Learning from Practitioners

Cold milk. Tepid milk just does not do the job. Warm milk and Oreo cookies offers no real enticement for me. Growing up, and to this day, I like my milk cold. Refrigeration is a great modern amenity.

window_air_conditioner.jpgIn college I worked summers as a part of a “Pull and Clean” team for Sears. We would receive a list of jobs each morning. Generally a “technician” had been out to service a window unit air conditioner. During the “cottonwood shedding season” it was not uncommon for the condenser coil to be plugged, often looking matted by the floating “tree lint.” Equipped with a wire brush, cleaning solvent, and a hose, we would clean these air conditioners. Soon they were cooling like new.

Equating refrigeration with milk was easy. Connecting refrigeration with air conditioners took learning a new vocabulary. “Refrigerated air” became part of our lexicon. Over time we learned from these “technicians” dust and lint found in any home could inhibit airflow around coils of refrigerators and freezers. Special brushes helped clean the lint and restore these appliances to good working condition. Central A/C units often needed this same maintenance procedure.

On our own we knew the effects of refrigeration. We did not understand how it worked until a practitioner/technician helped us understand the process. Seeing things from a different perspective often opened us up to learn ways we were not familiar with and shed notions that really did not fit.

ernest.pngErnest Goodman writes a blog titled, “Missions Misunderstood.” He is a practitioner, a technician. Ernest has learned an important reality. When it comes to missional and churches partnering relationships matter – a great deal. In fact, do-not-disconnect-2.jpgafter years serving in Western Europe as a missionary, he is convinced the way we (Southern Baptists) do missions (in our churches and mission sending organizations) inherently keeps churches at a safe distance and our missionaries safely accountable to organizational structures rather than the sending churches. You may read Ernest’s thoughts at Missions Misunderstood.

About the Author
Husband to Patty. Daddy to Kimberly and Tommie. Grandpa Doc to Cohen, Max, Fox, and Marlee. Pastor to Snow Hill Baptist Church. Graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Reading. Photography. Golf. Colorado. Jeeping. Friend. The views and opinions expressed here are my own and should not be construed as representing the corporate views of the church I pastor.

3 comments on “Learning from Practitioners

  1. Brenna says:

    Great post! Thanks for sharing this thought.

  2. Todd Littleton says:

    Brenna,
    Glad you stopped by.

  3. Todd,
    Thanks for the links, and for your kind words. I appreciate what you say here. When It comes to missions, I believe that we need more practitioners. In fact, if every church somehow became involved in sharing the gospel around the world, we wouldn’t need to depend on the “professionals” to do it for us.

    Fortunately, missions is part of our DNA. Air conditioning repair, not so much. (At least not mine!) Thank God that He gives us all that we need to do what He’s asked us to do!

    Thanks again.

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