And just like that, another month has passed! Before I summarize our time in Malaysia, let’s take a moment to reminisce and appreciate how God moved in Indonesia last month with this recap video of Indonesia I made! If the video doesn’t work, please go to this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwV70hadThs&t=4s. YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS WATCHING THIS!!
Yesterday was our last day volunteering in Malaysia! Gosh, at the end of each month I keep thinking, “it’s too short, it’s just too short!” We partnered with YWAM (Youth With a Mission) and PenHOP (Penang House of Prayer).
What is it like to design and set up a thrift shop? Now I know! : )
(PC: Lauren Carpenter)
YWAM had built a school for r******s and a thrift shop to fund the school. They had just started working on opening another thrift shop to fund the school when we arrived, so we jumped right in and organized/cleaned the donations (clothes, toys, furniture, books, anything and everything you can imagine)! The whole month we worked for these students whom we’d never met. Then the last week of our stay, we were invited up to the classrooms to teach them an American line dance (haha!) and show a PowerPoint of where we’re from and our hobbies. It was so wonderful to see their faces at last! Every once in awhile a couple of the students would come down and work alongside us. The shop is now open and business is slowly increasing as word spreads! The shop will also provide a way for the students to learn business and social skills.
We would also gather to do street outreach late Thursday nights. We would gather to pray and ask God how we should team up and where we should go. Each time God gave me a vision of a place we should go that I’d never seen before. But a local person always recognized my description of it, so I would join a team with them. We would go out in groups of 3 or 4, and ask God to highlight someone He wanted us to talk to. I always asked the Lord to make my heart burn if He wanted me to stop and speak with someone, and He always did. There are countless stories I could share of people hearing about Jesus for the first time, being encouraged, being listened to after being lonely for a long time, homeless and injured people being fed, addicts being invited to choose a different path, tourists being introduced to our mission, and more! We prayed over everyone who would let us and prayed over the places we walked by. I’ll share with you my favorite story. One of my squadmates struck up a conversation with a lonely Buddhist man sitting in a plastic chair on the side of the road late at night. At first he countered everything she witnessed about Jesus with his own religion, and refused her request to pray for him. Then, he changed his mind. She set her hand on his shoulder and began to pray, and she told us that he opened his eyes wide and said, “Power!” when she touched him. What he felt surprised him, and afterwards he thanked her for praying for him and was more friendly toward them.
Fasting? Interceding? Worshipping for 7 hours straight? That’s my new jam!
We attended PenHop’s sessions 3 times a week, either from 3-10 PM or 8-12 PM. They pray and worship 24/7, similar to Kansas Cities’ International House of Prayer (WHICH YOU HAVE TO, HAVE TO, HAVE TO VISIT!!!)! They invited us to lead worship sets each week and sometimes assist their local friends in the community with short projects. I sooooooooooooo cherished my time with PenHOP. Seriously, my heart resists exploding in my chest when I think of the worship they conduct there—aaaaahhhh it feels like Heaven’s glory thundering! I never wanted it to end. I’m used to leading a congregation or my squad in worship, but at PenHOP they taught me how to worship as a way to minister to God’s heart. To remind Him of who He is and what He has promised. To express my love and gratitude to Him. Rather than singing and playing as a way to encourage and remind the people around me of those sentiments. Because many people sat spread out in the room drawing, singing with their eyes closed, reading, or writing, yet several musicians and I worshipped as if they weren’t there. I have a whole new collection of worship songs now!
During our sessions at PenHOP was the first time I’d ever fasted. Just for 7 hours, no food so that I could replace the time spent eating and the hunger I felt to press into dependence on the Lord and uninterrupted time adoring Him. Before I’d thought that fasting had to be this painful thing that lasted for days, but actually choosing to do a fast is to be dedicated to God in place of whatever you’ve chosen to halt. You could fast from social media, from sugar, etc. for however long the Lord asks you to, and spend time refocusing on Him during that time. How neat! From now on I want fasting to be a regular part of my walk with the Lord.
This month I was reminded of the power and importance of intercession (prayer). I was so moved by the passion with which I saw the Malaysian Christians pray for their government leaders, the future of their country, for the Lord to send out messengers to the Middle East (10/40 window), and for us to be willing to be the answer to our prayers. Especially I was moved by how they prayed for forgiveness for the government leaders who were making decisions based on power and not thinking of the needs of their people. They were praying for forgiveness also for their enemies. Oooooo. I forget to do that. Be comforted and inspired that they pray for you too! Prayer and revival over the churches in the United States is also in their daily prayers.
This month I also learned how to clearly show Jesus, without saying a word. I noticed one of my teammates whom I really look up to, Raquel, making a mental note of the homeless people we saw on our daily walk to the thrift shop, and then remembering to bring them fruit or snacks every time we passed them. Their face would always brighten when they saw her coming, and they would receive the gift with both hands and a sincerely grateful smile. I started to pack extra fruit too.
Prayer Requests:
- Debrief for us starts tomorrow! Prayer for quality rest! Clear minds to process all that we’ve seen and experienced! Unity as a squad!
- For the people we encountered, that God would continue to stir a longing in their heart to seek/know Him and that they wouldn’t be able to forget the love of God they heard/saw from us.
- For PenHOP and YWAM staff. Their lives are completely surrendered to God, so prayer that they would not grow weary of the daily good they are doing. They are steadfast in prayer for others, let’s be steadfast in praying for our long-term missionaries.
Since we didn’t have WIFI this month, I feel that I haven’t talked to so many of you in a loooooong time! I love praying for you—I had LOTS of time to cover you in prayer during our PenHOP sessions this month. Thank you for your prayers! They help in significant ways for me and the people I meet in ways you’ll never know! Just know that when you pray in Jesus’s name, there is no other more valuable thing you could have done during that time—with your prayers you are furthering God’s Kingdom. I LOVE HEARING FROM YA’LL! If you’ve been keeping up with my blogs but haven’t commented yet, please take a moment to let me know you’re here! As always, leave a comment below to let me know you’re praying!
