Its hard to describe much of the Race, which makes blogs difficult to write. I’ve equated each month of this journey to 1-2 years in normal life. It takes a long time to build relationships, develop trust, and form the community that we do each month. Regardless of the difficulty, here’s a look into what this month has looked like.
As our last month of Team Covenant, we lived in the upstairs of the church, all 8 of us with all of our belongings, sleeping on the ground of an 8×15 room. Needless to say, we grew in community living. The mornings of March in Malaysia, we spent our time at a special needs school just a few blocks away. The lessons I learned from those ‘kids’ were more, I’m sure, than I taught them. I hesitate to say kids, because many of them were my age, if not older.
Benny is 9. He’s enthusiastic, and is sneakier than he seems. He listens well, and knows when he’s done something wrong. He loves to hold hands and be next to someone as often as you’ll let him. He brings his classmate around when he gets lost, and never hesitates to help.
Tan Jei, also known as Jei Fu, around the same age as Benny, is the best dancer I’ve ever met. He’s way better than I am, without question. He doesn’t hesitate to live as he wants, to dance without care, and to smile more than he frowns. Tan Jei loves high fives and to be dance partners. He has down syndrome, but doesn’t let anything stand in the way of what he wants. He’s one of the sweetest kids I’ve ever met.
Kumara is by far one of the best people in the world. He’s 23, and if you can imagine, he laughs even more than I do. A rare thing, but he somehow accomplishes it. He’s excellent at badminton, and is easily encouraged by a smile and a thumbs up. He also loves high fives, and gets embarrassed when people take his photo. He’s not the best at drawing or cutting things out, but his genuine love for people outweighs that. The world says he isn’t completely up to par with us, but he leads others with authenticity and loves life more than I think I ever could.
Each person in that attends that school has a story, a unique one that we can all learn from. Fong Min has extreme patience, and guides the other kids along. Raj loves to eat, and isn’t afraid to ask for what he wants. He is hilarious, and hates exercise. Anne Lee is 20, and is tiny. She doesn’t talk much, but is very quick to listen. James 1:19 anyone? Fahti also doesn’t say much, but hung on to Molly the entire time. A little attention went a long way with him. Srei is a tiny girl that couldn’t put her foot down all the way, but that didn’t stop her from trying all the outdoor activities. Perseverance is the name of her game.
Each kid had an inexplicable joy about them, a joy for life that is unmatched by any of us. They taught me how to live life to the fullest, to treat each other with respect, to “count it all joy, despite various trials”. (James 1:2). Despite the fact that they live in a country that lives under Sharia law, making it illegal for me to tell Malays about Jesus, it was clear they have the imprint of the Risen one on their hearts. What beautiful people to learn from.
