Why Cambodia?

If you know me, you know that I like creature comforts. Like hot water, sanitation, and technology. I went to Guatemala my junior year of college, shortly after the civil war there ended. After that trip, I said no more developing countries! And I would rather be at home than traveling, so really I am not the ideal candidate for a mission trip.


But, God started tugging at my heart to go on a trip. I would just go check the GlobalX mission trips website, only out of curiousity of course. In the meantime, I learned about human trafficking through doing some pro bono work for the Southern Poverty Law Center. I worked with another attorney to obtain a visa for a victim of forced labor who had been smuggled into our country and lived in deplorable conditions. One day when I was "just checking" the web page, I saw this trip: Southeast Asia, for mature believers, "The goal of this team is to serve and pray for those who help rescue those enslaved in human trafficking." Now that sounded like a trip! Once I saw that, God's nagging got stronger. During my prayer time, I was confronted with these and other verses:

• Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. Isaiah 1:17.


• Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27.


• Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21.

If I am a Christian, how can I ignore these words? Here I am in my nice house in the suburbs and there are people suffering. God's done a lot for me - what am I doing for Him? I did not feel relief from God's urging until I finally turned in the trip application. It was a palpable relief. But, I reasoned, God was probably just testing my obedience because surely He did not actualy want me to go on a trip. That reasoning lasted through the fundraising stage - if God really wants me to go then He will give me the money, and it's a lot of money to raise, so I probably won't actually have to go. I was wrong! God raised more than I need in record time, well before the deadline. It was a funny moment when I turned to Matt after receiving a large donation and said, "Well, I guess I am actually going."




God is good! I was so excited to learn that our mission team would include other female lawyers and that our trip would have a social justice focus. I am thrilled that Matt will be going on this same trip in March and that we can continue building relationships with our church's partner in Cambodia. I am energized about the work my team will be doing on our trip. Since I turned in the application, God has just continued working on my heart, growing my faith, and opening my eyes to the very real evil that is unleashed in this world. I am honored to be a small part of His plan. Thank you for going on this journey with me!