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The week of January 18 I taught the book of Acts in Northern Thailand to c. 110 church leaders from 14 language groups originating from Myanmar, Thailand, China, Laos, and Cambodia. The following week I traveled to Zhengzhou, China, to visit with four JBC related Americans who are teaching English there, to interview 13 prospective students for our master’s degree in educational technology, and to explore a partnership with a private American-styled university located nearby.
I come away from these experiences with three overriding impressions. First, we have it easy in the United States. I know that the past eighteen months or so have been difficult for many of us. Yet when we compare these circumstances with most of the rest of the world, we are rich beyond measure. For example, the USA consumes c. 25% of the world’s energy resources, yet we comprise less than 5% of the world’s population. Both in Thailand and in China there is a national consciousness about the need to conserve the available natural resources. I fear that sometimes this noble purpose gets drowned out in the heated rhetoric of the global warming debate.
Second, we have a tremendous responsibility to use all of our resources to focus on our mission of preparing men and women for ministry. That means that we must accept a social responsibility to be good stewards of God’s creation. We have employed energy saving measures and try to maintain a sense of Christian conservation throughout the campus.
Third, we have a support base that is the envy of all. We believe that this is the case because we have a clear and noble mission, and we demonstrate responsible stewardship of all of our resources.
Thus, I am grateful for the support of our alumni and friends. I hope to see you at this year’s Homecoming program. |
