#105 - A mishmash of unfortunate events!

Vol.# 105

Well it is 104 degrees in the shade!

SO, have you ever experienced…

… It is so windy that the curtain in the kitchen knocks over the coffee you just brewed; coffee is NOT only all over the counter, but the curtains are resting in it? 

It was not a good time (there really is never a good time for this to happen!), since I had to rush to take the curtains down and now there is no shade from the sun and heat!

… I had taken the butter out of the fridge and it was only on the counter for less than 3 minutes, and had turned into liquid form when I went to retrieve it! 

Yes, it is that hot in my kitchen!

… The fridge breaks down at same time. It is no longer cold. I put in a call to the repairman, (actually my landlord called 3 times, and my tuk tuk driver once!) and it took 3 days before one came. It was suggested by the owner of the store that since they had no one to come that I should bring the fridge myself to the store! (Really? Ah no, not down 3 flights of very narrow steps!). 

Then I waited on Sunday when I was assured that the repairman would come. 3:00 was the designated time; at 3:30 I called and the person could not speak in English and my Khmer was limited so I got the barber next door to give directions! 

Yes, the whole neighbourhood knew my fridge was not working! 

When he finally came, he took a long time taking the whole fridge apart, and then finally said the thermostat needed to be replaced! At 6:00 he was gone and so I had to wait until the next day to really see if the fridge was working properly! 

In the meantime, I had to throw all of the stuff out that I had in the fridge and freezer!  Such a FUN time!

… At the same time, the internet went down! My six-month contract was up, but I had asked Channak to call to arrange the renewal of the contract beforehand, because I did not want to go without my main form of communication! However, the internet kept going off so I thought they had cut me off! Channak reassured me that it was not so, and that the internet people would call me and come to my house to renew the contract!

Well, as of today, I am still waiting! But I thank God I have the internet! Channak called them to tell them of my intentions to renew contract!

In the midst of all of this, New Life church celebrated its 22nd anniversary! 

It was amazing to see how God had worked in the lives of those who planted the church and Pastor Jesse (our speaking pastor) is the son of the one who planted our church in Phnom Penh! But our church has also birthed other churches (just like Upper Room and Connexions) and the Pastor and his wife from one of the church plants came to share! 

I was engrossed and encouraged because the wife is originally from America and she spoke in Khmer! I understood 60 percent of when she spoke! (I understand only 10 percent when Pastor Jesse preaches in Khmer!!)

Then God gave me another gift. We were told to pray with one other person we did not know, so I prayed with this young Khmer woman and I used what little words I knew to pray with her! One of the pastor's wives had gone on stage just prior and said that God would give us His harvest, we had to give what little we had and forget our fears and use what He has given us to share His gospel! Well the little for me was the Khmer words, so I just went for it and she understood and it was awesome to stand with her and bow our heads together to our Father!

Praise: In spite of the heat, I have His focus on my studies! I am beginning to see a pattern in certain symbols as I read!

Prayer Request: That I would have the energy and passion to keep on finding creative ways to study and learn my consonants and vowels! We have our exam in two days and we have to not only speak and read in Khmer, but also be able to write them! My right hand is beginning to be sore with the writing; this is the hand that has given me problems in the past with tendonitis! So I pray that I will be able to practise my writing!

Thank you for your continued prayer and financial support!

I am blessed and honoured to be the recipient of your sacrifice of time and finances! Please continue to send in your prayer requests and just your stories of how you are doing so I can pray with you!

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia,

Your sister, Vidya

#104 - Memory

Vol.#104

So after having a week off for Khmer New Year, I was greeting Lois, one of the principals at G2K school, and proudly told her "Good morning" and "How was your holidays?" 

We then looked at each other and cracked up because I had spoken to her in French! 

She, of course, speaks Khmer fluently, and Portuguese, Spanish and English, and knows a bit of French. 

So we both said at the same time,"Eh, was that supposed to be Khmer?"

Here I thought I was SO rested and ready to go! 

But I had spent the last four days of the week off studying vocabulary and listening to Khmer on my laptop, so I really was not refreshed as I thought I was! 

But my classmates were. They had a break from Khmer and were already apologizing to each other that their Khmer was not 'fresh' since they had taken a break from speaking, listening and trying to read! 

So when I shared with them what I had just said to Lois, they felt better about themselves! 

The heat has intensified. My friend Annette said that the other day the temperature was 108F! 

I have to change my study times to suit when I can better focus! The entire upstairs level becomes an oven and the fans just rotate the hot air! 

But thankfully by 6 in the evening it gets a bit cooler! 

We are studying more of the consonants and vowels and putting symbols together to form a word. Some make sense after looking and studying, and others you just have to learn by sight! 

Prayer answered: 

Reality check: The last few days the first part of the class was good, but the last hour when we are studying the consonants etc., it becomes wearying. So I have learnt the words in Khmer, how to say confusing, complicated (LOL) and I know. When I go back home, and I sit at my little table or on the floor, and I pray and give up the studies to Him, He makes it clear. He gives me a 'key' to unlock what I could not understand. 

But I have to put in the hours. I turn off my phone and then just study! 

So thank you for praying that I would begin to understand! 

A friend sent me an email about the Word becoming flesh, God becoming human for us, and she was praying for me that the Khmer word would become part of me to be the bridge to share His heart! So I have been using that as part of my prep before doing my home work! 

Prayer request:

My memory!: That I would retain what I am learning and that I would be able to put it in conversation form! I still do not have anyone consistent to practise with, so I need to be able to retain what I have learnt so that when I have those random conversations with my Khmer contacts, I would be able to speak to them. 

Another friend sent me a link to Ravi Zacharias 'Let My People Think' radio program, and the theme was on memory! 

I do love His timing! 

Of course the context was on remembering His goodness and what He has done and building memories that glorify Him etc., but the fact that the theme was "memory" made me chuckle! 

So I have been listening to it before going to sleep! 

Thank you for your emails, prayers, and continued financial support here. 
I cannot do this without your help; you are very much part of His plan here in the land He has given to me. 
Keep on sending your prayer requests and stories of your lives! 

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia,

Your sister, Vidya

#103 - A welcome break and linguistic progress!

Vol.# 103

Thank you for your prayers for safety on 2 days away. 

Answered prayer: One tire was flat, so we took the car in for it to be fixed; 4 new tires later, we were finally on the road! Yes, two other tires were not good, they had slashes, and you have to change the fourth! But the time away was worth it.

How?

- I was with Khmer-speaking friends; I understood about 15 percent when they were all speaking together, and about 30 to 40 percent when I could see their faces and mouths!

 

- I felt isolated because of this, but God had His plans for me to hear His voice as I relaxed in Him.

- My back was great for the journey to and fro (3 and one-half hours to 4 hours).

 

- My joints are not painful. 

Prayer request: I need to build up stamina and endurance now. I need wisdom/creativity how to best do this without harming my health! On the last day of class we went on a school trip to Cosi Mountain, and it has 408 steps! 

Yup! 

So I was wise and did half of them. My legs are not that strong to climb up steep stairs! 

Prayer request:  For that person/persons with whom I can practise listening and speaking Khmer. 

From being with this group these past 2 days, I realized that I can ask questions and give answers, but to listen to actual conversation when the speech is fast and spoken the informal way (not the formal way I am being taught), I still have a LONG way to go! 

Even though it was a bit weird not being able to contribute to the conversation around me, (picture me not saying more than 10 words on a 3 to 4 hour trip? Some of you are saying it is a miracle as I write this to why weren't you here to witness it!!!! ), I have to use this experience for the future; to cast my own vision that I would be able to speak and converse naturally when I can understand the flow and words of Khmer!

I have to go find some A/C now. It is 40C today, so the tuk tuk ride to the store was very, very, very hot! 

I am sure that if I tried I could have fried an egg on the seat! Instead I fried myself! (Notice I did not say 'butt'...whoops... I just said it!) 

Plus, not one, but two of my fans are broken, and my landlord and family are away in their home province for the Khmer New Year, so I cannot get that fixed until the 16/17! 

Final prayer request: I have decided to spend a minimum of 3 hours on learning my consonants: how to write and say them during the break. Please pray that I will be disciplined! 

Quick note: I did speak in Khmer to the staff at the place where I was staying. It was easy to ask normal questions, your name, home town, where did you learn your English etc., and I was able to chat with 4 couples there from Australia, USA, New Zealand, and France! So my confidence was not totally shattered! LOL! 

Please keep on sending your stories and prayer requests. It is an honor to be part of your community! 

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia,

Your sister, Vidya

#102 - Needing His Eyes

Vol.# 102

First day of Module 3:

I was baffled in the first hour. 

During the break I sat next to a classmate and we both cried! 

However, God used this so that I could pray with more understanding for her, and then we laughed so much!

Khmer alphabet has 33 consonants more than any other language, and 23 vowels plus independent and inherent vowels whose script look like consonant script, but in reality are vowels!

Yup! Welcome to learning how to write and read Khmer!

We have two new students in our Level 3 class, and when I said my name, Adrienne from New Zealand said, “Oh, we prayed for you when I was in Level 2 class!” The other student is Mike from St. Catherines, Ontario! He and his family are with CMA!

From next week, I have an extra one hour of tutoring class at the school. I sense that I will need it!

Prayer requests:

-That God would give me His eyes to see the pattern when I write out the consonants!

-That I would be able to understand how to write the script. I want to do it neatly and accurately.

-Please pray against tendonitis. In the past I have had trouble with my right hand and now I am using it more than ever to practise and write!

Thank you!

It is with joy I go into this Sunday morning. I am taking a friend to a church pastored by two friends I met on my Mission Prep course in Toronto! I think it is a better fit for him as an expat. My church, New Life, does not fit his spiritual needs, so I am excited to see what God will do this morning!

I have been up since 6am, and yes, I have been studying my Khmer because I WANT to! 

So thank you for your prayers! 

Keep on sending me your stories and prayer requests!

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia,

Your sister, Vidya