believe God gives us opportunities to be one link toward change, but I do not believe that man alone can fix the problem because the problem appears to be rooted in sin to me.
That being said, it is worth our effort to contribute in whatever way we can to ending poverty through education and lending a helping hand. Those who make the money can help those who don't make the money to stabilize the economies elsewhere. We can teach about health, nutrition and farming so that thousands of children will get the nourishment they need to make it to adulthood. We can support recycling on the AU campus. All this is only the beginning so I look forward to reading about his thesis in more detail. Some positive outcomes to his goals seem difficult to achieve completely, but I'm not an economist.