Lessons...

OK...so about my illness, I did get better and return to work on Thursday after staying home Monday through Wednesday. But there were some interesting things happened along the way. On Sunday, Pieter and Dawn Heres, the school leaders of my Compassion DTS from Kona, came to visit our team in Battambang. Pieter visited the team in Colombia, and then both of them came to Cambodia to visit the 3 teams here. (Siem Reap, Battambang, and Phnom Penh) Then Pieter will go to Rwanda, so he's really plane hopping around the world. Anyway, they came to visit us for a few days and see how we are doing and how we are working together as a team. They also had private meetings with each one of us to ask what God did in our lives through the lecture phase and how outreach is going. On Sunday evening, we had a worship time on our roof, and while we were praying, Dawn prayed that I would be a man of joy.

It was that night that I got really sick, and joy was a tough word to have spoken over me during this time. I did not want to be joyful. I was not exactly having a good time, especially before the antibiotics kicked in and I was still in pain and could not get a decent night's sleep. As I looked through my backpack one night, I unfolded a sheet of paper which read: "What God thinks about you." This was from an intercession exercise we did one morning in Kona in which we picked a small piece of paper out of a basket. This paper was folded over and one of our classmates' name was written on the inside, but we were not allowed to peek and see who it was. We were asked to pray for God to give us a word of encouragement or knowledge or whatever for this unknown person. When we had written it down on a separate sheet, we were to look and see who it was for and give it to them. A girl named Kat gave me a paper with the words "strong" and "loyal" on it. However it also said something like this: "You are going to suffer, and the rewards will be beyond your dreams. It will not be to the point of death, but you will have to stand up for your faith."

This was very interesting, and it was actually my mom who called it to my attention during a phone call a couple weeks ago because I told her about it when she came to visit me in Hawaii. This was actually a prophecy spoken over me. I did suffer. I was the only one out of 13 team members who lost my suitcase. I have discovered that I have a weak stomach, at least in foreign countries, and have gotten sick to my stomach at least 3 times now. And finally, I got "Acute Tonsilitis and Bronchitis." It was really interesting to look back at this note and think about what God is trying to teach me. I think that the words "strong" and "loyal" have a direct correlation with all this because it would take a strong and loyal person to press through all of these circumstances and continue to seek God. I am determined to not give up and give in to complaining about my situation. I don't want to miss God's lesson for me through this.

Anyway, the whole joy thing was challenging. I remember one of Paul Bagai's lessons that stuck out to me one year at Sugarpine, that joy is a decision, not a feeling. It's not feeling happy or pretending to be happy all the time. It's a choice that I must make every day of my life. It's a choice to believe that God is still good and sovereign no matter what my circumstances are. I want to delight in the Lord and let his joy be my strength, because I know I don't have the strength on my own. Does the fact that I am sick and in pain make God any less good? Should it make me doubt his love for me? No. God is my healer, and even if he did not heal me instantly and miraculously when my teammates prayed for me, he still healed me over the span of a few days.

Still, I was struggling with being joyful through this, and on Tuesday morning, my team noticed that I seemed down in the dumps. They detected a spirit of heaviness over me. My countenance was not exactly beaming with joy. They prayed again for God to heal me up, but they also prayed against the enemy and the way he was trying to bring me down and oppress my spirit with this sickness. This was so encouraging, and over the course of the day, my team saw God transform me. That morning, I looked depressed, but that evening, I was smiling, laughing, dancing and eating ice cream and cake. It happened to be Dawn's birthday, and we had a wonderful celebration for her. The treats helped cheer me up, but I think it was really God changing my attitude and lifting me out of whatever pit I had fallen into.


Jesus is my teacher, and he's a good one. He has been so patient with me over the years, and is showing me how to be patient as I teach my piano class at the youth center. This is the first time I've ever really been a teacher, and I must say I am enjoying it. I've only had about a week of class, but it's pretty cool. I started out with 4 students, but one girl had to drop out because my class is from 6-7pm and her father got angry at her when she arrived home past 7. I don't have a large class because the youth center only has one keyboard, and it would be too difficult for everyone to get a chance to play if I had many students.

I am reminded of when I first began taking piano lessons, and it's a strange role reversal. I used to get so frustrated at myself when I could not play something. As a teacher, I make every effort to encourage my students to keep trying and I remind them of the progress they have made, because I don't want them to give up. Sometimes they will say, "It is very difficult, teacher." I remember how difficult it was for me when I first started, and how I would proclaim: "I hate piano!" and pound all the keys at once. I am so used to being a student that it is weird to think of myself as a teacher. I don't usually think I have that much knowledge on the subject of music and piano, but I actually do have quite a bit to impart to a brand new student. Music is a really cool way to connect with people and build relationships, so I am excited for what God will do through this class. We meet four times a week: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, ad Friday. This gives me a lot of time with my students, and it's a regular responsibility that I am committed to every week, which is nice because some weeks I have had no idea what I was going to be doing. Suprises and spontaneity are good, but a schedule is important as well.

This is going to have to be all for this week, but pray for my team and I board a bus to Sihanoukville tomorrow, which will take 10 hours. This is our midway debrief.

I love all of you.

Tree