All We Can Lent Devotional March 15 - 21

 

Week Four:

 

Asking questions, not giving answers

 

Bible Study

Eagles

In their work with communities in Malawi, All We Can’s partner Eagles use

Bible studies to help individuals and churches reflect on what God asks of

them when it comes to community development. This Bible study is inspired

by one that Eagles use.

 

Mark 6: 31-44 – The Feeding of the 5,000

 

I wonder if you have encountered the

distinction between listening to respond and

listening to understand.

You know those conversations where you’ve

got something you desperately want to say and

you’re going to say it pretty much regardless

of what the other person is saying? That’s

listening to respond.

Those conversations where you are so

interested in who someone is and what they

are talking about and you keep saying ‘yes,

and?’ That’s listening to understand.

One involves mostly questions. The other

involves thinking your contribution is

ultimately more important than discovering

more about the other person.

In our justice and evangelism as Christians and

as a Church, it can be tempting to do the latter

–

you might engage with a community and build relationships but ultimately have your pre-prepared ‘answer’ of what you think that community needs. Or you

might ask someone what they think about faith and spirituality but only as an excuse to give your ready-made gospel summary.

It’s a temptation in the development sector,

too – NGOs can consult and engage with a

community but ultimately, they already know

the kind of project they want to implement

because they believe their role is to provide

solutions rather than ask questions.

This passage invites us to see Jesus as someone

who does not enter a situation with a set plan

of what he wants to do, but whose response

is shaped by his interactions with others. The

first thing Jesus says is effectively: ‘try and

do it yourself’ – he wants to give the disciples

total autonomy to find solutions themselves.

When they ask for more help, he does not

immediately take over, but asks a question –

‘what do you already have?’

If Jesus, who really does know what people

need, asks questions rather than provides

answers, and uses what people already have as

the starting point – what does that say about

what we should do?

 

Questions fordiscussion and reflection

What could Jesus have

done, but chose not to?

Why do you think Jesus uses

the resources of the community

as a starting point?

Do you recognise the

temptation to give answers

rather than ask questions?

Can you think of examples, as

a church or individuals, where

you have listened to respond

rather than understand?

 

Story from All We Can

Does it actually work, this partnership approach? Does All We

Can’s work have an impact in the communities where you and

your partners are working? Wouldn’t it be better to just send

people what they need?

These are the sorts of questions we get a lot

at All We Can – because we recognise that

what we are trying to do is different, it runs

against what a lot of charities and mission

agencies have been telling us for centuries:

that international development is about getting

resources out of the west and into some of the

low-income countries.

Let me introduce you to Shanu, who lives in a

rural farming community in Malawi.

If you used All We Can’s materials from

Harvest 2018, you might remember Shanu.

He and his family have been working with

All We Can’s partner in the region, CARD, as

part of a programme to improve irrigation for

farming households. CARD’s work includes

providing solar-powered irrigation systems,

but also training, support and bringing the

community together to help them own their

own development. The idea for solar-powered

irrigation doesn’t come from All We Can’s head

office in London, nor does it come from clever

development professionals in CARD’s team, it

comes from the local people. CARD asked the

right questions: what are the issues? What do

you need? How can we support you? And out of

those questions, the answers have emerged.

Following Shanu’s story through from 2018 to

today helps to answer some of the questions

about the impact of this work, too. Let’s hear

some of the story in his own words:

‘Before CARD started a scheme here, life was hard

because I had nothing to do, until this irrigation

scheme came in and I had hope for change. Now,

my life has changed. I have the ability to take

my kids to school, to buy soap, to give them food

and to buy all sorts of things that I did not have. I

managed to build a house, I have chickens, goats

and I have a bicycle now – all from this scheme.’

The journey towards Shanu seeing his

life being changed hasn’t always been

straightforward. When Cyclone Idai struck

the region in March 2019, Shanu saw his hard

work destroyed before his eyes, but with All

We Can’s commitment to responding to the

changing situation and CARD’s desire to get

the solar irrigation system up and running as

soon as possible, families were quickly able

to regrow their crops. Shanu’s family still

have challenges ahead, but they also have  

hope – and they have a sense of ownership

that comes with owning their own story that

comes when people ask questions instead of

presuming or enforcing answers.

Shanu’s story has changed because CARD

asked questions, instead of assuming they

knew best. And that’s what All We Can is

seeking to do – in turn – with CARD and our

other partners. It isn’t up to us to set the

agenda, to provide the solutions, to be the

heroes in the story. Our role is simple: ask

the right questions and listen carefully to the

answers. Will you join us?

You can find out more about Shanu’s

story, and consider leaving a gift to All

We Can in your will at

allwecan.org.uk/legacy

 

Questions fordiscussion/reflection

What do you think prevents more

organisations working like CARD

and All We Can – resisting the urge

to provide solutions?

Can you think of an example of when

you wished someone would ask

you some questions, but they just

wanted to talk about themselves?

Can you think of examples of how

the church might be giving answers

rather than asking questions?

 

 

Challenge

 

Story By Richard Oppong-Boateng

Richard is the Young Evangelism Officer at Cliff College. He was born and raised in London and has spent over a decade living in Manchester and working with young people in a number of settings from schools and churches to prisons. Richard also worked for his boyhood football club, Manchester United, as a School Partnership Officer.

 

Asking questions is one of the most effective ways to build

relationships and to do evangelism. This was a practice that I used

when I worked within the Prison Chaplaincy.

I remember building a strong friendship

with a prisoner called Dave. Dave had no

interest in coming to chapel services or bible

studies, he would often reply ‘maybe next

week, Rich’ whenever I would invite him

along to one of our activities. Not even the

lure of chocolate digestive biscuits could

tempt him to come. Yet, we were able to

build a positive friendship, not based on him

attending chapel services or weekly bible

studies, but rather based on us just having

normal conversations in his environment, and

by me asking questions. Simple questions like,

‘how are you today?’ Or ‘is there anything

that I can pray about for you or the family?’

Every Monday night we would meet on the

prison wing, and I would simply ask him

questions to show him that I cared, and that

what he was going through mattered. Dave

ended up being moved to another prison and

I also changed roles, this resulted in us losing

contact. A couple of years later, I was surprised

to receive a phone call from my wife saying that

there was a person at church that had come

to see me saying that I used to pray for them

whilst they were in prison. To my surprise,

there was Dave at my church waiting to see me

and to say thank you for always asking ‘how

can I pray for you?’ You never know the kind

of impact asking simple questions can make.

This week, why not ask a colleague, friend,

or family member how they are and truly

listen to their answer. If appropriate, you

might then offer to pray for them. 

 

 

Prayer

 

President of the Methodist Conference,

Revd. Graham Thompson

Graham is the President of the Methodist Conference for 2022/23. Before that, he was

Chair of the East Anglia District from 2003-2014 and Chair of the Plymouth & Exeter

District until 2022. His interests include tax returns, baseball and modern novels.

Eternal God,

When Jesus walked among us two thousand

years ago, He met many people and asked

questions, even though He knew the

answers! As we seek to model the ways

of Jesus and be recognised as His disciples

today, we confess that we usually think

we know all the answers. We are sorry

for those times when our certainties

have belittled and undermined others.

We ask that you help us to be more like Jesus;

to be those who ask, rather than state;

those who inquire rather than suspect and

those who listen rather than speak.

Help us to learn from our neighbours and be

shaped by their experiences and understanding,

rather than imposing ourselves on them.

We ask that you help us to be listening disciples,

in the Name of Jesus, the one who asked many

questions. Amen.