We have just over a week left here in Malaysia before we head to our Month 5(!) debrief. It dawned on me that I haven’t really updated on what type of ministry I have been working on this month. So here is a little recap:
We arrived in Malaysia after about 10 hour bus ride, a 7 hour wait in a train station, a 16 hour train ride, and a 3 hour bus ride. I was super excited about the sleeper train, as I had been hoping to be able to ride a train while I was on the Race. We arrive to Changlun, Malayasia where we meet Pastor Thomas, his wife Sharmila, and their three children Zechariah (Zech), Misha, and Felisha. I immediately fell in love with their family and their passion for the people of Malaysia.
We are Pastor’s 10th WR team, and we were told that this month is normally the “still waters” month for the teams. He just meant that there would be a lot of time to spend in worship, time to spend with Jesus, and time to spend in team bonding. Our main ministry would be to work in the kindergarten (read: preschool) Pastor runs, teaching English class, and spending time worshiping and interceding on behalf of the ministry and the people of Malaysia.
I am one of the people who works at the kindergarten on the morning shift. I am the aid in Teacher Mala’s 4 year old class. We have between 8-10 kids every day. I love working with the kids! The unique thing about the kindergarten is that it is one of the only schools that allows integration of the different nationalities represented in Malaysia. Most of the schools cater to specific nationalities, but at our kindergarten you will find Malaysians, Chinese, and Indian students. They learn math, science, and even have different language classes during the week where they can learn Malay, Tamil, and Mandarin.
Another thing we have been able to do this month is to participate in teaching English. My team does not work on this as much as the other team I am partnered with this month, but we did have one night were we made a house call and began a ministry, that will hopefully continue once we leave. We were able to go to the home of a woman who has a ton of kids and start an English class there. On top of the kids this lady has, some of the kids from the neighborhood joined us. It was a fun night of games and teaching English phrases.
I think my favorite part of ministry this month has been all the worship and intercession going on. We do corporate worships 2-3 times a week. We have taken turns preaching to each other. My team has listened to a podcast on living a fearless life. We have been on prayer walks and prayed for each other. God has been so close to me this month. (For more info on what He has been saying to me check out my “Embracing Stage Fright” blogs.) I have been spending more time in the Word than ever before, and it is coming to life to me in ways I could never imagine. I am just in awe of Him.
So this is what my month has looked like so far. Please continue to be in prayer for my team, and the other team I am with this month. We are experiencing high amounts of spiritual warfare as the enemy is NOT happy with what we are doing. But that is just proving to us that we are doing the right things. Also if you could pray for healing protection over the squad. One of the ways the enemy has been attacking us is in the health area. I thankfully have had nothing serious, but to many of my squad mates have been hospitalized since the beginning of the Race. And finally, as it has been prophesied over our squad, we are on the edge of this spiritual cliff. We are about to all take the plunge off, and prayers for safety, discernment, and clarity for exactly where God wants us and what he needs us to do would be fantastic!
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I just want to say another huge thank you to all of you who have helped me financially so far! I am on the last leg of the fundraising journey for this trip! I need about $1,600 to be fully funded! This money is due by July 1. God has been so amazing in bringing the money in that I am confident He will provide this in no time.
Also if you would like to donate to my personal spending account you can send me money through PayPal by searching my email address: [email protected] . Or you can give money to my parents (contact me if you need their address to mail a check). As I have said before, there are always unexpected expenses and right now I am finding myself having to buy a new sleeping pad because the one I brought with me got water logged in Honduras and no longer inflates, so I am sleeping on the ground. But I know God will provide! Thanks again everyone!!
