Before I talk about my experience in Albania, I wanted to process and wrap up my experience in Siem Reap, Cambodia. If you haven’t yet, please read my other blog post called “Life Today After the Genocide in Cambodia,” then you would know how hard it was for me to learn about the culture. I’m going to try to use my senses to describe the country, culture and people, and also share my reflections and what we did for ministry.
Imagine living in a village where you do not have an address. You do not have a way to deliver mail to your house or to deliver anything to anyone. There is no such thing as a mail carrier. Therefore, when teaching English and the word “mail man” appears in the curriculum, you have to think of a different Proper Noun to teach them that will relate to them culturally.
Imagine dark brownish orange dirt roads in the village, dirt covering the plants and trees aligning the sides of the roads. Imagine little children covered with dirt; covering their clothes and legs. Their clothes of dirt worn so often it has rips and tears in it. Little children wearing sandals or no shoes at all. But it’s okay, because it’s the norm in their culture.
Smells of cow manure, dirt, nature and vehicle exhaust linger in the air. 100 degree weather caused sweat from every angle to pour out of pores on everybody. Thankfully, the rides on the tuk tuks (taxi vehicles) to the village had no doors, so the breeze from the wind felt nice against our backs as our driver drove an hour there and an hour back. Sounds of engines running, wind hitting, cows mooing, Khmer language speaking and children laughing ring through our ears.
Along the side of the roads are businesses and homes. In front of each business is an altar set aside for spirits to dwell in so that bad spirits do not dwell in their homes. Fear hides behind these altars. Behind every altar of each business is a family trying to make ends meet. In the city and in the villages, business is the same: hard. Most of the population has the same job: tuk tuk drivers (taxi drivers) or employees of stores, restaurants, and in the city; hostels. There is too much competition: too many tuk tuk taxi drivers and not enough people to take them places, too many hostels/hotels with not enough guests to host, and too many of the same shops exist selling the same things. With all this competition, there is not enough money to make in one night to feed your family. The city is dependent on tourists from other countries. Without tourists, business will go down.
On my days off of ministry, we would walk around the city, and about 10 drivers will ask us “tuk tuk ride?” even though we just arrived in town and we did not need a ride anywhere. Strong desire to make money from driving tourists were evident in the drivers’ eyes. Women would ask us to buy something in their souvenir shops even though different women down the same street are selling the same souvenirs in their shops. Desperation would echo from their lips as they beg us to buy something and would offer a cheaper price than their neighboring competition. I honestly was annoyed at first, because I already don’t have enough money being a world racer on a tight budget. And I couldn’t buy from everyone asking me to buy something from them. There’s nothing I can do, so I thought.
Then God revealed something to me: Pray for them. Pray for your heart to change from annoyance to empathy. Pray that their basic necessities are provided each night for them and their family. Pray that they don’t solely rely on the fear of these spirits that dwell in these altars at the front of their business. Pray for innovative and creative businesses to be planted in this city. Pray that they believe in the worth and love their Father has created them to understand and walk in. Talk to them, smile, acknowledge their existence, buy something if you actually want something, and then pour into the youth of the country.
It helped me understand my role in my ministry more clearly. There is more to our role than just teaching English, teaching Bible studies and teaching life skills to these children. It’s planting seeds in their hearts. It’s providing three weeks of innovative and creative ideas to their minds. It’s walking in their shoes and seeking the disconnect and finding that missing puzzle piece to that English language concept, to that life skill on self-boundaries they have never been taught before or that specific fact in the Gospel: we cannot get to God on our own, but that we needed love, God himself, to come down and sacrificially give his 100% to us all so that there is a way for us to be fulfilled always.
Those last two weeks were days where my team and I not only played games with the children, but we intentionally taught the areas of disconnect in the English language, and gave them the encouragement they needed to hear: you can be anything you want to be. There is nothing blocking your way from your dreams. With trusting God, He can get you through any struggle, battle or brokenness: anything.
We taught them about self-boundaries, a topic I JUST LEARNED as an adult on the race. Often times, children hit each other to express their love or desire to be close to each other. As our ministry hosts explained, this is how they share their love or interest in this culture. It is their norm. Unfortunately, it brings this idea that it’s okay to hit someone and they don’t know the difference of when it hurts someone. Many children do not know how to speak up when someone hurts them. Once I reflected that I had issues with self-boundaries as an adolescent, and learned that even God has boundaries, I had so much passion as I taught children the importance of self-boundaries. I had learned how to teach them through Dr. Henry Cloud’s curriculum on boundaries.me. (check out that website when you get the chance – so good!) My teammate taught the high school kids about intimate boundaries. Therefore, if someone wants to touch them inappropriately, or if someone does, she taught them how to respond and what are the appropriate steps if it does happen. According to our hosts, that is not an easy topic to teach, and no one has taught them that before. It seemed to be received by the children and staff very well.
Lastly, we taught them the Gospel, the hope of God, his plans for them, and His love for them. It was not a foreign concept, since the organization we partnered with YWAM teaches this on a daily basis. However, we used our own spin. I taught kids in Chicago for three years on Jesus and had many fun, interactive, hands-on activities to help them understand at their level that there is a mighty God who loves them dearly and desires them to experience real love fully forever. I facilitated some similar fun lessons and actually had 15 children raise their hands that they too want this relationship with God in their lives. It was beautiful, and I filmed it on camera, but I cannot post it. If you’re interested in watching it privately, let me know!
I strongly believe that our ministry hosts, Justin and Lily from YWAM, are at such a pivotal chapter in development with these children in this village. The children are eager to learn, they are eager for hope, and they are eager to grow. Justin and Lily had dedicated 10 years in this village to investing into this community, gaining their trust, and building relationships with the children. They give and pour out full-heartedly and passionately. Their dedication and love for the children illuminates to each child and expresses the profound love of the Father. It was an honor to serve alongside them and to learn from them.
When you ask “Where is God through the brokenness?” Seek out the good that still exists. Listen to your own heart and what God is trying to tell you. He told me to pray when I got annoyed and he told me to pour into the children. God is so alive. God is so good.
Thank you, Cambodia. I have learned a lot, and I hope to have given as much of myself as I could.
Albania, I am ready for you.
Jasmine
