Today we continue with our Capacity on the Field Series. There will be a new post every M, W, F this month, exploring what factors into your capacity on the field. You can find the previously published posts in this series here.
As the Global Trellis team examines various aspects of having an enlarged capacity, what can that mean for language learning?
Beginning language learners know they have a big task ahead of them that includes more than learning grammar and vocabulary. It means learning to communicate with real people in real-life situations, and that always comes with mistakes and misunderstanding in culture and language. How can beginners enlarge their capacity so they can learn?
More advanced language learners might come to a place where they stop dedicating time to learn language because they can function at their current language level. How can they enlarge their capacity to learn more language that allows them to deepen their relationships and engagement with others?
I propose that the way to enlarge language learning capacity is through dependence: dependence on God and dependence on others.
Dependence on God
This might seem obvious to us, but it is so easy to shift dependence on God to dependence on ourselves, language learning methodologies, classes, and techniques. These things are important, but if we depend on them instead of God, we have chosen to learn independent of God—depending on our own selves and abilities. This does not work out well in the long run.
So, what does dependency on God look like when applied to language learning?
1. It means staying connected to the vine, Jesus, so that His life is coursing through us and producing the growth and fruit that He wants to develop, (John 15:5).
The Apostle Paul fleshed this out in a way that language learners can appreciate. He said in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, “And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.”
2. God gives us the ability to learn and gives us wisdom to learn at the right pace. He can help us keep language learning and life in balance, always moving forward without neglecting health, rest, time with Him and with others. He tells us to rest and leads us besides still waters. He restores our souls, (Psalm 23). He offers rest when we are weary (Matthew 11:28-30).
3. He gives us the courage to step out of our comfort zone no matter what language level we are at, to interact with others, even if we know we won’t understand everything (Philippians 4:13).
4. He gives us the motivation to keep learning, even when we are comfortable with our current level of communication in the language. There is always something more to learn that will allow us to enter life on a more profound level with the people around us. What situations do we still lack words and cultural knowledge of? What conversations happen between people that we cannot yet enter in on? How can we be more like Paul and his team in Thessalonica when he said, “Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8).
5. He guides us to the people whom He wants us to interact with, those who will help us learn language and welcome us into their lives, even when we stammer and stutter. You can read about how to build a Language Learning Community in this post.
Let me end this section with a story from my own life where God changed the way I looked at language learning and interacting from that day on.
We lived on a rural Bible school campus in the middle of nowhere. One day, a man came on campus wanting to speak with my husband who happened to be running an errand. It was not a dangerous situation, but when I saw him walk through the gate, my thought was, “Oh no! Nobody else is close to interact with him. I am going to have to talk with him!” I wanted to hide in the apartment, but I couldn’t. Right then, the Lord impressed on my heart the following, “Don’t you think I knew that nobody else would be around to attend to this man? Don’t you think I will be with you? Now go out there with confidence and talk to him.” It just so happened that the man had a little knowledge of the Bible, and we stood and talked about God for about 20 minutes before my husband arrived back from his errand. Since then, I have trusted that God is with me in situations that still provoke fear and a desire to avoid them.
Dependence on Others
We need others, not only for language learning, but because God created us for relationship.
As mentioned above, God can bring people into our Language Learning Community who will help us advance in our ability to communicate appropriately, culturally, and in words. Asking people for help often opens doors that might not otherwise open.
Interacting with others can bring real joy while learning language.
—We can find people who have similar interests to us and join them in that activity.
—We can learn something new. The women in Mexico taught me how to thread crochet. I learned a new skill and got to sit and listen to conversation as the women crocheted together once a week.
—We can fellowship with our brothers and sisters because we are united in the Spirit.
Language learning is not easy. We will be embarrassed, we will want to communicate and not know how, we will sometimes be laughed at. God is with us in all of this. We can depend on Him! And He will bring us into contact with people on whom we can depend whether we are new to a language and culture, or old hands. It seems backwards that an expanded capacity in language learning is rooted in dependence; but what seems foolish on the surface is often wisdom in the way of God.
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