A Snapshot of a Pineapple Story
A Snapshot of a pineapple story
Johanne Wayne
Colorado Christian University
Cross-Cultural Communications
COM314A
Dr. Jacob Kitonsa
February 13, 2014
A Snapshot of a pineapple story
One of the great missionary accounts for me was Otto Koning’s pineapple story. God used his pineapple garden in Dutch New Guinea to conquer a huge weakness of his. The account happened over a period of seven years and the lesson to learn from this story is about yielding your personal rights. When you learn to yield your personal rights, instead of getting bitter, you get God’s peace.
A brief description of the author’s account takes place in the jungle. His desire was to influence the jungle natives positively and enjoy the fruit of his pineapple grove. In this jungle area, fresh fruits and vegetables were not plentiful. Otto arranged to have pineapple plants brought in and planted. He waited three years for those yummy pineapples to grow, but the natives stole them as they ripened! He tried to negotiate and compromise with the jungle people, but that never worked. He got so angry that he resorted to stronger measures to protect his property. His testimony as a missionary failed miserably and he only grew more and more frustrated and angry. He did pray and asked God for wisdom and it did come. He learned and chose to apply a scriptural principle about yielding his personal rights. As soon as he made the decision to do this his attitude dramatically changed. He was peaceful and the jungle people noticed! This story ended up to be a blessing for both the jungle people and Otto.
It actually is a serious and funny story all in one. The author is transparent about his motives, good and bad, and reveals to us how God worked in his heart through this experience of seven years. Transformation takes time in God’s economy. Otto’s understanding of showing God’s love to the people of New Guinea was wrong. Besides the cultural differences, he also learned to understand
Johanne Wayne
Colorado Christian University
Cross-Cultural Communications
COM314A
Dr. Jacob Kitonsa
February 13, 2014
A Snapshot of a pineapple story
One of the great missionary accounts for me was Otto Koning’s pineapple story. God used his pineapple garden in Dutch New Guinea to conquer a huge weakness of his. The account happened over a period of seven years and the lesson to learn from this story is about yielding your personal rights. When you learn to yield your personal rights, instead of getting bitter, you get God’s peace.
A brief description of the author’s account takes place in the jungle. His desire was to influence the jungle natives positively and enjoy the fruit of his pineapple grove. In this jungle area, fresh fruits and vegetables were not plentiful. Otto arranged to have pineapple plants brought in and planted. He waited three years for those yummy pineapples to grow, but the natives stole them as they ripened! He tried to negotiate and compromise with the jungle people, but that never worked. He got so angry that he resorted to stronger measures to protect his property. His testimony as a missionary failed miserably and he only grew more and more frustrated and angry. He did pray and asked God for wisdom and it did come. He learned and chose to apply a scriptural principle about yielding his personal rights. As soon as he made the decision to do this his attitude dramatically changed. He was peaceful and the jungle people noticed! This story ended up to be a blessing for both the jungle people and Otto.
It actually is a serious and funny story all in one. The author is transparent about his motives, good and bad, and reveals to us how God worked in his heart through this experience of seven years. Transformation takes time in God’s economy. Otto’s understanding of showing God’s love to the people of New Guinea was wrong. Besides the cultural differences, he also learned to understand
References: Samovar, L. A., Porter, R. E., McDaniel, E. R., & Roy, C. S. (2013). Communication between cultures (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Monica Eckman. The pineapple story. (1978). Illinois: Institute in Basic Life Principles, Inc.