I have made it to my home for 3 months.
Battambang, Cambodia
Battambang is a place full of cute coffee shops, many gorgeous temples, yummy food places, busy traffic, and joyful people.
I am already learning a lot about the culture here in Cambodia. I know how to say hello, goodbye, thank you, and much more. I am still learning a lot too!
The ministry that my team is working on during our stay here in Battambang is Ezra Ministries. My team and I get to teach English to kids and teens/adults ages 5 to 22 years old. It is a joy when your students come through the door and say, “Hi Teacher.” It always warms my heart.
Life is good really here and I am at complete peace.
However, please be in prayer for a few members on my squad. We have two or three racers on my squad who aren’t feeling the best. One has a cold and is getting better (but by protocol needed to go to the clinic to get checked out) and the other was up two nights ago throwing up and still isn’t feeling the best. Also, I would love prayer for my race personally. Before going on the race, I LOVED the word bold but I never ever truly knew how to put that word into play in my life. At launch, I was given a key for the journey. I was prayed over and leadership from Adventures in Missions listened to God and He gave me the word BOLD. It was crazy when I got this word because God was already working on this with me for years. Ever since I was young, I have been labeled “the quiet one” at school and places where I wasn’t comfortable quite yet. Except that wasn’t me. I was outgoing and known as the funny one at home and church and with friends and family, but once I stepped foot into school, all courage and confidence and boldness went away and I put on the label, “the quiet one.” I hated it growing up. That wasn’t me and I knew it. That was not who God made me to be. I am the funny Gabby, the positive Gabby, the encouraging Gabby, the adventurous Gabby, the dancing and singing Gabby, and so much more. This first week on the World Race has been great, however, a few nights ago, I felt like that again. Sort of invisible and unlike myself. It was hard because I kept putting myself down and telling myself I wasn’t wanted there because no one would talk to me or what not. The devil took my past and tried to put me back into that. He tried to tell me I wasn’t good enough and that I was invisible from one single thing that happened. But, that same night that I poured out my heart to my team and they encouraged me so much. Victoria told me that if I ever felt like they put a label on me saying I was quiet that they didn’t mean to and that I don’t have to claim that. That made me feel so much better because that reminded me that everything I was feeling was from the devil. The devil wants nothing else than to kick me off of this path and send me back home to my comfort and put duct tape over my mouth. But, I feel alive in Christ and I have so much peace and comfort here. I love that God is teaching me to be myself no matter where I am or who I am with. God is going to do big things and He has me in His hands.
Other than prayer and what God has been saying to me, this place has really felt like home. We have been able to bike around Battambang and visit coffee shops and talk with locals a lot since we’ve been here. We are staying with a wonderful host family who has been living here in Battambang for 3 and a half years. They are extremely welcoming and joyful!! They love like Jesus does and they disciple us so well. They also have three wonderful kids and a niece visiting. Each and every one of them make us feel like we are family. Sharelle, the mother of the family, is the teacher at Ezra Ministries. She teaches around 100 students ages 5-20 weekly. Youth groups and other World Race teams have come to Battambang and helped with teaching and with their library cafe in the past few years. Sharelle’s husband and kids work at the library and cafe and are working to build up that business of theirs. My teammate, Cara, and I get to help out a little on the advertisement side of the library cafe. We are also assigned the task of taking photos and videos of the cafe and school in order to show their supporters what is going on in Cambodia.
Prayer Requests:
1. Health and Safety
2. Growth in relationships (God and others)
3. Hearing God’s voice
4. Being present
5. Peace, Joy, Comfort
6. Etc.
Here are some photos from the first few days in Cambodia… look at those smiles!!
