So, I’m here in Cambodia and loving my last
month on the race despite the intense heat. But not a day goes by without me
thinking about last month in Vietnam and the experiences that made that month
one of my favorites.
Vietnam is a closed country, which means that
it is illegal to share the gospel of Jesus. I went into the month knowing that
if God opened the door, I would totally share his love with people. Well, he
did open doors and I had the opportunity to share His love with so many people.
I have to tell you about them.
The second week we were there, we hosted a
youth night with about 30 youth and adults. At the last minute they asked me to
MC, and I gladly accepted. We had a blast just laughing, sharing testimonies, worshipping and eating delicious food. I had the opportunity to share the
beautiful love story of God and humanity, and begin conversations with the
students we formed relationships with. I was up there sharing and just thinking
to myself, what an honor. What an honor I have to share Jesus in a closed
country. I was overwhelmed with the opportunity and the love people experienced
that night.
The third week of ministry we went up to Nha
Trang, a beautiful beach town and spent time with the elderly, the lepers and
the youth. I had really been looking forward to it because God had given me a
dream a few months before about healing lepers. In the dream a man leaned out
of the door of what it seemed to be a church, and wanted me to touch his hand.
I was so afraid I would get leprosy that I wouldn’t touch him. Right after that
scene, I felt so sorry and asked God to give me another chance to show
compassion. The next scene was in a hospital with a family that had a young
boy. They asked me to pray for him, and I gladly did. I touched his sweet
little hand and he was healed. That dream made me stoked to someday touch the
lepers. I just wanted to show them how loved, wanted and desired they are and I
got the chance to do it. The fact they have been abandoned by their families
and forced to live alone breaks my heart. I touched the lepers in Nha Trang. We
held hands, I prayed for them and I loved their gentle spirits. The trip to Nha
Trang was one of my favorite, jam packed 3 days of ministry on the race.
The last week a few of my teammates and I
hosted a discipleship day. That probably was one of my favorite days of the
race. We had a twelve hour day of teaching, worshipping, praying, eating, and
laughing with the students. They were amazing. They learned about the Holy
Spirit, the Love of the Father and the heart of Jesus for them. We cried, got
freedom, revelation of God’s love and laughed with excitement for the new found
joy of the Lord. I will never forget that day. It was like I was getting a new
part of my inheritance, and truly making disciples of all nations. I was living
out the Bible in real life, and it was beautiful.
Meeting the sweetest Binky was another
unforgettable moment last month and I blogged about her a couple weeks ago. We had
a very sad goodbye the day we left, and Bethany and I have kept in touch with
her. She is just loving Jesus, listening to worship music, getting connected
with friends in the city and reading her Bible. She’s stolen my heart for sure.
Our entire month was spent in the busy part of
Ho Chi Minh and I made friends with the cutest old man named B, and his friend
David. A week before we left, I shared my faith with David, and it was great because he listened and understood. He wasn’t ready to make a decision and said he needed to think about this Jesus who took the punishment for his sin. I loved sharing with him even though he didn’t accept. This man B stole my heart the moment I saw him just exercising outside his
apartment faithfully everyday. I love old people and Vietnam is like the mecca
for cute old people. Nobody’s messing around there, and this dear old man was
the friendliest, sweetest man I’d met. I knew I wanted to share the love of
Jesus with him before I left and so each day I said hi to him, spent time
talking to him and the day before I left I was able to tell him how much Jesus
loved him. He listened, asked questions and politely told me thank you for
sharing but he wasn’t ready to receive Jesus’ love for him. It broke my little
heart but I have faith that I planted a seed in his heart and that He knows the
truth now, and he didn’t before.
I heart you Nam!
