It's over already?!

Keri (fellow Ambrose student and onSiter in Cambodia) and I at the airport.

Team Place of Rescue! :) Melanie and I at the airport the night she and Keri left for Canada

Melanie's farewell party. (I have no clue what I am trying to do in this picture!)

Some of the kids and I at Melanie's farewell party.

The countdown is on! I have less than a week left in Cambodia. This has been a busy month to say the least! At the start of the month, I said farewell to Melanie as she went back to Canada. It was an absolute blessing to serve with her this year! I also said farewell to another Ambrose student and onSiter named Keri. It was so great to have two other onSiters so close! Teaching has gone really well this month. One of my groups finished the textbook they had been working on for months and it was really neat to be able to share that accomplishment with them! A highlight of teaching this month was teaching my advanced class the song, "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong. I forgot how much I love that song. I know its incredibly simple, yet there is just something about it that brings a tear to my eye.



I preached this past sunday in Phnom Penh at International Christian Assembly, my home church here in Cambodia. My message was entitled, "What Fuels You?", and I looked at what fuels us as believers in Jesus Christ.

I focused on four things...

1. Fueled by the body (Phil 2:1-4)
2. Fueled by home (Psalm 84)
3. Fueled by scars (Isaiah 53:4-5)
4. Fueled by the future (Gal 5:1)
   

It was a blessing and an honor to share in front of so many passionate Christians. I felt kind of strange after it was over though, it was about a 6 month process of praying about and planning that sermon! :-) hahaha

This week is my week of "lasts" here in Cambodia. My last day of teaching is tomorrow! That still feels weird to say that...My farewell party is Thursday and I leave Place of Rescue on Friday afternoon. I can not believe at how quick these 3+ months have gone! I will spend the weekend in Phnom Penh with friends and then Monday night I start my journey home...

I have a 12 hour layover in South Korea! Video blog or two??? Maybe...time will tell friends :)

Love and Blessings,
Brian

It's April already!?

Hey all! How is everyone doing? I hope my dear friends in Calgary were not too disheartened by the recent snow. :) We have gotten a surprisingly high amount of rain in Cambodia this past month and I have loved falling asleep to the sound of rain hitting my tin roof.

This has been a great month of teaching and living life here in Cambodia at Place of Rescue. A teaching highlight was the unit my students and I did on eating in a restaurant. We had great fun learning how to order food and learning about common items such as plates, knifes, spoons etc. My students are all learning a lot and progressing in their studies well. I am really really proud of all of them! I know how much hard work it takes to learn another language and I am excited to see where God will take them and the paths he has in store for them.

A second highlight from April was being able to go to Vietnam for a few days for a time of debriefing with two fellow Ambrose students. I greatly appreciated the opportunity to rest for a few days, think about/reflect upon the incredible things God has done in my life, and just connect with God and friends. Vietnam was beautifal! The people are amazing and the scenary is incredible! I have found it amazing to see the beauty of God through creation here in Southeast Asia. The sunsets of Cambodia, the mountains of Vietnam, the forests of Thailand, they all point to the loving and beautifal hand of God at work in creation.

Can everyone please pray for me? May 30th I am preaching at my International Church in Phnom Penh. I am looking at the question, "What Fuels You?". My hope and prayer is that God uses it as a great motivation and encouragement to my church family here in Cambodia. I love my church and church family here. We have 30+ countries represented and it is a place full of people that absolutely love Jesus Christ!

As I sign off, let me leave you with a portion of scripture that has really encouraged me these past few weeks...

Jeremiah 1:5-8

⁵"Before I shaped you in the womb,
I knew all about you.
Before you saw the light of day,
I had holy plans for you:
A prophet to the nations—
that's what I had in mind for you."

⁶But I said, "Hold it, Master God! Look at me.
I don't know anything. I'm only a boy!"

^7-8God told me, "Don't say, 'I'm only a boy.'
I'll tell you where to go and you'll go there.
I'll tell you what to say and you'll say it.
Don't be afraid of a soul.
I'll be right there, looking after you."
God's Decree.

"God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called"

-George Barna

Love and Blessings,

Brian

Place of Rescue II, Angkor Wat, and True Love Seminar @ Rescue I

On Friday, April 9 the youth of Place of Rescue attended a two hour seminar on healthy, God-honoring dating relationships. The seminar was held on the Rescue property and between 40-50 of our youth attended. I really enjoyed being able to watch the youth I care deeply about learn and talk about what true, healthy, holy love looks like.
The seminar was taught by this man, he is a pastor at New Life Church in Phnom Penh. The kids really seemed to enjoy him. He spoke on the difference between love and lust. He had the youth's attention and had them laughing a lot which are two key things in working with youth :-)
I had the opportunity to go to Place of Rescue II in Monkol Borey (Northern Cambodia) and Siem Reap. This picture was taken at a night market in Siem Reap. Yes, those are fish you see around my feet folks, this is called a "Dr. Fish Foot Massage" and for two dollars you stuck your feet in this huge tank and these fish came to suck the dead skin off of your feet and "massage" them. I laughed, giggled, and screamed the entire time because they TICKLED SO BAD!!!!
This is a group shot of me and some of the kids at Place of Rescue II. We were greeted with a mass amount of hugs upon arrival and these were and are some of the sweetest kids I have ever met in my life. Place of Rescue II is almost at full capacity already! :) God is SO good!
This is Nisa. She is one of the kids at Place of Rescue II.
This picture was taken within one of the temples in Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat was absolutely mind-blowing to see! I had read a bit about it before coming to Cambodia and it was unreal to see it in person. I enjoyed being able to explore the grounds and bit in order to understand more about Cambodia, its people, and where they are coming from. I highly recommend seeing it if you are ever in my end of the world :)

Adios for now friends! God Bless

Love and Blessings,
Brian

Back in the swing of things and a beach adventure with 300 people!

(Hanging out in Sihanoukville)
(This was a giant statue right across the street from our hotel
in Sihanoukville)
(Dara and I chillin' in the sand)
(At the beach, playing with kids, and not a care in the world!)

Hey everyone! I can't believe I have been back for over a month! Time sure does fly :) I am back into the full swing of things at Place of Rescue. I am teaching 4 classes a week and doing some one on one tutoring. I have really enjoyed getting reconnected with everyone and shared with my church here in Phnom Penh how God has been healing my heart the last three months. A highlight of my time back came this past week. Place of Rescue does a yearly trip to the beach at Sihanoukville in Western Cambodia. I LOVED seeing pure joy and smiles on the faces of 300+ kids, grannies, house moms, and staff members. I remember standing on the beach looking at the kids and playing, I was blown away by the sheer goodness of God. So many of these kids have stories that would break your heart, yet to see them being kids without a care and just playing at the beach was amazing! I am really excited for this coming week because I will go to Place of Rescue II. Place of Rescue II is in Monkol Borey, Northern Cambodia. I am excited to see how the orphanage looks, meet the kids, and hear the amazing stories of what God is doing in the lives of people here in Cambodia.

My hope and prayer for you all is this, that you embrace the life that God has given you and love it passionately! I know I do :)

Love and Blessings,
Brian

The lighter side of life in Cambodia...

I really do believe that one of the best gifts we have in life is laughter. The ability to laugh with others and laugh in the right situations truly is a gift. I want to share with you a couple of lighter moments I have had this week...

Yesterday, (Monday for me), I was playing with some of the kids before they went to have dinner and they kept wanting to see my biceps. I don't have the biggest arms ever but apparently here in Cambodia I do. I thought I would have a little fun with the situation and I told the kids that the reason why I have the muscle that I do is because I do the following things...
1. Eat all my vegetables.
2. Listen to my mom and Marie.
3. Go to bed when I am supposed to.
4. Do all of my homework every night.
We all shared a pretty good laugh and lots of smiles.

I went to the local market in my village of Baek Chan on Monday. I rode a bike for about 15 minutes into Baek Chan from Place of Rescue and was greeting by many smiles and surprised people to see a big, foreign guy riding a bike along the road in the village. I got to the market, parked my bike in the "parking lot" (covered hut that cost me 12.5 cents to park at), got some money exchanged and started shopping. I was really excited to be at the market and practicing my Khmer language skills. I stopped at one stall and got talking to the people that owned it. We were having a great chat, I was explaining to them that I was an English teacher from Canada and they got a kick out of how tall and broad shouldered I am. We probably talked for about 5-10 minutes. I turned around to leave the stall and proceed to absolutly smoke my forehead on a cross beam of a stall. I think it was about 6 or 7 of the sellers at the markets got a HUGE laugh out of it and I did to. I guess I need to duck lower next time...;-)

It's good to laugh and appreciate the lighter moments of life. Thanks be to God...

Love and Blessings,
Brian

Back in Cambodia!

Hey all! I have been back in Cambodia for over a week and it had been really really great thus far. I was met at the airport in Phnom Penh by my friend Michael and fellow onsiter's Melanie and Keri which was fantastic! I had a great first day in Phnom Penh at the Christian and Missionary Alliance's guesthouse, hanging out at a favorite coffee shop of mine called "Jars of Clay", doing some shopping at a local market, and had a feast of Lebanese food with some dear friends to celebrate my return. I really am one of the most blessed individuals with the people I know here in Cambodia, God is good :) I arrived back at Rescue on Monday and was met with an unbelievable amount of hugs, smiles, and love.a spent my first few days unpacking and reconnecting with all of my dear Cambodian friends! I taught on Thursday and Friday. I am now teaching grade 7-9 and a couple of older youth privately. I am really excited to work with these youth and develop great relationships with them all! I am coming into my first full week of teaching and am really looking forward to it. I feel like I am in a good place with the Lord right now, I am taking things a day at a time and clinging to His presence and word in a way I haven't before.

Psalm 119:50, "...Your promise preserves my life."

God is bigger than the pain we experience!

I don't know what the future holds exactly, but I know who holds the future.

I am filled with hope :-)

Love and blessings,
Brian

I'm back!!!