Jumping in With Both Feet

Talk about long days!! Last week I had the opportunity to shadow the teacher who’s place I took over teaching English and then also the opportunity to just get things together for when I started teaching. Well this week kicked in at full swing!! I teach English to three different classes, then have four classes I pull from to help this students who are struggling. As things are looking right now there will be some changes made so I can spend more time with the struggling students, which I would prefer. To start off with I will be passing off two English class so I can do some one-on-one teaching with a few students. As much as I enjoy helping the students who are struggling it is extremely challenging since it is all in Indonesian. Thankfully most of the students are very gracious and are also helping me to learn Indonesian. It does get frustrating at times when I want to tell them to do something and can’t tell them, but so far I’ve been getting by with the little Indonesian I know and lots of gestures. Although the days are long and can get frustrating at times I am very happy to be teaching now since it does help the days pass faster, which is nice. Not only have I been teaching, but I am also helping with teacher trainings. We had a training all day last Saturday and one this Saturday as well. During the trainings I have opportunities to teach the teachers here different strategies to use in the classroom. Most of them focus on special education, but can definitely be adapted to any type of classroom. At times it gets kind of intimidating since I just got here and am now giving teaching recommendations to teachers who have been teaching longer than me. It is also hard because it has all has to be translated so they understand what I’m saying. Although it can be intimidating it has been cool to see a strategy or game taught to the teachers and then used in the classroom, it’s been good for them as well as for me!

Besides teaching and doing trainings I am enjoying getting to know the other missionaries who live here, and slowly getting to know the kids. I struggle telling the kids apart and remembering names, but there are a few who have stuck out and I enjoy talking with and playing with. I find it funny because many of the kids think all Westerners look alike because for the most part we all have white skin. However, they forget to notice the different color hair and eyes we have, and even different sizes. The kids here on the other hand ALL have brown skin, dark brown hair and eyes, and for the most part are all the same size. And they wonder why I struggle remembering all of their names!

Since being here God has started showing me some really cool things. It’s going to be quite the journey as he continues to reveal things to me, especially since some of them are at times hard things for me to deal with but I know if I’m willing to push forward He is going to do some huge things in my life. Please continue to pray I would listen to God with an open heart and mind and be willing to follow Him where He leads.

Unfortunately I have come down with a bit of a cold this week so please pray I would overcome it quickly and also listen to by body so I don’t run myself into the ground.

I pray all is well in the States!

Bumpity, Bump, Bump...

I have arrived safely in Living Waters Village! The ride here was long and very bumpy, but it wasn’t actually as bad as I thought it would be. It took us about 12 hours to get here, but for some reason was actually very manageable. The roads we drove on were pretty ridiculous. There were potholes everywhere, and the potholes that were filled in were filled in with chunks of rock, big sharp pieces of rock. It made for an interesting drive. But, I am now here and don’t have to do that drive again for just under 2 months.

Since arriving there has been quite a few things going on. As we drove in we were met by a group of people. It was a bit intimidating meeting so many people at once, but the nice thing was many of them were Westerners so they speak English! It is nice to have people around that I can talk to because for the most part I don’t understand what is being said. I look forward to learning some Indonesian while I am here. Not only will it be helpful as I teach, but also fun to learn.

Saturday:

I had the opportunity to meet the teachers I will be working with. While there I got to join in on a time of worship and prayer, I didn’t understand a word that was said, but it was extremely powerful to listen to all of them worship God in their language. It was a huge blessing to be a part of it and I look forward to many more of those opportunities ahead of me. Besides teaching English I am also going to be pulling small groups of students who are struggling in school. I will be working with them on reading and math, which I am very excited about. This means, however, I will be teaching them Indonesian, which means I actually have to start learning some Indonesian pretty quickly. Please pray that I would learn quickly, and also be able to remember what I am learning.

I also got a tour of the property, which was unbelievable! The ministry owns about 600 acres of land and to see all that is going on here was amazing. There are so many different projects that are in the process right now it blows my mind. To describe in words all that is going on is pretty near impossible. Between the children’s houses being built, the bakery, medical center and so much more there is a ton of expanding going. At this point there are over 300 kids living here and still growing. I have yet to see them all together but am looking forward to when I will see them all in one bunch.

I wish I could post pictures to share the beauty that I am surrounded with both of God’s creation, but as well as what God is doing here through this ministry, but at this point it’s a bit too difficult.

Sunday:

Wow!! I have now seen all 300+ kids who live here in Living Waters Village all in one room. The first time was last night for a birthday party for everybody who had a birthday this month, but this morning at Church was even more amazing. I thought yesterday was powerful listening to the teachers of the school worshiping God in their language now imagine over 300 people coming together and worshiping the God of our the universe in a different language. It was mind-blowing and beautiful! Watching these kids worship God and seek God with everything they have was so encouraging. Again I understood none of what was being said, but it didn’t matter. The passion and love for God was there which says so much.

Tomorrow I start at the school, something I am very excited about. I’m looking forward to starting to work with the kids and hopefully start to learn more Indonesian.

Please continue to join me in prayer as I get ready to get started with everything that I will be doing and that God has for me.

Tuhan memberkati (Lord bless you!)

Kuching

I made it to Kuching on Sunday with no problems! All flights went very well, minus the fact of not sleeping much, and my luggage even made it through all the transfers, which was a huge relief. Weather here is amazing and warm and I love it!! We have had an amazing rain storm today which has helped to cool everything down a bit, though so far the heat has been very bearable. The humidity is a bit different and taking some getting use to, but for the most part it has just been really nice.

Since getting to Kuching I have been spending a lot of time with the Brooks, which has been a huge blessing. Although it has been months since I have seen them and years since I have seen them on such a regular basis it feels as though very little time has been lost. It has been so good to catch up with them and spend time with them. I have seen the city of Kuching from all different angles and have also had many different kinds of foods. I got my visa without too many problems earlier in the week so am ready to cross over into Indonesia. Some of the things I have enjoyed besides some of the amazing and yummy foods are a relaxing time at a fish spa, the movie Alvin and the Chimpmunks, swimming, as well as walking along the riverfront. It has all been very nice and has helped me to adjust to the time zone before jumping in feet first. I have less than a day here in Kuching before we head out to the village, which I’m very excited for. I look forward to getting to the village and getting started. I have heard so many stories over the years and I can’t wait to start meeting some of the people and being involved in the children’s lives.

Unfortunately internet has been extremely sketchy here in Kuching and have heard it has been pretty sketchy in the village, so I don’t know how easy it is going to be to keep everything updated. I will do my very best to keep everything updated and keep everyone informed on what’s going on. Pictures are going to be very hard to past due to the lack of internet, so I apologize if there are no pictures for awhile.

Hope all is well in the States!!

Heading Out...

I’m just over an hour away from heading out of the country, and I am so excited! This trip has been a long time in the planning, and it is finally here. Over the past couple of weeks as I have finished all the preparations to leave God has really used this time to start preparing my heart for what is to come. Recently I had a reminder from a friend to make sure to pray. Not just about the trip, but to really pray about what God has for me through this trip and that His will be done. As I have started focusing on this and truly pouring out my heart to God and giving Him my desires He has changed me in incredible ways. My focus has changed so much already from my needs and wants to what He wants for me as well as from me. It has been a challenging couple of weeks, but I know this is just the beginning and I can’t wait to see what else He does.

On top of the reminder to pray constantly there has also been a song that has really helped me to take a step back and put a new cry in my heart. The lyrics to one of the versus has left an impact on me, and has become a theme for this journey:

Let me not be blind with privilege

Give me eyes to see the pain

Let the blessing You've poured out on me

Not be spent on me in vain

Let this life be used for change

For me it says it all, not just for this trip but for my life. God has blessed me so much, and I don’t ever want to take it and use it in vain. Every blessing He pours out on me is so I may bless others. I want my life to make a difference in others, and I don’t want it to stop with my trip to Indonesia.

So, as I leave and come back please continue to pray with me. Pray God would reveal His will to me and that I would have the faith to step out and continue to follow. Pray for my time in Indonesia that I would be used by Him in mighty ways, and that I would not get in the way. Also pray for my traveling. I have only just begun the many hours of travel set ahead of me, and look forward to finally seeing familiar faces again in Malaysia. Last but not least, pray I would not lose my focus. It’s so easy to lose focus and start trying things on my own. So pray I would stay focused on Him and learn to fully depend on him as I go through the next few months and beyond.

Again thank you so much for all the prayer support and financial support. I look forward to sharing with you all that God is doing in Indonesia!!

God Bless!!