Cambodia Report

I’ve been home for nearly two weeks, and I’m just not sure how to communicate everything on my heart from this 10 day window of October 16-25, going to Cambodia for the Miessence leadership retreat and then taking three extra days to visit the part of India where a dear friend used to live a few years back…

To be honest, it was a really deep trip on a lot of levels…

I’ve never blogged much, and do it even less these days, because I just don’t want to spend so much time on my computer…  I choose to keep my online time reserved for very intentional conversations and communications with like-minded (ie, interested in real food, natural health, creation care, strengthening of families, ethics and transparency in business, personal growth for God’s glory and societal contribution rather than material gain, etc etc etc) contacts, customers, and business partners around the globe, and for staying connected with family and friends back across the ocean in the States, while spending more time offline with my family and local community here in England.

So, here’s the deal.  I can’t possibly share everything on my heart from this trip.  And in reality, I know most of you wouldn’t want to read that novel anyway – I’m not offended, in fact, I think that’s a good thing…  Please just give this a quick read and then go spend time listening deeply to the hearts of those closest to you, whether in person offline where possible, or assisted by technology where separated geographically.  🙂

Here’s a quick factual summary of my trip…

• Day 1- Travel day catching up with a dear friend who I hadn’t seen since I moved to England.
• Day 2- Meeting with representatives of Remember Nhu, an organization that works to prevent child sex trafficking.
• Day 3- Worship with a local Cambodian fellowship.  Business heartstorming with other Miessence leaders.
• Day 4- Volunteering at New Hope Cambodia, a centre for children from one of the poorest villages near Siem Reap.
• Day 5- Visiting Angkor Wat and other temples in the surrounding area.
• Day 6- Visiting the Killing Caves in Battambang, from the Pol Pot regime.
• Day 7- Visiting a Floating Village, a Lotus Farm, and the War Museum.  Fly to India.
• Day 8- A bit of driving around Mumbai and visiting Elephanta Island.
• Day 9- An incredible behind-the-scenes tour of Pune, and dinner with my friend’s friend’s family.
• Day 10- Worship with an international fellowship in Pune, then flying home to England.

Oh side note: Sorry, but I don’t have pictures to share here unfortunately (lost them all, long story)… 🙁

Overall, the trip had me thinking a lot about…

• Friendships, old and new, including precious kids I may never see again in this life…
• Learning from the past, living in the present moment, and hoping in the future…
• Justice and injustice, war and slave trade horrors in history and current news…
• Poverty and wealth, purposes of business, greed and generosity…
• Genuine faith and rituals of any kind disconnected from the heart…
• Truth and relativism, truths and deceptions found in all the major world religions…
• The beauty of all nations and the difficult simplicity of Jesus’ message of love and healing offered for all people across the entire globe vs what is often portrayed, misrepresented, misunderstood, or practiced as ‘Christianity’ in today’s world…
• Challenges faced by people on big and small scales, and the precious hope of healing offered through the love of Christ, His forgiveness of our sin, and our commitment to study and follow His teaching and leading, that we might live humbly and compassionately, set free from the power of unhealthy competition, striving, materialism, anger, hate, self-righteousness, broken relationships, hurts, and death…

So yeah, what do you think about any or all of these things?

Feel free to comment below or message me if you want, but I do want to encourage you again to please spend time talking about deep stuff with your closest loved ones.  And for sure, talk directly to God about this stuff.  🙂

That said, I’m always open to genuine, respectful conversations about deep stuff with anyone God brings across my path, and I am always happy to connect with folks and meet new friends online or offline, even if we don’t agree 100% on everything.  🙂