Nick and I had planned to ride our bicycles to the market to get some ice cream, a well-deserved treat after our first week of ministry here in Cambodia. I was ready to go and waiting for him on the road outside of our ministry complex. I became impatient and decided to turn around to see what was taking him so long. But of course, I saw him coming out of the gate as soon as I turned around. As I’m turning back around, I ran out of room on the narrow, dirt road. My bike came to a stop and I was parallel to the small, overgrown ditch on the side of the road. I had just enough time to realize what was happening when I slow-motion fell, bike and all, into a briar patch. Nick rode by in a fit of laughter and finally turned around when I yelled at him that it wasn’t funny and that I was in a lot of pain.
He had to first get the bike off of me and then detach one of my chacos from a bramble of thorns. I literally could not move any part of my body without getting stuck with another thorn. He had to pull me out with both of my hands and then detach my hair. My fingers were bleeding and I could feel tiny thorns in my hands, my arm, my foot, and my legs. I was afraid to sit back on the bike because I had thorns in my shorts! It wasn’t until we started walking our bikes back to the complex that I was able to laugh about what had just happened. If he had been filming it, it probably would have ended up on America’s Funniest Home Videos.
After having to explain why we had returned so quickly from getting ice cream, I showered and started the slow process of getting the thorns out. With each one I pulled out, I felt better. It is crazy how something so small can cause so much pain, discomfort, and deter us from living fully. I’ve learned that this is true in life as well. Built up emotions like shame, regret, or unforgiveness (over the smallest things) can torment us. They hinder us from experiencing the fullness of Jesus and being able to love others. It is a process to remove all the thorns (I still have a few in my hands) and it is not something you can do by yourself. You need Jesus and other believers (a beautiful thing we call community) to help you.
In other news, we just finished up our first week of ministry here in Siem Reap, Cambodia. We are living in the beautiful facilities at Cambodian Ministries for Christ International and teaching English there in the evenings to local kids. We are also teaching English and bible stories to kids in two villages about 30 minutes away. Most of the kids go to school but then come to English classes for additional practice. They are SO eager to learn! I have loved being back in Cambodia (although I’m about 6 hours away from where I was in 2013) and I am reminded of why I love this place. This country has such a tragic history and the Khmer Rouge affected every family in some way during their regime in the 1970’s. Yet, they have not given up and work so hard to build a better future for themselves. The only thing they need is Jesus and that is my biggest prayer! Please pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to open up doors for conversations about Jesus and that our students would understand the love of our Savior!
