University of the World
Letting go by going away
by Liv Bjork

While television media was globally flashing images of the United States bombing Iraq; While newspaper articles all over the world were giving in-depth descriptions of the president's personal life; While clocks ticked on and schedules were booked; and while the rat-race of Western Civilization took its toll on another semester of college students; there was a place of seclusion, a world completely isolated from the demands I left behind. Hidden away in the Baliem Valley of Indonesia, I spent three months with sixteen other American students living "on the edge." Instead of keeping up with the latest fashions, we watched the Dani women dancing in grass skirts. Instead of spending three hours in the science lab we watched black smoke rise from the pig feast pit. Instead of cruising down the interstate to Target for some quick over-the-counter drugs, we prayed for those who were sick. Is this for real, you may ask? Is this school?

We were experiencing a college education for the same price as our college tuition. We were experiencing "Eduventure." As we slept in grass huts, trekked through remote mountain ranges, and lived together in simple conditions, we learned together that the greatest lessons and adventures in life had little to do with the four walls in a classroom. Walking daily in the Truth of our identity in Christ meant dying daily. In Indonesia it meant restraining our nerves and eating the pig fat. It meant watching the Dani people climb effortlessly up the mountain and not ask how well we could perform or how well we were going to do in school next year. It meant biking through pig poop for three days in a row and letting others shower first. It meant shaking hands with the man who kept stealing from us. It meant coming down with malaria. It meant dying to my world to experience Christ in another world. To study in another culture we had to surrender to it, and humbly learn what made other people tick. In this surrender we could see so much more clearly what God wanted to teach us about life, and how He wanted to replace our narrow convictions with a more universal Christian worldview.

Choosing a semester abroad program that lines up with your major and career intentions is usually a good idea, although many of us are indecisive and don't know what we want to do. One thing I know is I am committed to missions, so Irian Jaya, Indonesia, was the perfect place for me to observe firsthand the incredible variety of missions work. We studied missions' strategy, cross-cultural communication, anthropology, and community development. Most of these classes fulfilled some of my college requirements in the area of cross-cultural studies, missions strategy, and physical education. Most colleges have an International Studies office that would love to answer your questions about studying abroad.

When we consider our future, and desire to take off into the world well-equipped to be a blessing, something we need to remember is that no matter how "well-equipped" we are, we need to know first how to be a learner and a servant. Entering another culture can teach us this like few other experiences can. Surrendering to another culture reminds us that growing up often means stepping down. It means letting go of the power we have in our world to be a blind beginner in another.