Trepidation? What trepidation?

Funny as I look back to the time when I had just arrived out here and there was a just tinge of trepidation (well, probably a bit more than a tinge) about how things would pan out... and there was me going on about stepping out in faith. I knew this was what I had to do and I knew that I could step out in faith and trust that everything would fall into place. Admittedly, there is the odd day of challenge, but one cannot deny that the His plan is undoubtedly unfolding as it should.

Have thankfully moved back into the original guest house and now have a different room which I'm told is mine for keeps; I even have a warm shower which is a bonus although it isn't essential.

The area within the grounds of the guest house has a lot of greenery, palm trees and a few seated areas to chill out in the shade. Exotic creatures can be heard and the other day I saw a colourful butterfly the size of a small bird. The inside of the guest house is decorated with traditional Khmer art and typical Indochinese-style wooden furniture.

My ground-floor room has a small TV, a fridge, a bamboo clothes rail, an en suite bathroom and the all-important ceiling fan. The windows look out towards the eating area, have metal grilles and slideable mosquito screens. It has a tiled floor and the room gets cleaned once a day, usually while I'm out teaching, so very convenient. It's modest and it has all I need.

The other day I pulled up on my loaned 100cc Honda Dream motorbike and was promptly invited over to the outdoor table of the owner's family who were eating. They beckoned me to sit down and I understood that they wanted to offer me some Khmer food. “OK”, I said and an array of various types of veg and small dishes of spices were shuffled before me. Then the owner's mother placed an egg in front of me, to which I thought, “OK, at least they aren't trying to feed me deep-fried snake or anything.”

How wrong I was.

She took a teaspoon and knocked the top off the egg and there it was inside: duck embryo. It was one of the grossest things I have ever seen and I made my excuses and left the table feeling decidedly ill. There was an Australian woman at the table who, in French, politely declined their offer too (French is still occasionally spoken here).

I've had some very positive feedback from the ministries where I teach, which is what I need as I'm the type who needs reassurance that what I aim to do is well received. However, the heat is an issue and keeping oneself protected and cool is essential. I've just added another Khmer student to my schedule; he is a former monk whose brother is a Christian and we are studying conversational English and some simple Bible verses with him as he has been asking me a lot of questions. Please pray for him, his name is Gurt.

Another of my students in the evening class, Sen, is a former officer in the Cambodian army who fought the Khmer Rouge in the civil war here. When he went into the army his studies were put on hold and he now works as a tour guide and actually speaks English well but is keen to improve and is one of my best students. The older generation here have many stories to tell.

I've found a cheap eatery in town and I was there on Saturday night, sat at one of the outside tables to see the world as it passes by. A man pushing his elderly father in a wheelchair approached me; the elderly man was a blind amputee and I was overcome with empathy for them, especially as it reminded me of when I used to take my mum out in her wheelchair. The difference here is that the people need to eat and clothe themselves as there's no social security system, something we in the west can often take for granted. I handed them some Cambodian money and I prayed for them as they went on their way.

The Vietnamese school closes for a couple of weeks in January and I'm hoping to take time off and explore some of Cambodia, especially the Killing Fields in Phnom Penh so that I can understand more of what happened during the genocide here. I do need to find someone to cover for me at the evening class so if anyone fancies coming over to help me out, let me know!

Despite what Bing Crosby says, it doesn't feel a lot like Christmas out here but in church, it does. We've been singing carols and studying Luke chapter two, the birth of Jesus, God's gift to mankind. In verse 8 we learn of the shepherds' visitation by the angels who told the good news, that a Saviour was born in Bethlehem.
And what did the shepherds do? They took action! They went to Bethlehem and witnessed the Lord Jesus for themselves. So as we're thinking about gifts this season, maybe we can remember that Jesus is the greatest gift of them all. He has given everything for us, so how are we presenting ourselves as a gift to Him?

GIFT:
Give your life to Him
Invest your life for Him (time, talent, treasure, testimony)
Face the future with Him
Tell others about Him

You see, HE is the reason for the season.

Until next time..