17 Apr 2011
Changing the Story
I am sitting in a lounge room in CapeTown, South Africa.
I am sitting at the back of the room while a class of black and colored South Africans watch “Invictus”.
It is fascinating to watch the impact of the movie on people who are living in the reality of post-apartheid South Africa.
In our training with them we have been talking about the fact that we all pick up a life script in the early years of our lives and many of us play out the role it directs for the rest of our days.
Nations, too, seem to have scripts.
Mandela was so remarkable because he didn’t live out the script that everyone expected. At one point in the move he says “we must surprise them with our compassion”.
South Africa should have been a bloodbath, but the script was rewritten.
South Africa though has a long way to go if it is truly rewrite the script. Drug use, Poverty and corruption are still rife.
One of the biggest challenges is that changing a political system doesn’t change a script for a country, in the same way that changing a job or city doesn’t change the script of a person.
One of the things that stands out about Jesus is that he continually went against the script. Whether it be the woman at the well, Zaccheus or his disciples, Jesus responded to the heart rather than the norm.
The Good Samaritan is a story about going against the script.
If we are to be free, we each need to do the work of understanding our past and make choices against the script if we truly want to be free.
South Africa needs people who will make choices against the script, to truly secure a future of equality.
Jesus says the truth will set us free. Perhaps more of us need to listen to the truth rather than our personal versions of truth shaped by our history.
It is a privilege to be here with these people. They are special people who have had to fight significant personal battles in order to be at a point where they want to fight the battles for their country.
Please pray for South Africa, there is a long road ahead.