Lora Kwan ’22
Executive Assistant, World Relief - Chicagoland
Prior to my studies in the M.A. in Humanitarian & Disaster Leadership program, I was working in the Pastoral Care Counseling space, which was and still is an extremely rewarding part of my calling from God. However, during COVID, I found God pulling on my heart to pursue more. People were hurting on a global and historic level. I responded to this in my local context, but felt God stretching my heart and asking me to use my abilities to address more of the hurting and lost people on the margins. It was specifically during our Refugee and Forced Displacement class, taught by Matthew Soerens, that God revealed the next calling on my life - to work with refugees, asylum seekers and displaced people. This revelation has informed and led to all of my career and personal decisions post-graduation.
Not only did I realize the next calling on my life during my time at HDL, but I also learned how to prioritize what is most important to me and keeps me healthy. I know well the giftings God has given me through years of work experience, both in ministry and secularly; however, it is a skill to be able to balance those things so that you are healthy physically, mentally and spiritually. I learned valuable lessons from all my professors that I am now utilizing in my work/personal life. One of those significant lessons was from Dr. Jamie Goodwin on our very first week in the program. She shared about the difficulties of being a working mom, and the effect it can have on our identities as mothers, wives, and women.
I have gone back to that discussion frequently in a transition I recently made from being the leader of an organization to stepping back to a behind the scenes role in order to rest, and spend more time with my young children. It has been a truly difficult decision, but from my training at HDL, I remembered that our priority should be to take care of ourselves before we can effectively take care of others. Burnout is at a record high for humanitarian workers, and is absolutely not a sign of weakness. The work we do in humanitarian spaces is extremely taxing and difficult on not only ourselves, but those closest to us. We must prioritize our health and well-being, and find joy in each day in order to continue being the hands and feet Jesus called us to be. It is good and okay for us to rest.
If I had not had this training at HDL, I am sure I would have continued on doing work that was slowly breaking down my body and mind just because God has given me the capability to do so. As Humanitarians, this can be a daily struggle because we are so committed to coming alongside others that we put ourselves second. However, it is also the skill of a capable person to recognize when you have given and done enough for the time being, and to move aside so that God can continue working through others to further His kingdom.
This is an invaluable lesson I learned at HDL! I am certain the other rich lessons and skills I learned in the HDL program will continue to help me serve for many more years to come, in health and humility.