For our team, ministry in Malaysia looked a lot different than the other teams on our squad.
Our leadership prayed and felt God telling them to give us an Ask the Lord month. So instead of giving us a ministry host and other normally vital details, our only instructions were to follow the Lord wherever He leads.
As a team, we were both excited and nervous for the month that lied ahead.
I was excited for the freedom that came along with getting to choose the ministry that I would be doing. I knew that the month would be filled with using the passions that God gave me to bring Kingdom in Malaysia.
Side note: When I say bring Kingdom, I mean displaying what Heaven looks like on Earth. Anytime we are following God and being obedient to what He says to do we are living a Kingdom lifestyle and displaying His glory on Earth.
Along with the excitement, I was also nervous I wouldn’t be able to hear God’s voice or that I would somehow misunderstand His leadings.
Despite my nervousness, ministry in Malaysia was incredible to say the least.
Each morning I’d wake up, spend as much time as I wanted reading my Bible and praying. Sometimes that was 30 minutes and sometimes it was a few hours. This precious time was my favorite part of the month. We didn’t have a schedule rushing us in the morning. We were able to ease into the day and start it off right.
After spending time in prayer I would sometimes feel God leading me to the homeless on the streets or to go on a prayer walk.
One morning, my teammate Haley and I both felt God telling us to invest in the homeless and beggars near our hostel.
As we walked, we saw two women with multiple kids sitting on opposite ends of a covered construction walkway.
Instead of just walking past them, we intentionally looked them in the eyes, smiled and then sat down next to them.
They were a little confused at first, but they warmed up to us.
We played with the kids and made them smile and laugh for what seemed like the first time in forever.
One of the women spoke more English than the other and we were able to sit and have conversations about life with her throughout our time in Kuala Lumpur.
She shared her life story with us. She and her children had to flee Burma because of the persecution against Muslims. Her husband died and she was trying her best to provide a better life for her children. She was registered with the United Nations and would soon have the opportunity to go to a refugee camp in Wisconsin.
We bought her some necessities and a new toy/candy for each of her kids. There wasn’t much we could do to help her current situation.
So we did the only thing we could do, we loved her.
Spending time with her and her children was my favorite ministry during my time in Malaysia.
Our team also plugged into an international church called Kingdom City while we were in Kuala Lumpur. We went to 3 Sunday morning services, including their 10 year celebration service, and attended a women’s conference. It was a breath of fresh air to attend an English speaking church for the first time in 9 months.
One morning at Kingdom City we met a woman that had her own special needs ministry. We told her we were looking for ministry opportunities in the city and she invited us to volunteer at her ministry. It was called . They had students of all ages and disabilities. We were able to volunteer for 2 days and it was the 2 most humbling days of my life. The grace, love and patience that the workers displayed had me wanting more of what they had. They loved the students so well and encouraged them to learn and grow everyday.
Between working with the special need students and homeless ministry we did life on purpose. Everywhere we went we kept our eyes open to ways the Lord could be working in the people around us. We started up conversations with people who were in line with us at the ice cream stand and the people sitting next to us at dinner. We shared about what God was doing in our life and the places He has taken us. We hoped that each conversation made an impact on their lives, even if it only lasted a few minutes.
Our time spend in Malaysia prepared me for home. We were just doing life, but paying more attention. And that’s exactly how I want to live when I come back home to America.
I hope this makes you want to live life with eyes wide open too, if you aren’t doing so already.
Love,
Taylor
