The long awaited update

Hey you guys! Much to my surprise, our day off is today Tuesday and not this coming Thursday. Yay! I was so excited to find that out so that I could get an update to you sooner.

Our time in Cambodia was really difficult in a lot of ways. The country has such an awful history. If you don't know much about Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge, I encourage you to read a little about it. I was blissfully ignorant of Cambodia and its past, but after finding out its history, it made more sense about why the country is in the state it's in. There is a lot of hope for Cambodia, though. We were working with an organization called Mercy Ministries Foundation, and one of the workers (Joe) told us that Cambodia is the NGO capital of the world. There is an NGO for just about every problem in the country. It's just going to take time to restore and reconcile, and the people and the country need a lot of healing. Keep praying for Cambodia and its current situation!

I worked at the pre-school in the slums of Poipet. There were 2 classes at the school; the morning class was about 30 4-6 year olds and the afternoon had about 20 6-8 year olds. The children were so blessed to have a teacher named Heng (pronounced "hang"), that all of us absolutely adored. He was so patient with the children and just an amazing teacher. I have so much respect for him. Anyway, one day in the afternoon class he seemed a little more reserved and quiet. We were in the back of the class waiting for our turn to teach English while he was finishing up his lessons. The kids were in a circle and he was teaching a Bible story in Khmer and then he stopped and asked us for advice. He was teaching on the story of Lazarus, but he was hesitant because he knew there was a girl in the class whose mom was really close to dying. He wanted to be sensitive to her situation. He continued on with the story and then was doing some Khmer vocab lessons when this really loud, haunting music came on the nearby loudspeakers. Darcey and I exchanged weird looks, because it was just really odd, and then Heng looked at us and told us that this little girl's mom just died. I guess the music that went on was traditional Buddhist mourning music. Pretty soon we had 20 children completely bawling their eyes out. It was such an awful situation. I kept thinking of this poor little girl and her siblings and what their life must be like. I guess her dad is a drug addict and an alcoholic, and it sounds like her mom was also an alcoholic. I was just so upset that day. That was a moment where I just didn't know what to do. I was so frustrated and confused, but most of all, just concerned about this girl and her family and what's going to happen to her. It was not a good day.

A few days later, we had an outreach at the sports center, which didn't go as planned at all. There was a miscommunication in the start time, so hardly anyone that we thought would come did make it. But we had an audience of about 10 people or so, and we did dramas and shared testimonies and also presented the gospel. That was when we had our first person accept Christ on our outreach! It was a 15 year old guy named Hai (pronounced "Hey") who actually is the brother of the little girl I just talked about... I was so excited to find that out. Please be praying for Hai and that he'll really pursue Christ and make a difference in the lives of his family and his friends. I really hope he'll stay dedicated to God... lift him up.

At the preschool, I fell in love with a little girl named Silyn. She was probably about 6 or 7 and absolutely adorable. She had a beautiful smile and was also really feisty! I desperately wanted to take her home... All of the children at the preschool were so needy, they all lacked so much attention at home. They always wanted to be touched or held, and often times they played a fun game where they would all crawl on me as if I was a jungle gym... often times clothes were stretched and pulled down, which isn't always fun. :) Most of the children were dirty with runny noses and had heads full of lice, but they were so beautiful. I loved playing games with them so much. Despite their lives, they were so carefree and smiley and had so much energy. I am so thankful that the pre-school exists so they have a safe environment to be in. They only accept the least of the least to attend the school, so I can only imagine what those kids see and live through every day. They are at risk for such awful and horrific things... keep the school in your prayers and also the children too.

There's so much more to Cambodia, but not enough time. Sorry about that! The day that we left Cambodia was a lonnng day! We crossed the border back into Thailand probably around 10 AM or so and then caught a bus from Aranyaprathet to Bangkok, maybe about a 3 hour journey. The bus was actually really nice and clean and air conditioned, so I was thankful for that. In Bangkok, we had about a 6 hour layover before our bus to Mae Sot would depart. Ian, Rachel, and I hung out with the luggage at the station while everyone else ventured off to a huge market in the city. Finally it was time to leave for Mae Sot (about 9 PM) and we made here at 5 AM on a Sunday morning.

We are working with a guy named Pastor Michael here in Mae Sot. He is absolutely radical. He has us booked with so much ministry time. It feels really nice to be busy! But he takes every opportunity to preach the gospel. You see an alley or even a busy street? Pastor Michael sees a stage. We have performed in so many random places, filled with dirt and gravel. During one drama, I was apparently almost run over by a truck, which is fun. :) But it has been really cool to be working here. I love how radical Pastor Michael is and that he keeps us so busy.

The days are kind of similar here. Ministry usually starts around 1 pm and we average about 2-3 open airs a day. We also have been teaching english at a few different schools; some of them are migrant schools, which means they are opened to refugees who don't have the normal opportunities for education that Thai children have. Yesterday we taught at a school that had never had foreigners visit before, and that was so much fun. Rachel and I taught the 5 and 6 year olds (who were soooo cute!) and they had just learned their ABC's. Usually at whatever school we teach at, we also do a program full of songs, dramas, testimonies and the gospel message. The kids really enjoy our songs and dramas, especially.

The other day, we also had the opportunity to be judges at an academic competition. A nearby school was hosting a big event from all the different schools in the district, and we helped out in the English section. There were all different tents or booths for the different subjects, so in the morning we were in the English tent helping children (and also teachers!) with their English pronounciation and things like that. Then in the afternoon, Amy and I helped out at an English quiz. We were the question readers, so we were on stage with a mic... it was similar to a spelling bee, except with questions. I had a blast, though! I love things like that, and it was really fun to me. It was also a great opportunity to just talk to people. I had a great day that day.

In the next 2 weeks, it sounds like we're going to be working at the local jail here, traveling into Myanmar (aka Burma) on Saturday for at least a day, stay and work at a refugee camp, and also work with a communist hill tribe. It is all really exciting! Please keep us in your prayers!

Back in Thailand

Hey you all! I'm sorry for the lack of updates. I have been so busy lately that the only times I have a chance to get online are on my days off. I have so much to catch you up on, and unfortunately, no time to do it! I wish I could promise a post really soon with details about what I've been doing, but it may have to wait until my next day off in 7 days... I'm sorry!

To briefly catch you up, in Cambodia I taught at a pre-school in the mornings and afternoons, while some other members of the team did labor on the property in the morning and sports ministry in the afternoon. We also worked at the orphanage property doing some labor stuff (it was really fun!) Our last couple days there we were fortunate enough to visit Angkor Wat, which I guess is one of the 7 wonders of the world. It was really amazing to see it, but I especially liked traveling to the city of Siam Reap. Cambodia is such a beautiful country once you escape Poipet... it was so dirty and gross there (the Lonely Planet refers to Poipet as the "armpit of Cambodia"). There's so much more to our time in Cambodia, but it will have to wait...

We arrived into Mae Sot, Thailand at about 5 AM on Sunday and we have been really busy ever since. We are averaging about 2 open airs a day; an open air is a program we put together with songs, dramas, testimonies, the gospel message, etc. I have been singing and speaking at almost every single one; yesterday I preached the gospel twice. It has been really exhausting here and it's only been a few days!!! :) We also have been teaching english at 2 different schools.

As I've said, there's so much more... please be praying for my team and I! There is so much spiritual warfare here. Please pray that we'll have a chance to get into Myanmar. It sounds like it's possible and we may even get to spend a few days at a refugee camp which would be amazing. Thanks for your prayers!