musings

i spoke today at my parent’s church – Hope Covenant – in Strathmore about Hagar. i’m not a pro when it comes to public speaking, but i believe so firmly in the work that Hagar is doing that it kind of oozed out of me.

after having lived in Cambodia for the past 8 months, and working with Hagar, i think i actually believe in redemption – i actually believe that new life is possible – in this life time. i’m reminded of the redeeming power of love every day as I work for Hagar and hear stories of reintegration. women and kids who’ve come out of the most horrendous conditions – trafficking for sexual exploitation, horrific domestic violence, rape – are finding hope and new life through the work Hagar does. that inspires me. i also live across the street from tuol sleng, the old interrogation center the khmer rouge used to torture people (14,000 of them) before shuffling them off to the killing fields. now, the neighborhood is a pensive one. apparently it took years for people to populate this area again. but now there are families. and that’s where we live. on the second floor of townhouse, overlooking the banana grove behind the torture centre. i love where i live because it reminds of how jesus can make all things new. and how people are dreaming again in cambodia – a country that was devastated by civil war.

so my heart is full today. full of hope. and expectation that God is bringing new life to this world as His body cares for the oppressed, feeds the hungry, and speaks out truth in love.