This past month in Cambodia has taught me so much. Whether it was from the people around me challenging me and calling me higher, getting sick which showed me to slow down and just be still with God, or from the culture of Cambodia. The Lord spoke to me this month in many different ways, but one of the ways He spoke to me was through our ministry, the church, and the people.
Every Sunday morning in Cambodia, we woke up and got ready for church. We got to church a little before nine by tuk tuks. We worshipped, prayed, and heard a sermon until about 10:30. In America, this is where the service would have ended. People would politely but quickly say their goodbyes and head off to lunch, brunch, or whatever they had planned for the day. This is where Cambodia differed.
Right after church, the entire congregation split into small groups where they talked about the sermon, talked about life, and sometimes the youth would even spend this time playing games. Immediately after small group, the church all sat down and had lunch together, young and old, singles and families, everyone was there.
This church was not just a building that held a group of people that went to the same church on Sundays and saw each other once a week. This was a group of people chasing after the Lord, praying for one another, having prayer meetings and devotions throughout the week, spending time worshipping together, but then following that up with small groups and fellowship. The group of people that did this, that is the church.
Now having experienced this, I long for this in every country and when I make my way back to America (Sidenote: We’re over halfway done, which is CRAZY!), I want more than a church building, more than people I call acquaintances and say hello to in church, more than a two hour service on Sundays. I want community.
The World Race has shown me what community looks like by the set-up of teams, the way we do ministry, and by the actual ministries themselves in each country. Sometimes, this is a whole new concept to people, but I have been more than blessed since becoming a Christian and am quite familiar with this in my daily life. I have friends, roommates, and family that hold me higher. They speak the hard truths into my life and genuinely care for me in every part of life. The Lord has blessed me with people to walk through this life with that are chasing after Him.
But, I believe I have done a poor job of this in the church. I have my roommates, my friends from all over the U.S., and my family, but I long for a community on Sunday mornings as well and one that overflows into my life. What I have learned from the Race is how important community is and how much it can push us to grow even closer to the Lord. Cambodia has this figured out, and I hope I can learn and take this back home with me to my church and develop exactly the same thing…a group of people chasing after the Lord who love Him and each other well.
