#175 - Village or City?

Vol.# 175

Hello all from ...not a sweltering room, but gasp...an air-conditioned space, since I am in a coffee shop! In my last update, I had asked you to pray for me and here are the answers!

- I met with the head of the English program at the main church campus for lunch and decided to stay for both the 4 o’clock and then the 6 o’clock English classes.

Lunch with Pov to Discuss English Classes

The first class had 20 students with English literacy levels ranging from level 2 to a level 4 in literacy comprehension. I wanted to observe how the head of the program who was substituting for the regular teacher taught this class. The second class had 60 students! I kid you not! 

I sat behind and wondered how some of the students were learning because some of them could not understand simple instructions. There were also those who were bored. I knew this because they were not taking notes; they understood everything and had good recall when I asked them questions. There was one particular student who caught my attention. His spectacles were quite thick and he had to hold the paper very close to his eyes, and his friend kept whispering to him to let him know what was written on the board. He kept leaning forward as he strained to listen and learn. Then there were other students who did not understand what was going on, so they kept whispering or looking at their classmate’s work! 

But they were all at attention when Pov, the head of the program there, began to share his testimony and the reasons he studied English. He had to share in Khmer and English, mostly in Khmer for them to understand, and I for one was riveted by his testimony! His father died when he was 4, his family had no money and he was mostly on his own, so he became a gangster and made some bad choices in his life. Then one day he heard about the free English classes at the church and decided he wanted to have a better life. So he learnt English so that he could get a ‘legal’ job so that he could earn money to get out of his poor situation. His life circumstances began to change little by little. He said that he became a believer through going to the church to learn English. He now turns to God when he has problems so that he would not make bad life choices.
Education was his way out of not only physical poverty but also spiritual and emotional poverty!

- I had asked requested prayer for when I went out to the village area.
First of all, I did not realize how far it was going to be. It was further than when I worked at Bek Chan Place of Rescue orphanage. It took one and a half hours by car because of the traffic and man, was it ever hot! 

  Village Pastor’s Wife and Son with Sister Rotha, Leader from Main Church

Birthday Celebration with Youth at Country Church

But when we got to the first church where they were having a Youth Outreach night, it was awesome! They played games and then had a mini concert of songs followed by a short talk by the leader whom I was accompanying from the main campus. Sister Rotha, the leader, will be staying there for 3 months to help the pastor and his wife at this location because there are 3 churches in the area that are satellite plants of the main church. We stayed at a guesthouse for the night where the cockroaches and I had a war going on. We 3 women stayed in one room, and guess which bed the cockroaches decided to play on? Yes, my own! Sigh! 

The next morning we got up early to get coffee and then off to church. This church reminded me of a church my parents pastored back in Trinidad (Las Lomas Evangelical church). It was small with about 25 adults, 8 small kids and the worship team was comprised of 4 of the youth from the previous night. Man! 

A flood of memories came back especially when I went outside to a small shed in the back where the kids were on the floor with crayons and paper colouring and drawing their stories! I remember teaching a class like that back home! I remember being a part of a class like that myself! Even though it was sweltering (the fans were circulating hot air), tears were rolling down my face as I felt this was ‘holy ground’! 

At the end the pastor asked us to pray with members of the congregation who needed prayer and they all went up. This congregation was comprised of many older women and as I prayed with one particular older lady, these words kept coming to mind: Do not worry! God hears you! You have remained faithful to Him even though you have many problems. But do not worry!  So I said these words to her, and she started to cry and held out her hands and then held my face!

Women’s Group at Second Church

Then it was time to go and have lunch and get ready for the Sunday school class at 4, followed by the evening service at the first church at 6. After lunch we went to the church and hung out with some of the youth there playing UNO! Who knew that UNO could be so competitive and addictive? It was fun.

With youth and American couple; can you find me?

Then the couple who took me there shared some lessons about forgiveness and how to have healthy relationships. This couple is from States and they speak Khmer fluently enough to already bond with the congregation there. They know this is where God is planting them. Then at 8 at night we made the trip back to the city, and this time it was a shorter journey back with cooler temperatures and it only took about 45 minutes!

- Results from trip to the province: 

I had prayed and asked God to show me if it was in the countryside I needed to be or back here in the city. It would be so easy to follow one’s emotions when you go on site and see how much help is needed at certain sites, especially when you ‘bond’ with the people you meet and they all say we want you here to help. But that is also the danger. I have recognized the fact that my specific top giftings or skills are relational and more than one of my ‘mentors’ have so wisely advised me this way, “Vidya, your relational skills have been given to you by God. They can always be applied to any place you go, so you must always pray into situations to see if that is where you are to be planted. Secondly look at the whole picture. Are the living conditions conducive for the long run? A visit or three days is just a snapshot of the whole movie of His plan, so make sure that you are able to give one hundred percent of yourself to any particular situation without having your energies being drained by other factors. Do not be a negative factor for the people you are serving. The focus should be on you being a servant to those around you, and NOT them serving you because you are not physically or emotionally fit to serve!” 

Wise words indeed!

One picture that kept coming back to me even when I was out in the countryside was the one of that student with the thick glasses who could barely see, whose parents are sacrificing to have him at school in the city. They are not sacrificing money to pay for his education since it is provided free of charge by the church, but this son could be working and helping to contribute to the family’s income. However, the parents want a better future for all of them, and no, I am not using the wrong pronoun when I say ‘them’, for the son or daughter’s future is all about contributing to the whole family, not just solely for the individual concerned!

Prayer Request: 

As I keep serving in the areas discussed above, either as a consultant or main teacher (I would love to take out 20 specific students from the class of 60 to really invest in teaching) in a conversational English class in the city or in the countryside, would you pray that God would cement in my heart the specific location please? I already have an inkling but I want to meet with the chief Khmer pastor leader and his wife to share my concerns and ask for their advice. I want to make sure that my Western upbringing and perspectives on outcomes for educational classes do not taint my perspective, and of course I want to get their blessings! My Mission team back in RAC wisely suggested that I have partners here who really know me and under whom I am accountable. I am His servant first, and their servant secondly in my heart country here, and I want to serve not only passionately but wisely so that my spheres of influence are God-directed and impactful for His glory.

Snippets of my life here:
On Father’s Day at church, one of my students leaned over and whispered to me, “Sir, Happy Father’s Day!” I laughed and snorted out loud at same time! Not good, since it was in the middle of the church service! 

On the way to church, the random tuk tuk driver that I called to take me there says to me after 3 minutes, “Bong Srey (older sister) are you a Christian?” I had no idea how he knew and no, I did not say any ‘christianese’ words like ‘bless you’ or ‘Praise the Lord you are driving well’! I just said yes and we began a conversation about his family and how his wife is too busy selling at the market to go to church, and I just felt I should give him 2 free tickets to the annual Asian Conference in September organized by my church here. It is special 3-day event where churches from all the provinces come together to listen to special speakers and worship together. They have been selling ticket for $2.50 each, but if you buy early you get one ticket free. So I had 6 tickets with me with the intention of giving them away. So I gave him 2 so that he and his wife can prepare to come for part of the conference or all of it in September.

At the coffee shop here, as soon as I walked in, the waitress said, “Apple scone, Bong Srey?” I was puzzled but then I remembered last time I came with the sole intention of eating that for breakfast and they did not have any. It was only 30 minutes after opening time and I thought to myself, ‘was I overly dramatic last time when I came in… ‘Cause how come she remembers me?’ SO sheepishly I said, okay yes, even though I had planned to eat something else. So I got it to go and then the manager came out and said, “Oh Bong, I saw you and immediately I told the girl, keep apple scone for Bong Srey”!  I smiled and said thank you and proceeded to be the gentlest of all customers ever! Yikes! Maybe I need to work more on the ‘fruit of the Spirit,’ ay?

Did I mention that the time in the countryside with the churches with the messages being preached was all in Khmer; even my prayer time there? I probably understood about 60 percent in the messages but I understood even less when the older women spoke to me, and that was one to one, because the language spoken is not as formal as the one I am accustomed to in the city, but actions speak louder than words, so communication was not as difficult as I thought it would be! But you do need that ‘space’ or ‘retreat’ after being immersed in the language for 2 days when you go home so that mentally you can be prepared to go back out and just focus on Khmer language.  

In last session out in the countryside, we had to get into small groups and answer 3 specific questions based on the sermon given. So I answered the last question boldly with the words, “My pastors from back home and my prayer partners!” I was puzzled by the group members’ reactions until I realized I had misunderstood the question. I thought I was being asked about whom I go to for help when I am experiencing difficulty in particular situation. So I said pastors. However, the question was “Who do I need to ask forgiveness from for an unhealthy situation/Who do I need to say sorry TO for my unhealthy response to a situation!” Yup, maybe I understood even less than 60 percent! It was however an ice breaker, because we were all laughing a half hour later over my confident response and my group’s reaction to my answers.

The boat trip with my expat friends and language teachers from school went well even though it rained on the way and for the first 25 minutes. 

My Posse! My Khmer teachers and Expat Bro and Sisters.

I had fun bonding with Baby Hosea. He was premature at birth, but wow, how God has answered prayers! He is so strong now and so cute!

It was wonderful to see that even though formal relationships as teacher and student have changed, we are still a family and these are the relationships I need to nurture and maintain in order to keep sharing His heart with those who only know of Him from afar!

Please keep on sending your snippets of life! 

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, 

Submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia, 

Your sister, Vidya 

#174 - Part of His Calling: Literacy and Education

Vol.#174 

I am having a déjà vu moment as I sit here on my balcony amidst the sounds of my neighbourhood coming alive: construction sounds as the condo building opposite me is still going up and up; the business next to me with the machines and banging as they produce their products; the traffic on the street below; and the sounds of dogs barking!

It was the year 2009 when I first came here to Cambodia. Pastor Nancy had asked each of us on our team of 12 members to take a particular word and meditate on it and then see how it could be used as part of our devotional. I cannot remember the specific word, but I do remember having tendonitis, so I could not write whilst others were busy scribbling down their answers. After 5 minutes Pastor Nancy called on me to say what the word meant to me. I remember breaking up the word into smaller words and then turning each of the words into a question related to my spiritual lesson.

And then it clicked for me.

Literacy or education would be one of the ways God was going to use me as part of His plan here on earth! 

On that same trip we had gone to Toul Sleng, a S-21 genocide museum, a school facility which had been transformed into an internment, interrogation and extermination camp used by the Khmer Rouge between 1975-1979. The pictures and the stories and the prison cells together with the tools of torture are still there on display and I remember thinking that the Khmer Rouge had been using this facility to re-educate the people into their way of thinking, abusing what real education of transformation and progress was all about! 

Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, when I met with the head of the English programme at the Steang Meang Chay church campus (my church here; there are many church plants which radiate from this main church campus) to discuss my potential role with them. At this campus there are students who come from the countryside. They are poor financially (not impoverished in spirit or in abilities); they cannot afford to go to school, so New Life church provides food and living accommodations in dorms while they get an education here in the city. 

As I sat in on a class and listened to the Khmer teacher teach English to the students, and try to lay down the fundamentals of the lesson that day, I was able to help with the pronunciation of certain words (Yes! Gasp! To those of you who are saying, did Vidya say she was helping with the pronunciation? Yes!) by using my Khmer written skills! I was able to write the sound using Khmer script so that they could say the sound in English! 

As I went back to my seat I felt that rush or thrill knowing that the reason I had been learning the heart language was not only to share His heart but also to be a better teacher here in my heart country! I was seeing tangible proof of spending time learning Khmer and knowing that education in the form of teaching English and related work skills was the way to lead the next generation forward here in Cambodia! 

As I spoke with the Khmer teacher, who had only been teaching for 4 months, I was so pumped because I got to see a teacher who loved his students, who included all of his students in the lesson and genuinely had a passion to teach. Many of us have been in classes where the teacher/professor mechanically taught the lesson but was not able to communicate the love of learning as part of the education process, using what is familiar to extend the understanding of concept being taught. 

Learning English is costly. Many cannot afford to go to school, but it is still the number one business language in the world. A case in point, one of the young students, age 16, would often see the head of the English programme, Pov, at the local market, and would choose to speak to him in English rather than Khmer. This intrigued the teacher, so he invited this young man to join the English programme at the church campus and the rest is history!  This student caught my attention by the smart questions he asked as well as his humor when he formulated sentences using adjectives in the lesson being taught. Unfortunately, his parents need his help to earn money for the family as it is with most poor families here, so the prayer is that he will be able to stay! 

On the other hand, I got to celebrate my housemate’s sister graduating with her Masters-in-Law at the university here! She worked two jobs during the day and went to school. She not only learnt to speak English but is also fluent in Chinese. 

I was again taken back to when I graduated from high school back in Trinidad, and then from University of Toronto (BA), and then OISE (Masters in Adult Ed.), remembering the sacrifices my parents made to allow their children to have an education. They were not able to have formal education but they knew the importance of having one to further our lives. 

Sacrifice and perseverance were the key elements back then to having an education and here it is the same. Having faith that I am part of His plan here has coated those two elements with His grace and love which leads to that assurance that, yes, I am here to do His will by using His skills given to me through the medium of education. 

Praise: 
When all of my appliances seemed to be breaking down at same time, my two coffee press 'things' also broke at the same time! I know, hey...unbelievable, but then I remembered the gift I was given by Karen S. and also Ian and Ramona: Starbucks instant coffee packs! I had never used them but kept them for a ‘rainy day’ (a.k.a. I forgot I had them in my cupboard) and I am so happy! I usually start my day by having coffee with Jesus, so let the dance continue! 

Prison Fellowship Update:
I met with Prison Fellowship Ministry over a year ago. The plan was to finish up Khmer studies so that I could go in to teach English at the youth prisons. Since then the government of Cambodia has changed the rules. They have given accreditation status to Khmer teachers who would go in to teach English, but not to expat teachers. So if you are a prisoner and you enroll in an English class, then upon completion of the course you will receive a certificate from the government which could be used when you were reintegrated back into society. 

So for now, until things change, working with PF in that capacity has to be put on hold. There was one position working in administration to help foreign visitors with expat prisoners, but after sage advice from Pastor Sunder and Sham, my spiritual mentors at my church, and the revelation of my skills already written above, I knew that God had gifted me with relational skills, not administrative (many of you are saying AMEN!), and the reason I have been learning my heart language of Khmer is to work with the Khmer people!  

Prayer Request: 
Besides working with the students here on English/conversational and work skills, I am being asked to be a ‘resource’ teacher to other Khmer teachers as well. Please pray for a definite leading by God into this role as well.

Prayer Request: 
Please pray as I go out of the city area to another area which is poorer in comparison.This community is a satellite community to my church here. The role is to teach and help with the implementation of the curriculum.

Prayer Request: 
This Friday I have organized with some expat friends an informal thank-you get-together with my teachers and their spouses. We are praying for no rain as the rainy season has begun. Pray for God-conversations and the deepening of bonds!

Changing PO Box with my Khmer Tutor

Finally, there is a change in my mailing address. I extend my apologies to anyone who has sent me anything within the past year. There was a mix-up, so when I went to transfer my PO box closer to my home, I found out that no mail sent to my former address had been processed or put into my mailbox. So if you thought I was rude in not acknowledging your mail, it was because I never received any! My eldest sister had sent me a card but I never received it. Thank you! 

Please keep on sending me your prayer requests. This has been a long one!

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, 

Submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia, 

Your sister, Vidya