No Threat
Dan Kunz
I was blessed to spend a couple of weeks in Africa recently on a hunting trip. My friend and I were pursuing several different kinds of animals to harvest. Over the course of the next several blogs, I want to talk about my observations and experiences which may have a faith application. It’s always fun to travel, interact with people from a different culture, and see some of God’s beauty blessings in a different part of the world. Seeing and applying something to our walk with Jesus is an added bonus!
We were in the country of Namibia, which lies between South Africa and the Atlantic Ocean. Namibia was formerly part of South Africa until 1990. It’s a very geographically diverse country, running from south to north. It has, as mentioned, an oceanic coast, deserts, mountains, and plains. Being in the Southern Hemisphere, its seasons are the opposite of ours, with September being the start of spring. Because it was colonized in the late 1880’s by Germany, it has a large German (and Dutch) population. About seventy-five percent of the approximately three million people are native, members of one or another of ten different tribes. Namibia is very Christian, with about ninety percent of the people identifying as such. Its economy relies heavily on farming, mining, and tourism. It’s a beautiful place with friendly people.
On the first morning of our hunt, I wanted to get off on a good note with our two Namibia trackers, so before getting into our truck, I handed them each a piece of candy. They both thanked me and took the candy with right hand extended and their left hand grasping their right wrist. I had experienced this unusual custom before but had forgotten about it. I asked our outfitter the reason for it. He said it was a form of showing respect. I also asked about it being more. He acknowledged that it may have been a custom from longer ago which showed, in a physical way, they posed no threat to the person they were greeting. According to several legends from various countries, a villain might shake your right hand but then stab you with his left. Presenting both hands, as is done in many African cultures, shows no harm is intended.
This experience, which was repeated many times during our stay, reminded me of the warning found in 1 Corinthians 16:13 Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. We, as children of the Heavenly Father, need to be on our guard against anyone or anything which might harm us or our faith. When God exhorts us to be “as innocent as doves”, he doesn’t mean we should be naïve or foolish in our dealings with others. Many, many Bible passages remind us the Devil, the world, and our own sinful flesh mean to do us harm and tear us away from our Savior. Our very eternal life depends on being spiritually vigilant and aware.
We probably don’t need to ask others to show both their hands, as the African custom implies, but we do need to be aware at all times. We know by their own admission that criminals tend to look for victims who aren’t paying attention to what’s going on around them. We don’t need to be cynical or suspicious of everyone we meet, however, we do need to be physically and spiritually mindful at all times.