On my flight to Shanghai, I was catching up on NYTimes and reading the China Daily, and was surprised to read that my government may shut down? I can’t believe I’m so out of touch with what’s going on! Makes me angry when politics gets in the way of society’s progress. Put aside your discontent and personal self interests and do the right thing boys and girls.
Lisa and I had a good conversation over dinner last night about the government we hail from and the Chinese one that we are sitting in. I learned some Chinese politics in college but more from a historical standpoint and not so much the current situation. But a few times this trip I’ve had conversations with people who have helped me come to the conclusion that the Chinese government does indeed care for their people, despite the lack of some freedoms, and yes, even despite some of their human rights practices. My dad and I had a conversation last week about this topic, and he mentioned that many of the Chinese governmental leaders today are Western trained so they have that broader perspective to bring into play as they work to lead their nation, which will hopefully bring positive change to China and progress our overall global community. I am an idealist...
I believe in the principles of democracy – in basic human rights. I think that’s why I get so moved when I see the uprisings of the people and by the people for the people. Okay, that sounded rather much like Lincoln's Gettysburg address, but it gets across what I’m thinking. But as I think about what’s happening in our country, politics frustrates me. These principles by which our founding fathers began this nation seems to have lost its context as our current political state seems so much driven by self-interest – self-interests of the people, companies, leaders, etc. This is an extreme statement, but we are not all that different from the dictators that are now being toppled or revolted against - that love for power, being driven by the idea that we know what’s best and will do whatever we can to promote that. A key difference though is that we do have the checks and balances in place to stop some of the extreme thinking and extreme actions… but it is also those checks and balances that stymies our progress.
Being in China, Lisa and I debated what is working in this Communist China - what sets them apart from the different countries and governments out there. China has experienced significant economic progress. Based on no fact-based research but simply our opinions and observations, we concluded that it is this concept of "face" that drives China's continued progress. Are there problems, controversies, debates... yes... most definitely... and are the leaders still driven by that love for power and self-interest? Yes...but in a culture of “mian zi” (face), “self” is China as a whole state. The importance is with the image of the whole country to its people and to the world, and less of “self” at an individual leader within the Chinese government. So for example, when there was controversy over the little girl who stood at the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Olympics with another girl’s voice dubbed in because that girl with the beautiful voice may not have had as beautiful a face - now, from a Western standpoint, we might say that is totally messed up – totally discriminatory – just wrong – that poor child's feelings... But if you think about it, China makes these decisions to promote the public image of China. They didn’t care so much about the self-interest of the child or the parents of the kid – nothing personal, it’s just about the nation’s image.
For our nation, I wish there was a reset button that would allow us to work through the hearts of each government leader to remind them of their commitment to serve the nation, to look at the Jeffersonian ideals of democracy which our nation was built upon, to teach them what it means to lead and work with each other for the benefit of other.. of the people, despite the philosophical differences.
More and more I’m convinced that leadership is and must be taught, and the only model that seems to effectively work is the one set by JC… someone who served first… someone who loved… someone who had compassion and acted upon that compassion… someone who lived sacrificially… who wasn’t driven by the voices of others… someone who may have felt discouraged at times because even his own followers did not understand but He continued despite that… someone who’s heart broke for the poor and disadvantaged… someone who was mission driven… who knew his purpose… and though he didn’t want his “cup” because it was so hard and painful… he was willing to follow through and complete his mission because that’s what the world needed… to bridge us back to the Father. It was built around compassion, and compassion is a term that is almost looked down upon in our world, especially in the business space, because it feels “soft”. But that is indeed what we need.
The person who I was hoping to meet with in Beijing which I’m super thankful worked out (that was another instance of His timing), has a wealth of experience in the human resources, people development, executive management field. Prior to meeting, we had been emailing back and forth about some of the ideas I’m chewing on, and even with his experience working with senior executives of multinational corporations, he sees a strong need for compassion – a key component that is missing in the way we are taught in both the western and eastern world. Without compassion… no one will listen to you… no one will care… so who are you leading?
Anyways, just some random thoughts on my mind… signing off to put together a project proposal for working with our wonderful friends and family in Calcutta this summer. Lisa and I are sitting at a cool little coffee shop in Shanghai called Amokka. Tonight we’re seeing my good friends – youth group teachers from Princeton back in the day who have a design and architecture firm here in Shanghai (I probably wrote about them on the first leg of our trip to Shanghai as we spent seom time with them then). We’re going to participate in their cell group meeting tonight. I can’t wait!
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Had a good time at my friends' cell group meeting...studying Acts and the concept of community. It was diverse group of people, from Malaysian to Togo to China to American, with someone as young as a college student studying abroad in China to the majority of folks who were probably in their 50-60s. It was neat to study/discuss His word with such a diversity of ages and life experiences. I wished my parents could be in such a setting and have a community like this to learn and be challenged by. My friends...they were my Sunday school teachers back in the day… it felt kind of weird to be studying again with them...as their peers… but it sure felt sweet. I miss their passion, their faith, their honesty, and the questions they pose that cause you to think hard, feel uncomfortable, and draw near to Him as you challenge your own faith.
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