This month my team is located is Sihanoukville, Cambodia. We are working with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) teaching English to kids and young adults. We are beyond blessed to be here!
We live on the base. We have a house with multiple bedrooms. We have bunk beds and are split up 3 of us to a room. Our beds are super comfortable. We have western toilets and we have bucket showers. I didn't know if I would like bucket showers or not, but they are actually quiet enjoyable. It's always a bonus to be clean.
It's the rainy season here in Cambodia, so the weather is actually pretty cool. We have fans to use, which also help. This has been such a blessing because we were under the impression that this month would probably be our hottest month, yet it is much cooler here than in Thailand. Sometimes, some of my team mates even get cold! (who knew, right?!)
We live about a ten minute run from the beach. One of my team mates, Paige, and I run to the beach in the mornings after our chores. It's beautiful. However, it always happens to start pouring every time we leave. So we get soaked. Our shoes are water logged and weigh a lot, but hey, we'll get strong legs right? The Cambodian people find us very odd, running in the rain, stomping through huge puddles and flooded streets. They laugh. Some encourage us by clapping or give us a thumbs up, but mostly they just laugh. It's fun. 🙂
Right now I am teaching level 3 English. This is a very basic class. My students range from age 11 to age 18. We are working on phrases right now. (Example: "The dog and the bird would like to be friends.") We work on spelling and pronunciation. They get kind of wild at times, but we've only had two classes so far so we are still getting to know each other. During the classes, we are not allowed to teach anything religious, but on Fridays instead of class we offer a youth service for the kids. I am looking forward to this. I have been able to make a few relationships with some of my students and I look forward to having an opportunity to share my faith with them.
My team is also a part of a women's ministry located at the base. It is called "Shalom Ministry". The women in this ministry have come out of prostitution and accepted the Lord. They work out of the base sewing clothes to sell. Malise is in charge of this ministry. She is a beautiful Cambodian woman that God gifted with a talent for sewing literally overnight. She now uses her gifts to teach these women how to sew to make a living.
Every morning,we have a time of worship with the Shalom women. They bring their children with them too. It's so wonderful to hear them worship God in their native tongue, Camar. Their heart for the Lord is so intense, it's beautiful. After our worship time, a member from my team shares a word from the Lord or a testimony. This time has been powerful every morning. I have been able to take a lot away from it and I have enjoyed hearing the ladies' hearts on each topic. They just love the Lord so much, it overwhelms me sometimes.
We will also be attending several different churches on Sundays. We will be preaching at each service, three services total. This is somewhat intimidating to me, as I still get nervous with public speaking, but the people's hearts for worship is just so beautiful that it makes me so excited to enter into worship with them.
Overall, my team is feeling extremely excited and extremely blessed with our ministries. There are several kids to play with and we even have 2 week old puppies! We are falling more and more in love with Cambodia everyday and I look forward to all God will do in us and through us these next few weeks. I am hoping to be able to put up more pictures soon. Thank you again for your support and your patience as I try to figure out the balance with internet access and ministry. May God bless you and keep you.
In love,
Kayla
