Musings . . .

Greetings!

We went to Battambang to visit and immunize the orphans -- from Monday to Wednesday.

We had an awesome time visiting those 50 beautiful kids, just sharing with them. (No one seemed to hold a grudge against me for putting holes in their arms!)

After a difficult farewell Tuesday evening, Wednesday, six of us took a van overland to Siem Reap - the site of Angkor Wat and the ancient ruins. We traveled over a rutted, dirt road in the 95+ degree heat making awful clouds of dust. It took over 4 hours of non-stop bumping and jostling to get across just that stretch of road. There were no "rest stops" or McDonald's, nor even any real bathrooms!

As I was asking myself, "what in the world was I doing this for? How could I last four plus hours?", the Spirit of God came and took me on a walk with Him.

I remembered the orphans who gave us a tearful farewell the evening before. I remembered the 16 year old young man who weeping could not let go of me to say "good-bye". I remembered the beautiful 10 year old girl who I had the privilege of holding on my lap and hugging while she quietly sobbed on my shoulder for 40 minutes - after she had just shared why she had come to the orphanage. I remembered many of the other orphans and team members who had eyes brimming with tears as we had to go.

All we did for them was play with them, laugh with them, tickle them, teach them Uno, listen to them, and tell them that we loved them and cared for them.

Why had God allowed these young, blameless children to experience more pain, loss, heartache, hunger, and hardship than I had ever even a 1/1000th of in over five times the years of life? What did they do to deserve this?

I remembered the 68 students at the University student centers who worry not only about their studies, but also where will the next weeks tuition come from? Will they get a job after graduation without having to pay an impossible $5000 bribe to land it? Will they take their college degree back to the province to sell vegetables on the roadside, or sow rice in the family paddy? Will their families disown them because they have chosen to serve Jesus Christ and forsaken "all their Cambodian nature and culture" by rejecting Buddhism?

I remembered the school children we passed on the dusty road. They were in simple uniforms, riding their bicycles to school. Nearly all of them flashed us a big grin or smile as we passed; just before they ate the dust from our passing. I'm sure the next vehicle got the same greeting.

I remembered the men and women tending dry, hot, very dusty stands along the road selling a service or item, trying to eek out barely a subsistence living. They, too, had smiles and warm greetings for those who stopped.

I remembered the meticulously dressed (about 10-12 year old) girl who invited us to use the bathroom (well, sort of a bathroom) and spoke in very good English (where did she learn that?). After we exited the facility, she asked for 500 Riel (12 and 1/2 cents!). I wondered how much she "earned" in a day?

I remembered the man standing along the road facing out to the fields as we approached. He was standing in front of a sign which I could not make out. I assumed that he was relieving himself (a common sight), but as we got closer, his head was bowed and his hands were clasped in front of him (as though praying?) I wondered if he had lost a father, a brother, or a wife to a land mine, or the brutality of the Khmer Rouge?

What was the difference between them and I? Basically, that by God's hand, they had been born to a woman in Cambodia instead of a woman in North America.

The Spirit reminded me how irritated I get at "orange barrels" while driving along an Interstate Highway in my comfortable, air-conditioned car, listening to stereo music while worrying about which restaurant we should go to for dinner.

Don't get me wrong; this was NOT a guilt trip, nor is it meant to be for you. It was actually a pleasant experience. Sort of a True "reality check" -- not like the ones on TV. An invitation by God to look at the world through someone else's eyes -- instead of my own. Spiritually it was like a walk in the cool of the Garden with Him.

The nature of the ride changed . . .