A guest post from Nicolette

Perhaps not surprisingly, I was never a boy scout, though I do take seriously the motto "always be prepared."  When packing for a trip, whether for a weekend or a week, I make lists of what to bring with me.  I make lists of clothing, toiletries, devices, and other odds and ends.  I gather everything in one place and use my bed to sort the piles, paring down some things, remembering others at the last minute.  I will bring rain gear and a bathing suit and layers and too many books, and then often come home and figure out that I never used half of what I brought with me. 

The advice I received as I prepared to leave for Zambia was to lay out everything I wanted to bring, then pare it down to only what I needed to bring, then cut that by half.  It's not that I have never had to travel light - as a child my dad would take me camping.  He would carry the food, the tent, the cooking supplies, the sleeping bags, and his clothing.  I would carry my clothes, my teddy bear, and the water.  Usually I gave him the water part way up the mountain. 

However, as I started making the list of what to pack for Lusaka a full month before leaving, I emailed Kari over and over, asking what to bring, what not to bring, what the weather was like, what I would be doing.  I knew that I would be there for about a month, but was reassured that I would have access to things like a washing machine and (usually) running water.  I knew I would have electricity for most of the day, and hot water on most days, and that there were stores though their selections were limited and often expensive.

I intended to fill half a suitcase with my things, and half a suitcase with things to leave in Zambia for Kari, her family, and her church.  In response, my church began collecting crayons, and soon supplied me with 27 pounds of them.  Friends of mission projects in Zambia from Kalamazoo sent additional supplies, so in the end I had one large suitcase weighing 43 pounds filled solely with art supplies, and a much smaller one with my things.  Kari was thrilled that I had brought so much from America to support her work here.  

However, it soon became clear that what seemed like an abundance was also completely inadequate.  What seemed like mountains of crayons actually only worked out to 24 crayons per church, or 4 crayons per prayer house (like a church within a church).  I thought to myself 'we didn't do enough...I should have brought more.'  Knowing I could have brought an additional 7 pounds of supplies and still have been within the airplane weight limit filled me with regret.  

Every day I caught myself saying "I wish I had brought _____ with me" for everything from more crayons and art supplies to chocolate chips to ziplock baggies to stockings to UNO cards. 

However, the truth is that I could have filled both suitcases, and my purse, and my carry-on with supplies; I could have paid to bring more bins on the plane filled with crayons and chocolate chips and toiletries, and it would not have felt like enough.  

Having never been to a developing nation before, coming from a place of lavish wasteful abundance and traveling to a nation where so many people have so little, my first instinct was to solve problems by bringing everything from America and giving it to the people here.  Starving? We have so much food in America that we throw 30% of it away (http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2013/06/0112.xml).  Naked? I have more clothing than I can possibly wear, including some outfits that I have never worn.  

However, just dumping supplies into a culture, without having understanding of the socio-political-economic impact of what we bring can do more harm than good.  Campaigns like 1 Million T-Shirts for Africa were started with the best of intentions, but flooding fragile economies with free t-shirts would have devastated the local textile producers.  Articles like this one from Time (http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1987628,00.html) help to explain the on-going debate on the best way to support the people of Africa, and why sometimes just giving does more harm than good. 

Quick fixes to symptoms of poverty - like free clothing, shoes, soap - are tempting.  Didn't Jesus tell us to clothe the naked, visit the imprisoned, give water to the thirsty, feed the hungry?  Certainly, charity has its place, but should be done carefully, and in conjunction with  partners who have cultural understandings of the place where aid is being given to prevent horrific unintended consequences.  

So, here I am, feeling like what I brought with me was completely inadequate, yet also realizing that Zambia does not need me to come and fix its problems.  Kari's last blog put it beautifully - the struggle between wanting to simply help and fix (without concern for longterm consequences), and doing the harder work of sustainable development, is the struggle to be patient.  In churches, we speak of "asset mapping," using the strengths and gifts of the worshipping community in new ways so that it can thrive long into the future.  It takes work, patience, persistence, and creativity, but sustainable development empowers the people living in Zambia to find culturally appropriate solutions to their own challenges, using their gifts and resources in new ways, far more effectively than I could do as an outsider.

Of course, it is true that there will be times when global partners are needed to support certain projects.  Little things, like carting a suitcase full of crayons halfway around the world, bringing a soccer ball to a child my church sponsors, or an extra package of 'birdies' so the neighborhood children can play badminton, can make a real difference to children who may not otherwise have access to such luxuries.  Larger projects, like digging wells and pit latrines, benefit from partnerships, but the impetus for such must always come from within the community.  

It's hard to remember that though our intentions are good, the best solutions will come from within local communities.  In America, we could learn a lesson from the selfless giving of people who are willing to come together, neighbor with neighbor, to work together towards common community goals. 

In the end, I think I made really good choices about what I packed and what I left behind.  I am grateful that in deciding what to bring, my greatest problem was one of abundance and worry over bringing too much.  The cleansing cloths (that look like baby wipes) caused quite a stir through airport security, but have been helpful on mornings without water.  The three pairs of shoes, that still seem excessive, have been well worn.  The neck pillow for the plane was perfect, and I'm already on the second wearing for most of my clothes.  

Sure, there are things that I wish I had here, but I also know that too many things can become more of a burden than an asset.  We start to focus on what we have, and what we want, and forget that as God's people we are called to share and to be generous with our blessings.  The opportunity to be here, to see the work that Kari and Joel are doing in conjunction with CCAP, has reminded me of the gift of living simply, of loving God, of sharing with neighbor.  I pray that I will carry this gift with me when I return to America, and have the opportunity to share it with others.