Hi Folks. This month seems to have flown by as per usual and the Lord keeps allowing me to press in further. I have spent most of the month between doctors visits ,MRI's,surgery on my shoulder and now Physiotherapy. There is still surgery ahead for my elbow but they have to wait for some healing in my shoulder before it's mobility is enough to do the proper tests on the nerves in my right arm.I have been in Bangkok the last two weeks as my insurance sent me here as the medical care in Cambodia is woefully inadequate. This brings me to how God has been speaking to me this month.I have had a lot of time for reading and reflection in between the torture of Physiotherapy......just kidding I am getting better because of it.
As most of you know I am on a very limited budget and one day during my many consultations and visits to the doctors here my insurance company had not approved one of the visits yet. The agency they use to pay for my visits asked me to cover the expense and they would re-imburse me later. I felt some anger well up inside me as they had flown me all the way here for these visits and I told them before I left that I had no money as I had spent it on previous visits to the doctors in Cambodia. It worked out that the hospital took my passport until they approved it.
Later in my room I was reflecting on the day and realized that my anger was based in the fact that I was embarrassed that I did not have the funds to cover it. This led me to think about how blessed I was that I had insurance and that they had flown me from the slums of Cambodia to a high class hospital(it is like a five star hotel). Then it led me to think about my friends in Cambodia who rely on(if they can afford it) terrible medical treatment.They would never be able to afford the surgery I just had $12000 and counting and they would probably have to suffer the pain for the rest of their lives .
As far as me being embarrassed it made me think about the way we help people particularly the charity model . I know we have a medical and Dental team coming from Tenth this summer. This is truly needed everywhere I go and will be a blessing to those that receive it.What I was thinking about was the father or mother who will stand in line and do whatever it takes to get whatever treatment that is available for their children. Suffering the embarrassment of not being able to afford the proper treatment for their loved ones but willing to ask for anything to alleviate the suffering of the ones they love. I pray that all those offering their services understand the gift it is to serve the poor and put them first where God does in His upside down Kingdom.
I am embarrassed now at my own feelings when I couldn't afford the minor inconvenience of a late payment to my hospital.
Just before I left to come to Thailand a couple of weeks ago I visited my first host family from two years ago.It is a family I stayed with my first three months in Cambodia. I love them dearly and I have a deep place reserved for them in my heart. They have a young daughter named Joreah whom I used to call "teacher" as she would spend time with me laughing at my pronunciation of her language. I was informed that she was at school for English while I was there and that she was crying and didn't want to go to school but wanted to see me instead. It broke my heart about how moved she was that I was coming over to their house to visit. Of course I stayed long enough to see her back from from school and to laugh with her again. It was powerful to me that I realized that our paths would never have crossed if I wasn't following the Lord and engaging with the poor...those on the margins of society...I remember crying as I left there house after my first three months in Cambodia knowing that I was to be there but not knowing when I would be back.God had broken my heart for the Cambodian people and one of His tools was the relationship that had developed deeply with this family.
I was reading the scripture of the Roman centurion who had sought healing for his servants child from Jesus.
Matthew 8:5-13
The Faith of the Centurion
5 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. 6 “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” 7 Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”
8 The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.
Anytime before that I have read this scripture it was always about how strong the faith of this centurion was...Jesus even says that his faith was like no other in Israel.
But what really spoke to me was this Centurian ...a privileged man had crossed the boundaries of societal norms and developed a relationship with someone not of his standing that went so deep that he was willing to throw off his privilege. How deep was his anguish that he would seek the help of a Jewish teacher.The fact that he had come to Jesus is in itself enough to warrant the conclusion that he had put all things aside the pride of race and status that would have him regard himself as superior.He comes naked before Christ throwing everything on the line for a young servant child and knew that his only hope was in Jesus. He had to put himself with the rest of humanity and cry out his desperate longings with the rest of those in need.
He had done all this out of LOVE ...he had loved one who he had not meant to love ..someone beneath his status..a slave..the poor...it was because he had developed a deep relationship by simply being in contact with the poor....to many times today our contacts are minimal at best..we now drive to our gated communities or condos from our locked cars to our locked garages to our locked doors...we sometime pass someone by on the street and might even acknowledge the beggar and say hi...maybe even throw in a couple of loonies....but will we spend enough time to get to know them ..will we spend enough time in their presence to like them.....will we spend enough time to love them....then after all that will we give up our privilege ...will we give up what we have struggled so hard to gain...our place in society.......then stand naked before Christ and cry out to Him " please Lord heal my friend "
God bless
Kevin
Praise to our Lord for getting 9 of the 12 prisoners from Chi Kreoung released and the other 3 will be released in july
