Immersion

I'm in a social/cultural foundations of counseling class this semester, and for it I have to do an immersion project.  The purpose of this project is to immerse myself in another culture that I have not had much exposure to.  Obviously another portion of this project is to work through some of the biases that we have held about that culture.  I chose to immerse myself in the African American culture, mostly because there were about 3 black individuals out of about 1,000 people in my high school.  So I think it's fair to say that I haven't had much exposure.  I also knew that I have been holding some stereotypes that I wanted to break. 

At the beginning of the semester, I mentioned that I wanted to learn to see other cultures as God sees them.  Boy has God been showing me pieces of that!  It's interesting how the views I had been holding about African American (primarily women) were SO wrong, and they were also a reflection of the stuff that I have been trying to work through on my learning contract.  There are SO many things to appreciate about the African American culture, but the one that stands out most to me is how deep their faith runs.  I met with a pastor of a primarily African American church yesterday, and I asked her what the role of faith in counseling the population should be.  She said without a doubt that faith is primary to who they are.  They as a culture have experienced so much hardship that they have quickly learned that without God, they are nothing.  I was astounded at how much more faith they have than me.  I am so thankful for this project, and I actually wish that it was not going to be over after this semester.  I have been so blessed by the time I have been spending in the African American culture- not only have I gained a better picture of how God sees them, but also I have gained a better picture of who God is through them.  Thank you Lord for such a special time.