In Hebrew, the word yada means “knew,” but unlike our Western perspective, its connotation involves experiential understanding more so than intellectual knowledge. James K. A. Smith, in his book You Are What You Love, asks the question, “Have you ever noticed a gap between what you know and what you do?” He goes on to point out that such gaps are not the fault of not knowing enough facts or thinking hard enough. Instead, Smith concludes, “We don’t need less than knowledge; we need more. We need to recognize the power of habit” (5–6).
Schools have caught on to this reality as well, and today it’s rare to find one that doesn’t offer some kind of experiential opportunity—if not requirement—for its students in an attempt to nurture the habit of service. Schools in the Teaching for Transformation network will know all about Formational Learning Experiences, in which learners put their knowledge into practice by doing real work that meets the real needs of real people. For these and many other schools, that kind of experiential learning can involve service trips that take students to another city, state, or even country with a different culture and different challenges to do meaningful work. The school where I serve is a place that often welcomes visiting groups engaged in such service.
[E]xperiential learning can involve service trips that take students to another city, state, or even country with a different culture and different challenges to do meaningful work.
Shortly after its founding in 1903, Rehoboth Christian School welcomed volunteers to participate in its work. As a mission post of the Christian Reformed Church to the Navajo Nation, Rehoboth made an ideal spot for people to serve, and there was plenty of work to be done. Although it’s no longer a formal mission of the CRC today, Rehoboth has maintained the practice of welcoming volunteers to campus, whether that be in the form of church groups, school groups, families, or individuals. One of the former student dormitories is now a great spot to house larger groups while they are on campus. Others use the school volunteer apartments during their visits, and still more take advantage of the RV hookups to set up camp for the duration of their stay.
College students might travel to Rehoboth to do a semester of student teaching or a shorter placement for experience in a diverse or high poverty school. School groups may come while in session or during the summer to do a facilities project, run a sports camp, or serve in the local community. Couples or church groups can help in a similar fashion, or they can serve some of the daily meals to Rehoboth students, assist in classrooms, or even help out with administrative tasks. All told, Rehoboth welcomes over five hundred volunteers every year, made up of about fifteen different groups and 150 individuals. That history and experience provides a wealth of knowledge about how to make the most of these trips, and a few key ideas can help schools or other groups.
Grow Before You Go
Maybe the most vital thing a group can do to make their service trip successful starts before ever leaving home.
Maybe the most vital thing a group can do to make their service trip successful starts before ever leaving home. “It’s so important to learn about the people and place you are serving,” says Deanna Benson, Rehoboth’s former guests and groups coordinator. “Every place has a unique history and context, and knowing something about those will help you connect more quickly and better understand the importance of your work.” Benson notes a difference between groups who do a lot of up-front learning and those who wait to be oriented when they arrive. “People who spend time learning before they arrive often come with really insightful questions for us, but if you’re just learning about the circumstances of our school families when you get here, it can be a little overwhelming. You’ll probably need time to process the information before you can make sense of it.”
Benson says it can be tough for visiting students to understand that many of their counterparts at Rehoboth live in intergenerational homes without electricity or running water, yet they don’t see themselves as victims. “We’re naturally used to our circumstances, and that’s why so many first-time volunteers leave exuding gratitude for their own life situations. ‘I never knew there were people who had so little. I’m just so thankful for what God has given me’ is a common reflection at the end of a trip.” But some up-front learning can help students see beauty and resilience in these families, rather than lives to be pitied.
Our current Rehoboth guests and groups coordinator, Laura Blystra, adds an additional wrinkle to advice about pre-learning. “It’s really important for volunteers to do cross-cultural learning from sources that the community they’re serving says are good.” Not all books, television shows, or movies are created equal, so it’s best to seek advice from your hosts about which resources will be most helpful. That also models respect and appreciation for others instead of assuming you can figure things out on your own. “There are things to learn and things to unlearn before a trip, and it takes time and intentionality to rid ourselves of the natural ethnocentric views we hold,” says Blystra.
For a humorous reminder of what not to do, check out Right Now Media’s tongue-in-cheek video on YouTube “When Helping Can Hurt,” about a bunch of Vikings on a mission trip to a foreign land: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug5GBS34B_o.
Good Posture
Some of you were told, “Sit up straight. Shoulders back. Don’t slouch” as you were growing up, so you know that good posture is important. The same is true for service trips, except that we’re talking about your heart’s posture.
“Come with an attitude of being with people, rather than doing for people.”
“Come with an attitude of being with people, rather than doing for people,” says Blystra. “Take time to sit and learn about the lives of others with curiosity and openness. It’s easy to come thinking that our ways are best since they are what we know, but a big part of a trip should be broadening student and adult perspectives about the world.”
The way people at your host location live their lives might not make sense to you at first. At Rehoboth, we often hear questions from our volunteers that start with, “Why don’t they just . . . ” as if there’s a quick, simple solution to challenges that people have faced for 150 years. A much healthier approach would be to ask, “I noticed _________, and I’m curious to learn more. Can you tell me about that?” This is an abridged version of this article. To read more, subscribe to the print or digital edition of Christian Educators Journal.
Works Cited
Hope International. Perspectives on Global Poverty. Hope International, 2009.
Smith, James K. A. You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit. Brazos, 2016.
Dan Meester is the executive director of Rehoboth Christian School in Gallup, New Mexico. His thirty years in Christian education have included teaching high school English and Bible, college counseling, and serving as an administrator in a variety of settings.