“Same same, but different” is a common saying here. For an example- at the store you would see a shelf holding the same style shirts, but with different sizes. There would be a sign saying “same same, but different.”
Here are some things that are the same in Cambodia and Michigan, but different.
Cow vs Deer- Cows are everywhere here, in yards and out along the busy roads. Only here the cows look both ways before they cross the road. Deer…. Not so much.
Showers- Cambodia has cold showers. Michigan has nice hot showers. In fact, I don’t remember what a hot shower feels like…..
Power outages- Happens in Cambodia quite often. It’s like God is turning the switch on and off every minute on some days. In Michigan, this usually only happens in a really bad storm and/or a squirrel plays with the wires and gets fried. Which has happened once….
Cambodia roads- There are lines down the middle of the road, but everyone pretty much ignores it. Kinda hard to do that in Michigan.
Stoves- A Cambodian stove is simply a tank of gas that sits on the floor. And you can’t tell when you’re running out. So when you’re cooking chicken for supper and you run out of gas, you end up eating raw vegetables for dinner instead. Michigan has the option of electric stoves. But electric wouldn’t work so well in Cambodia….
One thing that is same same but different in my life is joy and happiness.
“Are you happy?”
“No, Happy is at home.”
This is something of a joke among my team and our 3 translators- Sam, Nehemiah and John. See, Happy is the name of one of the dogs here. And Happy is always at home.
So what is the same and different between happiness and joy in my life?
I came to realize that I haven’t been joyful. I am completely happy with being on this trip, happy to be in Cambodia and happy to do ministry. When you’re happy, you’re generally joyful. But the difference is that I don’t have that inner joy. The joy that flows whether you’re happy or not.
I saw that I was waiting for my healing to be joyful, I was waiting for certain circumstances to change to be joyful. But true inner Christ like joy isn’t found in healing, it isn’t found in what I want, it isn’t found in anything except in Christ.
So what am I waiting for?
Ecclesiastes 3:12
“I perceived that there is nothing better than to be joyful and do good as long as they live.”
It’s the end of the month and we are moving on to Vietnam in a couple of days.
The kids at “Hope” are incredibly special and I will miss them dearly! As a treat for them we took them out for a fun day in town. Roller blading for the older kids (and yes, I did end up falling.) and the bouncy house for the younger kids. We all had a blast! Then we got pizza (yes, there is a place that has pizza!) and ice cream for dinner. It was so fun to see the joy on their faces. It was a blessing to be able to do this for them. It was hard to leave, but I have peace about it. It’s like God is saying “your work here is done.”
Please pray for these kids and this ministry here at Hope. Several of the kids have lost sponsorship and this ministry is struggling to stay afloat. There simply isn’t enough money to cover all the expenses and the situation is the same at the “Wings” (Student home.) Pray for more sponsors, pray for Sam, Nehemiah and John who work at Hope. Pray that God continue to work in and through this ministry.
Please also pray for safety and health for the fusion squad as we travel to Vietnam. Pray that we would be prepared for whatever God has in store for us.
Pray for Vietnam. They are very much like China when it comes to Christianity. Pray that doors would be opened, that chains would be broken, people set free and that God’s love would abound.
Pray for me, that I would learn to have joy in everything. That I would let God use me in Vietnam.
Pray for my funds. I need to have $11,000 in my account by April 1st or I will have to go home. I
have been trusting God completely in all of this and He has already provided so much in incredible ways.
