Here are some highlights from the past 3 months to finish out my 6 month recap.
Costa Rica
– Jacó, Costa Rica, was such an interesting place to work because it always seemed like a contradiction to me. It was sunny and fun and playful, but there were also a lot of darker elements existing there. One Friday night, we headed out on the town late in the evening to “see the city turn,” as our contacts called it. As we walked down the sidewalk, weaving through groups of tourists lingering outside noisy bars, we were offered weed and cocaine repeatedly. We passed transvestites waiting on street corners, and groups of prostitutes being ushered out of taxis and into dark buildings. The city really did turn when you got into those late hours, and it was both fascinating and eerie to see it. We walked around for a while, praying for the tourists and the sex workers and the drug addicts as we walked. I found myself reminded of Naomi from Guatemala, and began lifting young women in these situations up to the Lord. It was a sobering night in a way, but also very empowering to be reaching out to God in the middle of all of the chaos.
– One of our contacts was house sitting for friends while we were there, and we went over with her to take care of the dogs one day. Apparently, these dogs were runners, and sure enough they slipped out the door and took off. What followed was a good half hour or more of chasing them through town. We ran down the road after them as they dodged traffic until they paused in a big field. I was praying they wouldn’t make it to the open beach, because I didn’t know how we’d ever catch them there. We tried sweet talking them to us, and after about 10 minutes in the field were finally able to snag them. Alexis and I started back to the house with them, quite relieved…until one slipped out of his collar and the chase was on once again. This time when we caught him I wasn’t taking any chances – I carried him all the way back to the house, in 90 degree heat. The best part is that we were on our way to meet a couple doing missions in the area, so we arrived late, hot and sweaty, and covered in dog hair.
– My month in Jacó taught me a lot about myself – it was a very introspective time for me in a lot of ways. I really had to grow in my ability to receive blessings and see how varied ministry can be. We were blessed by a lot of people in Jacó, and sometimes our ministry was a lot slower-paced than I was expecting. I had to learn to let God fill me up in those slower times, and recognize it was okay to be blessed and filled up by the people I meet in the mission field. Mission work doesn’t have to be draining and all pouring out – we need to be poured into as well! My dear friend Emily, whom we had the pleasure of working with all month, was also a huge blessing in encouraging me and guiding me in desire to remain in the mission field. I respect Emily a lot, so having her look at me and say, “Kaila, you were made for this. You fit into this life so perfectly” was a great confirmation for me.
Thailand
– The two most powerful moments in Thailand for me were both quiet, uneventful times, but they impacted me so much. The first was the night we spent in the Burmese village and all the little kids crowded in to worship with us. I don’t know how to explain what was so special about stretching out on the floor of a bamboo church in Thailand, with all those little hands and voices raised all around us, except to say that I’m pretty sure it’s what worship and Christian faith is supposed to look like. The second was one of the many evenings my teammates and I spent at the home of three brothers-in-Christ whom we worked with at the YWAM base. All three had spent time in prison, all three had allowed God to make new creations out of their lives. My friend Kyle was getting a tattoo done by one of the men, one of the others was teaching me to cook Thai food, and the third was playing worship songs on his guitar. Listening to the men worship in Thai while Kyle and I worshiped in English was a beautiful moment and, although back home I may have thought I didn’t have anything in common with these guys – all I felt in that moment was friendship and fellowship
– One day off in Thailand, I had this incredible moment where I realized I was, for a few brief moments, HOME ALONE. We’re almost never alone on the Race, though we are allowed to stay back by ourselves at our ministry location. My team had run into town for a few hours and I’d stayed back. I had so many great plans for my afternoon of freedom. I was going to take a shower, Skype a friend, make a cup of tea and write in my journal. And then I locked myself out of my bedroom. I didn’t have a buddy, so I couldn’t really go down to the other ministry house asking for help. Plus I didn’t know how to ask for help in Thai. I wasn’t wearing clothing that was appropriate for wandering around the neighborhood in Thailand anyway. So my first order of business was borrowing clothes from one of my male teammates, since the boys’ room was open. Once I was appropriately dressed in shorts that went to my knees and a T-shirt that covered my shoulders, I began searching for a key. I tried every key I found in that house but none of them worked. After about a half hour my contact showed up, and I was thrilled. Surely she would have a key! Nope. No key. Now that I had a translator, we headed down to the other ministry house to enlist some help from the men there. I’m not sure exactly what my contact said to them, but it resulted in a lot of laughter pointed in my direction. I’m guessing the comments were somewhere along the lines of “Of course, the American girl would manage to lock herself out of the room with no key.” They’re good sports though, and all three headed back over to either help me break in, or laugh at the attempts. Fortunately my friend K, who is both younger and apparently more athletic than me, was able to climb out the third floor window of the abandoned house next door, slide across the slanted tiles of the balcony roof, and climb in the balcony door to our bedroom. Not quite the peaceful afternoon I’d planned. On the bright side, looking like a fool is always a good way to bond with new friends!
– I grew out of my comfort zone and into new roles this month. Learning to communicate with the language barrier wasn’t nearly as scary as I thought it would be, and very rewarding. Probably my greatest pleasant surprise this month was growing into more of a music role on my team and in ministry. I never, ever expected to make friendships based on music, or to step into a role of leading worship. I love that when God surprises me, it’s always a beautiful thing!
Laos
– There was a giant Buddha statue on a hill overlooking Pakse, and we hiked up to it on several different occasions to pray. This was an awesome vantage point looking over the city – the Mekong River stretched lazily alongside the city of Pakse, and from the base of the Buddha you could see the fishing boats on the river and the lights of Pakse on the other side of the Mekong. There was something really powerful about sitting next to a statue of Buddha – the current deity worshipped in the country – and praying to Jesus, the Son of God whom we were forbidden to talk about while we were in Laos. I love sitting up there at twilight praying over the city, trusting that even though Christians are persecuted in Laos, God is present and working there.
– We had been told that the students we were teaching in Laos wouldn’t be very expressive, and that if we did drama with them they might not be comfortable participating. That warning was in the back of my mind during our study group one night when we taught the kids the Hokey-Pokey to learn body parts and directions in English. I wasn’t sure they’d do it, and when my teammate asked them to step into the circle one at a time and show off their best silly dance moves, I figured there was no way that was going to fly. I was dead wrong, and that was one of the funniest moments I’ve had on the Race. These sweet, quiet kids pulled out the funkiest dance moves and laughed and laughed and laughed. They were convulsed with laughter, rolling on the floor giggling. I laughed so hard my sides hurt. These kids were hysterical with laughter, and it was so contagious. So much for thinking they wouldn’t be silly with us!
– I was well-aware going into the Race that I like my days to be full. I’m usually always on the go at home, and I really do enjoy it. It doesn’t drain me to have full days (depending on what I’m doing, of course), it actually fills me up in most cases. Then I got to Laos. No schedule, no specific requirements for my days, no daily assignments. Good grief, what was I going to do all month? Clearly, I had to grow – a lot – in my understanding of what it meant to serve the Lord in all I do. God showed me in Laos all the ways I could serve Him without a schedule. We made new friends, prayed over communities that had never heard Jesus’ name, taught the cutest kids I’ve ever met, and a hundred other things I would never have thought of if I’d had a plan and an agenda.
Well, that’s my last 6 months in a nutshell. I’m so incredibly thankful for everyone who helped me get here, either by funding me so that I could stay in the field or praying for and encouraging me. The World Race is definitely not a vacation – it’s not always fun, it’s not always easy, and it’s not always comfortable. It is challenging and fulfilling, however, and it’s worth it. Looking forward to the next 5 months!
