The Little Things

Hey everyone!!

This week I feel like God has been teaching me a lot. For starters, we just finished our second week of ministry and if you read my blog from last week you’ll remember that I was feeling discouraged about the of effectiveness of our helping and the productivity of my team for our ministry. This week I came in with the mindset of serving my hosts instead of trying to reach the kids we were teaching in the villages and honestly, I felt an enormous attitude change on my part. I was able to look for ways to help my hosts that I hadn’t really looked for before. I made sure to be the first to get supplies out of the van, help set up and tear down our makeshift classroom, serve rice and help clean during lunch, taking over a task to let my host take a break, etc. Now, these don’t seem like big tasks, and they really aren’t, but all throughout the week I was reminded that this isn’t my ministry. I’m not going to be here next month when these kids still need to be reached, but my hosts will be. My job is to come alongside my hosts and make their job as easy as possible and if that means scrubbing the floor outside our house or raking gravel in the road, I will put all of my effort towards that because we are called to do everything as if we are serving the Lord (which, we are, but you get the point). It was also encouraging to hear from a past squad that had served here that they had felt the same way. However, our hosts speak very highly of them and they continue to ask for world racers to come back, so they genuinely do just want us to just help in the little things, which can be hard to wrap your head around at first, but really gives a humble perspective.

This week during ministry we were asked to do a little skit for the kids after their Bible lesson. It was interesting and fun to come up with because, while we did have a narrator, the kids don’t speak English, so most of the communication was from facial expression and gestures. We were also asked to help teach English and played a game with the kids to help them learn the words for some clothing items. In these moments it was easier to feel like we were impacting the ministry and it was amazing. The focus really has been little things and I think our hosts wanted to test the waters with us and see how we would handle it. They have asked us next week to come up with a lesson plan for English teaching, we learned a couple new songs and we will be dancing and using puppets as well as another skit for the Bible lesson. This might not sound like a big deal to you, but these kids have never seen a puppet in their life. The people with puppets are going to be behind a blanket so the kids can’t see them and we were explicitly told not to show the arm that is in the puppet. I’m excited to see how the kids react and it’s been really fun finding new ways that keep the kids entertained and focused on the lessons. I’m so excited to see the different ways my team will be able to impact these kids and our hosts as well as the way it changes and brings the team closer together.

God has also been teaching me a lot about the way I see him and some things about my character. Earlier this week my leader, Eliza, wrote us all little notes that had Bible verses, a worship song, and a question on it. The question that was on the little note card was “Who is God to you?” As I thought and prayed about it, I got this image of myself in like a hamster ball or like surrounded by this see-though shield type thing. I was inside it, and God was on the outside. I could see Him and all the things He had for me and all of the promises He had for me to claim. What I got from that is that I know a lot about God. I know the promises He’s made us, I know what He thinks about me and what He wants for me and I’ve seen it all around me and seen it in so many lives and heard so many stories and believed it all. I knew God was powerful, I had seen it when I was little in God providing for my family, and heard tons of stories of healing and provision and listening and hearing from the Lord and I knew He had the power to do that and I believed that He did and still does. And I realized that I believed it for so many people, that He would work in and through them and speak to them, but I didn’t think he would do that for me. I was surrounded by things touched and effected by God but wasn’t confident that he would speak to, or work in and through me. Since then, I’ve taken the advice from a teammate and when I come across a promise in the Bible for God’s children, I’m allowed to claim that promise because I am God’s child and learn to see the ways he’s been working in me. That is something I’m still working on, but it’s been amazing the little ways since then that I’ve been able to be grateful and see his provision.

Another thing he’s been teaching me is that he wants me to ask him for things. Eliza gave an example that God used in her life. She was babysitting and as she was eating some of her food the kid would look up really expectantly/longingly at her food, but wouldn’t say anything. And she told the kid that if he wanted some of the food, he had to asking for it. She was ready, willing, and able to give it, but the kid had to ask first and that really stuck out to me because it’s a weird concept to me to ask God for stuff. Like, I know people ask things of God all the time and that he wants to bless us, it just seems odd for some reason for me to do it. So these might be funny examples or seem really small, but they’re little things this week that I’ve been able to be grateful for. This happened a couple times, but while we’re working in the villages it gets very, very hot and even a little shade makes a difference. I would be standing out in the sun, and to be honest, I was more complaining than asking, that God give us shade or a breeze or something to help make this a little better. The funny thing for me was, he did, quite a few times right after I asked. Also, during my Sabbath on Sunday, I wanted to just have quite time with just me and God, so I stayed home and listened to worship music, read my bible, and wrote down a few verses and stuck them above my bed, and I asked that he just be close to me because since coming to Cambodia it had been really hard to feel God’s presence. And once again, he did and I felt his presence just by myself in my room and I felt so much peace and joy. This last example is a little funny but just bear with me. Lol I had been trying to be better about spending my money this week, so even though coffee and boba on the way to and from ministry is really cheap, I wanted to save. I think it was Tuesday where we stopped for boba on the way home from ministry and I really really wanted some, but I didn’t want to pay for it, which, I know sounds dumb but whatever. So I didn’t get any, and to be honest was a little sad about it. But when the girls came back with their drinks, the lady had accidentally made an extra one and I got to have some. And honestly, I just laughed to myself as I thanked God. Because, that’s such a dumb little thing in my head, like, I could’ve gotten it if I wanted to, but God was like hey, even if it’s just a dumb little thing in your head, I want to take care of you and bless you and that was just so funny and precious to me. He really said it’s the little things this week.

Once again, thank you to everyone who has partnered with me on this trip and been praying for me and my team. If you feel lead to or want to, some of my teammates still need help fundraising, you can reach me at (805)-825-7759 and I can help you do that!

Thank you!!

Gianna Ramirez