Month 3 has flown by. My team is joined this month with another team on our squad and it has been the sweetest gift to be a team of 12 for the holidays. This month we have been working with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) in Penang, Malaysia. This month, we have been BUSY.
I think December has flown by because we haven’t stopped moving. Our ministry this month has been all over the place and crazy. BUT, it has been crazy good! We have done so many random things and it has been super sweet to see how the Lord moves in each one.
We have helped our host move, we have volunteered and cooked at a homeless outreach, we have helped fix up the house we are living in, we have performed the Christmas story for a church, we have volunteered as leaders at a high school/middle school Christian camp, and a whole lot more. It has been a month filled with exposure and tangible experiences of loving people simply because of their creator. I have witnessed what it means to say, “yes” and go with joy, because you are entitled to.
Malaysia is a country under law that if you are Muslim you legally cannot convert to any other religion, including Christianity. If you are ‘caught’ evangelizing to people you are deported, and if you are caught straying away from the Muslim religion, you are arrested. This made ministry look different this month. You have to be asked about your beliefs in order to share the gospel. This made sharing this good news more relational, which I absolutely loved. We made fruitful relationships, built lasting friendships, and just loved on others- which then led to sharing who Jesus is. The gospel truly comes alive when someone who has never heard about Jesus, learns His name. Their face fills with light and you can feel the joy of the Lord- it is so cool.
I got to witness this the camp we were leaders at. It was called FIREZ and was very similar to a DiscipleNow or YoungLife Camp. The difference was that even though the camp was logistically similar, the crowd wasn’t. there were about 400 students there all coming from different backgrounds. Some were Buddhists, some were Hindu, some didn’t believe in anything, and some were Christian. It was hard to notice how many obstacles were standing in the way of these students and them having a relationship with the Lord. He is relentlessly pursuing but the enemy hides himself in religion and masks the truth. The really insane part was that God is already working in Malaysia, and at FIREZ Camp. He didn’t need us to further His kingdom- but rather orchestrated the opportunity for us to be a part of this camp, have similarities within the students, and simply love them.
Many of these students do not claim any self-worth simply from culture. They don’t know how awesome they are, they aren’t encouraged in their dreams; they are told what to do.
So, at this camp, we had the opportunity to love them, complement them on how incredible they are, and just listen to their stories. This opened such a space of confidence and trust. Being told that they are not measured of what they can give, but simply loved because they are a child of God blew their minds. So many children of the Kingdom came forward in those three days. Having their eyes opened to know that He is the only one who fills us up left me in awe, such a space of bringing Heaven to Earth. An incredible way to welcome celebrating the birth of Jesus.
Celebrating Christmas here was sweet. For a country who doesn’t celebrate the coming of Jesus, they sure have all the Christmas lights- felt right at home. Being away from home is always weird, especially on the holidays. We all came together and made sure everyone felt pieces of home on the 25th. We decorated the house with paper snowflakes and a tinsel tree, played secret Santa, and shared a meal together. Celebrating our King and being reminded that physically I am away from family, but wherever Jesus is, is where I want to be. Christmas morning celebrating the coming king with all my sisters in Christ, all knowing we are where we are because He intentionally placed us there was such gift.
