We can only describe this first week in Malaysia as living on God’s provision. It has been absolutely crazy watching God provide for our team this week in Port Klang, Malaysia.
If there is one thing we have learned from being in Malaysia, it is that they love to eat! Every time we get together, there is more than enough food to go around and they are not satisfied until you have had about four of five servings of food. We are still trying to learn the cultural, polite, and acceptable way of saying, “I literally cannot put any more food into my mouth!” However, almost every meal we have had has been phenomenal, so we are thankful for the full plates! Almost all of our meals have been provided by church members who have opened their homes to us to served us food while we fellowship and get to know one another.
Amidst doing other ministry, the lesson we have taken away from our first several days in Malaysia is how well Malaysians love others. The people we have met welcome us with open arms before even knowing our names, treating us like family the instant we meet.
And family we have become.
It is a supernatural connection we have had with other believers around the world. There are some people we have only shared one or two hours with, but we will remember them and cherish their friendships forever. We may not perform church services the same, we may not speak the same language, and we may not even know how to pronounce their names sometimes, but none of that matters when you meet another heart that loves the Lord as much as you do. There is a joy that radiates when you look into their eyes that can only be explained by the love of Jesus. As Christians, we all carry that same joy, you just have to make sure others can see that in you as well.
So I want all of us to learn from the Malaysian culture today: Welcome people with open arms. Smile when you walk past a stranger, give someone a hug, be genuine when you talk to others. Allow other people to see the joy God so graciously gives you every day. When we get back to the States, and we settle into a home, I want to be that same kind of person. Who welcomes people into their homes and give above and beyond to those closest to us, and to those we don’t even know.
