I have enjoyed Malaysia so much. Malaysia has been such a change of pace from Cambodia and Thailand. The people are laidback and just chill. There seems to be just harmony amongst the people. Even though there are three dominant cultures – Chinese, Indian, and Malay they mesh together so well. In Penang you would see Churches next to Mosques and natives and immigrants accept each other. Also if you end up in Penang, Malaysia be sure to try all the food. It is food central- you have to try some Roti (just a delicious pancake with bananas and chocolate and many other ingredients), Pattaya (omelet over fried rice with spicy sauce on top), and Hokkien Mee (spicy shrimp soup with noodles).
As much as I have loved being Malaysia it was a struggle. Our teams plan to volunteer at a hostel in the Cameron Highlands didn’t come into fruition until two weeks later. Which left us to try and figure out what ministry looks like in the mean time. The first thing that came to mind is “I haven’t done much”. All I have done is give my shoes away to a Vietnamese man. There was no specific ministry to do but just be who God made us to be. That is hard because my comfort zone is doing ministry like how I did when I worked for a church or volunteered at Young Life. My default is doing or striving to do Gods work, but understanding God‘s love for you and being that is ministry or God’s work. It reminds me of the quote “ Preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary use words.” When the team asked God where we should go, it was clear that we needed to go into the jungle and meet travellers which is why we decided on the Cameron Highlands because it has those two things. However I believe God delayed us to be patient and know that God is faithful and to continue to be His. If the Holy Spirit is in us then being led by the spirit is enough, we will preach the Gospel in our actions, and when needed use words.
Luke 11:42 MSG
I’ve had it with you! You’re hopeless, you Pharisees! Frauds! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but manage to find loopholes for getting around basic matters of justice and God’s love. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required.
It is easy to look for man made ways to do ministry or worship but God wants to love you and be loved by you and that is enough. Understanding more and more of the Fathers love for us will drive us to overflow justice and love.
I have loved living this out while volunteering at a hostel here in the Cameron Highlands. We are able to stay at this really nice Hostel called the Traveller Bunker in exchange for 4 hours of work a day. Tanner and Danny are receptionists, Matt is on cleaning duty, and I am the event organizer. Sometimes I lead hiking tours, promote social media for the hostel, put on movies, and host game nights. It is kind of a joke for free lodging but the opportunities to share life with people is something I have treasured. I have been blown away by the fact of how many people do solo travels. I have met a lot of Europeans that just graduated High school and travel for like 5-7 months by themselves. It is crazy to me that God knew exactly where I was going to be and placed me among these specific people. Some of these people were Sophie from Austria and Aural from Germany. After one of the Trivia Nights that I hosted the team and I got to hangout with these travelers and have a drink, shoot some pool, and get 7/11 ice cream. At the end of night we got to share our testimonies, our views on certain topics, and listen to theirs as well. Sophie said “ this is one of my favorite moments on my trip, it is so cool to see you guys hold onto your faith and be normal”. Sophie had a faith background but from what she shared it seemed that here idea of Christians was that of following rules and seperating from certain people groups. I wonder how much she needed to see that someone could be a christian and not just follow rules but follow the example of Jesus and be human. My stay here at the hostel has been full of these encounters.
I am so glad that I chose to do an Unscripted route for the World Race. It has put me in a place where I have to depend on Him everyday. I go to Him for rest, for next steps, and life to the full. The Unscripted route for me has helped me seek the Father so much more. It has been more about me knowing Him then working for Him and when you Know Him that love overflows every where you go. The Unscripted route has set me up well to do ministry back home because what I am doing is loving God first and asking Him who to love next and that I can do anywhere. Unscripted has left room for God to move this mission trip in the way He wants it to go. If I wasn’t on Unscripted route I would have never ended up in the Cameron Highlands.
Lastly Cameron Highlands has been so nice because it is cold enough that I can wear a flannel and not sweat. Therefore the name of this blog is called Flannel Channel. Friends and Fam thank you always for keeping up with the journey.
