See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
-Isaiah 43:19
Searching for the water in the desert… looking for it everywhere and not finding it… looking in the wrong places…
That can basically sum up my time in Vietnam. I’ll be honest and tell you that it was definitely not my favorite month. In fact, it was the hardest month of the Race for me so far. But, it was not because of anything specific… not because I did not like the work we were doing… or the people…
It was because I wandered into the desert and could not find my way out.
Spiritually, it was a dry month for me. And because of that, I was also exhausted emotionally and physically most days. I felt like I was pouring out everything I had, but not finding the “water” to fill my own cup. The water that only Christ can give me.
The desert is not a fun place to be. As I was walking through it, one of the girls on the squad, in a conversation with one of her teammates, said something along these lines…
It is easy to spend time with the Lord and praise Him when everything is going good… But, what about those times when we don’t feel so good? When we feel distant from God? When we just don’t feel like spending time with Him? How much more does it show our love for God when we seek Him even when we do not want to.
I felt more empty this month than I can ever remember feeling. But, I think God was teaching me a lot through it. He was teaching me about perseverance, leaning on Him for wisdom, and how important it is to go to Him for that “water” I was searching all month for.
While Nam was not my favorite month, I did have some good times there!
Here are some pictures from our month…
Traffic is crazy there… motos everywhere!
We used sleeper buses for transportation to visit a couple of our teams. We had a couple long rides in these “beds.” Our first trip was 21 hours and the second was 23 hours.
Most of our teams spent their month helping Vietnamese practice their English. We would go to the local coffee shops and sit with a group of Vietnamese and simply talk…. Talk about whatever.
Top two conversations that always seemed to come up for me…
-What are my thoughts on Vietnam: Did I like it here? What did I think of the traffic? The food?
-Dating: Am I dating anyone? Why not? Why do I not try to find a boyfriend in Vietnam? Am I attracted to Vietnamese men? What is dating like in the States?
I actually loved these coffee chats. I learned a lot from them and had a lot of fun visiting with university students around my age.
The boys and I enjoyed a lot of street food this month…
Our favorites:
Fried noodles with pork and egg
and Doner Kebabs
This is District 7 of Ho Chi Minh City… looks like the United States!
And a few more pics…
PS… Happy Easter 🙂
The team I am with this month had a lovely Easter… Party for the children yesterday… decorafed about 150 eggs to give to the congregation this morning… Had a 5 hour long church service today… and then a big Indian potluck with the church… Now a team dinner at Chili's!
Not quite the same as an Easter at home… But it was a perfect Easter in Malaysia 🙂
