I made it! I’m here! The Race has STARTED!
It has been a crazy journey getting here. My squad and I went to Atlanta for launch and spent a few days there getting last minute training. We flew from Atlanta to san Francisco, then from San Fran to China, then from china to Siem Reap Cambodia, and then took a 5 hour bus ride to Battambang!
Phew! It feels really good to be here. This month is all squad month and that means all 55 of us live together! We are staying in a school/house in a cute little compound. Each team has a different ministry, which range from teaching, visiting in the hospital, working in Ezra café, and yard work. My teams ministry this month is COOKING!
I know, I know. Cooking. What? That’s not a ministry!
Well, let me tell you something:: it suuuuure is.
When I was first told that all I would be doing for the first month of living in Cambodia was cooking, I was pretty annoyed. I felt like it would be useless and that I wouldn’t be able to share the love of God. And that was the PURPOSE of this whole race. But then my perspective was completely turned around.
Here is what a typical day looks like for team Kaleo:
– We wake up at 5 am and get ready for our day. Throw on some dirty pants and a tshirt and head down to the kitchen.
– We start breakfast at 5:30. Our usually meal is some type of fruit and some yogurt. We’ve done some fancy meals and went crazy with some scrambled eggs. Breakfast is served at 6:30.
– After breakfast, we go over to the boys’ house across the street and do a devo with our host. Then we come back to our house and clean up.
– After clean up, half of us go to the market!
– The day before, all of us meet and make up a meal plan for the next few days. Each day at the market we buy lunch, dinner, and breakfast for the next day.
– We have the same Tuk Tuk driver each day and his name is Mr. Sam! We love Mr. Sam. He’s probably the sweetest person ever.
– We have a fruit lady, a veggie lady, an egg man and Lucky Market. We usually hit all three if we are making a boujee meal.
– After the market we come back and start prepping for lunch! An example of a lunch we’ve made this week is chicken friend rice or pasta salad. We’ve gotten GREAT feedback from the rest of the squad! Lunch starts at 11:30
– After lunch and quiet time, we have a break from 1-4. During that time we either go to a coffee shop to get some wifi or we chill at the house and rest.
– around 4 we start to prep for dinner. A dinner we’ve made this week has been taco salad! A Cambodian woman named Chhady who lives in Ezra with us has been helping us prepare dinner when she gets off work. Chhady is probably the most SELFLESS person I know. I have loved getting to listen to her life stories.
– dinner starts at 6:30 and it’s a sweet time. We come together in fellowship with one another after long days of ministry and talk or not talk and just BE.
– After dinner we have team time at 7:30! We come together with our teams and talk about whats been happening in our hearts.
– Then BED TIME! I usually wipe out around 8:45 hahahaha.
This past week in Cambodia has been SUCH a joy. When I first arrived, I had a skeptical spirit, but the Lord REALLY opened my heart and let me fully enjoy living here in this country. Although our ministry is just cooking for people, we get to immerse ourselves in the culture and love people we encounter everyday. We get to love on the fruit lady and her two kids. We get to talk to the veggie ladies and make them feel loved.
Yesterday I was buying some passion fruit for myself and I asked how much it was and she gave it to me for FREE! I got to give her a hug and her face LIT UP!
It’s been such a joy getting to build relationships with these women. THIS is how we spread the love of Jesus. By showing them the love He first gives us. As a team we get to pray over all of the people we meet in the market and He has been so fruitful. The language barrier is definitely hard, but our fearless tuk tuk driver Sam also acts as our “translator” sometimes!
This week, my soul has found rest. I didn’t realize it before, but I had been so burdened, so tired by the things of the world. I couldn’t focus completely on God. But man He has shown me REST. My soul needed this rest. It has made me feel free. Feel burdenless. Feel open to the father. He speaks to me slowly and softly. And I have felt at peace in Cambodia.
Being a Cambodian cook has opened my eyes to new way to spread His name! I have realized that even through something as small as being a house cook, I can bring kingdom! I can to serve people well like Jesus served, I can love people well like Jesus loved, and I can walk like Jesus walked. And my ultimate goal is to look more like Jesus EVERY SINGLE DAY. And the Lord is helping me do that! I have absolutely loved living in Cambodia and I hope that each day, more seeds are planted.
If you’ve made it this far, THANK YOU for reading! It means a lot to me!
I ask that you continue to pray for me and my squad and that we bring kingdom every day!
Blessings!!!
Eliza
