A Surf Trip Parable

09.14.09


Recently a group of selfish surfers went on a surf trip to Africa. In order to alleviate guilt they added in a couple days of do-gooding and called it a mission trip. Once they were noodle armed they headed into a poverty stricken area. Their guide took them on a tour and explained the situation. “This is where video teams come to get the heart wrenching shots of starving, fly covered children,” he explained. The surfer's emotions were devastated by the sites they saw. But emotions are far from compassion.



As the heat of the day drug on they found themselves glued to their water bottles while the children played in the dust and drank dirty liquids that had no doubt lain for days in the trenches by their hut. Before long the surfers grew overwhelmed by the stories and sights that they saw and began to wonder what their task in this village might be. Would they build a building or paint a wall or maybe dig a well? About that time a truck selling fruit pulled up. The surfers quickly waved it on, as they were not hungry. They continued to walk the streets and before long another vehicle, this one with clean water approached. “No thank you,” they said, as their water bottles were still full. Toward the end of the day a virtual “chuck wagon” of pre-made goodies drove up, but since dinner was not long off they sent the truck on its way.



That night, back at the surf camp the surfers talked on and on about their day and were eager to interact with their trip coordinator. It had been a riveting experience but they did have one question – what was their task in the village? Just then the Missions Coordinator arrived and entered the room with an air of excitement. He burst forth, “How did it go feeding the children today?”



Back to reality. Christian Surfers was planning an outreach event and decided to show a brand new Christian surf video. We were excited and praying that God would draw the lost to be found through our lives at this event. Several men, members of the team, were disappointed and didn’t want to attend. When asked why they said, “We’ve already seen that video.”



Get the point? It’s not about us! Where does it apply today?



Who do you surf for?