Blogging is hard for me. It really is. I can’t help it. I knew it already, but it has been brought to my attention that the people who are making this thing happen with either their money, prayers, encouragement, or any other type of support – they deserve to know what it is I am really doing. I haven’t done a sufficient job since I’ve been on the race actually communicating what it is I am actually doing. So… what the heck to do World Racers do??
This month, I am primarily teaching English to Cambodian children of all ages. My team and I take turns teaching classes during the day and a Bible study at night. We grow relationships with our students and have one-one-one tutoring time with some of them after class. We ask them about their lives and we share our own stories with them. Our contact is gracious enough to make breakfast, lunch, and dinner for us everyday which usually consist of rice, noodles, and vegetables. We have some free time in the morning where we have gone on prayer walks, house visits, picked up trash in the area, or helped in the rice fields. Other times us girls do a Bible study together or have our personal quiet time. At night we have team time which could include giving feedback to one another, playing a game, having worship or devotion, watching a movie, or some other creative activity.
Obviously, the daily list of activities is different every month. We live in a different place, eat different food, have different schedules, etc. We work hard and give it our all during the week when we are doing specific “ministry”. We technically have one day off each week, what we like to call fun days- often times we travel to other cities and find yummy food and good internet. It’s up to the individual to go beyond the call of duty and be proactive in doing ministry. No one asks us to go and talk to our neighbors, or care for the orphans in our community, or pick up trash, or play soccer with the kids, or help cook a meal or clean the house. Our “job” is to teach English. It’s also our job to figure out how we can best show the love of Jesus to the people we are around and how we can make a difference, however small that may be.
Though the race is about the people we have come to be with in each country, it is also about your team. The team of people God has surrounded you with to do life alongside of. We eat together, sleep next to one another, travel together, share together, cry together, laugh together, and have fun together. The “team” is where you are encouraged and stretched to grow and change and challenged to communicate with even when it’s frustrating and difficult.
It’s difficult to communicate what actually happens on a daily basis on the World Race because a lot of times it is so much! And other times, it’s not a heck of a lot. It’s easy to put your best foot forward on your blog and only show the good stuff, just like most people do on facebook or any other social media site. I wish I could strap a camera to me and you could see exactly what a day in the life looks like, but all you get to see is a five minute video that is a glimpse of an entire month.
If I were to tell you more about what this month is like I would tell you that we sweat a lot. We stare at the fan in front of us hoping that the power will come back on soon so we can get some relief. We eat our rice and noodles at every meal while we talk about foods we love to eat at home. We joke about our previous lives, what we used to look like, and the clothes we can’t wait to wear when we get home. We talk about home a lot. There a many times where you wish you could just be home but at the same time, you know in your heart you want to be here. You know that if you were to go home, you would want to be straight back in Cambodia sweatin your butt off. Why? Because we are learning what it means to live a Kingdom life. We are having the opportunity to be Jesus to people and serve them and love them the best we can. I know I fail miserably at that everyday and will never be perfect, but I am always learning. I know this year is going to go by fast and it will feel like a dream when I wake up in my cozy bed 7 months from now.
Fact is, making videos are fun and entertaining. If you put a good song to a boring slideshow of mundane pictures, it can make it look awesome! It’s like the movies, they cram a two year long relationship into 2 hours and all you see are the happy moments and completely forget to throw in the frustrations, arguments, hurts, and consequences of one’s actions.
We make videos of the fun days we have, of the times we are intentionally making memories and reflecting on where exactly we are and what were doing. It never really dawns on you to turn on the camera when your laying in your tent or walking to the squatty potty. Just like you probably don’t find in particularly interesting to drive to work, or turn on the TV after a long day. I totally understand it’s much different here because life is so different. But at the same time, this is our life now and you get used to it. You never think it’s totally normal, but you’ve been removed from the old normal for a long enough time that it’s no longer super entertaining.
I guess what I’m trying to say is I’m sorry if I ever portrayed a false front. I want people to know the real stuff, the struggles and harsdships, along with the victories and celebrations. I want people to know that their investment in helping me take this journey is changing my life! I will never be the same again. Though I’ve come to realize that I’m more a bullet point type of girl, I hope to reveal to you the deeper things of this experience. My desire is for you to hear my heartbeat for God and His kingdom, even if that means you read a list and not a poetic story.
