We’ve been in Cambodia for a little over a week now and I’m already in love with this place. You can get smoothies on the streets for a dollar, thai pants in markets for three, and a very big smile every time you make eye contact with a local. We were spoiled for our first few days with air conditioning, real showers, and amazing food. Also a roof that made worship a hundred times better than it already was. Last Sunday we were sitting on the roof and our squad mentor, Kate, told us we’d be starting ministry that day. She explained we’d be doing what is called “ATL” ministry which stands for ask the Lord. Basically you pray to see what God wants you to do and then you go do it. I had been feeling particularly distant from the Lord and overwhelmed. I was in a new country with 51 new people and new food and we were 12 hours ahead of home. I was tired and hadn’t had much Jesus time since arriving in Siem Reap. This honestly was the last thing I wanted to do at the moment and I was doubting whether God would lay anything on my heart at all. In all honesty I was intimidated by this idea. What if I didn’t know where to go or who to talk to or what to say? I was scared of being put in a situation of not being able to share the gospel simply because I was unprepared or not educated enough on the Bible to talk to someone about it. In all honesty how do you share the love of Jesus Christ in words? No sentence I speak could ever compare to the feeling of His love and I honestly don’t know how to share that love with words.
My team and I went to a room with Kate and sat in prayer for a couple of minutes. I was feeling a little anxious and a lot off but I prayed that God would just use this time and me to do what He intended. While I was praying over the next couple of hours I saw dirt. After a second I saw yellow flowers start to grow out of this dirt and then everything was immersed in yellow. I shared with my team and listened to everything they had felt and heard while praying. My team mate Lindsey told us she had seen an old man on a corner down the street and thought we needed to go talk to him. As we were walking down the street Kate prayed that we would have no problems with the language barrier. I was thinking the man wasn’t going to be there and even if he was that we wouldn’t be able to speak to him and it would just be awkward. God must’ve heard that and decided He would prove me wrong.
We walked to the store where Lindsey had seen him earlier and found him behind the beat up building sitting on a woven mat on top of a wooden platform. He was possibly the cutest man I’ve ever seen. He immediately motioned for us to come sit next to him and tried brushing the water off the mat for us. He spoke no English but he definitely could laugh and it was contagious. We had no idea what he was saying but sat and laughed and used motions back and forth for a good ten minutes. A man walked out of the store who could speak English and translated a little bit. We learned the old man’s name is Johnny and he is 68 and had a wife who died in a fire 15 years ago. He had a long scar down his stomach and we found out it was from a motorcycle accident. He would imitate us saying hello and would yell “Helloooooo sweet.” to us. Lindsey nudged me and pointed at the mat he was sitting on. It was red and had yellow flowers on it. I looked up and realized every wall and building around us was painted yellow and in that moment I knew that God had me. In my doubt and tiredness He spoke to me and gave me a little reminder of why I’m actually doing this thing. Ministry doesn’t have to always be preaching to people or sharing Bible verses or even talking about Jesus at all. It can be sitting with a 68 year old man under a metal roof in Cambodia and laughing.
Tomorrow morning my team leaves for Kampong Cham to start our ministry for the rest of our time in Cambodia. Please keep us in your prayers and pray for safe traveling!!!!!!
