These two months in Cambodia I am working at a little Christian school, New Hope, for kids in the nearby villages from ages 4-14. Their vision here is to tell the truth about God’s word while also giving them an opportunity to have a decent job when they get older so that they don’t get stuck in the cycle of sex trafficking. I personally teach 4 and 5 year olds everyday and man has it taught me a whole lot about love and patience. It has been such a privilege, so far, being able to pour into these kids, loving on them in different ways because most of the words they know in English are animals and numbers.
Alongside my ministry this month comes the many lessons that Jesus is teaching me. The first couple hours of my midmorning are spent cooking with some of the women here, preparing lunch for my team and their family. I realized that I have gotten into the rhythm of things and haven’t truly stepped back for even a second to glance at what a wonderful opportunity I have.
Living across the world for 9 months is anything but normal but somehow, it’s difficult to see that the things that I’m seeing around me aren’t normal at times until I step back and really look at the little details of my life.
Something that I have consistently loved doing in every country thus far is doing the dishes. Recently, one of my teammates asked me why and how I could love doing the dishes every time and how I don’t get tired of it. I realized that doing the dishes is the one thing that will need to be done in every country, no matter where I am. Dishes are what make me feel like a normal human being.
I forget that seeing a 5 year old and his 2 year old little brother herding cows is not normal. I forget that the smell of the air is not always the smell of trash burning. That communication with strangers isn’t always going to be people who speak a different language. That seeing chickens constantly running around everywhere I go is not normal. That waking up next to 34 other girls every morning is not normal. That sometimes the sweet lady who does your laundry continually tries talking to you on her moped when she sees you in town. That 16 kindergarteners could capture my heart in a way that doesn’t even seem possible is not normal. That eating criss-cross on the floor everyday for lunch is not normal.
So, I do the dishes.
I get used to living SO in the moment that I forget to reflect on my life and really just be thankful. Thankful for the life that Jesus has given me. The fact that He chose me to be in Cambodia today, that He planned this for me when He created the universe. That He would love me THIS much to allow me to see more of His absolutely beautifully unique world and that I would get to learn more about Him in this way. That I would get to meet more and more of His sons and daughters; that I would get to hear about how He is radically changing people’s lives from a completely different perspective.
These are most of the sweet kids I get to teach!
