The park area in Skopje where Ian and Katie Moore live is crowded during cooler hours of the day.,,,
Is it time for a rethink of the UK’s ‘always busy’ culture? Elim missionary Ian Moore reflects on life in Macedonia.
Most missionaries will talk about ‘culture shock’, where we are challenged by the way of life in a different culture. When my wife Katie and I moved to Macedonia in 2018 it felt like everything was different – the way church operated, how children were parented and how arrangements were made. The biggest shock to the system for me was that things were rarely planned more than 48 hours in advance!
More than four years on we still face cultural challenges and frustrations but, more importantly, we have grown significantly by learning from our new culture. We have tried to apply the best bits to our own lives. A key learning for us has been this: the power of presence.
Perhaps, because you are reading the magazine of a Pentecostal denomination, your first thought is about the presence of the Holy Spirit. The good news is that he is always with us. The challenge to us is, are we present where he wants us to be?
We are blessed to live in one of a cluster of apartment buildings surrounding a large park area. You will find people of all ages spending time together in this central space. It is here that we connect with our community.
However, this isn’t something that you can do in a 30-minute planned arrangement. It takes flexibility. It takes time. We must take the time to get to know people, to be with them, to be present. Through this process we allow people into our lives and have them welcome us into theirs. It is in doing this that we have the opportunity to share the love of Christ.
It seems that our lives in the UK are heavily scheduled. We fit people in for an hour here, a coffee there. That can be the reality of our ‘always busy’ culture, but is it time for a rethink?
In John chapter four we read of Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well, which began when Jesus was present at a place where people went for water. Following the woman’s testimony, we learn that the Samaritans ‘urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days’, (John 4:40). Jesus wasn’t too busy, he didn’t need to rush off, he gave them time to be present with them.
We give time to the things that we consider to be important. Are there things we need to cut out of our lives to create space to focus on being in the location and with the people God has called us to be with?
From Direction Magazine issue 240
