It's never the right time to say goodbye

Tonight is my last night in Cambodia. 

Woah. 

There have definitely been ups and downs and I have been feeling so many emotions, but overall, I love it here. I'm ready to be home in my bed and eat food that I'm use to, but I don't want to leave. 

The people here are incredible. And yes, that is what a lot of people say when they visit new countries, but for real, they are amazing. Cambodia has a bad reputation among a lot of people these days, because all their intellectuals were wiped out by power hungry people thirty years ago. This country has gone through so much and is still trudging through a lot of scum, but they continue to pick themselves up and strive for something better. These people have the most endurance out of anyone I have ever seen.

These people talk to strangers on the street like they have been the best of friends for years. They smile and wave to you. They are so kind and friendly and are always ready to answer questions. The Christians I have met here have such immense faith whether they're Americans who have picked up their entire life and moved it here to do God's work, or the Khmer people who have been in a Buddhist country their entire lives. The people trust God so fully it makes me ashamed of my lack of trust.

I went into this trip thinking how depressing it would be and how sad it would be to see all the past and present tribulation that this country sees everyday and it was. What I didn't anticipate though, was the hope that it would fill me with. There is so much good happening here and I think sometimes we tend to just focus on the negative.

God is moving in huge ways here. Christianity is spreading slowly in some villages, but rapidly like a wildfire in others. Sometimes as a Christian I tend to forget how good God actually is. Yeah, I sing about His love, and I see His creations, but I think most times I just let it slide by because I'm use to it all; I forget to open my eyes and my heart to God's enormous power.  

If I have learned anything from this trip it is that my God is a God of healing and that He truly can do anything. God is healing this country so rapidly that if you blink you might miss something. Even as I'm writing this I find myself teary eyed in awe of how God has been moving in this place. 

I will miss all the people I have met here so much, but I have faith that God has great plans for their lives. 

God's power is greater than trials, it's greater than poverty. God's power is greater than our doubt, He will be triumphant.

Cambodia!

Since I'm in another country I have to blog about it right?

So I got to Cambodia on Friday late. We were so tired from being on planes for more than a day straight. As soon as we got to the hotel we all crashed.

There are some differences that I have been noticing here that I want the talk about.

1. Napkins: seriously it is so hard to find books and here and when you do they're these tiny little squares that are super thin and not very helpful. There is a reason though...

2. Garbage: they do not have garbage cans everywhere like we do. You not notice it but in the US we have garbage cans everywhere: on sidewalks, in bathrooms, next to couches, next to doorways, at the end of halls, etc. Here it is hard to find a place to their anything away. This leads to people littering ask over the streets. Driving around Cambodia you see garbage strewn everywhere.

3. Time:  okay so this isn't necessarily about the culture, but there is a twelve hour time difference. It absolutely boggles my mind that when I go to sleep at ten here everyone I love is one the other side of the world just getting up. While I'm also everyone is awake, while I'm awake everyone is asleep. It's just crazy.

4. Traffic: there is probably a 1:8 car to moto ratio here. Although there are sometimes lines painted on the street drivers don't really adhere to them. People just drive wherever they need to. Turning left they just start going without waiting for there to be a break in oncoming traffic. They just go and people have to either stop for them or dodge them (which they are masters at). Even crossing the street is like that you just have to start walking and hope they go around you.

I miss everyone at home a lot and I'm trying not to let that get in the way of me enjoying tell trip. There are some really great people in my group and we're  all getting along great which I love.

That's all I have for now, I'll keep you updated!