Life is such a crazy thing, filled with so many difficult challenges. When such challenges arise we can choose to let them push us back or push through them and learn from them. Last month in Vietnam there were many challenges I had to push through, some more difficult than others. The thing is, God was in all of the hardships that were faced. Everytime I reached a victory it was because of Him. This created a dependence on God that I’ve never had before. He truly has become my addiction and I’m never going back!
Let me start by apologizing for not blogging sooner. We were not able to do so in Vietnam for safety reasons. Also, and this is where one of the challenges happened, my camera was lost halfway through the month in a taxi. My computer had also crashed the week before that which means I lost the majority of my photos from Cambodia and Vietnam. Through the generous support of family and friends I was ably to replace both “Thank you Jesus!” and so the blogs and photos will continue.
Now let me attempt to tell you what it was like live in a nation that tries to ignore God. Our battle for the people of Vietnam started day one when we checked into the hotel we would be staying in over the next month. I’m not sure what shocked me more, the fact that there were hourly rates for rooms posted out front or the fact that there were packets of condoms provided on the nightstands. Both of these facts shocked us, especially knowing this was the place recommended by previous teams. There was no choice at the moment, it was dark and there was nowhere else to stay that night. The next day was our first interaction with our host for the month. After our introductions it was our top priority to sort out our living conditions. After all, a night in a hotel designed for prostitution is not exactly the best place for a group of missionaries to stay. Our host gave us a saddened downcast smile of understanding and informed us that the hotel we were staying at was the cleanest and quietest hotel in the whole district. It turns out that prostitution is a very lucrative and legal business and not just our hotel, but every hotel in the city catered to this appalling act of slavery. This revelation opened my eyes to how dark of a place a world without God would look.
It became my personal mission to bring God into that hotel. We were not allowed to use any direct terminology that linked us to Christianity for our own safety. However, that did not stop us from blanketing that place in prayer and supplication. It was not uncommon to see girls as young as thirteen coming and going from the hotel. The numbers changed from day to day, but there were never any less then two or three and that’s only counting the girls we saw when we were there, which was not that often. There was no denying why they were there, they showed it in the cloths they wore and the empty look in their eyes. It broke my heart to see such desperation and helplessness. In those times when I would see them all I could do was turn to the only One who could actually help them. I would pray, the team would pray and so we did battle every time we entered the hotel.
Ministry looked different from day to day, but there were certain things we did that really seemed to have an impact. One of those things happened very unexpectedly, not because I didn’t know what we were doing, but because I had no idea it would impact me the way it did. On our first day our host set in the scheduled for us to go to an orphanage. The outing would happen on the second Saturday of arriving and would include teaching the kids English and playing with them after their class. This did not excite me one bit. The thought of running after a bunch of lice infested five year olds just was not on my bucket list, funny how things change when you give them to God. We arrived at the orphanage in the early afternoon and I braced myself for the onslaught of dirty children. There were fifty kids jumping all over us as soon as our feet hit the ground and that number would soon grow. At first I felt very distant, but then a thought ran through my mind and almost as soon a I though it a member of my team spoke it out loud to me. In that way I knew it was God speaking to me. He said “Isaac, what’s worse, you getting lice or one of these kids not receiving love?” That stuck in my heart and will remain there for the rest o my life. At that moment a little girl, no more then six or seven came up to me and took hold of my hand. From the moment our eyes met I knew she was special and would change my life. She spoke no English, was dressed in clothes that looked like they had not been washed in weeks and I could see the lice jumping around on her head. None of that mattered to me though, she was a beloved daughter of God and I was determined to treat her like a princes. She pulled me along to on of the three swing sets that were in the playground and gave a point and grunt indicating she wanted me to push her. For what seemed like a lifetime we sat on the little two seater swing going back and forth. After a time she tired of the swing and decided it was time to move on. She jumped off and held out her arms, clearly I was to carry her to our next destination. How could I say no? So, I got out of the swing and picked her up. After several seconds of confused communication it became clear there was no particular destination, she simply wanted to be held. She propped her head on my shoulder and wrapped her arms around my neck and we set off on a journey to nowhere.
For some reason it became very important to me to learn the name of my new companion. You would think it would be as simple as asking, but you would be wrong! When no one speaks English and there are over three hundred kids in the orphanage it can be quite a challenge finding the name of just one. It took almost an hour and a very complicated conversation between three different people to finally receive an answer. It turns out my new friends name is “Win”, but it sounds like “When”. Before I could comprehend what was going on it was time to say goodbye. A little piece of my heart will forever remain at the orphanage in Vietnam.
That brings to the present. After our month in Vietnam and before our departure to Africa we had a squad debrief. This was a big deal because, all of the teams were changed! That’s right, all new people and a new name. The new team is made up of the following seven people: Laura Baumback, Danielle Arlinghaus, Tabitha Waco, Alicia Wrigley, Jess Jenkinson, and Rick Brown, and Isaac Coltrain as the new leader of team Avengers. God has blessed me with an amazing team and it is a huge honor to be their leader. Please be praying for us as we go into our three month journey through Africa. It is sure to be filled with many of its own struggles and challenges, but above all the presence of the ever loving God who always goes before us in everything we do.
I know, we are all crazy! haha 😉 
