Laying the foundation, Part Two

For the last two weeks, we have reflected on the things you and I share in common with every other person on earth. We discovered that, despite the external differences we might display, we are all part of one race– the human race; and part of one family–with one common ancestor from whom all generations on earth have descended.

Physiologically, we are identical. We have eyes, ears, noses, hands, feet and mouths all located in the same places. Internally, surgeons will find that hearts, stomachs, kidneys and spleens are all in the same location. So, if a surgeon from North America is asked to remove the appendix from someone in Tanzania, the surgeon will know where to find the diseased item and remove it– because it will be in the same place on every human.

But that is where the similarity ends. In everything else, we are more diverse than any other species on earth. Four things create this diversity.

Neil Strohschein

The first is our ancestry. We were born in different places to different sets of parents. We inherited our skin color and some external physical features from them. The first language we spoke is the one they spoke; and subsequently taught us. They also taught us how to walk, how to eat and the basics of how to get along with family, friends and neighbors. We owe our skills in these areas to our ancestry.

The second thing that contributes to our diversity is our education. We learn some things by reading a book, going to school, attending a seminar or taking a college class. But most of our learning comes from daily life; as we face life’s challenges, adapt to them and learn how to survive and thrive in spite of them. Some of the most intelligent people I have ever met never got beyond Grade 8 in public school. But they know more about grain farming and cattle raising than some people with a diploma from an agricultural college. They learned the 4H way–they learned to do by doing. The third thing that contributes to our diversity is the environment in which we were raised. As a kid, I used to laugh at some of the habits my mother had–like washing and reusing bread bags and tin foil and insisting that we carefully fold our Christmas wrapping paper so that it could be used another year. Later in life, I was reminded that she grew up during the Dirty 30s; and these were things that people did to survive.

The frugality my mother learned as a teenager stayed with her until she died. The environment in which she was raised helped make her the person she was.

The last thing that contributes to our diversity is divine providence. Every person on this earth has been “fearfully and wonderfully made” by a loving, caring and sovereign God. Each person has a unique set of skills, abilities and talents through which he or she can make a positive and valuable contribution to the world in which we all live. That includes people who, for one reason or another, face physical, mental or emotional limitations. We may call them handicapped; but in God’s eyes they are anything but. They often have a unique perspective on life and can share valuable lessons we all need to learn.

This diversity is not a curse on society. It is the greatest gift we could ever be given. It is up to us to recognize it and learn how to use it well.