Deja vu – “a feeling of already experienced the present situation; tedious familiarity.”
It’s the same place, but completely different people. It’s the same cafe, but completely different conversations. It’s the same sights, but a completely different beauty. It’s the same ministry, but a different position on the team. It’s the same country, but completely different views. It’s the same mission, but a completely different squad. It’s the same country, AND I know that I am different.
This month in Cambodia has felt a little bit like deja vu. I never expected that I would be back in this country; seeing the same landscapes, smelling the same smells, tasting the same food, but here I am. There is something a little comforting about returning to a familiar place. I already know the transportation, the cool places to see, the way to talk to people; it’s kinda cool. The locals still point and stare when I ride by on a tuk tuk (I mean, a blonde hair, blue eyed girl is a bit out of place here) and they are so surprised when I can say “hello” in their language.
This month I got to see so much more of the culture and people of Cambodia. I got to experience the Killing Fields and see first-hand the gravity of the devastation these people had gone through in the recent past. I have gone to a temple that is 300 years OLDER than Angkor Wat and see the rich history of their ancestors. I got to hear the testimony of a woman who was alive during the reign of the Khmer Rouge and her experience in the midst of an era of terror. I have ridden from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap looking out the window and experiencing the beauty of this country. The colors are so saturated, almost unreal, that my mind starts to convince me that this isn’t real. I’ve seen it before, but never with this much attention.
I have been able to partner with two teams this past month, during my deja vu period, and see the Lord work in amazing ways. Our Unsung Heroes team was provided and blessed over and over again with the ministries they encountered, and could barely contain their amazement at how much the Lord could provide. One other team got to experience life in a village just outside Siem Reap, teaching english to elementary school children of all ages, visiting villages and putting on children’s programs, and sharing their testimonies.
The one moment that I could clearly indicate as real was September 28th. We had just finished church unregularly early, and we went to visit the family of one of the teachers. We were told that the teacher’s father had been partially paralyzed for over a year now, and recently the family allowed a Buddhist temple in their home. We went to pray for healing in the man, and he in turn chose to receive Christ. Spiritual healing over physical healing; what an amazing sight to witness!
Cambodia has been great, and strangely familiar. God has been moving in the squad as the teams have grown closer to the Lord and each other in true community, and it has been such a blessing to watch the Lord move in amazing ways! I am so excited to see what the Lord has in store for L squad these next 4 months, and am so stoked to be on a ride of a lifetime!
