Other Side of the World
In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
~John 1:4-5
Today has been one of the craziest, yet most rewarding days I have ever experienced. I’m lying on my bed here with no other light than this computer screen trying to process everything. Upon arrival at the orphanage, I was greeted by all the kids here, including little Marie who continues to blow me kisses or shake my hand even now. I was able to learn all of their names and after dinner we all sat down on the floor to read scripture and pray. As Dara asked me to give the devotional, they all listened while I read from Luke and explained how God had worked through my worry over the trip to give me peace through Scriptures in different passages. The power periodically turns off, but we just continue through it. Finally, they asked me a lot of questions about myself, family, and friends. I am overwhelmed by how good God is for providing this opportunity. Dara, his wife, and the kids here are incredible sweet and joyful. I am so excited for my next three months in this country. Dara and his wife are incredibly hospitable. They and the kids made sure every possible need I had was taken care of. The way they love people demonstrates how much they love and treasure Christ.
Over the course of the past ten days I have taken six finals, moved out of my old house in Statesboro into my new one there, and flown nine thousand plus miles to a small Cambodian orphanage. Although I chose this itinerary, stress and worry were definitely high at the beginning, but God was so faithful to provide peace through it.
I flew out of Atlanta on Tuesday to Chicago and was able to pick up all my necessary documents there. The flight from Chicago to Qatar was great; I had a long talk with a new friend from Iran, and I was able to learn so much from him about life there and Islam while comparing and contrasting it with Christianity. I also met and got to spend time with a student from Saudi Arabia. He was able to explain a lot to me about traditional dress and what to expect when I landed in Qatar. It was incredible to see how God provided Gospel conversations while also allowing me to learn so much about Sunni and Shia Islam and Arabic customs and government. After a quick stop in Thailand, I boarded a small prop plane and finally arrived in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
All of this was a great reminder that God takes our worst circumstances and uses them for our good. Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to spending 30+ hours on a plane or airport. But through this I was able to meet so many wonderful people and have Gospel conversations with both Christians and non-Christians. To a certain extent it was a picture of my past semester as a whole. This semester was no doubt one of the hardest I have every gone through. But through pain, stress, and sorrow God meets us in ways that are deeper and more full than we could experience without it (1 Corinthians 1:3-7). It also showed me God’s sovereignty. Although it is beyond our understanding, there is strength within the sorrow. He is working and sanctifying us through our waiting. When it's beyond our understanding, He is teaching us to trust.
This finally brings me to the country I am spending the next three months in. I wish I could model in a deeper way how the Christians I know here in Cambodia respond to pain. Under the Khmer Rouge, between 1975 and 1979 an estimated 1.5 to 3 million people died due to the mass genocide carried on by the regime. To put this in perspective, roughly one out of every four Cambodians died due to this genocide. On top of the memory of this, only 3% of the population is Christian so they also can experience isolation. In spite of this, the joy that these Christians have in our Savior is mind-blowing.
Illustrating this, last time I visited Cambodia we went out to visit church members with a local pastor. One lady we visited was single and was raising 6 children, while also taking care of her 90-year-old grandmother in a small palm-leaf house. Although the church was helping meet her needs, it was a very tough situation. When we prayed with her, she began to cry. At first, I thought these were tears of sadness, but after hearing the translator I realized they were tears of joy. She went on to explain how much Jesus had done for her and how much she loved him. I want joy like that. Situations like that truly replicate the lyrics to one of my favorite songs by Shane and Shane:
All of my hopes, all of my fears
All of my wants and all of my years
Everything now, everything then, all my life I resolve
You’re worthy of it all
He is worth everything.
Well the power finally came back on and I about to call it a night and sleep, but I can’t even begin to say how thankful overwhelmed I am with how good He is.
Wesley O’Quinn is a graduate of Georgia Southern University. He was involved in Campus Outreach during his time there. Wesley Currently works as an engineer.