Check it Out!!

I could go through every day and tell you about everything I’ve done and every single person I have met, but that may get a little boring. I just want to share with you on this blog basically what challenges have come my way and what major things God has taught me through them.

 On the 5^th of August I started the long journey to Lampka. The trip took me five flights to get to my final destination at the Imphal Airport. The travels here were smooth, besides a couple long layovers and sketchy airports. In the end I am here safe, so all is good. Little did I know, was the first week here may be one of the hardest. That first week God was ready to totally throw me out of my comfort zone right away. And boy was I not prepared. Everything about that first week here seemed a bit awkward and weird. I was suddenly in a place that I didn’t know anyone and realized that I would be here for the next four months. The change that came the first week made me miss home and not feel like I belong at all. The food, the people, the culture, the language, was all different and I wasn’t sure if I liked it.

On my first full day in Lamka I met the vice principal of the school he took me to a class and introduced me. I thought this was nice until I noticed that there was no other teacher and he said, “I’ll be back in forty minutes”. Talk about being out of my comfort zone. I was now standing in front of eighty or more kids staring at me, ready for a forty minute speech about me. It’s funny how God knows where you are uncomfortable and weak, and challenges you to make you stronger. The rest of the first week was just like that class, I spoke in many more classes that day and the next. That Friday I was even a substitute teacher for an English class. Let me remind you this was still on my third day here. That first weekend me and Khen Tombing (the man I am staying with, who is the headmaster of the school) were talking to the vice principal about what I was going to teach this semester. Before coming on this trip my parents and I always joked that they would probably change what I’m teaching when I got here. So who would've guessed, that since God has such a funny sense of humor, he would change me from teaching math (my strongest subject) to English(my weakest subject). As you can tell from the simple grammar and spelling mistakes just in this blog that God once again saw where I was weak and is challenging me. (By the way the reason I am doing English is because even though I am not the best by my standards, I still have by far the best pronunciation and grammar just because English is my native language.) Also as many of you who read the other blog post know I was sick this past week which was a very challenging time because being sick in a foreign country, with not many people you know around you, is very scary. This was another time where I felt alone and afraid. This being only a week into the trip also made me feel out of place and scared.

All those changes and challenges seemed horrible at the time. But every challenge soon was over and now I can reflect and see what God has shown me through them. These challenges I have faced just in these two weeks have shown me that I can’t do this alone. I feel that God wanted me to be so sick that I would have to literally cry out for His help to stop the sickness. He showed me that He controls everything around me, my health, my safety, how comfortable I am, etc. I feel like He put me in front of the class to challenge me to be brave for His name. He put me there because He doesn't want a follower who is scared.
I see these little trials that God has thrown at me, and at first, I am scared for 4 more months of this. But 2 Timothy 1:7 says, “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity but of power love and discipline.” So now I must look toward this trip with a spirit ready to take on whatever God calls me to do. This trip is mainly about sharing God’s love, but also I came here to make myself into more of the man God wants me to be.

Please just pray for me to be ready to be in tough situations.
Pray that I won’t be scared to talk in front of lots of people.
Pray that God will continue to make this a tough trip to improve me.
Pray that I will be brave when I need to meet new people.
Pray that God will make me uncomfortable.

Thank you for reading and for the support! Be looking for another big update next week about some cool opportunities God is already starting in basketball, drums, and leading some devotions!