Battambang

Hey all,

So much has happened since my last post in Chiang Mai but I'll try to cover the main highlights. A few days after my birthday the most tragic event in my life took place. Someone who I've considered one of my best friends since my first soccer team when I was 4 was taken so unexpectedly and so soon. I was in complete denial until the funeral a week and a half later. Natasia and I have almost too many memories together. She was there for my first kiss, my first time accepting Christ, my first 'feminine experience'haha, my first Disneyland experience, lake trips, soccer teams, church camps/youth group, and so many more. We've watched eachother grow up and held eachother's hands through it all. She never forgot one of my birthdays in 19 years and gave me a present every Christmas even up until this past Christmas before I left for Australia. She knew me and loved me from the inside out and I so looked forward to coming home and sharing everything with her. But God is sovereign and He decided to take that beautiful girl to be with Him where she won't know what pain feels like. It's hard for me to even write this because I already miss her so much. I found out when I was in Thailand and 3 days later God provided a way for me to come home for her funeral and then fly all the way back to Cambodia. He is so good and I'm amazed how the people around me flocked in support and love, knowing my suffering. He used these people to get me home because thats where He wanted me and I will be forever grateful for their quick obedience. Being home for those 5 days was such a time of refreshment and healing for me. Christian drove all the way up from El Salvador just to be with me for those 5 quick days. That meant so much to me :) and my amazing family and friends were with me every step of the way. It was sooo good to just relax on the couch with them or go to Alena's for dinner with everyone. My heart goes out to the Lukiewski family!! I think about them and Tash every day and have been passionately praying for them.

Battambang, Cambodia- my current living place. Can you say culture shock?? Wow. From the dirt-paved roads, to the emaciated cows on the roads, to the 100 degree weather, to the interesting food, to the predominantly Buddhist culture, it has been quite a change from even Thailand. Cambodia is a dirty place with little hope. We've been working in 2 orphanages and teaching English/Bible at the local private Christian school. My favorite part of the day is always when we drive away from the nightime orphanage on our tuk tuk as they all stand outside and wave until they cant see us anymore. It helps me realize how much of an impact we're making with them. I'm falling in love with some of the kids! I want to take them home with me! Most of those kids know the Lord which is awesome. When Cambodians become Christians, they aren't just disliked like we are, they are shunned from their families, denied education and shelter. They are literally left with nothing. So I praise God for every single one that chooses to follow Him! We leave here in 3 days to drive back to Bangkok where Bry and Tiff surprised us with a resort for 3 nights!! Cant wait! Then one week in Australia and this YWAM journey ends. Madness!

Hill tribes, Tigers, Prostitutes, & World's biggest water fight

Today marked the 2nd day of SongKran- the Thai new year which is celebrated by "blessing" others with water on their heads. We put together candy packages with a card claiming God's love & plans for each of us and have been handing them out as we drench random people with water. I think it's maybe the best holiday ever created. We've been in Chiang Mai for a week now living at the guest house of "Lighthouse in Action" ministry (www.lighthethai.com). This ministry is devoted to reaching the rejected and outcast of Chiang Mai who work in the local bars as prostitutes. One bar we've been going to every night is a "ladyboy" bar filled with transvestites. Personally I've felt God pulling me toward the prostitute bar right next door and the gay bars down the street. I've formed friendships with some of the girls and guys, just trying to pour God's love into them as best I can. There have been several challenges for me the past week or so with the language barrier and just the relationship-building type of ministry this is. You don't get to see the fruits of God's work right away like our time spent in the hill tribes our first week. SongKran is a huge deal in Thailand so you can imagine the amounts of alcohol and parties happening all over the place. Today we camped out right across from this major bar next to the mote that surrounds the main part of the city. It just so happened that the ladyboys, prostitutes, and the like were all camped out next to us and across from us. I acquired a squirt gun some how and was happily shooting everyone in sight. Then I saw Gaw and Lek (2 girls from the bar I've been going to) who rushed over to me with big hugs and even a kiss. I was so happy to see them but they tried desperately to shove alcohol down my throat. It was tough for me to see the emptiness in their eyes and it was then that I got a glimpse of God's heart for them. I lovingly scurried my way out of their grip and dumped water on their heads. Other than that and the broken beer bottle I stepped on, the day was solid. Mallory has really gotten close with a ladyboy named Rose who is starting to trust her and Bryan has been building a friendship with a ladyboy named Marina who basically owns the whole bar scene in Chiang Mai. If God can soften her heart and bring her to know Him, this whole prostitue/ladyboy industry would take a dramatic, awesome turn. I genuinely love these girls and want them to know what true peace feels like.

Last week we were in a remote hill tribe Qurin village 6 hours up a windy, unpaved mountain. A man named Joe took us on this little adventure as our translator and project-planner. He is such a godly man!! I respect him so much for the humble work he's doing in those villages. Basically what we did all week was live with the pastor's family in their bamboo hut fully equipped with squatty potties, firewood, and running water. What a culture shock! I learned so much from these Burmese people. During the day we went down into the jungle one by one carrying back big, long pieces of wood for a few miles until we reached the platform where Joe & the pastor will build a hostel for the children to be educated, fed, sheltered, and taught about who Jesus is. We did this for 4 days and the weather was nice and toasty. At night we hung out with the village kids, sang songs, and played games. I loved Bet Na, the pastor's wife, because every time I tried to talk to her she would just die laughing. I love her laugh! I feel so stupid sometimes trying to speak their language, but I'll give them a laugh if they want it. The lifestyle in the hill tribes was so opposite to my own. Even though this remote, impoverished, native village is located in a Buddhist area where other religions are unwanted, God is at work there. I think that is rad! God has anointed people to be His working hands everywhere because He wants everyone to know him.

Yesterday was my big 23rd birthday!! My team spoiled me rotten with gifts and letters all day long. Mal and Josie bought me my favorite 2 dresses I saw in the markets, Tiff made me pancakes in the morning and then surprised me with a fish spa treatment to clean my dirty feet, the boys wrote me bday notes, and we all went out to a nice dinner. At the fish spa you stick your feet into a tank of water as baby fishies suckle all of the bacteria and dead skin off. It was pretty much a big team joke because I had the most embarrassing spill the other day into the sewage hole next to our house. My leg was pouring blood from scratching the side of the cement hole, but the most repulsive part that I was more concerned about was the fact that my foot was drenched in hunan feces. It's hard for me to even type this out because it brings back all of those disgusting feelings and shivers but I had to share that little golden nugget with everyone. So that is why Tiff and Bry bought me a fish foot spa treatment for my feet. My team absolutely loved that incident with all of their hearts.

I forgot to mention that on Sunday, which is our day off every week, we went to Tiger Kingdom! At tiger kingdom you can either play with the big tigers, the medium tigers, or the baby tigers. I chose the medium tigers because they were playful but not too ferocious for me. Tigers are my favorite animal so I was ecstatic all day! We took loads of pictures and I tried to get as close as I possibly could to their gorgeous faces but the workers kept batting me away. That was definitely a highlight for me.

On another note, I miss home and cant wait to see everyone!! My birthday was awesome, but I really truly missed being with my family and friends from home like all my other birthdays.

In His Grip,
Caitlyn

Bangkok & Bumble Bees

So we're on a scavenger hunt all over Bangkok right now and one of our stops on the list is to go to this internet/coffee cafe called "Bloom" to write a quick note to someone back home. I chose the blog cuz it reaches everyone! Obviously we got here safely from Brisbane. We got off the plane, hopped on a "song taw" (which is a truck that has benches and an overhang in the back with poles to hold on to) and arrived at YWAM thailand-bankok. Relaxed a bit before we strolled into the marketplace where we danced & ate fried bugs. Not kidding. I ate a bee. Almost threw up but I did it. The guys ate handfulls of grasshoppers, maggots, thick fat worms, and who knows what else!! This culture is so different so we had orientation this morning led by a man named Paw whose role is to introduce the foreigners to Thai culture. Thailand is amazingly inexpensive and hot. I'm obsessed with Thai food. They LOVE fair skin and greet eachother with a "sawatdee-ka" hands together and a head bow. Only 1 % of the entire population declares themselves Christians, while 94% are Buddhist. God's work through different YWAM ministries is clear and I couldn't be more excited right now for the next 2 months!! We have a temple tour tomorrow in Bangkok and then a 13 hour bus ride north to Chiang Mai. I already have so many stories to tell but this will have to do for now because we have to continue our scavenger hunt.
Thanks for your prayers. Also, pray for healing for Tiffany's cold and Bryan's hip :) love you all!

A New Chapter

It's Sunday morning and the house is quiet. Everyone left last night except for the Thaibodia and Bali/Philippines teams. Lecture phase is over. The good news is that we'll all be seeing eachother again in 2 months because we're all flying back here to Sunny Coast for debrief week on May 23rd. Actually we're all on the same connecting flight from Malaysia to head back here which is going to be unreal! It was surprisingly really sad to see them go. I thought I would be totally fine since I've been preparing for this day for 3 months, but I already miss a few of them. No tears from me though because I for some reason rarely cry which I'm realizing more and more since I've been in Australia. This sharp pain hits my chest but the tears only come on occasion... it's weird and I don't like it!
On another note, this past week was kind of a blur for me. Trying to soak in every minute together before departure and at the same time attempting to pack up our lives here for another adventure posed quite a hectic 5 days. God blessed us with a gorgeous few days so in the midst of all the chaos, we escaped to the beach a few times to soak in the rays. I know my skin damage-conscious sister LOVES that! The speaker for the week was a pastor from Byron Bay named Neville. I'm not being dramatic- he is the most knowledgable person I've ever come across in my Christian life. When it comes to apologetics, I've never met someone better either. That said, I got lost a few times during lecture but on the whole he taught me so much more than I expected for my last week. The topic was missions and the key to missions is worship. Neville pounded this in our heads and hearts. In order to be a tool for God to be excited to use, God wants to know that I'm going to give Him every ounce of the glory and not take any for myself. This is why he loves to use the weak. The weak have been brought out of their weakness only by he power of God and they know it. For me personally, I struggle with pride and the notion that I can do and get anything I want if I put my whole mind, heart, and body into it. I don't know if that is just a super competitive, athlete thing that has been driven into me my whole life or if it comes from the pressures within the American society or if it is something else, but whatever the case, this whole idea of weakness does not come naturally for me. If God wants complete ownership of his glory then he's going to be more reluctant to use someone who secretly desires to be glorified.
The supernatural realm was a hot topic this week. With a pentecostal background, Neville has seen and experienced a dramatic desire for the Holy Spirit. Neville actually has a really cool testimony but I won't go there right now. He has a wealth of knowledge about supernatural things. Healings, visions, dreams, and things that can only be from God. We know that as we go out in His name it is very likely that some of these ways that God uses to speak to us will take place. I can't wait! Literally. I can't wait anymore here- I need to go to Thailand & Cambodia. I'm sick of hearing about all the tragedy out there and being stuck here. Tomorrow night! The first week in Thailand we'll be hiking up in the mountains on the border of Thailand and Burma, delivering medical supplies, blankets, water, and food to the poorest of the poor in the mountain villages. When I say medical supplies I mean things like band-aids and gauze pads to patch up infected mosquito bites and who knows what else. I'm really looking forward to each part we have planned for this outreach. The 2nd week we'll be working with orphans and sex slave ministries. The 3rd week we'll be in Phuket (look it up on Google, it's gorgeous) working with a kids' sports ministry. The 4th week we'll be back in Bangkok & I forget what we're doing there. Bry and Tiff said the best times are going to be the times that are completely unplanned where we're just praying for guidance and His leading to speak to certain people or go to certain places. I'm so excited for these times! Then we're off to Battambong, Cambodia where we'll be for the entire last month of outreach. I'm telling you all of this now because I don't know how often I'll be able to blog since internet access will be extremely limited.
I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been supporting me this entire 3 months. Thanks for following my journey and for every single prayer you've prayed for me. Each of us on team Thaibodia are trying to raise up as much of the body of Christ we belong to back home to pray for us because we know that prayer changes things. So please take some time to pray for: Bryan and Tiffany-their health, their marriage, and a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit
Our team- safety, direction, adaptability, and divine unity

I want to send a special thank you to you mom for being the first to introduce me to Jesus and for following Him faithfully even when you don't want to. You are such a role model to me and I miss you so much.
We leave tomorrow night at 7, flight is at 11 from Brisbane to Bangkok. I'm off to be a little bird on a mission! haha

Week 7: The Living Word

"I'd rather miss the will of God trying than do nothing at all."

It has been way too long since my last post, I'm sorry! Right now I'm in the midst of packing up and preparing for outreach since God was yet again faithful in providing all the needed finances! We leave for Bangkok on Monday so I will definitely post again later on this week and during outreach as well to keep you updated. Christian came to visit me all last week which was such a breath of fresh air for me and I was very sad to see him go this morning but God really used Christian to help renew my strength and bring me so much joy. Because Prayer Week was so heavy I found myself almost forcefully barricading my heart again as to avoid anymore intense and draining personal transformation. Though I was really excited to dive into the next week's curriculum, I put the breaks on in the self-analysis department of my life.

The week after Prayer Week we studied the Living Word (fancy phrase for Bible) taught by my outreach leader, Bryan Hunsberger. Bryan knows more about the Bible than anyone I know and he is only 23. I had a good chunk of questions about the Bible that I never really voiced before because I think I felt like I should have already known all the answers or maybe I was just too embarrassed to ask them for some stupid, prideful reason. Most of my questions were answered this week, but one important thing I learned was that as long as I am living here on this Earth I will never know all the answers and neither will anyone else. What I know for sure is that Jesus is truth and the Bible is just further proof. If you ask for a passion for God's Word He will give it to you. But it's important to be persistent and to ask with a whole heart. We learned that sadly only 60% of believers in America believe the Bible is totally accurate. I dont know about you but that statistic really rocked my world. How can we call ourselves Christians and not trust in the Bible? I will be the first to admit that I have had my doubts about the Bible and it's ability to last thousands of years- especially after 4 years at an ultra-liberal, skeptic, anti-Christian University. But that is why I'm here. I'm seeking God's face with my whole life because I want to know Him. I've been asking God to build my faith and this week He showed me that I can trust Him and His Word. All of my doubts have been shattered because God graciously removed them for me over time as I seek Him relentlessly.

The Bible has been preserved miraculously for thousands of years. It is timeless in the fact that something that was written so incredibly long ago still is applicable to my life today. Bryan took us through the Old Testament, the 10 Commandments, the New Testament, the 400 years of silence between the Old and the New Testament, and we finished with a Jesus story every day. We talked one day about the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23): love, joy, patience, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control, and gentleness. Because we know Jesus, He has sent his Holy Spirit to counsel us through each and every day. Just because we may not feel Him emotionally does not mean He isn't there. He is here in fullness all the time no matter where we go and it takes true faith to actually believe and follow Him. I have seen with my own eyes the work of the Spirit and that is why many of my own doubts have been replaced with faith. We also broke down the 4 gospels: the audience, the writer, and the purpose. Acts, Philippians, James, John, Isaiah. The book Isaiah was written by the prophet Isaiah 650 years before Jesus was born. The probability that Jesus would fulfill all the prophecies that He did, would be like filling the state of Texas with quarters, standing waist deep in them, coloring one blue, and choosing that one quarter!!

God really took this week and used it to expand my knowledge. Even though I didn't apply what I learned to my life right away, I learned so much that I will carry with me forever. Toward the end of the week I was ready to take that barricade back down from around my heart to let God continue his work. "Problems are opportunities for God to work." -Bryan Hunsberger. Problems can either be whined about or they can be a perfect circumstance for God to show Himself. Just depends how you look at it. Anyway, I have to get to bed but I'll be back in a flash this week when I find some time. Thanks for your prayers and all your support back home. I miss home! Bye for now :)

Week 6: Prayer Week

So we're now in week 7 but let me reflect a bit on prayer week last week. Its amazing what happens when you actually chase after God full force. We had groups of people praying every hour of the day, besides our little chunk of time for lecture with Leon, for 5 days straight. Our little prayer room became a popular place of escape. I remember thinking "I wish we always had this room" but then I realized I can dwell on God and talk to Him anytime I want in any place I want. Still, in our little sanctuary it was so much easier to focus on Him. Monday was a big day for me. Ever since Byron Bay I've been asking God to show me what is keeping Him from having my whole heart. The things in my life that I hold with a closed fist. Well Monday morning after base worship and tea time, God brought me to my knees in surrender. I was in the back of the room during our little worship/ open mic/ confession/ whatever-we-wanted-it-to-be time when I realized that God was asking me to lay down my family, Christian, and my guilt. I was holding myself up by a stack of chairs because I was too weak in the knees to hold myself up. I went for a walk outside for awhile just asking God why I have to give Him the most important things in the world to me (minus the guilt). My family is everything to me. I tear up just thinking about how much I love them and they love me. And Christian is my best friend who I love more than words can express. Questions flooded my mind. What does it mean to lay them down? Am I strong enough? Whats the point anyway? I didn't get any answers right away... not until Wednesday when I actually decided to speak this out to the rest of the school in front of everyone on the mic. Afterward everyone prayed for me and some approached me after with a few words that were directly from God confirming a few serious questions for me. That night was one that I will remember until I'm old and gray. This may sound creepy and weird to any non-believers and maybe even some believers reading this but God just totally showed up that night. He surpassed any expectation I had going into this. It is a very long story and I will share it with only a few people in my life, but He actually revealed to us who He is, and the very reality of Heaven, Hell, Jesus, the Father God, and the Holy Spirit. I am still trying to digest that night. It ended with the most authentic and amazing worship session I have ever had in my life because we were all in utter awe of the God that we serve. The God that we GET to praise. He is so very real and so very worthy!!!
Anyway, He answered some of my questions that night with, "I will never force you to do anything, but if you want to be my disciple I need to have your whole heart. You must love me first." So I think God just wants to know that I love Him first and that I am willing to go and do whatever He asks of me. That I have faith in Him and His plan for me in this short life. I'm scared because my flesh wants so badly to just live a simple, uncomplicated life with all the materials and security I need. Mine is just one story this past week. Each person in the DTS had some sort of break through last week. All of these people were headed in one direction but have chosen to grow with God which has completely altered plans they've mapped out for their lives. I love how God moves in a repentent room. He loves it.
After a long week, Saturday the girls at 77 (my house) made a big house breakfast and we all slept in till 11ish (since we barely slept all week). I made French toast :) Then I went to the beach and we had a big movie/game night. A few of us went to this place called Thai Seasons which has awesome, cheap Thai food. Then Starbucks. Liz and I watched A Walk to Remember.. I'd been craving it for awhile! And Sunday I slept in again, went to the beach with a girl from Orange County named Breezy, went to church and played cards till pretty late. I'm still loving it here and I'm getting sad I only have a month left in Australia! My dad informed me that I'll be home in 98 days haha.
Lots of Love!

With Opened Eyes

Well, after a spiritually, emotionally, and physically exhausting week in Byron I feel like I am finally rejuvenated and refreshed. We studied the fear of the Lord this past week under the teaching of Glen Vines.

My favorite couple verses of the week: Proverbs 31:30 "Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."

Psalm 25:14 "The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them."

God is hungry for me and you. He wants to confide in us. For me I am taking everything that I am learning and trying to apply it to my life but most of what I've been learning is very challenging! I know how apathetic I can become when I'm home, but I never want to return to that spiritual deadness. That life is too easy. God has been confirming to me every day that He has called not only me but everyone who labels him/herself as a Christian to live a radical life. A life that people of the world see and don't understand. This life is not going to be easy, but so rewarding and fun!
On Friday the director of the base and his wife shared during our missional living portion of the morning. They created a clothing company called "Moselle Clothing Company" which works alongside the ministry "Destiny Rescue." Destiny Rescue is a ministry devoted to rescuing sex slaves out of the pit of Hell that they are drowning in. They place the victims in a recovery center where they just love on them, feed them, and give them hope in Christ. This is when Moselle comes in. Moselle then takes the freed sex slaves and employ them. The business is brand new so they only have a few full-time workers right now in Thailand. The girls were taught how to knit and sew the clothes together so that each cent Moselle makes can go directly to these former sex slaves. It's incredible! Moselle doesn't have any other employees. Just volunteers. So I encourage anyone who reads this to at the very least check out their website www.moselleclothing.com. Destiny Rescue has ministries in Mozambique, East Asia, and Eastern Europe. Each victim saved has made the decision to have a relationship with Christ! Over the past few years God has really given me a heart for victims of sex trafficking and I'm praying about whether or not He wants me to really dive in to the abolition full force. We'll see!

- 1 million CHILDREN are in the sex trafficking trade as young as 4 years old.
- 27 million slaves exist today.
- Today you can buy a child on the Thai-Burmese border for $5 AUD.
- The UN estimates that a child is bought or sold every minute.

Human slavery makes more money than Google, Nike, and Starbucks combined! I know this stuff is really hard to think about but I just pray that it will open your eyes to see outside of our little bubble that we live in. On a lighter note, we went to the Kondalilla Falls today where I cliff-jumped and played in a few waterfalls. It was amazing. Last night we joined the September school at the base because they had their graduation ceremony, but I left early to play in a little soccer game which was amazing. It's been way too long since my last soccer game! Throughout the week, in between lectures and meals, students go to McDonalds and Starbucks all the time; McDonalds because it's cheap and Starbucks because it's relaxing. It's funny to me how much people love McDonalds! Please pray for finances for me-that my outreach fees would be provided for. Also, for those who are enslaved to human trafficking and for the clients who continue to enslave them. Ask God to convict them and stir in their hearts. Pray for my Thailand/Cambodia outreach team-that God would prepare us for the journey that is about to change our lives and hopefully tons of other lives. Thanks for your prayers!!