My Thoughts On Marriage

     There is a natural, and God-given instinct for every individual to desire and crave love and acceptance.  For this reason, it is natural for us to seek out friendships and relationships.  All around the world, people are marrying every moment of everyday.  It is natural to want to marry; to want to have someone to talk to and to wake up to every day.  I believe this is why so many people marry; and why, when someone feels they should have a spouse and doesn’t, is frustrated and uneasy with life.

     I also believe that God has given each one of us dreams and passions.  Some say, “our calling.”  Everyone of us feels it.  This need and drive to do what we are passionate about.  There are so many people who, in their lifetime, do not follow their dreams and pursue their passions, and thus feel as though they missed out on life.  It is something WE HAVE to do.

     So what happens when 2 people come together, with a need to be loved and accepted, but also have 2 very very different dreams?  They get married, are happy for awhile….. until they notice their passions once again.  For some marriages, it is impossible for a couple to pursue both persons passions.  For some, each spouse does not see eye to eye with the dreams and passions, and thus, either the dream or the marriage is squashed….. sometimes both.

     From my perspective and experience in both my marriage, and the relationships which existed before my marriage, true happiness (aside from belief in God), comes from 2 spouses sharing dreams and passions.

     I believe that God intended for a marriage to come together, and for each spouse to BECOME ONE in everything - included passions.  I think God intended for spouses to walk through life fulfilling each other’s dreams, building each other up, encouraging each other to do whatever it is they need to do, (as long as it does not hinder their marriage or relationship with God).

     Jeremy and I have many friends who have entered into marriages already, and I pray that they can follow through in their marriages in this way.  But, we also have friends who have not married yet, but long to.  For them I pray that they would first strengthen their relationship with God, and find what the calling is for their lives.  I think it is only then that we are healthy enough to be able to enter into a marriage relationship.  I believe that if this step is skipped, the end result will be broken marriages, hearts, and/or dreams.

Human Trafficking

Within the heart of every girl is the desire to be loved.  Loved by her father, her husband.  Unfortunately, not every girl is fortunate enough to be able to experience this love, yet the desire for love does not go away.

For many girls in Cambodia, this natural feeling is destroyed once they are entered into the sex trade, often not by their own free will.  This reality is displayed all over the streets of Phnom Pehn and Siem Reap, the 2 major cities in Cambodia.  These girls are used by their owners to make money from not only the locals, but the many tourists who come through each year.

The following information defines the reality of this crime:

 “They told me they could help me to find a job, and my family was poor and needed food. The job turned out to be in a brothel. I was forced to take 20 to 30 clients a day, and was denied food or tortured if I refused or asked for a break. The money went straight back to the brothel owner, to pay off my ‘debt’ 
for room and board. They threatened to find me and kill me if I left.”

This is slavery.

Human trafficking is considered the world’s second largest, fastest growing organized crime. The International Labor Organization estimates up to 20.9 million people toiling as modern slaves around the globe, and UNICEF estimates that 1.2 million children are sold every year. The ILO estimates that 55 percent of forced labor victims are women and girls, as are 98 percent of sex trafficking victims.

The human trafficking business is a multi-billion dollar industry. Sex trafficking alone is estimated to generate $7 billion per year, but INTERPOL believes the number to be closer to $19 billion.  

The Asia Pacific region (which includes South Asia) has the largest number of victims in forced labor – 11.7 million.  Additionally, 55 percent of forced labor victims are estimated to be women and girls, as are 98 percent of sex trafficking victims. Children as young as three or four can be sold for as little as $100 and forced to serve up to 30 clients per day.     

For more information on sex trafficking, and what can be done to help, visit: 

the Somaly Mam Foundation

and,  Daughters of Cambodia

LIfe at a Cambodian Rubbish Dump

      I came across a Photojournalists experience and views of the lives of Cambodians who live in a garbage dump.
Click on the link to view these pictures that don't need words for explanation:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-11/life-at-a-cambodian-rubbish-dump/3659920

the Focus on the Future

Jeremy and I in Cambodia…. Jeremy and I living with 250 children…  Jeremy and I with no “real responsibility”, just floating along in life. 

     I am sure that is what some people think when they think of Jeremy and I.  Without being here with us, it is impossible to even imagine what our days look like.  WIthout experiencing it, it is impossible to feel what we feel, to experience what we experience.

     To be honest, it was easy to leave Canada on our year long adventure last year, seeking out where God would call us to be used.  We definitely had a lot of fun traveling, and not all of it was serving for sure, but I think that God used that time to build our marriage, and strengthen us for a potentially challenging (or not Canadian molded) future.

     Now, Jeremy and I stand here, in Cambodia, and look to God for direction once again.  It is amazing how hard decisions can be when all you want to do is be in the will of God, and not make selfish decisions.  

     We feel like God is telling not to focus on our Canadian careers, and the possibility of losing them.  We feel like He is telling us not to focus on our house, our possessions.  I know for a fact, that to leave these things, some people will think we are crazy.  

     We ask that all our friends and family would partner with us in prayer as we make decisions that have an impact on our future, but not only ours - our families and friends futures as well.