Ministry of the month
This month our team had a little bit different ministry. We were working on what is called the Unsung Hero’s Campaign. Our ministry this month was to find local ministries in Siem Reap that the World Race could potentially partner with in the future. We spent the month visiting a lot of churches and meeting with a lot of really cool people and ministries.
Church situation
This month, we visited a lot of churches! The churches in Siem Reap were our main focus in finding people to partner with. There wasn’t a single Sunday that we didn’t go to at least two churches. The churches here are doing something right because they all kept me wanting to come back next week! It was great getting to experience and worship with so many great people this month!
Favorite memory
On my birthday, my team went out to dinner and then went and got cake and ice cream. On the way there, we met Jame. You can find the story about him in my previous blog titled Jame and Jesus.
Biggest challenge
Our team had unlimited internet this month and I think we all struggled to stay connected here in Cambodia and with each other as we connected so frequently with friends and family back home. A lot of free time was spent wasting away staring at a computer screen, mindlessly surfing the web. Needless to say, I am so glad we won’t have much access to internet next month!
Food
Like Thailand, the food here did not disappoint. We had fried rice often. Lok Luk was a dish with beef, tomato, cucumber, onion and french fries with a gravy sauce served over rice! One of the best dishes we had this month (and we had it often!). We also had a lot of Mexican food as there was one of the best Mexican restaurants we have come across all year (and perhaps better than some in the states!). One of the nights, the ladies on my team went to a Cambodia BBQ place. They serve all kinds of meat and little grills are on the table (we were in charge of grilling our own meat). They had normal things like chicken, beef and pork, but we also had shark, crocodile, squid and barracuda. All of them were delicious and I enjoyed being the grill master for the night!
Random WR moment
In order to travel anywhere in Cambodia, we rode in tuk tuks. These are little 4 person trailer with a roof that is connected to the back of a moped. On the way back from church one afternoon while it was raining, we put all six of our team members in one and headed downtown to get dinner. We made sure to strategically pack and unpack ourselves from the tuk tuk in order to not tip it over.
Funniest moment
Our team this month did a virtual team time. We all joined one chat on facebook and began sharing pictures, you tube videos and lots of laughter (assumed based on the amount of haha and lols typed because we were not actually together).
What I will miss
I will miss the hostel workers saying “good morning, guest!” each morning I walk down the stairs.
I will miss the church services led in English and full of passion and praise!
I will miss the little two year old girl that lived at our hostel and the joyous laughter that continuously sprang from her contagious smile.
I will miss having conversations with the hostel workers about live and God.
I will miss feeling a little bit like home as our friends stopped us on the streets for a short “Hello and how are you?”
Spiritual lesson/revelation
Often, we don’t get the privilege of seeing the result of things we do on a daily, monthly, or yearly basis. This year has been marked with questions about whether the things that we have been doing really matter. Are we really making any difference in the lives of those around us? Will anything even come from the seeds we have planted? I still often have those questions. I couldn’t answer them if I tried. But, I trust. I trust that this year has been full of purpose. I trust that the smallest interaction has meaning. I trust that the name Jesus has power!
Prayer requests
Pray for our teams as we head into our last month of the race. Pray for focus and a willingness to gain and learn as much as possible from each other this month.
Pray for the churches we met this month; that they might continue to spread the love of Jesus throughout Siem Reap.
Pray for Hope International as they seek to find the need in Siem Reap and plan to beginning the work of a community center there.
Pray for our families and friends as the reality of us returning home in a month sets in!
