15 Things I Learned in Malaysia

 

 

  1. Curry and I are not friends….enough said on that topic.

  2. There are always opportunities to serve and in places you’d never think of, even away from the “ministry site”….walking around the neighborhood, dropping off/picking up laundry, working out, McDonald’s (seriously), and even getting Chapati (food) from the road side stand down the street.

  3. Too much down time is dangerous for me. (Often my mind would wonder to what life would look like after the Race…what kind of job?, should I go back to school?, where will I live?, etc) I was worrying more about what will happen after the next 5 months instead of living in the present with God and my team.

  4. Plans change…roll with it! You can plan an entire day out, but just know that your day will almost always end up looking very different! This is 100% what everyday on the World Race is!!! (You’d think I would be used to plans or circumstances always changing, but some habits die harder than others)

  5. I am happier than a kid at Christmas when I find a normal toilet instead of a squatty potty!

  6. Squatty potties give you killer legs and improve your balance!

  7. Malaysia is as humid and hot as Georgia is in the summer time, but Malaysia is like that year round.

  8. McDonald’s and KFC run the world, unfortunately. (They both have been in every country that we have been in so far)

  9. Malaysian children grow up having to be Muslim, they do not have a choice, and are taught the Islamic beliefs in school.

  10. Malaysian beaches and sunsets are some of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen.

  11.  There isn’t religious freedom in Malaysia. We were not allowed to tell others that we were Christian missionaries, but instead that we were students studying abroad teaching English.

  12.  It’s incredible when you  get a chance to talk about Jesus with a Hindu.

  13. Demon possession is very VERY real. We went to an orphanage where 3 children were possessed by demons (one girl was possessed by several demons) and under the leadership and supervision of our contact, Pastor Mark, all 3 children were delivered from the demons into the hands of God.

  14. I’m starting to come around to not having hot showers and sometimes even enjoy the cold showers.

  15. I will always remember and cherish the time spent with our contact, Pastor Mark, his wife Tina, and their children: Krishen, Aaron and Esther. I have never felt so connected to any of the other contacts in the other countries. Pastor Mark and his family truly treated Team Phoenix as part of their family.