- Where am I this month?
I'm in Penang, Malaysia…that's in Asia 🙂
It's a crazy busy city with three major ethnic groups (Chinese, Indian, and Malay) and
All the religions you can imagine (Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic, Christian and several others)
However, it is, majority, an Islamic country
- What am I doing here?
By Day I am working at a homeless shelter called Kawan Friends. I love my job. I get to serve meals to the
homeless community here in Penang. Not only that but I get to be an ear for those who want to tell their
stories, I get to be friends with the amazing people who run Kawan and with the hungry who walk through the
doors.
By Night I am helping at a children’s ministry called Door of Hope, where an amazing Chinese/Malay woman
has given up her entire life for God and to serve the children who come through her classroom door. I've
gotten to hear the incredible story that led Debra to leave her life of wealth and security and give up everything
she knew to follow the will of God. Currently, she runs a full service care program for children 3- 12 who can't
go to school. She feeds them 3 meals a day, teaches them how to eat well, bathes them, catches each
individual child up to where they should be if they were in school, and works a part time job in order to provide
the children with meals, keep the center open and free for the children.
When we go she thanks us excessively because she has no other help from the community aside from when
mission teams can come and help. Having visitors help is the only times that the children get the opportunity
to play outside because she is busy helping individual children with learning and it would be too dangerous
to send them out alone.
- What am I Learning?
I'm learning so much this month. I'm learning that God is living and working. The culture here is very closed
when it comes to preaching the Gospel. In fact it's very illegal to evangelize to Muslims. Nonetheless, they are
searching for something. The people here have hearts and souls and feelings and fears and questions just
like you and I do.
I've seen faith like I've never seen before. People who come to know Christ and would literally die before they
went back to their old religion. Jesus moves here and speaks to these people before they even know who he
is. I want to have faith like that and I'm working toward it every day.
Lifting every conflict, every worry, every relationship, every material thing, every thought, EVERYTHING up to
God and truly surrendering every part of my life to Jesus.
I'm learning to be thankful for every breath and every moment that God gives me.
Most of all, this month, I've learned WHY I came on the Race.
- Why I'm On The Race and What new things am I stepping into?
As with any group of people living together in a small space for a year, there is conflict. My team normally gets
along well but during a small conflict over ministry vs. community this month it hit me that all of us aren't on
the race for the same reasons. I realized that I didn't really come for community or the adventure of a life time.
My top reason for coming was the "ministries" we were going to be partnering with. I came because I couldn't
sit still knowing that there were children living in trash heaps, families starving to DEATH, women and
children being bought and SOLD like objects, people hopelessly TRAPPED in religions they wanted out of,
men women and children dying WITHOUT ever hearing the name of JESUS. I came because I wanted to pour
out everything that I could on the broken, destitute, abused, unwanted, unloved, sick, starving, hurt, and
hopeless.
I also wanted to hear and see the kind of faith that you hear about in books and stories. Faith that gives up
more than a cheeseburger for 5 days, a dollar to the homeless every now and then, and attends church
community if I feel like it that day. I'm talking about the faith that puts you on trial that has no back-up savings
or 401K but faith that has said "God here is every penny. It's yours. Here is all I have. Use it and use me."
Faith that you have to see to even believe!
I realized last week that I haven't always given it my everything here. I have held a dying child, given light to the
hopeless and broken, held the hands of orphans, fed the homeless, loved the unwanted and abused, shared
Christ’s love with people around the world. I've seen people come to Christ, I've heard stories of visions and
miracles, I've seen faith that is uncomprehendable but what is all of this if I'm not giving my all to the Lord
EVERY day?! Not just the days that I know will fill me up and satisfy what I came here for but giving it on the
days that I am tired or don't feel like it.
There was a man whose close relative was murdered. When he heard the news he went to his boat to be
alone and rowed out to a solitary place. However, a crowd of more than 5,000 people found him and wanted
him minister to them.
Despite the tragedy that had happened and the grief he must have felt, he didn't tell them to go away. Instead,
he started to heal their sick and provide food for them when they got hungry. Though he had little, he ended
up working miracles and feeding every person with food to spare.
That's who I want to live like. So, even in month 6 I'm stepping into something new. I'm going to give each day
my all. I'm going to get up even when I'm tired, or depressed, or just don't like what I have to do that day.
Even on my worst day God can use me if I invite him to.
(E-coli, hospital beds, lice checks and chocolate….girls night on the world race)
Fundraising Update:
On Feb 24. That's in 3 days. I am having a fundraising event inorder to raise the final
$3,200 I need to stay on the race. Which would be the best birthday present ever!
Please help me stay on the field by donating $24 on Feb. 24th Click Here to Donate
