Malaysia

Patronas Towers

KL Tower

St. Paul's Church from 1500's, Melaka Malaysia

Overlooking Melaka

Our Quarters at Pondok Lodge

We went to Malaysia from June 23 to June 26. It was quite the adventure. Our guest house (Pondok Lodge) was over a bar - which we didn't realize until night time and they really liked to watch the World Cup until 4 in the morning. We "slept" at the airport Friday night because we had an early flight back and that was really rough. We also learned the public transportation system fairly quickly in Kuala Lumpur. It felt like we were back in the states in NYC or something. Malaysia is primarily a Muslim country, so that was my first encounter with women fully covered to their eyes and with headdresses on, other than in a Mosque. We took a day trip on Thursday to Melaka which was a good pace for us; it was very colonial and on the coast. I felt like I was in South Carolina or Florida or something which made me miss home a lot. We went back to KL and backpacked downtown with all our stuff the entire day because we were going directly to the airport that night and that wore us out real quick. We sat in line for 1.5 hours Friday morning to get a pass to the bridge of the Patronas Towers at 630pm (I think I saw them on Amazing Race). This short and event-filled vacation was good for our team, maybe not relaxing, but good. And, it was great practice for the Amazing Race!!! We went to the movie theater - which was a highlight because there are definitely no theaters here in Cambodia. We saw Karate Kid and Toy Story 3 for like $3 each and they were both great movies! On our way out of KL our last night we saw a robbery first-hand by two guys that rode their moto right next to us...

God's protection was truly over us this trip and we are so grateful to have some free time as a team. We have been doing ministry prep and ministry together since October. I had to talk with 12 men for about 20 min in order to get our Visas renewed when we returned to Cambodia. They were not going to let us renew them until July 5 and I was not going to leave the airport until we all had renewed Visas in our hands. Everything worked out and we got to see a completely different and new culture from what we've been used to these last 2 months.

From John Piper's Blog "Desiring God" by Jonathan Parnell:

In 2 Samuel 10 the Ammonites and Syrians are closing in on Israel. Joab divides up the men of Israel between himself and his brother, Abishai. He tells his strategy in v. 11, paraphrased, “You take those guys, I’ll take these guys, and let’s help one another if we need it.” That sounds simple enough. It’s the next line in v. 12 that is astounding. Joab declares:

Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the LORD do what seems good to him.

Now we can read this and just chalk it up as another indication of Joab's super-manliness. We can picture him on the battlefield arrayed in armor and emanating more fierceness than Gerard Butler and Russell Crowe combined. But that would severely miss it.

Joab can say what he says because I think he knows what it is that “seems good to the LORD.” Remember the LORD’s promise to David in 2 Samuel 7? He told David, “Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever” (7:16).

"What seems good to the LORD" is not “que sera, sera.” "What seems good to the LORD" is rooted in his unfailing faithfulness to fulfill his promises, whether Israel wins every single battle or not. "What seems good to the LORD" is that the house of David will be made sure forever and there will one day be a king on the throne of Israel whose reign will know no boundaries and have no end—King Jesus, the Christ.

I think that Joab knew this promise and that it was the real source of his courage. This is the kind of courage we need: not a blind fearlessness that comes from self-confidence, but a boldness that flows from being overcome by the reality of the gospel and the faithfulness of our God.

What doubts do you have concerning action for the sake of Christ’s Kingdom? What promise can you stand on and declare “may the LORD do what seems good to him”?

Angkor Wat Complex

Monday morning, June 7, around 6am, we watched the sun rise over Angkor Wat... this shot is from between the entrance of the front complex looking at the back complex (I always thought this shot was the outside of the entire complex).


Again, inside of the back complex...


Walking away from the inside of the complex...

What I didn't realize about these temples is that Angkor Wat is the largest of the temples but there are 7 or more different large temple locations... just a taste for you!

My favorite temple because everything was falling over!

We climbed to the top of this one - it was a straight up climb. The steps were insanely scary!

I made it to the top... going down was even harder...

...Our descent

Coolest trees ever! They have grown over this temple everywhere.

What a truly amazing experience to see these structures and to imagine that they were over a thousand years old... I can't even fathom how they were built, especially how they stacked all these huge stones. I really did feel like Indiana Jones!

"Food" For Thought

So today was our last day of VBS in a village called Takam. On our very bumpy and rough drive there, I almost found myself in tears when I was thinking about the way these people live. I felt sorry for them and I was questioning as to why I grew up where I did and with the seemingly luxurious things my family had in comparison to the people here. And I sat there in confusion for a while trying to understand why it is this way. And, why I was feeling guilty for the way of life I have lived... but I think that I was able to come to some sort of conclusion as to why life is this way.

When we look back at America's history to one hundred, even maybe two hundred years ago, I cannot imagine that life was much different from the people that live here in these remote villages. The more I thought about it... It's really just a way of life here. It's not that these people are "lesser" people or "lesser off," because in their world, this is what they know and how they live. I am not trying to say that our worlds are the same, but we all live in a way that is natural in the environment we are in; and that's just what we know. And when I thought about it more, I thought about our concept of time verses God's concept of time. We only look at life from a linear point of view, but God looks at this world from an all-knowing and all-powerful point of view. He can see people from all times, all environments and all ways of life... All we can see is how life has changed and evolved and progressed and as people that are "ahead" in society; but what are we really ahead of? We may understand science more and technology and all that, but that doesn't make the people that live in these remote areas any less human.

All I can really say is that the Lord gave me some sense of peace in accepting the fact that my life is different from these people and I shouldn't feel sorry for them and the way they live, but I can be thankful that I can love them and encounter them and that the Lord loves them so much more than I could ever humanly offer. There is so much we can do to help these people to gain awareness to water-borne diseases and many other things that society has learned over time. There is so much we can help with, but we don't have to change these people. They are beautiful and they do what they can in this life that they know, and maybe over time... they will come to learn more about farming, and science, and technology like we know... but until then, we should not look at these people as less off or ourselves as better off for that matter.



My mind is still trying to process my thoughts... but please, feel free to add your thoughts.

22 min 30 sec

Our professor Dr. Moodley is here for a visit and a time of debriefing during our time here in Cambodia. We gave him our journals yesterday and I felt both relieved and naked without it. We are required to journal daily (about 3-4 pages) as a part of our class requirements. Although it is very difficult to keep up with, I have learned a lot of things about the significance of journaling and spending a significant amount of time with God intimately and daily.

So anyways, without having our journals... I felt like I had so much free time last night and this morning so I started to read Through Painted Deserts by Donald Miller. Mind you, I've had this book for a few years and I have not just had time to sit down and enjoy a book without school stress or something over my head and last night and this morning I finally had time. I'm already almost halfway through and I'd liked to finish it before we get our journals back (which will probably be at some point tomorrow). Anyways, it's basically a descriptive journal log of Don and his friend Paul traveling to Oregon from Houston in a VW van and a few hundred dollars. It's a fantastic perspective and I've just had true and utter joy as I dream adventurously and feel so relaxed to finally just read stress-free.

Well anyways... this book is reminding me the significance of really making every moment of life count and being light-hearted and just seeking joy and adventure in every possibility. So in the midst of this, we were going to the Children's home today to participate in a welcome celebration that the kids presented for us (which was awesome by the way). Matt, the director of the Children's Home could not pick us up with the van so he suggested we get a Tuk Tuk.

First of all, I didn't feel like spending money on a Tuk Tuk and secondly I reminded myself... I have a bike and two feet and hands and a water bottle. So I was able to talk Kristin, my teammate into riding to the Children's Home with me. It really only took me the question to ask her and she was up for the challenge. It's on one of the main roads here where traffic seems much scarier in a car than on a bike (surprisingly). I don't know how far it is, but I timed it on our way back and it took us 22 min, 30 sec. I loved every second of it. I loved the sweat pouring out of my body and the dust blowing in my face and the grit in my teeth. I loved every rattle and clang on my bike and the bumpy dirt road before the Children's Home. I loved feeling the hot sun on my skin and I loved just living the life and being a part of the Khmer culture. So many different smells, so many different people going and coming from so many different places. It was an awesome experience. Now I want to start riding my bike to the Children's Home as often as I can.

I will need to take a picture of my rickety bike! [Insert photo here]It's a beach cruiser-ish road bike with a basket on it. The first few days after I bought it (for $38 with a lock), I had a flat tire and my handlebars got so loose I almost crashed... but I kept riding it for a few days before I got it fixed. We ride our bikes every day and even took an hour bike ride around town on Sunday. I thoroughly enjoy riding my bike. I've always been so afraid or more so nervous to ride on the road in treaffic, but here with the traffic you just have to jump in and go with the flow and ring your bell and hope people hear it. There's always some close calls with a moto cutting you off or someone riding directly at you and you both awkwardly try to figure out which side the other is going to choose... but I love it. I love the freedom and adventure of it. I just want to ride my bike everywhere!!!

But I think so many things lately, while being here, have been teaching me the importance of enjoying life, enjoying opportunities and accepting circumstances and most of all just finding joy in these situations. I had an amazing talk with John Mark this morning about how our relationship has changed and grown in the 5 years we've known each other. The amazing memories, events, places and time we've spent together. In reading this book, I am reminded to ask myself... if my life was a book, would someone want to read it and would they enjoy it? I hope so. What an amazing gift God has given us to experience life. I hope I will live a life that tells a story and most of all, has God alongside each and every part of my adventure called life!