Proclaiming the LORD's death until He comes...WHEREVER we go!...

“For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the LORD’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26)

Such sweet fellowship Dani and I shared, right in the middle of one of the seven wonders of the world, the Angkor Wat temples in Siem Reap, where we traveled last weekend!!! A beautiful red-stoned temple was our spot of choice to share communion together! We had planned earlier that morning to have our quiet times in one of the temples, but, not even thinking of it, D had brought some crackers, as a snack, and we both had water, so we decided what better way to start our time with the LORD than proclaiming His death RIGHT THERE! I mean, it was almost unreal that we were sitting on the grounds of temples, built to worship OTHER gods, filled with people who STILL are trusting in these powerless idols...SUCH a glorious picture of how GOD CANNOT BE CONTAINED...there is no where that He cannot be proclaimed and praised by His children...His presence, so evident...this battle being fought, every day, claiming truth with every step we take, every breath we take, regardless of where we are, who we are amongst!!!!.....Goodness, I just LOVE it!! I am just so overwhelmed with how much He loves us and delights in us loving Him!!!

I also was thinking about how INCREDIBLE communion is! Eating a cracker and drinking fluid...this seems so simple, something we do everyday, but God has used this act to put motions to what we are proclaiming!!...to make it know to the world! Also, while it seems so simple and ordinary, it is still completely OUT of the ordinary to see someone holding a small piece of cracker, and a small cup of fluid, praying over it, and participating in it, together with others....it is INTRIGUING, is it not?!?!?....it can SOOO easily be used to draw people to ask questions, therefore, opening the door to share!...

After communion, we were approached by two beggar girls, trying to persuade us to buy postcards or bracelets, very typical in well known tourist areas in Cambodia!...It was hard for us, because we kept saying, "No, thank you", in english and Khmai(sp?), and finally they ended up leaving. So, once they left, we began praying together, and one thing placed so heavily on my heart was pleading with God to show us how to respond to these beggars! Sadly enough, it has become very normal for us to just say, "No, thank you" and then sort of ignore them, but my heart was pricked with pain, because I was trying to picture Jesus responding to them, and I could NEVER see Him responding that way! I was thinking about this in Calcutta, and the story I was reminded of was in Acts 3:1-10. I was thinking, I could just respond, "Silver and gold I have not, but what I have I give you, in the Name of Jesus, walk"...however, if I said this, would it not be a lie, because I do have "silver and gold"?!?!...Dani had come to the same verse when she was reading through Acts on Monday morning, but I told her my thought on it as well. So, we were both confused, and I still don't have an exact answer, but I do know that in Luke 12;12, it says that when you are brought before synagogues...the Holy Spirt will teach you at that time what to say", and in Ex. 4:12, the LORD tells Moses, "Now, go; I will HELP you speak AND TEACH you what to say." Anyways, we are just praying and trusting that God CAN and WILL do this!!! After prayer, we just sang aloud, praises to our awesome God!!!...It was interesting how a place FILLED with tourists going in and out of every temple, we were not even disturbed at all during this time.

All in all, this whole trip to SIem Reap was just breathtaking. Every place we came upon, I was just in awe of this stone creation, built by the hands of men, created by such an artistic and beautiful God, who then also created all the GREEN vegetation throughout the grounds of this place! We took SOOO many pictures, but they, of course, cannot do what our eyes beheld justice!!!....On that note, I would like you to know that Dani and I have become self-timer PROS!! And, if you know D, you know that she is QUITE the adventurer...I'm not as much as her, but I would say I still contain a thirst for adventure as well. Angkor Wat had NO IDEA what was hitting it that day! In short, we climbed a little and took some INSANE pictures, and then sort of got told by an officer it was too dangerous and we should come down! It wouldn't be a successful trip, I guess, though, if we didn't get approached by a guard and told NOT to do something!! :)

My heart is becoming more and more filled with a love for the people of Cambodia, but even more than that for the LOST in general!!! I just desire SOOO badly for salvation to come and reign down on them!!! I want to see a revival, a spirit-filled movement sweep the nations, and ALL for the SAKE OF THE NAME OF JESUS!!!!....God knew EXACTLY the fire He was going to create when He placed Dani and I in each other's lives!!...And, He knows that we will be able to encourage and pass this fire to those around us, so they can join in this joy, this longing, this love, OVERWHELMING, to have the same heart for the world that God has!!!...however that may look in each individual's life!!!!

The kids at school are also starting to learn my name and I am being able to play with them during PE! I am also benefitting from the swim and ballet classes Dani teaches! I am learning all the different strokes, and I joined the girls in ballet yesterday, which was SOO fun! They definitely enjoyed laughing at my PK turns, which I though were not THAT bad, but of course, they just think it's funny that I'm joining them!! I love to seem them light up with joy!! Also, in PE, for the 3rd and 4th graders, we had Amazing Race-Cambodia, and they LOVED it!!! Dani is really creative, once again, another confirmation that this is EXACTLY where the LORD wants her and how He has equipped her with EVERYTHING she needs to serve Him, right where she is!! :)

Continue to pray for the kids here, for Dani and I, for the rest of the staff, and for the nation of Cambodia. It is CRAZY to see these kids and how INCREDIBLE their faith is for the LORD. They think SO much, and have SO many GREAT questions. Many of them, unlike a lot Americans, do not go home to believing parents; they don't receive doctrine or godly direction at home, they learn about God at school, and through the staff, and then GOD speaks straight to their hearts! Their genuine faith for God is so refreshing! Once again, amazed at God's hand at work! NOTHING holds Him back!!!

SO, one last note, if you feel like you are not getting to read enough about my trip (haha!), I would like to suggest to you to read Dani's blog as well! It's at http://danibutschek.wordpress.com/ Also, there are some pictures on it as well! :)