The Lord has always led us throughout our time in Zambia, and it’s been quite the journey! And even now, as we start a new chapter in our lives and ministry, our prayer is for wisdom and the Lord’s guidance. 

Everyone has a tribe that they belong to. When you hear this word, you might envision a primitive people that live in some remote, African village marching off to do their daily fishing ritual. I can’t imagine that your particular social group is going to break out in a fishing dance later today at the office. However, in the broader sense of the word, you do in fact have a tribe. It could be with family of whom you share common ancestry or perhaps with friends that come together with shared interests and goals. Other factors such as religion and faith play a vital role in people’s lives, with those they share a common belief system with often becoming their people. Belonging to a group and gaining identity is certainly a good thing to have, that’s community. But what happens when our loyalty to our tribe becomes greater than it should to the exclusion of others around us? This is the danger of tribalism.

Do you think you’re normal? Well, most of us do! When we look at how we do things and why, it all makes perfect sense! We appear the same as those around us and we even talk the same. This familiarity is what culture looks like! As you narrow the field even smaller, you’ll see that within your own circle of friends or “subculture” you’ll even have similar ideologies and world-views. We’re kind of a result of those around us! So who exactly is normal?