Chapter 2
Heavenly Father, how can I say thank you?
Words are not enough to express my gratitude to you.
Lord thank you for teaching me to believe, to have faith
and trust you my everything
My future, my life, my family, my job
and the ministry where you called me.
These were the lines that I wrote in my devotional notebook expressing my grateful heart to God when I arrived in Cambodia. The time I finished the book THE YEARS OF MY SOUL by Sokreaksa S. Himm and longed to be in Cambodia, I talked with God of what would be the means that I could bless this nation. Would I be a full time missionary or a so called tentmaker missionary? I remembered when God called Moses to lead and free the Israelites who were enslaved by the Egyptians. Upon hearing God, Moses was reluctant and refused to step up. However, God said, “What is in your hand?” A Rod. God used the rod held by Moses to fulfill His purpose in Moses’ life and to His nation Israel.
What is in your hand? This question made me think over on how I could serve God in Cambodia. Moses was using the rod for quite a long time tending the sheep of his Father-in-law. He became an expert shepherd who fully experienced the importance of leadership, the value of caring for the flocks so that they wouldn’t led astray and being vigilant so that no harm befall the animals under his care. Not to forget, his rod was with him in this journey.
The rod that Moses was using only noticed when God asked what was in his hand. Do I have a rod just like Moses? If God would ask me, what’s the rod in my hand? What would be my answer? What might I see in my hands? As I folded my both hands, prayed earnestly asking God the rod He probably gave me, and unfolded them. Guess what! He brought me back to my younger years when prayer was part of my existence. I did talk to God a lot looking up the sky pouring out my heart with laughter, sobriety, tears and no uttered words. Another thing, He reminded me on how he favored me much at work as a teacher. A learner and a diligent teacher not an expert,a speaker or a fluent one, yet I’m humbled on how he graciously give me wisdom, creativity and excellence to grow and impact the lives of my colleagues and students.
PRAYER and TEACHING are the rods in my hands as God started my journey in Cambodia.