I'm Giving In...

Great view of the waterfront

     I'm giving in...I'm going to speak Spanish. Sorry to confuse you, Khmer people! I just can't help it. I don't know what you're saying, you don't know what I'm saying...so does it really matter? I've taught a couple of the girls in the home to say some things in Spanish so now one of the girls follows me around saying "hola Rachelle!" I kind of love it. Win for me!

     This week has been good. We're really getting acclimated to the culture, the humidity and rain, and the stress of transportation. I feel like I've been here way longer than 2 weeks!

     Here's just a few things I've noticed or learned this week:

Eating tarantulas with other volunteers

I look totally calm, but I was freaking out inside

1. Mosquitos here are very very slow. I've only gotten bitten twice! Cockroaches are so slow too. And I've killed so many of each. However, ants are incredibly speedy. I'm very impressed.

2. Tarantulas are the absolute worst thing to eat. Just don't do it. And if you do, don't accidentally eat its butt. TERRIBLE idea.

Delicious cookie dough egg rolls from Daughters

3. Living here kind of reminds me of living in Colorado Springs last summer. There are so many NGOs (non-government organizations, basically non-profits) that I sometimes forget I'm in Cambodia. Going into most restaurants is like walking into America. I was getting lunch the other day when halfway through the song, I realized Needtobreathe was playing. These waitresses can't even speak English, but they know what music to play for the foreigners! There's so many cafes and restaurants like Daughters, Sisters, Jars of Clay, and Friends that support women and street children by lifting them out of poverty and giving them jobs as an alternative to prostitution or trafficking. I absolutely LOVE this idea and supporting them, it's just so weird because there's never any local Cambodian people in most restaurants - it's too expensive even though it seems so cheap to us!


     This week has been super busy and productive for Bethany and I. We're getting to know the girls more and more and I think I finally know all their names! The girls go to school in the morning and have English class in the afternoon. So Beth and I (creative side is all Beth) made a reading chart to encourage the girls to read in English! We're also helping make a reading nook in the new girls home - for girls who are in transition to be reintegrated. We decided on the theme of Belle from Beauty & the Beast and her library of books so the girls are so excited because they love Disney princesses!

     Speaking of Disney princesses, the girls asked me to read Beauty & the Beast the other day. One of the girls translated what I said into Khmer but I may or may not have added God as a character in the story. He's the one who loves us based on what our hearts are like, not what we look like on the outside! It was so fun reading to them and, of course, singing every song in the movie with the girls. This was definitely one of the highlights of my week!

#gocru Reppin' the Cru's first win in the new stadium

     Another highlight was leading devotions for the girls. I've been asked to come up with a guide for all the volunteers as we plan out the daily devotions. So starting this next week until December we'll be going through the stories of Old Testament people and learning about how God reveals Himself through each of them. We're covering some difficult stories like Joseph being sold into slavery and how he trusted God through it all. So please pray for these girls to understand God's love and sovereignty in every story! By the end of November we'll stress the need for a hero to come in and save all people - a perfect introduction to the birth of a perfect hero, Jesus! 

     Every Tuesday that I'm here I get to lead the girls in a daily devotional. I have an AMAZING translator who is a beautiful 20 year-old girl who teaches the girls English and is a solid Christian woman! It's soooo powerful having her here with the girls; they can reach the girls in a way that none of us foreigners can. Last Tuesday I talked about God's unfailing love. I taught the girls motions to the song, "Your Love Never Fails," a song they already know. They've asked to do the song several times since then and they're starting to learn the English words! I also shared the story of the lost sheep and how "nothing can separate, even if we run away, God's love never fails!" The girls acted out the story and loved "baa-ing" like sheep! Last Tuesday I was having a pretty down day, not feeling like I was getting to use my gifts or doing things I loved. And God gave me this perfect opportunity to laugh and spend time with the girls - loving on them and sharing with them truths about Jesus. Ah, my favorite thing ever. 

You want the girls to ride on the back of THIS? #itsnotok

     Saturday morning we took 3 girls to the new transition home. When we went to pick up the girls on our bikes we learned that only 1 of the girls could ride a bike and that the other two 6 year-olds would be riding on the back of our bikes. Totally normal thing for Cambodians. Not Americans. So we're riding our bikes through the busy streets of Phnom Penh with a girl on the back of each of our bikes - not to mention we're trying to keep track of the crazy A.D.D. girl biking wayy ahead or behind us. God was definitely gracious and we made it safely both ways! In the afternoon we went back with all the girls and just spent time playing with them. I taught them several Rock the Rock songs and the motions and they loved it. And I loved it. It was just the best. 

     Anyway, this week was great. Please pray for Bethany because she's sick, and pray that I wouldn't get sick either. Pray that we know how to really be there for the girls; I'm such a fixer and I can't do that in this situation so pray that I will know what my role can be. Also PLEASE pray for this city from October 3-5th for Cambodia's Buddhist holiday, Pchum Ben day or ancestor's day. During this time, Cambodian Buddhists believe that the gates of hell are opened and dead spirits are free to roam about the city. Everyone stays inside during these days and chants constantly to try to appease the spirits. It's a very dark holiday for believers and many Christians have been known to have nightmares or struggle with things they don't normally struggle with. Please pray for our team here during these days. Thank you so much for your prayers! God is good! :) 

Oh, I'm sweating...I guess forever.

     You all have permission to punch me in the face if I complain about Texas humidity ever again. Seriously. It's ridiculous here. I'm so thankful for this air conditioning and the 5 fans we constantly have going in our room. 

View of the street from our 4th floor balcony

     Getting to Cambodia was pretty painless. When we arrived, however, the hotel taxi forgot to pick us up at the airport, so we had to find a phone and figure out how to get the our hotel. God was so gracious and we finally got to the hotel around 12:30 and enjoyed a much-needed long night of sleep!

     This place is so different than any other place I've ever been to - it's Asia! The culture is so strange to me so I keep having to remind myself of God's creativity when designing cultures and customs! As far as trafficking culture goes, men see themselves as superior to women; women - especially girls - are basically useless. Khmer men believe that they have a right to abuse and use the women in their lives. So young girls grow up thinking that they have no rights to their own bodies and that's why they get abused, raped, or trafficked. It's heartbreaking to see the girls in the homes everyday. They look so joyful even though they've been so much. For things to change, the whole culture will have to change.

     Early Tuesday morning we got picked up in a tuk-tuk and taken to the guest house where we'll be living while we're here. We jumped right into the swing of things and got to meet the rest of the volunteers and the girls at the home! It's been such a blessing to get to spend time with the girls every single day; we weren't sure that we would get to see them much at all.

Tuk-Tuk

     Every morning we leave the house around 7:45 and bike (gulp, BIKE!) to work! It's about a 8 minute ride but it's weaving in and out of cars, motor-bikes, tuk-tuks, and trucks! I'm getting so much more comfortable with this Tetris-type game and actually am beginning to enjoy each adventure as I learn how these Khmer people travel. Mondays are our day off, so today Bethany and I got to ride around and explore Phnom Penh. My confidence in biking is improving so much and now it's one of my favorite things to do - what an adrenaline rush! 

     Each work morning usually consists of prayer time with the other volunteers then Bethany and I head over the the girls' home to clean while the girls are at school. We sweep, mop, and fold/hang up laundry to dry. It's such a humbling job to get to serve the girls and bless the Khmer house mothers in this way. The girls also just got brand new bed sheets (some for the first time in their lives!) and we got to surprise them by having their beds made when they got home from school.

     There are currently 16 girls at the main girls home, ranging from 6-16 years old. These girls are from very poor rural villages and have either been raped or prostituted or are at risk of being raped or prostituted. They've been brought to this home until their case is over and it's safe for them to go back home. For a lot of the girls, it was someone in their very own family who sold them into sex slavery. Organizations like International Justice Mission will find girls in trafficked situations and bring them into rescue homes like SHE until their case is closed and it is safe for them to return home. The girls love coloring, skipping rope, watching The Land Before Time, and singing worship songs! One of the 3-month volunteers left yesterday so she led the girls in one last guitar worship sesh. It was so amazing to hear the girls singing "Our God is Greater" and "Your Love Never Fails." Cambodia has a very dark Buddhist culture, so it's challenging to hear their little voices declare such strength knowing that "there may be pain in the night but joy comes in the morning!" 

     Every afternoon at 4 a volunteer will lead the girls in a devotional using a book, song, craft, or game. This week Bethany and I got to share with the girls about God's faithfulness. We used Hebrews 13:5 which says, "I will never leave you, I will never abandon you." Bethany and I taught the girls hand motions for the verse and they enjoyed repeating it several times. Then we wrote each word of the verse on a balloon and had the girls try to get in order to spell out the verse. What a powerful way to for the girls to learn English and truth about Christ! I've been asked to come up with a theme and outline for devotionals for the next couple of months, and I'm excited about the ideas I've come up with so far.

     The other volunteers here are AWESOME. I've met some amazing women from Australia, England, Canada, and from here in Cambodia. It's been amazing hearing their stories of faith of how they got here working with SHE Rescue. They took us to an actual local Mexican restaurant and it was pretty legit! It was started by a man from Texas so we will definitely be back for more! 

Khmer worship band at New Life

    Yesterday we went to a local Khmer church pastored by an American who married a Khmer woman and speaks the language fluently. The church was started in the early 90's and has grown into a thriving church-planting body of believers. They are very missions-minded and have a vision to plant churches in every province of Cambodia. It was so amazing just to be a part of seeing what God is up to here in Southeast Asia. My favorite part was singing the song "Bless the Lord (10,000 Reasons)" by Matt Redman. The worship band was all local Khmer speakers, but there were people singing in all different languages and accents. It just made me so excited for Heaven when we will have "10,000 years and then forevermore" to worship our creator! 

     Week 1 was definitely very interesting and eye-opening. Pray that we will continue to lift our lives up - ready for God to use us in any way that He wishes. Pray that we will know how to respond to different circumstances and that everything we say and do will reflect God's spirit of freedom.