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• Ignorance might not be bliss •

[2 MIN READ]

Naiveté brings mixed blessings. Mine began with my training as a new CCO staff member. Hindsight will defend the rigor of Coalition for Christian Outreach’s training, but the on-the-nonce made for 9 full weeks of … intense.

I experienced the training with 6 other members of my 2026 cohort. Those 6, along with 2 trainers and 2 more coaches, deserve due credit. As I went through the first week, face-to-face, at CCO’s headquarters in Pittsburgh, I was tending to describe to everyone around me that it all felt “extremely difficult.”

Emotionally, I felt annoyed partly because I had to do the training at all. As a Christian and secular professional with some life experience, I didn’t relish the prospect of receiving theological material with which (I was confident) I possessed significant familiarity. Organizationally, I didn’t relish the prospect of learning one more employer’s practices and procedures. Mentally, I was pre-occupied with preparation for my annual mission trip to native Alaska on which I would be embarking 2 weeks hence. Psychologically, I knew I would still have to complete all the work that everyone else would be able to do while I was missionally engaged. Maritally, I lamented the distance from Wife, my helpmate, over most of that period. 

Suffice to say that if I had known how challenging all those weeks would be, I would have declined to participate in the CCO training at all.

As if.

As a new staff member, I was committed to doing what the other cohort members did. Despite my other life experiences, I knew that God could and would still humble and teach me about my new employer’s heart and vision. Circumstantially, I was convinced about God’s ability to help me focus on the work at hand in Alaska. Maritally, I was confident my relationship with Wife would stay steadfast (Thank you, daily phone calls!).

As for the 26 modules that got increasingly backed up over the 9 full weeks of June and July, I finished them in the final one, missing the deadline by a day.

The scripture passage that comes to mind is Hebrews 12v11-12 (NIV): “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.”

During and since that time, “extremely difficult” as descriptive language gave way to “intense.” The former is a lousy attitude, the latter, a patient acceptance.

With the start of the semester, intense now takes on a new complexion; after all, onboarding was just the start.

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Mentioned (iCandybyWangC.com unless otherwise specified)
Those 6, along with 2 trainers and 2 more coaches, deserve due credit.
Annual mission trip to Alaska

Prequel: Onboarding Was Just the Start (same as “Those 6”)

FINE PRINT *Thanks to William Shakespeare (PoetryFoundation.org). ¶CCOmmentary #2. ¶Text: Calvin Wang (Wäng), CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

 

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