To Be Known

O Lord, you have searched me and known

me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up;

you discern my thoughts from afar.

You search out my path and my lying down

and are acquainted with all  my ways

Psalm 139:1-3

To be known..

There is a coffee shop next to our hotel.  Being the creature of habit that I am, I show up every day at 7am.  The young girl behind the counter greets me with a wonderful smile and says hello in english.  I say hello in Khamai.  "same thing?" she asks. Then she waits for me to give her my makeshift coffee sleeve that I cut out from a a neoprene water bottle holder.  This morning routine is just a simple thing but it has brought joy to my heart and helped to ease the homesickness that screams so loudly when I wake up in the morning half way around the world from my family.  You see, she knows me. 

There is a young man who works on the business side of the coffee shop.  He is smart and I know that he has a bright future.  He comes in and we speak of business.  I am encouraging him to continue his education and learn Chinese.  He is a christian and he has many questions about business,  how to develop leadership, and how to hear Gods voice and follow it.  I see a pastoral call on his life that is  strong and I love that the Lord has allowed me to speak into that.  I get a kick out of seeing him walk through the door because he is happy to see me.  He knows me.

I am walking out on the streets quite a bit every day.  Sometimes I am down by the border area where the street kids hang out.  Many of these kids are used for sex at night.  They are often drugged, beaten, and forced out of fear to comply with the adults who see them as a commodity.  It is easy to lose all sense of value under these conditions. These have caught my eye and captured my heart.  Though my visit is brief,  I want them to know that they are special enough to be noticed. As I walk the streets, it just blesses me to hear them yell Helloooo and come running so that I can hug them.   I make sure that I open my eyes as big as I can and smile like a crocodile so they know that yes, indeed I have recognized them. They love that I notice  them, and I love that they know me.  I have taught them the knuckle explosion handshake and they love it.  They wait patiently until I get to them so we can knock our knuckles and explode our fingers!  It is OUR handshake. 

You see, the kingdom of Heaven is like this.  God beckons us to notice.  There are so many people that we pass every day that just need to be seen.  You cannot imagine what kind of hope springs forth in a heart when it is noticed.  This screams, you are important. You are valuable.  You are not invisible. The truth is there is not one precious child hidden from the eyes of God.  It is our privilege to be His hands, His feet, and His smile.  We are already well known in the heavenly realms but because He loves us and  wants to remind us that we too are so valuable, he brings people along that notice us!

 It is almost 7 am here in Cambodia.  I am heading out for coffee and then I will walk the few blocks to the XP center and say HELLOOO to the kids on the street and tell them what time it is!   ITS KNUCKLE EXPLOSION TIME!!  :)

Love from the road,

Julie