Month one of my World Race is chugging along. My team and I have been at our ministry site for almost a week now, and even though it is challenging, it has begun to draw out each of our strengths (as well as our weaknesses).
On the World Race, there is a lot of travel involved, ya know, since we will be in 11 different countries. Getting to Cambodia was not a small feat. We spent countless hours (26) in layovers and 21ish hours flying to land in Phnom Penh. After arriving at the Phnom Penh airport, is when it got real. We walked out after successfully receiving our visas and there it was. It was humid, and dark (we had arrived around midnight) and some of our hosts were there with signs for us. The reality hit that YES I am on the other side of the world, YES I am on the World Race.
We drove through the south side of the city on our way to the community where we are currently doing ministry. Our Ministry host, Bouren San, explained that this community got its name (Peace 2) because it is a relocation area for the people previously living in the slums of Phnom Penh. During the time of trying to persuade people to relocate to the area there was a lot of resistance and conflict. The government even used gas to incapacitate the stragglers, and successfully tear down the slums, resulting in a lot of pain and death. The government’s hope was that this would be a community of peace.
The area is now made up of 70% business owners, who run the market, and 30% people who successfully relocated from the slums. As we walk around the neighborhood, we stick out. It is not hard to miss us, and the eyes are always on us. But if you flash them a smile, EVERY single person will give you one back. And its not an unsure smile, its always a genuine smile of, almost, surprise. The children scream Hello at me, and the ones in out class yell, Teacher! Teacher!
The goal of the ministry my team is apart of is to provide an english education to the children in the area who do not have the opportunity. This gives them the ability to find a good job and hopefully better their circumstances. Bouren and his wife Mu have been running this ministry for about two years. They run this school on their own. CSM (Cambodian Slums Ministry) provides English for preschool, elementary, middle school, and high school classes. They are simply thrilled every time they have some help, not only so they can have a bit of a break, but so they can simply plan ahead. You can see how much passion and drive God has placed on their hearts for this ministry, and even though none of us are teachers we have been able to provide some of their immediate needs.
I have loved getting to know the kids, as they eagerly soak up everything we try to teach them. We get high fives and hugs after the lessons and it seriously warms my heart.
Most nights, as us girls (3 of us) prepare for bed in our small room it hits me. This isn’t something out in the future. This isn’t still a hair-brained idea I am trying to make succeed. This is the World Race. I am on it, and I am a World Racer.
