Journey to Thailand

Early Monday morning local time (Sunday evening EST), I left Cambodia to come to Thailand. I was sad to leave Cambodia but it helped that I was coming to see my good friends Bill and Susie Antolec.

Although I am getting better at it, I am still a novice traveler and navigating foreign airports alone is definitely a learning experience. I flew from Phnom Penh to Bangkok where I had a 3 hour layover. It took some time to get through immigration and then find my gate for my next flight. I wanted some coffee (didn't have any in Phnom Penh) and the first few shops I went to did not take American money nor my Visa card. Finally at the 4th store they took my cash and I got some coffee. After finding my gate and sitting for about 45 minutes, they announced that they had changed the gate. Even though they were speaking English, the accent made it very difficult to understand. I had to walk up to the worker and use my fingers to determine the proper gate number. I was being changed from gate 33 to gate 75. That meant a good, long walk.

As I walked, I starting feeling some pain in my feet and legs and notice that my calves, ankles and feet had started to swell. My first flight was only an hour and 10 minutes so that should not have caused it. When I got to the new gate, I attempted to take up two seats to elevate my feet. That worked for about 30 minutes but then more people began to show up and I could not be rude and take two seats.

The pain was increasing and this was one of those flights that you board a bus that takes you to the plane and you walk up the steps. By the time I got to my seat on the plane, I was hot and hurting. I started to get really cranky. Heat and pain are not my friends.

As soon as I recognized that I was getting cranky I began to pray. I had just had the best week of my life in Cambodia and now I had the gift of visiting another country and seeing my friends. No room for crankiness. The last thing I wanted to do was have Bill and Susie welcome a cranky guest into their home.

As an answer to prayer, as soon as I met them in the airport the joy of seeing them removed the crankiness. Susie had brought some flowers and put them around my neck like they do in Hawaii. Bill was a gentleman and took my near 50 pound luggage from me.

Chiang Rai is a town situated near mountains and it is absolutely gorgeous. We got to their house and they brought me to my room - and Susie had a large floral arrangement with a card welcoming me. (who can be cranky now)

It was 4:30 in the afternoon and they gave me an hour to unpack and rest. The swelling in was getting worse so the rest was much needed.

At 5:30 they took me into town to show me the Night Bazaar. Lots of outdoor food vendors and souvenir shopping. The food was delicious! The best part was a dessert called Rotee or Roti. I wish I would have gotten a picture.

Our evening was cut a bit short due to my pain and swelling - it was getting harder to walk. But I did get to see the area they lived in before they built their current home, as well as other cool sights in the town. Tuesday would be a full day and I needed to rest.

I had a wonderful welcome and a great first night in Thailand.

Cambodia Day 6: The Grand Finale

Sunday, January 21st was my last full day in Cambodia and my friends made sure it was truly memorable. After breakfast, we headed to church. As we were walking in the door, I recognized the tune of the song. They were singing How Great is Our God. So I was able to sing in English while they sang in Khmer. I loved the various ages of people all worshiping the Lord. After worship, Pastor Sinai was giving announcements but obviously I could not understand a word. Thankfully, Oudom began to translate for me. It was humorous because Pastor Sinai said a few words about me and I never would have known if Oudom was not translating.

There was another American couple visiting and the woman was going to preach the sermon with Pastor Sinai translating. About 2 minutes in to her message, it was all I could do to not yell "really?!". The subject of her message was "I Am". You seriously can't make this stuff up. Those of you who understand are laughing now. For the rest of you, that particular name of God played a pivotal part in my first trip to Cambodia. It was unreal to hear it again there, but it was also sweet - a reminder of what the Lord has done for me.

After church I was able to speak with Pastor Sinai and his wife Somalay. I met them over 20 years ago in the church I got saved in. I shared with Pastor Sinai what the Lord had laid on my heart during this trip and how I will be praying going forward until the Lord gives me a next step.

Then it was time to say good-bye to my friends from Banteay Meanchey. I was so grateful for my time with them.


Oudom, Sarah, Phearom, and I left for lunch and Oudom had an idea. He told me that there was a section of Phnom Penh that was extremely impoverished. He thought we could go there and pass out soap and some food items. So we went to the market and then to this area. The place we visited was indescribable. It was like those places they show you on commercials when they are trying to raise funds. I won't go into detail about the living conditions there. It's another thing you can't fully understand unless you see it yourself. As we handed out soap and food to small children and a few adults, I couldn't help but notice something amazing. Yes, it was slums. No human should have to live in conditions like that. However, I also noticed that the people all loved each other and had each others backs. A few times, we went to hand items to someone and they declined, telling us to give to those who needed it more. The children all seemed to be loved. In one of the poorest places I could ever imagine, I found the people to be rich in love.


After lunch they took me to Pagoda Mountain and then for some final shopping (and another iced coffee of course). As we rode in the tuk tuk, I was trying to find a way to stop time. I didn't want the day to end. I couldn't find a way to thank these folks enough for all they did for me. I came there to serve and bless them and they spent an entire week catering to me, making sure I felt safe and comfortable and had everything I needed. They brought me so much joy and they will forever hold a special place in my heart.

Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful at stopping time and the day had to end. As we hugged and said good-bye, it was so hard to hold back the tears. As they left and I walked to the elevator, I was thinking that once I got in the elevator I could let the tears fall. The elevator opened and a hotel staff member stepped on with me. UGH! The young man seem to try to hold back a chuckle at my attempt to hold back tears.

Back in my room I began to pack and let the tears fall. There was a mixture of many emotions in those tears. Some sadness that my time in Cambodia was over, but mostly joy for one of the best weeks of my life, and just feeling overwhelmed at the precious gift I was given by the Lord and by my friends there.

I don't know what the Lord's plans are for me in the future. At this time, I do not feel called to full time missions. But I have a feeling this was not my last trip, at least I hope not.

The Cambodian people are the richest people I have ever met. Rich in love, rich in kindness, rich in joy. I miss them already - but I am forever grateful for my time with them.

Cambodia Day 5: A Reunion of Friends and So Much More

After working all week in the SEAPC Cambodia office, Saturday was a play day. Another huge blessing for me on this trip was my two dear friends, Sambo and Sreyda, who I met on my first trip to Cambodia, took an long overnight bus ride from the Banteay Meanchey province in northwest Cambodia to see me in Phnom Penh. Sambo was my translator when we taught English in the public schools of Banteay Meanchey. I love that girl to pieces. She is humbly fierce. She is quiet and sweet but when she works in ministry she is strong and passionate. She loves Jesus with all her heart and she holds a special place in my heart. Sreyda is just pure joy. She exudes joy like no one else I know. She is always smiling and it is impossible to be down when you are around her. I have pictures of her in my home and in my office to remind myself to be joyful like she is. Both ladies are so rich in the Lord and I was richly blessed to spend a weekend with them in a reunion of friends.

Even though I was not working today, the Lord was at work. His agenda for me included increasing my knowledge of Cambodian history and deepening my love and respect for the Cambodian people.

Our first stop was visiting the Genocide Museum. I had known about Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge and the horrific genocide that took place in this country, but knowing about it and seeing it are altogether different. The Genocide museum was the actual place where imprisonments, tortures, and executions occurred. We walked through the actual buildings where thousands of humans were chained and held in indescribable conditions. Some of the actual chains and instruments of brutality are still there. There were many pictures of the prisoners. Young and old, men, women, and children - each one suffered for nothing. Their only crime was that they existed and this evil man was an Asian version of Adolph Hitler.
The photos were gruesome. I won't go into further detail because hearing it from me does it no justice. You cannot understand unless you see and experience it for yourself. Outside the buildings are graves of the some of the victims. Monuments with their names inscribed are there too.

In the final room, they had a memorial and many ways to pay your respects to the victims. They had a book, similar to one at a funeral home, where you can write a note. They also had note cards with strings that you can write something on and hang on a tree. In the book, many people wrote things like "never again - nowhere on earth". I wrote words that my aunt had spoken a few years ago in regards to our family, but they applied to this situation as well. I wrote: "we cannot change the past, but we can build a better future". And that is exactly what is happening in Cambodia. There future is bright.

After the tour came the most precious experience. Two survivors of the Khmer Rouge, now elderly gentlemen, were sitting outside with some of their family members. They had written books and I got to sit next to them and I bought their book. I was a real honor.


My friends and I then went to another place which was one of the discovered killing fields where they dumped the bodies of victims. We saw human remains and learned more about the atrocities.


Lunch and some rest was in order next. After some rest, Oudom joined us and they took me to the river and we had a nice cruise on a river boat. We then visited the Phnom Penh Night Market and got some ice cream in a coconut bowl. Oudom asked the tuk tuk driver to drive through Diamond Island, a tourist attraction.

I had a wonderful time with my friends as my respect and love for the people grew.

Cambodia Day 4 Part Two: Meeting the Kids

As I mentioned in my previous post, my Friday in Cambodia had two parts. The second part was meeting my two sponsored children.

After lunch and shopping with the SEAPC staff, I came back to the office to wait for the kids to arrive. I am so grateful to Pastor Soly, their pastor and houseparent, for making the very long trip in a taxi to bring the children to see me. The poor kids were not used to being in a vehicle that long and they got carsick.

When they arrived, they both smiled and gave me a big strong hug. They don't know much English but they must have been taught two words because they looked up at me and said "thank you".

We went inside where I gave them the gifts I had for them. Seyha, a ten year old boy, got a soccer ball, a truck and a car, and a fingerling toy.
His sister Nika, four years old, also got a fingerling toy that can talk to her brother's, and some hair clips and a pretty doll. She loved the dolls and after we put some of the hair clips in her own hair, she put some clips into her doll's hair.

The four of us went to get dinner and the kids wanted to try pizza. We went to a mall in Phnom Penh and it was so cute, Nika tried to eat her pizza with a soup spoon.

While at dinner, I was blessed by my conversation with Pastor Soly. He is a very busy man. He pastors a church, runs a childrens home with his wife, and coaches sports - in addition to having meetings and such. My respect for him increased tremendously. I am hoping to one day be able to visit his childrens home in Preah Vihear.

After dinner, we walked through the mall to take the kids to an arcade. The best part of the evening is when both kids took my hand and walked hand in hand with me. They had never been on an escalator before and they were enamored with it.

The kids do not speak English and I do not speak Khmer. Our conversation was limited to me asking a few questions and Pastor Soly translating.
However, the language of smiles, hugs, and hand holding was all the language we needed.

There are many people who sponsor children, whether through SEAPC, Compassion International, World Vision, etc. But very few people have the immense blessing of meeting their sponsored children in person. I was given that blessing. All the people who donated to finance my trip, and the SEAPC folks who arranged the meeting, and Pastor Soly who took the time from his busy schedule and took the long journey here and back home - all of you gave me this precious gift of time with the children. A thank you will never be enough.

Cambodia Day 4 - Part One

Friday, January 19th was a most perfect day in Cambodia. The first half of the day would be my final training session with the ladies in the SEAPC Cambodia office. As we have every morning, we began with a devotional. I was excited and a tiny bit nervous about this particular devotional because it came with a physical demonstration and I was not sure if they would understand or think I'm silly.

This devotional contained the theme that is most near and dear to my heart. I remember growing up watching beauty pageants on television. The contestants would each have a "platform" - a message and cause that they were most passionate about. Well, you will never see me in a beauty pageant but I definitely have a platform. It's a message that I long to spread everywhere I go but it is often not understood. It is the difference between religion and relationship.

We read several Scriptures together. I love that all week as I read Scriptures in English, Phearom read them out loud in Khmer. Sarah understood both languages and I was blessed as she often nodded her head in agreement with what was being read.

Before I read my second passage, I pulled out what looked like a toy. It was a game piece from the old Trivial Pursuit board games. I removed
the wedges from the main piece and I explained that when we just had religion, that game piece represented us. We were each responsible for carrying every aspect of our lives. As I put the triangle wedges in one by one, each represented an aspect of our lives: our jobs, our relationships, our health, our finances, our responsibilities, and... our religion. Two things to note here: one, the "religion" was just one wedge and it was separated from the other aspects of our lives; two - we were responsible for it all.

I dumped the wedges back out and said that once we enter a relationship with Christ, the game piece represents Jesus. And inside of our relationship with Jesus is all the aspects of our lives: our relationships, our jobs, our finances, our health. etc. Religion is gone and every other facet of our lives is now in Him. He holds and carries us - every part, big and small. So where are we? I read Galatians 2:20: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I no live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

I had brought several of these playing pieces with me and I gave one to each of the ladies and asked them to keep it. I said that when life gets difficult or we feel burdened or if some aspect of our lives seems to be too big or too small, to look at that game piece and remember that Jesus holds it all because we are now in Him.

The Cambodian people have the most excellent poker faces and it is often difficult to tell if they understand or how they are feeling about something. I asked Sarah to translate my demonstration for Phearom and as she did, Phearom's eye's lit up with understanding and she nodded in agreement. Both ladies are shy and do not say very much. So I was blessed beyond belief when Sarah placed her game piece on her desk near her computer and said "thank you - it is very meaningful".

The rest of the morning, Sarah finished setting up her new version of Quickbooks while I simply watched to make sure she understood everything she learned this week. Sarah is very smart and very detailed and a most excellent accountant. By lunch time, she was set up and caught up and my work was done.

For lunch, Oudom took us to a multi-level mall near the Central Market. We ate at a place where they put a bowl of broth on a hot plate and you choose different items to put into it. The restaurant window gave a spectacular view of Central Market with a mixture of old buildings and new skyscrapers. After lunch we went shopping in Central Market and Oudom did all the bargaining for me. As we waited for our tuk-tuk driver, we stopped at a Starbucks for some matcha green tea lattes and I found a prized possession: A Cambodia Starbucks mug!

The second half of the day is a story for another blog post, but I will forever remember this Friday morning in Cambodia.

Delightfully Exhausted: Cambodia Days 2 and 3

It is 5:45 pm Thursday evening here in Cambodia. I am exhausted beyond words but it is the good kind of exhausted - the kind you feel after a very productive day of work. I am excited about all that has been accomplished these past two days.

Early to bed, early to rise is how I roll here in Cambodia. I am sound asleep no later than 9pm. I wake up at 4:30 am and spend some time with the Lord and prepare a devotional for the girls in the SEAPC office. Breakfast is at 7 and at 8 I hop in the tuk tuk and begin the adventuresome journey to work.

The first devotional I did with the girls was cute and funny. We read Jeremiah 31:3 and discussed the fact that God loves each of us with an everlasting love. I then asked the girls if they loved accounting. They like it, but they don't love it the way Raquel does. I then told them that God likes accounting and they both had a confused look on their faces. So I read Luke 12:7 that says the Lord numbers the very hairs on our heads. They smile and laugh. I then read Colossians 3:23-24 where we are instructed to work as unto the Lord and not for men. I shared that we can use our accounting as a way to show love back to the Lord.

The first full day in the office was productive. I gained an in-depth understanding of their work and they were able to ask me many questions on how to handle things. We were able to get a newer version of Quickbooks installed on their computers. I was completely blown away by how impeccably they work. Even more impressive was their heart for the Lord, their country, and the children they serve. We had powerful discussions about the ministry work being done in Cambodia, how far we've come, how we have helped the kids, and obstacles we still need to overcome. I will have much to share with the folks back home.

Wednesday's devotional discussed who we are in Christ. We read Scriptures about God knowing us even before we were born and that He has called us out of darkness and into light and He gives us everything we need for life and Godliness. We then read Exodus 31:3 that says that God gives people gifts and skills to enable them to do work, such as accounting. We ended our devotional time with a song and I printed the lyrics to "I'm No Victim". The truth of these lyrics have changed my life and I hope it does for them as well.

Wednesday's work consisted of entering every single December transaction into our new version of Quickbooks. We analyzed and discussed each one - and there were many. It was tedious digging through the minutia but all our hard work paid off when we produced a detailed Income and Expense report for the month of December. It was a beautiful work of art - at least I thought so.

You may be wondering how all this accounting qualifies as "mission work". As I discussed with the girls, charities and non-profits are audited. The more detailed records of financial accountability they have, the more folks tend to trust them as good stewards of their resources. By allowing SEAPC to prove their impeccable stewardship of resources, it paves the way for more sponsors and donors and continued ministry efforts.

I Corinthians 10:31-33 says: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God— even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

This is what we are doing in Cambodia.

Arriving in Cambodia

On Tuesday morning at 10:30 (Monday night EST), I arrived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. This is my second time in the country but my first time in the capital city of Phnom Penh. I was picked up at the airport by a dear brother Oudom Chan. Oudom is an impeccable gentleman, full of class and grace and more maturity than most men three times his age. I met him and worked with him a little on my first trip last May and I was delighted to see him again. I got to ride in a tuk tuk with him. I had wanted to ride in a tuk tuk last time and did not get the opportunity, so this was fun to ride through the busy streets of Phnom Penh in a tuk tuk.

He took me to the office of SEAPC Cambodia and I met the lovely ladies that I will be helping this week. I am eager to get to know them better and excited to jump into the numbers with them.


Oudom then took me to the famous Russian Market. It was there that I was able to satisfy a craving I have carried since last May and I finally got my hands on the ever so delicious Cambodian Iced Coffee! Heaven on earth! The Russian market was interesting. They sell everything there - and I do mean everything.


We then stopped at my hotel and I got checked in. Oudom walked with me for a few blocks to show me the nearby places to get food and other items. We entered a bakery that had the most gorgeous cakes and other unique and delicious items. Oudom had told me that the only goal for the day was for me to rest and sleep off the jetlag. I did not feel any jetlag. I was excited. However, if the goal was to tire me out - it worked. Walking a few blocks in the scorching sun and typical humidity brought the tired feeling, along with the customary sticky sweat. So we returned to the hotel and Oudom left me to rest for the day.


After unpacking my things and getting that much needed shower, I stepped out onto the balcony of my hotel room. My room is on the 9th floor and gives me spectacular views of the city of Phnom Penh. As I looked out over the city, I remembered the words I heard often during my first trip.... "it's called Southeast Asia PRAYER Center for a reason!"

So I spent time praying over this amazing city.

Every once in awhile, I remember where I came from. It always leaves me breathless for just a moment when I remember. I am the girl from the bottoms of McKees Rocks. If the Lord had not rescued and delivered me, I would most likely be a statistic, still living in the McKees Rocks mentality. It was over 29 years ago when the Lord reached down and stuck in His Holy hand in the cesspool of McKees Rocks and lifted me out. Almost three decades later, His Holy heart and hand place me on a 9th floor balcony and give me the gift and privilege of praying for a city He loves.

Around 4:30 that afternoon, I decided to be brave and I took a walk by myself. The reason I call it brave is because I had to cross the busy street multiple times! Thankfully, Oudom trained me well. I stopped at an outdoor store and bought a soccer ball for my sponsored child. I went back to that amazing bakery and visited a convenience store.

Upon returning to my hotel, I went back to my balcony to watch the sunset. Pictures will be posted later.

I had dinner on the rooftop of my hotel, which was beautiful, and I had my favorite Cambodian dish: Loc Lock.

At 8pm, I fell asleep. I woke up at 4 am Wednesday morning (Tuesday night EST) and made a cup of coffee in my room and enjoyed more time with the Lord and preparing for the day ahead.

Today will be my first "work day" and I am excited and ready.