While in Cambodia, I saw another side of God that has previously only been a shadow to me; the side of an excited Father, ready to give his precious daughter gifts and blessings that could only lift up and bless her in a way that He could.
Throughout my time of wanting and applying to go on the Race, I always kind of secretly wished there was a route that ventured closer to Germany, if not into Germany. I wanted to be able to use my ability and knowledge of speaking the language to further God’s kingdom. A lot of people speak Spanish and would be able to use that on most of the routes on the Race, but I wanted to contribute. I thought that me speaking German this next year might be a lost cause, not even bothering to recognize I serve a magnificent God who could make anything happen.
I walked into month one not knowing what to expect. Right off the bat, God catered to my heart. My ministry host for the month was born and raised in Switzerland and spoke Swiss-German. He had two young daughters, four and six, who spoke German as well. I was able to speak to them in German. It was such a sweet treat to talk to these girls in German everyday, laughing and playing, being able to love and pour into them in a language they grew up knowing. But that was just the beginning of God’s giftings to me that month.
One night while we were out for Family Night with the students, we all went to the boat festival that was in town. We were on a street off of the river getting some food when this young woman started asking me about whether they grill the food or not. This still being only my first week in town, I had no idea. But talking to her I somewhat recognized her accent so I had to ask where she was from. She said Germany and I got really excited! I switched to German and asked her where she was from. Not only is she from Germany but she is from my favorite city in Germany, Berlin! Her name is Isa and she truly is one of the coolest people ever.
By this point the students I was with were trying to rush me away to meet up with the rest of our group because our meeting time was fast approaching. I quickly told her that I was going to be a nearby cafe on Sunday at noon if she would like to join me for some coffee and get to know each other better. She said she would try and that was enough for me to be even more excited about that upcoming Sunday!
Sunday came and Isa met me at the coffee shop. We sat and talked for about two hours, just getting to know each other, why we were in Battambang, how we will both be away from home until August, about our boyfriends, the organizations we were with, our passions, what we want to continue studying when we get back to school, and so much more! By the end of it, I knew i had a new amazing friend. Isa’s heart for others and life is contagious and she truly brings flare and life into a room. To say meeting her is a blessing is an understatement. We call each other our American/German soulmate.
This month, God showed me His love for me by giving and blessing me with things that truly bring joy to my heart. Yes, I was blessed with the opportunity to speak German and given a new best friend, but He also blessed me through the ministry I was in.
