By Colleen Walker Burroughs
My fifth-grade daughter’s face was wide-eyed with wonder as our carpool drove to school. National Public Radio was reporting on Liberia’s commitment to send $50,000 in aid to Haiti.
“Liberia is sending money to Haiti?” she asked. She’s only 11, but Milligan understands that, even as governments around the world have pledged $1 billion in aid, this is news. For most, this news will be buried in the deluge of stories following the catastrophic earthquake in Port-Au-Prince. But, for Christians who listen carefully, there is a profound lesson to be learned from Liberian President Johnson Sirleaf.
Anyone who has been to this West African nation knows that $50,000 in Liberia could be put to good use roofing a new building or replacing the copper wires stripped out of every electrical grid in the capital city. But Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman to be elected to a nation’s highest office on the continent of Africa, understands that running a vibrant nation is not just about bricks and mortar; it is about character.
By authorizing this contribution to the relief efforts in Haiti, this matriarch reminds Liberians that they are global citizens and need to embrace a world beyond their own.
It is a transforming initiative.
Liberian President Ellen Johson Sirleaf. (Government of Liberia)
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And there is the lesson for congregational leaders in America. As churches grapple with the effects of a prolonged economic downturn, some are withdrawing into themselves and quietly borrowing from long-standing cooperative commitments in order to pay the bills “at home.” The hope is that someone else’s church will be able to pay financial attention to the larger issues of leadership development, theological education and global missions initiatives that have been at the heart of the Baptist movement.
And they would be right. Somebody else’s church will choose to give sacrificially. There are congregations thinking outside the box this year so that cooperative commitments can still be met. Internal conviction demands it of them. Nearly every church I know has had to make painful budgetary cuts, including their gifts to cooperative Baptist ministries. The past two years have been tough on everyone.
However, if a church chooses to meet its budget solely at the expense of long-held commitments that fund collaborative ventures among congregations, I believe the church has turned down the wrong path. It is short-sighted thinking that effectively borrows from the future of a broader vision, limits the scope of global ministry and turns down the volume on larger conversations about freedom, justice and faith. Even more basic, it is a missed transformational opportunity for that congregation.
There will always be roofs to repair and electricity bills to pay, so — especially when the budget is tight — churches need to challenge themselves to work cooperatively. A steadfast commitment to living transformationally is what makes children wide-eyed with wonder when they see it. They recognize generosity. They learn about sacrificial giving. And they discover that by cooperating with others called to do the same work in the name of Christ, we all get further down the path as a global village of believers.
President Johnson Sirleaf sends a clear message to all of us. Do more than worry about your own leaky roof; remember to participate with your larger network of believers at work in the world. It is not just a global investment. It is a local one.