What can God do with a tok tok driver from Cambodia who makes a living by taxiing people around the city? The answer is: Whatever God chooses to do? That is the story of my friend Vuthy from Cambodia. Up until 2007, He was driving a Tok Tok for YWAM and while working there Vuthy came to know and trust in Jesus as his personal savior. Vuthy has been our contact from this past month in Cambodia. God transformed his life in 2007. Then in 2008, Vuthy was a student in YWAM's DTS (discipleship training school), where he was discipled and was trained to disciple others.
While there God gave him a vision and Vuthy has spent the last few years being faithful to God's call. Vuthy has a big heart for children, and God's vision for him included building a church, starting an orphanage, building a youth center, and teaching English classes. To start with, Vuthy didn't know how he would do any of it. He didn't have the money, or any idea of how he could get something like that started. Yet God is looking for faithful men and women who are willing to take a step of faith and trust Him, and Vuthy took that leap of faith and trusted that God would do what he said he would do.
And God has provided. Now 7 months after Vuthy moved back home to start trying to flesh out his vision there is already a church established and English classes are taught everyday to children and youth who are so eager to learn! While we there, we helped to teach at least 4 classes a day. His focus is on the youth of this generation because they will grow up to lead there country, and often times they impact their families and others become Vuthy lives in a village about 3 hours outside of the city of Phnom Penh.
Vuthy's vision is to see 150 youths come to know Christ.
There are many children that live on the streets in Phenom Phen ( the nearest large city), where Vuthy worked for YWAM. It is sad because as you travel around the city, you see children that are no more than 5 years old begging for food and money and selling items to passersby. Most of the children are wearing only wrags, and sometimes you will see children carrying around a younger brother or sister, because there is no one else that can take care of them. I remember one little girl whose parents had passed away. She may have been 7 or 8 years old at the oldest, but she was left to take care of 3 small children by herself. There are so many children that grow up living in the street culture. A culture that encourages stealing and deceiving people in order to survive, and a life that offers little more than that. It is a difficult life, and not one that properly nurtures a child, nor gives them much hope for a future.
That is the life that so many kids are forced to live in. Vuthy wants to meet the needs of these children by starting an orphanage that can support at least 40 children. By bringing the children outside of the city, it gives the opportunity to grow and learn in an environment where they will be loved, cared for, and taught practical skills for living that will teach them how to live better lives.
During the month of June, my team (Fanatic) has had the privilege of serving alongside Vuthy and has gotten to be a part of the work that God is doing. We spent the month teaching English, teaching worship songs and how to play the guitar, plastering and painting the church, teaching dance, preaching, and leading worship. It was an incredible month where all of us were able to use our gifts to the fullest. God is working in Touch Village! Many youth accepted Jesus this month, and hearts are open in the area to hear the gospel. I look forward to seeing the AWESOME work that God will continue to do there!
Please pray for Vuthy, his family and the ministry work there. God has created wonderful opportunities for the youth in the area to learn and grow, but more teachers are needed and money is needed to build an orphanage and youth center. Pray also that God will rise up like-minded individuals who can grab hold of the vision and serve as teachers, translators, and facilitators for the church, orphanage, and youth center. Pray that the young men and women in the church and English classes will rise up and become leaders for there community and spread the love of Christ.
Below is a video made by the team that served with Vuthy before us. It explains the vision that Vuthy has and the work that is still left to be done. It is captivating!
The other night we were praying for a lady who wasn't able to walk, but I was confident that she was going to walk.
We were visiting some patients who were suffering with cancer when we met her. We sang songs with them, played games, shared stories, and simply just spent time together. The three ladies we spent most our time with are incredible women of God who love the Lord, but are suffering with Cancer. They were precious and they had so much faith and joy! such an encouragement.
That night several people exchanged stories about some of the great work that God has been doing in their lives. It was a beautiful image of the church. In that room, as each story was told, I just felt the presence of God and his joy beginning to fill up within me. There was such a peace over that place.
One Lady's story was a difficult one to hear. One of suffering and rejoicing. She told of her son, a young adolescent who was suffering with cancer. He was dying, so he was taken to the hospital. His mother is a woman of faith, and just a few months before her son was taken to the hospital, he became a believer. While at the hospital, she prayed for her son to be healed, and a miracle happened. The cancer just seemed to disappear! The doctors couldn't find any trace of the cancer that had been there before! Praise God!
But then after some time had passed, something went wrong and the child had to return to the hospital. While there, the child fell asleep, and when he awoke he said something surprising, "I am going to be with God." One moment the child was completely healed, but not long afterward he knew with confidence that he was going to be with God. It was a devastating thing for the mother; however, being the woman of faith that she is, she rejoiced because her son had gone to be with the Lord. She then began sharing her son's story with those around her. And now, through that mother's faith , God has raised up over a hundred believers to begin establishing a new church in her area. One of her neighbors who has become a believer traveled with her that night & we got to meet her. So from what seemed to be a terrible story of loss came a story of great hope and new life. Praise the LORD!
The story got me excited, and I was thanking God and rejoicing because of his faithfulness, especially in the midst of trials. A few more stories were told and I was getting even more excited. I was just thinking, "Wow! There really is nothing my God can not do!" And I was reminded of the verse from Romans 8 that says that the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead is alive in us! Yeah!! His spirit is ALIVE in us! So when I heard that there was a paralytic woman just downstairs from where we were, I am thinking, "God, this woman is going to walk tonight!"
So we finished up our meeting time with our new friends and we enjoyed some fruit together and said our goodbyes. And as we were walking down the stairs, I saw the lady who was unable to walk sitting on the floor. As we were about to walk out I leaned over to her, put my hand on her shoulder, and told her, "God loves you, your sins are forgiven, and he wants to heal you. So rise up and walk." I knew that she probably didn't speak English, but it was worth a try, because I knew that God loved this woman and desired for her to be healed. As soon as I finished speaking those words to her, the woman reached out and grabbed my arms firmly, as if she was going to use me to help her stand up. So I began praying over her and asking for more of God's presence, and two of my friends, David and Ashley, joined in.
As we were praying, our translator told us that she had not been able to speak for a while as well. So we began praying for her to speak as well and asking God to give her the ability. And in all her effort she cried out a couple of words to her friend who was praying with us. ( I don't know if she had spoken those words before, but her words gave us hope). And after praying for several minutes, our vietnamese friends asked us to step back and let her walk on her own. The woman had faith, and she tried with all she had in her to stand up and walk. It was difficult for her and she had to use the stair railing in order to get her balance and even begin to start moving forward. She fought with all she had but she still couldn't straighten her legs out completely. She tried to take a step or two, but then she had to sit down. It was obvious that she was exhausted.
Not long afterward, we left the house. It is still my belief that God is going to heal her.
I am very thankful that we got to meet her and pray for her. We may not have gotten to see her walk, but I believe that God was wanting us to exercise our faith muscles. To step out with a confident and joyful expectation that God is going to heal, and to believe that God is at work there.
Jesus tells us in John 14 what we should expect when we believe in Him as being one with the Father:
"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it."
And Jesus tells us that we are to have joy: "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full."
"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.These things I command you, so that you will love one another."
And Paul tells us to stand firm and rejoice always.
"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice."
This is our stance and how we are to approach an opportunity to heal. We are to rejoice always, believing that God is going to do great and wonderful things through us, and genuinely love others as we step out in faith. And when it is all finished, we rejoice! God is the glorious one and the one from whom we get our hope, joy, and satisfaction. It begins with Him and it ends with Him.
This video is a glimpse of some of the special moments I had while living in Uganda. We are in Vietnam now. While in Uganda, team Fanatic started out in Lira, but spent most of our time in a town called Amolotar, in the district of Amani.
While in Uganda, we worked with a local branch of Victory Outreach Ministries. We led worship in church, preached on Sundays, helped lead a women's conference for local women of faith, visited a nearby school, attended an aids conference, and loved on the local friends that lived around us all the time.
It was a blessing to serve God in Uganda. It is amazing how serving God works too. He always blesses his children so that they can then bless those around them. One specific way we chose to use us that month was to heal several women of their sicknesses and pains. After we shared with them the message God had laid on our hearts, he led us to pray for each of them to be healed. Most of the women noticed an immediate difference! Some women were complaining of knee pain, but by the end of our time together they were dancing, jumping up and down, & praising the Lord. PRAISE GOD!
Psalms 103: 1-3
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
I was also greatly encouraged by a pastor's meeting where many of the pastors from other churches in the surrounding area met to discuss church matters. It brought me so much joy and encouragement to see so many disciples for Christ, in that area, to be so united in mind and purpose. And they were all so eager and all seemed well equipped to make more disciples for Christ. As we travel around and visit relatively young churches, it is rare that we see them so united in purpose and actively seeking to live as the church was intended to. (mostly because they are young and still developing)
Their worship is so incredibly encouraging, too! Their worship time was so physically invigorating with singing and dancing at times that I felt like I was really getting a cardio workout. It is so much fun to praise the LORD with God's people, especially when your whole body is involved.
This month I am in Kanchanaburi, Thailand and I am co-leading a team of 11 men of God. It is such a privilege to be serving God on the mission field and getting to observe his greatness every single day. Here in Thailand, we are working with YWAM (youth with a mission) and we are doing contruction work and church planting. Here in Thailand Buddhism is the main religion and very few people are Christians. Are plan this month is to live as Christ to the community we are staying in and to prepare the way for more disciples to come in the future. We are working with a couple that live here named Run & Bang. Run is our contact here and he leads a service at the YWAM Kanchaburi base every Saturday night. He also helps facilitate services from time to time at 3 other churches in this region. We are working on building a training a center for future discipleship training here at the YWAM base. Most of our days are filled with chopping banana trees to feed the cows and building the training center. Previous world racers have built a church meeting place. Our group has just started pouring the foundation for the new training center today.
At the beginning of the month we arrived just in time for the Thai New Year, where they celebrate with a water festival. It is a unique and fun holiday. For an entire week, people ride around town, from house to house, building to building, soaking each other with water. Kids and adults alike will stand on the side of the road with garbage cans full of water, eagerly waiting for the next car or motor bike to drive by so they can soak them with water. Everybody loves it and it is welcomed, maybe it has something to do with the heat.
Also, on an off day, we traveled to a Buddhist temple, where they take care of Tigers. It is open to the community and you can come pet the tigers and get pictures with them. On another day, we got to ride some elephants at an elephant village.
Our month here in Kanchanaburi is just a few days away from being over. It has been a blessed opportunity to live and serve here with our contacts and the my fellow brothers. I have learned so much from each of them, and I believe we are all stronger men of God having served together. Each of them is unique, and when you have this many men on fire for God, you realize how strong you are as a community and how much this is lacking in our churches back home. It has encouraged me to press in and become more of the man of God that I desire to be so that I can build up the men around me when I return. We are all mighty warriors fighting and winning daily battles for the Kingdom. We understand that God created us, together, to be ONE. I pray that we never forget that.
Next month (May) we will be returning to our previous teams & ministering to the people of Vietnam. Vietnam is a closed country where you can't openly share the gospel. Please pray that God will open doors for the gospel and that his kingdom will come and his will will be done there. Pray that hearts are broken for Christ and that they are set free, and communities are formed. There is a great spiritual need there.
Also, please be praying for me, that God will continue to keep my heart focused on the nearness of His kingdom around me. I still have two months left on the Race, and I don't want to miss anything that he has planned.
I love you all. Continue to Be strong in the Lord and to Stand Firm.
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms..."
"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel."
This blog was put together by the 11 men of my squad in an effort to support each
other as a community. Please read it carefully and support, with
God, the men of my squad.
I am here in Thailand with my 10
brothers from around the world answering the call of God on our
lives. We've traveled the world and seen God move in many ways over
the last 9 months. Most importantly we've experienced Him in our
own lives as He leads us into a selfless state of servant hood
I've been so blessed to have such an
amazing support group around me. To those who have supported me
financially and prayerfully - I thank you! God thanks you!
You have helped me minister to people
in nine countries so far. Right now there are people thanking God
for what World Racers have done for them, and God used you to make
that happen.
But the job isn't done. As a community, we are still in need of financial support. As
you read this please listen for the still small voice that may be
speaking to you encouraging you to get involved.
Please look at the names and faces
below and ask God whom He would like you to partner with in bringing
kingdom over the next couple months. Prayerfully consider how you can
help.
Although the World Race (as you may
already know) is a year long, this is a year of missions preparing us
all for a lifetime of ministry. Will you join us in our ministry and
help support my few brothers who have financial needs to continue
this venture?
It's because of you that we are able
to be a blessing to many and love others. Thank you in advance for
obeying to voice of God and partnering with us to be the change in
the world we wish to see.
Kenya holds a special place in our hearts. Our team has gotten to spend 2 out of the last 3 months there with Team Kikundi and we have really grown close to our family there. We had the opportunity of serving alongside Pastor Patrick in January, and we helped him plant his church called "Releasing Destiny Worldwide Ministries". That month we helped prepare for the start of the church by leading crusades in nearby town centers, where we would lead worship, then preach/teach to the crowds about Jesus. We also led services for Sunday morning worship.
Our family there was made up of Patrick, Emmy, Jeremy, Irene, Sheila, Steve, and other helpers. Everyday we all took turns doing chores around the house, cleaning the "bathrooms" (squatties and showers), cooking, sweeping the loose dirt around the house, cleaning the rooms, cleaning the dishes, etc. We got to be part of the family, and we really were loved there. We will miss them all.
Patrick is an incredible man of God, and we were truly blessed to have the opportunity to live and work with such a servant for the kingdom. He worked so hard just to help take care of the needs of both of our teams. He has been a spiritual father to us and has interceded so much on our behalf, especially for me. God has been doing a work of healing in my life. And he and his wife have battled for me a great deal to break the spiritual bondage that has been placed on me to hindered God's healing of me. And I truly believe that I will be able to leave this race claiming that "I am free from the chains of Narcolepsy." Praise God!
Danielle, Lauren, and I also grew close to Dr. Isaac, a local physician who allowed us to take part in his clinical practice as he tended to his patients, treating malaria, typhoid, aids, gangrene, and any common illness common to man, woman or child. A lot of times they couldn't treat the patients that came in and would have to send them to a local hospital because their resources were limited. But he lovingly cared for all of his patients needs whether it was a medical need or even counseling, maybe a word of encouragement or wisdom that a patient desperately needed to hear. When you are a single mom, a wife to an abusive husband, or maybe a young man with HIV, there are very few people who can sympathize or even understand what you really need. And I have learned that a lot of times, that can be as simple and as important as love. Selfless, Pure, Accepting and Honest love. The world is lacking so much REAL love. That is what Christ came to bring, and he was serious about it:
"And He said to them, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is great and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the Prophets." Matthew 22:37-40
"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another." John 15:12,17
"All the commandments are summed up in this word: You shall love your neighbor as yourself . Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. " Romans 13:9-10
I am still praying to see whether God is leading me in to medicine for the future, but I have definitely grown to appreciate certain practices within medicine. Working with Dr. Isaac gave me also a better appreciation for my own Dad's methods of treatment. There are very few doctors who are willing to take the time and actually love their patients. It may be a challenge to a busy practice, but I have a high respect for any doctor who has truly figured out what life is about, and has weighed the value of caring for your patients heavier than just treating their patients. I am extremely thankful for that lesson that God opened my eyes to.
When we left Kenya this first time, many of us said, "We will come back to Kenya." Little did we know that God had arranged our return so soon. We were glad to be back, though, so we could help the church grow. It has been a great two months and we will miss our family very much. Please keep Patrick, Emmy, Jeremy (lil man of God), our friends, and "Releasing Destiny" in your prayers.
Lately, here in Eldoret, Kenya. I have spent most of my time, lately, with some teammates downtown. We have been spending time with the street kids in Eldoret. We want to know their stories. Where did they come from? Why are they here? Do they have families? Where are they? How long have they been on the streets? What would they do if they had the opportunity to leave? Do they "do" glue?
We have also gotten to spend some time researching alternatives for these kids. Are there alternatives? Is it easy for any of these kids to get help if they wanted it? We have actually gathered some pretty good information & we want to help these kids if we can.
It is very common here for the street boys to sniff glue. It is cheap.
It places you in a state of Euphoria. It can curb your appetite. You
don't have to live. please check out Joe bunting's blogs. he has written several about these street boys. http://joebunting.theworldrace.org/
We have actually fell in love with some of these kids. You can tell a difference between the kids that are actually trying and the ones who seem to not even care. But the ones who do care give us hope. We see young men who actually want to live, but for whatever reason, that opportunity has not been offered to them. Maybe they were born to big families and their parents couldn't take of them, so they are forced to fend for themselves in the streets. Maybe they have abusive parents and decided it was best to run away. I know some boys left their families in Nairobi (6 hrs away) to come here in hopes for better opportunities, but found none. Jobs are hard to find here. Some were put on the streets by their families at a young age and have been fortunate to have survived this long.
So our goal is to find them hope. He have discovered a local school that offers kids on the streets a place to go to class and a safe place to play football, volleyball, and hopefully basketball in the future. A teacher named, Andrew, we have met was a former street kid himself. He was fortunate enough to be taken in, and he was given a chance to live a better life. He succeeded. Now he is giving back to the kids who he identifies so closely with. He is one of the few teachers who gives these kids the education what they can not afford to pay for.
Keep praying for hope. And for a way to help these kids. Probably the best way will be to try support this volunteer organization. Pray that God will open the doors and provide the resources.
And please pray for Andrew, Samuel, and Daniel. these are three boys who I feel exceptionally close to and want to see them get off the streets. They have a lot of potential, but they need help.
Please check out Joe's blogs about the street kids. They can tell you so much more. There is a video there too about the street kids and their glue habits.
Today we had our first opportunity to actually start building relationships with some of the street boys in downtown Eldoret, Kenya.
We are seeking out ways to help the boys get off the street. Most of the boys are sniffing glue, and have no home except the street. Some claim to not have parents that are living or at least parents that can't afford them, so they send the boys out of their house.
We have met a local pastor and teacher that work with the boys regularly, so our next step is to contact them and discuss with them the problems that they see and ask what solutions that they might have to meeting these boys needs. They are always asking for bread and money. It is tough to not always being able to offer them the food you know they need & hunger for, but hopefully God will provide for us a way to help remedy some of the problems that they face.
We are praying that God will give us his love for his people in need, and that he will touch their lives through us. We are trusting in the only one who is able to help.
Also, while ministering door to door last week, a man prayed to receive Christ! Bwana Si fiwe! (praise the LORD) Please pray for his growth and that he will start coming to church. Also, we are starting to have a Bible study with a woman who is not ready to receive Christ, but it seems like she is on the verge of accepting him soon. Please pray for her!
This past sunday I had the privilege of preaching a message on reconciliation and God's love in the new church that we help start. God is so good! He is working here. keep praying.
READ Psalm 67 and rejoice that God is control and loves you and all his people so much!
I love you and miss you guys! Please keep us in your prayers as we minister here in Kenya.
Here are some personal goals I wrote down recently.
*I want to love people more. I have noticed that a lot of the projects & goals that I engage in are usually centered around my own personal benefit & getting stronger, But I want to get better about pushing people to discover their potential.
*I want to get better at guitar, and write songs based on scripture.
*I want to be more bold in my faith & with my spiritual giftings.
*I want to increase my knowledge of scripture.
* I want to be more vocal about my successes, failures, and loves/passions in life.
*I want to always see the best in people, be vocal about it, and to love them into becoming their best.
"There is something in my tent.... No, really, there is something running around inside in my tent!"
At the end of the month in Uganda, we were camping in our tents for the two days that we were going white water rafting at adrift, on the Nile River. One night as I was getting ready to lay down and go to sleep in my tent, I noticed a strange sound seeming to be coming from inside my tent.
So i unzip my rain fly and pull it back to find a random black cat running in circles in my tent. It obviously couldn't figure out how to get out, even though my tent had apparently been left open.
Although, strange, I kindly invited the frisky feline to exit my tent the way it came in. It welcomed my gesture and quickly escaped to embrace its' freedom. It was random, and quite funny to say the least.
As I got down to climb into my tent, i noticed something odd. My air pad that I usually sleep on for added support and comfort, looked to be a little more flat than usual. Weird, but acceptable. So I opened the valve to add some more air...... and then i heard it. It was the faint whisper of air leaking out of a newly formed hole in my pad. Sad.
I was helpless at that point. After failing at an attempt to seal the hole, I was forced to sleep on a mostly deflated air pad. Really, it wasn't that bad. And it left me with a funny story to tell.
I have found that although some random things seem to be frustrating at times, you learn to let it go, and realize that there are so many more important things in life, like...... life. hmm! We get to celebrate life everyday! For everyday is a new opportunity to live in expectation of God to move, who is alive and present in our lives. And we get to celebrate it with all of our brothers and sisters in Christ! Hallelujah!
But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Phil 3:13-14
Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Phil 3:8
Our family there was made up of Patrick, Emmy, Jeremy, Irene, Sheila, Steve, and other helpers. Everyday we all took turns doing chores around the house, cleaning the "bathrooms" (squatties and showers), cooking, sweeping the loose dirt around the house, cleaning the rooms, cleaning the dishes, etc. We got to be part of the family, and we really were loved there. We will miss them all.
Danielle, Lauren, and I also grew close to Dr. Isaac, a local physician who allowed us to take part in his clinical practice as he tended to his patients, treating malaria, typhoid, aids, gangrene, and any common illness common to man, woman or child. A lot of times they couldn't treat the patients that came in and would have to send them to a local hospital because their resources were limited. But he lovingly cared for all of his patients needs whether it was a medical need or even counseling, maybe a word of encouragement or wisdom that a patient desperately needed to hear. When you are a single mom, a wife to an abusive husband, or maybe a young man with HIV, there are very few people who can sympathize or even understand what you really need. And I have learned that a lot of times, that can be as simple and as important as love. Selfless, Pure, Accepting and Honest love. The world is lacking so much REAL love. That is what Christ came to bring, and he was serious about it: 
