Building a Heart for the Nations Through Reading

Using literature to help the next generation see and love the nations.
by Aaron Myers

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Does your church have a mission-minded culture? How about the Christian school you work at or your children attend? And what about your family? In these places, is the biblical commission to reach the nations a priority? One of the simplest and most effective ways to build a missions-minded culture in our churches, schools, and homes is through the books we read.

It has been said that changing the culture of an organization—or church—is difficult. Culture changes slowly. Like a lake formed drop by drop, it is shaped by countless small influences. However, if we are patient and willing to prayerfully work toward change, we can see any church, school or family develop a mission-minded culture that reflects the Father’s heart for the nations.

One aspect of any missions culture is understanding the many different, beautiful, broken, and God-destined cultures of our big, amazing God-created world. For those of us growing up in the church or sending our kids to Christian schools (or homeschooling), experiencing other cultures and interacting with people different than ourselves isn’t often a normal part of our daily experience. It’s not that we’re avoiding cross-cultural experiences; it's just that life is busy and if you live in more rural areas, opportunities may be sparse.
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While there are myriad ideas and suggestions for helping build a missions culture—something I work to write about here at Everywhere to Everywhere—with today’s article I want to focus on the power of literature. In a 2024 New York Times opinion piece, author David Brooks reflected on the power of literature:

​Deep reading, immersing yourself in novels with complex characters, engaging with stories that explore the complexity of this character’s motivations or that character’s wounds, is a training ground for understanding human variety. It empowers us to see the real people in our lives more accurately and more generously, to better understand their intentions, fears and needs, the hidden kingdoms of their unconscious drives. The resulting knowledge is not factual knowledge, but emotional knowledge.

Stories—particularly stories written by and about people from other cultures—allow readers to travel, to explore and encounter the wonderfully varied peoples of our world. They allow us to learn about other places and customs and to get a sense of the histories and worldviews that image-bearers across the globe carry with them. And books are written for all levels of readers creating a ready made course in cross-cultural study for all ages.

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If we can find good books that take our children into other cultures, and if we prepare them to be cultural detectives, looking for God's fingerprints throughout the journeys of the characters, then we can help them begin to develop eyes to see as the Father sees the many nations of our earth.

As a parent or teacher it is helpful if you prepare yourself to help young readers engage with stories from cultures that may seem strange and different. Two helpful resources are Shane Bennett's article, "Reveling in the Cultural Kaleidoscope," and my article from earlier this spring “Four Ways to See the Nations At Our Doorstep.” You can find links to these at the bottom of the article. Work with young readers to help them become cultural detectives, asking good questions when things that happen are different or unexpected. Help them identify the surface level, observable customs, habits of dress, differing food and language so that they can learn to take the bigger step of understanding cultural and worldview differences.

I have also created two worksheets to help readers reflect on the books they’ve read with cross-cultural exploration in mind. One is designed for elementary-aged students, while the second is more complex and intended for middle-grade readers. I have also created a reading list of books, categorized by reading level and written by or about people from other cultures. Most of these are fiction but there are also a few non-fiction that I think will be helpful.

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• Reading List: Books to Help Kids Understand Other Cultures
• Book Reflection Worksheet (elementary): Cultural Detective Notebook
• Book Reflection Worksheet (middle grades): Reader’s Cultural Detective Notebook

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Stories offer a powerful opportunity to help readers of all ages begin to interact with and learn from and about other cultures. Encourage your young readers to pick up a good book today and begin the journey. Prepare them for a globalized world. Prepare them to be Christ’s ambassadors among the nations both locally and globally. One story at a time, we can help the next generation develop eyes to see and ears to hear the Father's call to the nations. In this way, we can build a stronger missions culture for the future.

Resources

• Article: Reveling in the Cultural Kaleidoscope
• Article: Four Ways to See the Nations At Our Doorstep
• Reading List: Books to Help Kids Understand Other Cultures
• Book Reflection Worksheet (elementary): Cultural Detective Notebook
• Book Reflection Worksheet (middle grades): Reader’s Cultural Detective Notebook

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