Hello everyone! Quick update before I begin talking about Malaysia…. Due to COVID-19, our squad (and every squad) has been pulled off the field. So I am currently back at home in the US, quarantining for two weeks after coming through various airports. I will write a blog later that talks about what being pulled off the field was like, but first, Malaysia. I also am still fundraising to cover the remaining $800 of the trip. If you feel led to give, any amount is incredibly helpful. Thanks! Now, Malaysia…
-During the month of November, my squad was in Malaysia. 2 of our teams were in Sungai Petani, and the remaining 4 teams (including mine) were on the island of Penang. In order to get to and from the island, you had to take a ferry to/from the mainland which was very fun and peaceful. There were always swarms of jellyfish in the water that kept me entertained as we traveled across the bay to the island.
-(Team J-Walkers) My guys team’s main ministry in Malaysia was helping to build a thrift store that would help support a school for Muslim refugees from Myanmar. For more context on this people group, look up the ‘Rohingya Refugee Crisis’. Most of their days looked like doing construction, but they were able to interact with one of the Rohingya leaders, and they were able to befriend two of the Rohingya teenage boys as well. One afternoon, the guys team, the Rohingya boys, and I all went bowling, and then they came to our “Texas Chicken” Thanksgiving celebration also! I was always very impressed by the guys’ willingness to adopt young men into their team and really love them and provide a safe space for them!
-(Team Orah) My women team’s main ministry was working at a feeding program a few days a week. The feeding program was a place for the island’s homeless population to come and worship, engage in a Bible Study, and receive a good, hot meal, in addition to some food for the rest of the week as well. Team Orah also got involved in the thrift store construction work that Team J-Walkers was doing on the mainland. Some of them also worked at the ministry’s original thrift store on the island helping to sort donated items. Team Orah and I also went bowling together that month, just for fun, which was a great time!
-In addition to those ministries, each team was also a part of the services at Penang House of Prayer. Twice a week, there were worship and prayer services where our teams just got to sit with the Lord and receive what he had for them and/or intercede for others for extended periods of time.
-Once a week, all 4 teams also went out into the community at night and just talked with people and followed what we felt like the Holy Spirit wanted us to do. There were some incredible stories that came out of our times out into the community; from my group alone, we were welcomed into a Hindu funeral and were able to pray over the family and dead man (we prayed for God to raise him from the dead but it didn’t happen), we talked to many homeless people and were able to get them some water/food, we talked to a family that went to the park each night to sell bottles of bubbles and other toys for kids and just listened to their life story, and we talked to some Muslim men near the mosque. It’s always amazing what kinds of interactions we can have with people when we are willing to lay aside our fear of being awkward or looking dumb! People want to tell their story, we just have to provide them the space to do so.
-One of my favorite parts about being on Penang, was a section of the island/city called “Little India”. I love Indian food, and this place did not disappoint. We were on the island of Penang for about 3 weeks and I believe I went to Little India at least 18 of those 21 days. I think a lot of people have the idea that missions or sharing your faith has to be this super intense or structured thing, but for me it just looked like enjoying some incredible Indian food and building relationships with the employees at the same time. Over the course of my journeys on the World Race, I’ve definitely found that something as simple as going to the same restaurant over and over again is one of the best ways to build relationships and get to know people.
-Finally, here are some photos of my time in Malaysia…..
-One of the best parts of Malaysia was that my friend Luis was with us! Luis is a “male discipler” for the World Race Gap Year Program. He goes out and spends one month on the field with each of his three squads so that he can build a relationship specifically with each of the men, and can then disciple them throughout the duration of the trip. If you do not remember, Luis was actually my Team Leader on my original World Race trip, and he has made an incredible impact on my life! It was such a blessing to have a true brother out on the field with us during the month of November!
-Georgetown is the name of the primary city on the island of Penang. This is the view of Georgetown’s skyline as seen from the ferry at night. We were on our way back from the mainland to the island.
-During one of our weekends off, my squad leader team (Courtney, Diana, myself) and Luis were fortunate enough to be able to travel to the island of Langkawi. This is the view from the beach right outside of a really great “Fish n Chips” restaurant on the island. It was an awesome weekend away!
-Each month, we do a men’s time and a women’s time. For our men’s time in Malaysia, we hiked this path that gave us a good view of the island and the ocean. During this time, we just revisited how the trip was going for each of the men, what God was teaching them, what they wanted out of the following months on the trip, etc. It was a good time to reflect on team culture and cast vision for the remainder of the trip.
-This is a picture from our hostel in Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. At the end of the month, our squad went to Kuala Lumpur for a few days to have a “mini debrief”. It was a time to reflect on what God has done in the first 3 months of the trip, a time for squadmates to share with each other about what God has been teaching them, and a time to just rest and have some fun before going to the next country.
I hope you have enjoyed this blog about Malaysia! As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask them! Over the next few weeks, I will be posting a blog about our 3 months in India as well as our time in Costa Rica that was shortened due to the threat of coronavirus. Thanks for reading and may God Bless You!
