If you had asked me how month six in Malaysia was going pretty much anytime throughout the month, I would have said it’s NOT my favorite (and that’s politely putting it). The last few days on the farm, however, redeemed the month and made me realize once again how good our God really is. Rewind first. I think I hit that 6 month wall that I hear horror stories about on the race. Honestly, I thought I escaped the “hard” parts and was just cruising right along lovin’ life. Malaysia brought out the diva in me.
I was sick of being around my team ALL THE TIME. I can hardly even use the bathroom alone. Seriously.
I was sick of being dirty and showering with a bucket in muddy water.
I was sick (and so were my quads) of squatting over a stinky hole as a toilet–gross, I know.
I was sick of not eating healthy. Ramen noodles, cans of tuna, and fried food was just not cutting it.
I was sick of having to hide under my smelly, dirty sleeping bag in order to get some sort of quiet time.
I was sick of the same clothes, my nappy hair, no makeup and never feeling pretty (superficial, I know…but true).
I was tired from the physical labor. “Farming” should have been called “man-strength-leech-and-mosquito-infested-hot-sweaty jungle hacking”.
I was sick of this race. OVER IT.
Ah! That scares me to even type! This journey has been beyond words amazing, truly, and I was throwing a pity party for myself. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t moping around all month…but I had my moments. I emailed a friend back home who’s been on the race (thanks Bekah) and she knew exactly where I was coming from. She said even though there are months that just aren’t your favorite, find someone to really pour into and connect with.
I fell in love with the Bangladesh workers.
They are really beautiful people inside and out. We worked alonside them from 9am until 5 pm six days a week and I was exhausted. These men work 12 hour days 7 days a week….for YEARS. My heart breaks for them and their families that they have to spend so many years apart. Unfortunately, it’s a way of life for them but they were so happy!
Their smiles and laughter got me through those long days. Joy was a recurring theme for my team this month and really trying to focus on finding joy in everything. We are called to
Praying was another thing God really laid on my heart this month. He totally answered prayers as little as hitch-hiking the 6 mile walk to internet and no more leech bites, to big ones like giving one of the men a dream of Jesus (we prayed Manik would have dreams about Jesus–statistically a lot of Muslims come to Christ because of dreams). I love that God really does care about the little details of our lives. He just wants us to come to him in everything, and pray continually. I’ve found it isn’t easy either, but I’m amazed time and time again of the power of prayer and I want to continue to pursue that.
Saturday we planned to go bring the men lunch and share with them what Christ has done in our lives. God showed up and provided us not only with a translator, but one who was a missionary/pastor. Pastor Erwin contextualized what was shared to ensure safety on both ends because of the religious persecution here. I love that God always knows what we need more than we do. So Friday night, we did a prayer watch from 10 pm-7am with each person taking a different hour throughout the night. We prayed that the men would be open to hearing what God wanted them to know and that the Holy Spirit would stir inside of them.
Once again, God showed up and that time we spent having lunch with them made the countless hours of sweat and hard labor totally worth it. We got there with a fancy McDonald’s lunch around noon to find that the men cleaned up the tent where we ate. They were so darn cute! Each one of them changed out of their work clothes into their best outfits for us. I had such a great time with them and another answered prayer. A lot of the men were very receptive to what we had to say and engaging, while some others stared blankly. If one seed was planted that day for God to continue growing, then I know we did what he called us to do.
The one day on the farm we actually farmed got me thinking about planting and what a great theme it is in Malaysia for my team. We planted teeny tiny seeds that we had to drop only one in each hole. It was hard and tedious because the seeds were so much smaller than our fingers. Only two weeks later, we saw our baby lettuces slowly but surely starting to grow. My team was the first group to come to the farm and share the gospel. We were there to plant the seed of the love of Jesus Christ in the hearts of the workers. I love that situations like this grow my faith because I have nothing to do now but rely on God. I can only pray that he’s going to use the small seed, water it and continue to grow it. While I would love to be on the reaping side of things, I know that isn’t God’s plan for me right now. And really, I don’t care what side of the “farming” I’m on because I want God to get all of the glory. He really humbled me this month in assuring me that He doesn’t need me to do anything. But I am called to obey and that’s what I’ll continue to strive for so that we can bring God’s Kingdom down to earth.
Amanda, me, Cas and Christy after our hair cuts!
We travel to Cambodia on the 31st! We will be working in a school and church teaching english. Check out their website! Please pray for safe travels for my squad and for God to prepare our minds and hearts for Cambodia and the people we will be serving. Love you all and thank you for your continued prayers and support!
