#221 - An Engagement and Spicy Noodles!

Vol.# 221

**(I apologize for the font differences. Blogger glitch that I cannot seem to fix!)

Thank you again for all those who prayed for the extension of my visa.

With the government changes to requirements for foreigners/ex-pats who are extending their visas, there was a scramble to get those things in place. A shout out to my ex-housemate who spoke with my landlady to get the ‘ball rolling’ on doing their part for the registration of foreigners, and also to the Administration Department at New Life Foundation who finished that process and then took the documents to the government agency. The extension of the visa that usually takes more than 2 weeks to process only took 9 days! Oun Chetra from Administration just smiled at me and shook his head when he gave me my passport back, because I had told him of all of you were praying over this process, and together we had also prayed before we sent it out! With COVID-19, the government is being especially cautious with expats and wanting to know exactly where we all are located here in Cambodia, thus the prerequisite requirement of registration with the local municipal body and documents to be signed and fingerprints to be done! 

Praise God and thank you!

If you read one of my last updates, I had referred to a young coworker who had made the comment of how I was ‘simple’! Well Oun (younger brother) Seanghort was getting engaged on August 8^th, but when he found out that I was leaving on July 26th (prior to the change of travelling plans), he asked his parents as well as his girlfriend’s parents if they could change the date to accommodate Bong Srey (older sister) Vidya! What is remarkable about this is that both sets of parents are Buddhists and had met with the village seer to get a date, but Oun Seanghort and his girlfriend are Christians and had prayed that: 1) both parents would allow them to have a Christian engagement ceremony; and 2), that the date would be changed! Well both sets of parents agreed to both requests, and it was my delight to drive up for 2 hours with my ‘bubble’ of coworkers to celebrate this event!

Engagement Group photo!

With co-workers at engagement

Going watermelon picking after engagement!

'Liming' with 2 former Rescue students at engagement!

  As we were sitting upstairs in the room, cross-legged on the floor, trying to get a bit of air from one of the three fans, I looked around and was struck by the background where Oun Seanghort, his girlfriend Sophea, both parents, 3 of their home pastors and grandparents sat on the floor. Directly behind them was a wall covering with their names and the date of the engagement and a big Cross! To the right of them was the shrine dedicated to Buddha! There were no offerings on it, which was unusual because this is the daily early morning ritual to put the fruit and liquid on the shrine. As the Khmer French Pastor asked if the parents on both sides agreed to this ‘union’, both said quite firmly and happily, YES! Wow! What an answer to prayer and to the obedience of this young couple to get engaged only if under Christian rites with their hometown pastors, and if not, they would wait because they both wanted to honor Jesus the Christ! As I said to both of them afterwards, because they trusted God, waited on Him first, and showed honor to their respective parents, by their lifestyle, their parents said yes! Afterwards, Oun Seanghort’s father invited us to go watermelon picking at his farm! That was fun and brought back memories of Trinidad and Tobago and our house on Ephraim Joseph Street where we had watermelons growing in our front yard! The soil was so good that we just threw the seeds and it grew! 

An idea popped up one morning as I finished my coffee time with Jesus on the rooftop, and that was to organize a ‘spicy noodle eating competition’ amongst the staff at the church office! When I shared it with my chief co-conspirator of fun (yes, my idea as well to this new endeavour!), she said, oh yes! We all are feeling burnt out and exhausted, and with no church gatherings there is a sense of disconnection. Also with roles changing, there is shifting of identity and purpose amongst the staff (my observations). So just before staff meeting last Wednesday, we set up the challenge! Each ministry within the church for example, church planting, pastoral care, Media, IT, worship ministry, to name a few, had a representative to enter into the challenge! There were 14 ministries in all, and after each rep ate the spicy noodle (had to eat ALL in order to win), then that person had to blow a balloon (got rid of the hot air from eating the noodles), and then run to give the balloon to a designated person! Our head pastor also took part in the proceedings (to get him involved I had to talk to his PA and HR to figure out his schedule but he was ‘game’). No one was exempted! 

Spicy Noodle Challenge!

Afterwards people kept talking about the fun, the burning of the stomach (cold milo was available for each participant) and the FUN! Sometimes in the midst of all this we lose the joy and the fun because of the tasks before us, and in this new season of trying to respond to a new reality, it has been energy draining. It has been a season filled with doubts on what is the next step and figuring out if it the right one for all! Oh, just in case you were wondering, the prize was chocolates!!! It was fun and hilarious especially at the staff meeting when one of the leaders would go up to give a report, and would say, “Wow! My stomach is still burning! Give me a minute before I do the report.” We would all be laughing! It was a different kind of staff meeting!

Saying Goodbye to Nathan who served 7 years here!

2 Chronicles 34 :14...”Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the Lord given through Moses....v18 And Shaphan read it before the king...” I would like to change this to say ‘Vidya, His child, found the Nuggets of Encouragement from one of the King’s Daughters given through the Lord Jesus Christ!’ I am referring to a book which is a compilation of thoughts and encouragement by a prayer mentor, an encourager to those of us on the mission field, domestic or international, a woman in whom I was in awe and frankly, intimidated me when I first met, but whom I got to know and to respect, not only as a fierce intercessor but also as someone who listens and has an intimacy with the Lord Our God. She knows His voice because she knows His Word firsthand, and yet is so humble, that in this book she does not put her name as the author, but simply writes “From one of the King’s daughters”! Her name? Jennie Leslie! 

Jennie Leslie's Book

Looking back, I was tempted to call her Mrs. Leslie but funnily enough, it was simply Jennie! I got to listen and learn from her as she prayed and interceded on a Tuesday evening and on a Sunday evening before church. I was the humble recipient of her notes of encouragement on orange stationery, at first handwritten, and then typed but signed by her. To me it was one of my lifelines of encouragement. I got to peek into the soul of someone who truly loved to be at His feet, who had a running intimate conversation with Her Saviour. Now after so many years and in a different continent as I searched through my limited books that I packed to bring to Cambodia, I found her book just as Hilkiah did, and as I sat and re-read those nuggets, I was and am encouraged, challenged and brought to tears of joy as I look into the heart of Our Saviour through one of His daughters! For such a time as this, Jennie, when I needed this amidst COVID-19 and not being able to go home now, what a treasure to uncover! 

How blessed am I!

Prayer Requests: 

-      In Romans 16:17 Paul cautions us to ...watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles‘. Please pray that I WOULD NOT be one to cause divisions but rather be his peace and from v19, thatyour (my) obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise”. I want always to be obedient to God first (like Oun Seanghort and his fiancée), and not to man.

- Please pray for a house cleaner. I want a non-Christian Khmer speaking woman. Currently one person may work for 2 or 3 different households or business places, so you do not know the ‘bubble’, so I have to be wise. It is time consuming and difficult for me to clean the rooftop and the outside open spaces.

- On August 8/9, ten of us on the Global Leadership Summit Cambodia will be previewing speakers for our upcoming GLSCambodia online seminar. Pray for unity as we choose relevant speakers to the Cambodian culture, lessons they are teaching which can easily be translated into Khmer. For those 2 days we are watching all the speakers online, so pray for clarity and for His anointing on us all as we choose which speakers to highlight! (We all love TD Jakes but he is difficult to translate into Khmer!) 

Praises: 

For YOU! For my Mom and Dad. My Mom just celebrated being 84 years YOUNG. For my siblings who are taking care of my parents on site and also from afar through their online visits and help, to phone calls and video calls with Daddy and Mommy!

Thank you all for your continued partnership as you dance with me here in my heart country of Cambodia! 

Love, His Warrior and Disciple, 

Submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia, 

Your sister, Vidya