7 Things about Service You Can Learn from Barbie Savior
Did you know Barbie “Savior” went to serve God in Africa? At least that’s what her Instagram says. And, oh man! I have found her behavior to be a bit embarrassing, to say the least.
The Barbie Savior Instagram account created in March has featured a well-intentioned, self-promoting, paternalistic, “blessed” portrayal of Barbie as she travels overseas to “save the country of Africa.” With about 70 posts it has ballooned to over 100,000 followers.
Check out the Barbie Savior Instagram account. As you do, recognize that this is satire, a great tool for exposing the ridiculousness of certain behaviors through irony and hyperbole. And in our social media-driven 21st Century, there are some inconsistencies to expose in the area of Christian service.
I’m not gonna lie. My first thought was, “Oh great. Someone else is making fun of mission trips.” But I think this irreverent portrayal of a misguided do-gooder is worth talking about. So let’s talk about it!
And as we critique and learn from Barbie Savior’s mistakes, let’s recognize that you and I are also prone to misuse the opportunities mission trips provide. It might not be the full blown errors Barbie savior portrays, but the seeds of her mistakes just might sprout in our own service experiences if we don’t crush them early.
So here are…
7 Things about Service You Can Learn from Barbie Savior
1. Seriously learn about the community you enter.
Consistently and hilariously, Barbie Savior refers to “the country of Africa.” She also seems to think that bottling Americans’ tears will help solve an assumed need for water. I get the distinct impression that Barbie didn’t take much time to learn about the place she headed to serve.
We tend to think that service is wrapped up in sweat and sun and tangible tasks. We want to look at something and say, “I did that.” But when I think of those who have loved me well, I think of people who have taken time to listen to my ramblings and understand who I am. We can do the same for communities, and that begins before the trip. Do we know the story we are stepping into? Do we value the history? Will we learn the language and culture? Listening and learning before, during and after the trip are worthwhile ways to serve the community you enter on a mission trip.
2. See the beauty of the places you enter.
Barbie Savior describes one girl as “too young to know that she doesn’t have to be here” and a community as “beautiful hopeless villagers.” She has a not-so-subtle assumption that these people have struggle without strength and hardship without hope. And when Barbie does compliment the locals, it is easy to read between the lines: that Barbie’s ability to see their good is primarily due to her own benevolence. In essence she is extending a self-serving type of tokenism: “You are only beautiful because I say you are.”
We don’t need to miss what Barbie misses: the reality that every person is created in the image of God and has a spark of creativity and the ability to build and be and become. Respectful service means recognizing the assets of others. It means becoming a true guest of a culture. It means taking the posture of a student who has much to learn from fellow citizens in God’s Kingdom. It means understanding our own brokenness before we engage with others’ brokenness, and recognizing the already-existing beauty that was there long before we arrived.
3. Trust the community.
After getting a large donation, Barbie Savior exclaims, “Now we can collect those tears faster than ever! Or was it teach? Or give out shoes? Whatevs. We can do what we feel is necessary faster than ever!!!” And when Barbie Savior proclaims, “The lack of high heels in this country is devastating. So today, one heal at a time, I am changing the face of Africa as we know it,” she is giving a ridiculous example of what it looks like to paternalistically determine what a community needs without consulting those who live there.
Sweeping in with our own solutions can often leave people hurting. The idea that “doing something is better than doing nothing” is not necessarily true. You and I probably wouldn’t think an African community needs high heels, but there are subtle ways we might do the same thing Barbie did – like running a one-week summer kids program that pulls kids from the ongoing church program, stealing local jobs away by taking over a construction project, or flooding a community with clothes that run local textile owners out of business. We need to be humble listeners to the community. We need to ask again and again, “What do you want us to do?” And then truly listen.
Want more information on serving with YouthWorks? Click HERE.
4. Kill the PR campaign.
The most prominent problem Barbie Savior has is that she is a firm believer in her own brand, and her trip to Africa has quickly become a marketing stunt. As some of Barbie’s hashtags point out, this is an example of “poverty porn” – media that exploits the financially impoverished to promote or sell a product. In this case, the product is Barbie Savior’s image as a young, caring college student who is singlehandedly saving a continent from the tyranny of poverty. And she’s got pictures to prove it.
Using good actions to further personal reputation is nothing new. Jesus cautioned a crowd not to “practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them” (Matt. 6:1). Instead, Jesus invites his followers to get out of the spotlight when they give to the needy so that their works are for God, not to promote themselves. Jesus shares the result of such secret giving: “Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
With status updates that travel around the world in seconds and apps devoted to sharing your every move, serving others secretly is harder than ever. But we are called to love without seeking worldly rewards. It is impossible to fully love God and others when we are focused on getting others to love us. So don’t let your mission trip become a marketing campaign. Before your next post, consider what reward you’re seeking: a thumbs-up icon or approval from the Creator of the Universe.
5. Love the Lord your God with all your mind.
Standing in front of a chalk board, Barbie Savior wonders, “Who needs a formal education to teach in Africa? Not me!” As much as Barbie seems to love and promote herself, she does have some good intentions for Africa – as misdirected as they often seem. Here’s the issue: She might love Africa with all her heart and with all her strength, but loving Africa with her mind seems to be a struggle.
In Mark 12:30, Jesus commands his followers to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” A holistic love is one of passion and strength and longevity… and also thought. But sometimes we get caught up in the emotion of love without thinking through how to do it best. Sadly, a passion for others is not the only factor in our ability to help. We need well thought-out plans that incorporate the input of the community and the wisdom of the experienced. We must not set aside our minds as we seek to serve others.
6. Squash the savior complex.
It’s in her name. Savior Barbie believes she is the solution to lots and lots of issues she perceives as problems in Africa. She sometimes talks about “the hardest part about leaving home to come save Africa” – as if her short stay will change everything.
A couple years ago at YouthWorks, we put up a picture of a big ship and little life raft. Both vessels had people on board – the life raft people plainly in need of rescue. We asked teenagers on mission trips, “How is this picture like your mission trip?” And some would answer that they were here with the resources to help people who needed help. “We’re the people on the big boat!”
With more money or opportunity or freedoms, it’s easy to believe that we are in the best position to rescue those in financial need, but here’s the reality: We are all lost. We are all in the life raft. We are all in desperate need of rescue. And the only one with a boat big enough to deal with our hopeless state is Jesus.
You and me and Barbie Savior – we don’t save anybody. Jesus saves us.
7. Deep is better than wide.
If I had to guess, Barbie Savior is going to keep traveling the world in wonder. She’s going to keep holding orphan after orphan and describe them as “forever changed by this 15 minute interaction.” She’ll keep posting about her extravagant yearnings: “I feel like mothering all of this country’s children.” Barbie wants a “wide” experience of the world.
“Wide” will let you see the world, experience a variety of settings, meet tons of interesting people, and interact with all sorts of different cultures. “Wide” might even help you recognize a passion or change some long-standing perspectives. “Wide” can be good… but it could also hurt those you’re trying to help. Ultimately “wide” is about you. If you want to truly serve and love others, you need to go “deep.”
“Deep” means staying in one place and working on one issue and doing it with the same people day after day after day after day… “Deep” is less attractive, less exciting, less tweetable. “Deep” is not glamorous or sexy. “Deep” is hard work. But “deep” will allow you to truly know and be known. “Deep” will foster trust. And someday “deep” may even allow you to be part of a process of authentic change.
The point of mission trips is not more mission trips. The point of mission trips is to broaden perspectives, ignite passions, expose possibilities and inspire pursuits. The point of “wide” is to latch onto something “deep.”
Barbie Savior is an excellent metaphor to teach us about service and missions. We are in danger of becoming Barbie Savior when we swap out our opportunity for real, authentic, messy relationships with synthetic intentions and plastic interactions.
CLICK HERE for more information on serving with YouthWorks!
Sam Townsend helps write training, programming and marketing materials for YouthWorks mission trips. When he isn’t hanging around teenagers at church, he is generally looking for a good conversation and a hole-in-the-wall restaurant to have it in. Sam still considers his first couple summers working for YouthWorks in Virginia and Pennsylvania communities some of the most transformative times of his life.
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