Posted in End of the Race and After... by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/17/2012
As the time goes by on this crazy journey called: The World Race, I’ve met some pretty incredible people, seen some amazing things and experienced hilarious times. This list is the result of lots of thought and good times reminiscing. It’s grown quite big, with 11 countries and all…so I decided to break it up. Here’s part one of “The Best Of The Best: A Year In Review.” Part two will follow soon I’m sure as this month is slipping quickly away.
Bulgaria
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Favorite Memory: A picnic breakfast with Madlan at the park. Madlan is one of the sweetest ladies I’ve ever met; she’s so full of life! She shared her heart with us and we were able to give our stories as well.
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Biggest Challenge: Learning how to live in community with my team and how to give and receive feedback each day… And learning to work the German washing machine.
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Character Highlight: Pastor Yavor’s daughter, Sarah Kostov. This 16-year-old has such a passion for the things of the Lord. She loves Jesus and follows after him unashamedly. One day she will be an international missionary.
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Best Food: Raffy ice cream sold at carts on the street corners. Ferrero Rocher was the best!
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Worst Food: Drinkable yogurt. Think spoiled milk mixed with sour cream with a thick consistency. Yuck-o.
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Random WR Moment: Being told that instead of preaching in a church I’d actually be sharing a message on the street corner of a Gypsy town.
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What I’ll miss: Tuesday night pot-luck fellowships with the church. Everyone was full of joy and love regardless of the language barrier. We had a wonderful time dancing, playing games and forming some great friendships.
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Ministry for the month: Visiting church members, working at orphanages, preaching and evangelism in Gypsy villages.
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: Freedom to worship is a precious right. Some are not as fortunate to have this privilege.
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Prayer Requests: Pastor Yavor and his church as they continue to preach the truth of Jesus in a city still suffering from the effects of communism. Pray for Yavor and his team as they fight in the courts for religious freedom.
Team Rise Up with Madlan and Paulie at our picnic breakfast in the park!
With my workout partner, Sachi, and our trainer, Steve T.
Romania
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Favorite Memory: Singing in the park and feeling the Lord’s freedom in a real way.
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Biggest Challenge: Having patience and learning the power of prayer. We prayed and walked so much!
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Character Highlight: Irenka. A sweet homeless lady that we met in the park one day. She smiled so much and even came to worship with us at church.
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Best Food(s): Aniku’s goulash and Kelly’s homemade cinnamon rolls. Hands down, they were both fantastic!
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Worst Food: Cold fruit soup. Warmed up it was a little better, but the cold version was a challenge for me.
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Random WR Moment: Hitch-hiking in the back of a carpet truck to a local gypsy village for baptisms. We couldn’t find a ride home so we walked a good 1.5 hours down the highway with our headlamps in the dark!
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What I’ll miss: Spending time cooking, dancing and having good conversations with my teammates. We had a house to ourselves and were able to have fun playing in the cornfield, holding a murder mystery party and getting to know each other more.
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Ministry for the month: Prayer walking, preaching, praying, hospital visits.
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: Even when ministry isn’t always exciting and it doesn’t turn out the way I want it to, God can still use me if I’m willing to be used.
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Prayer Requests: The city of Targu Mures. It is a dark place still plagued by memories of communism and hardship. Pray for hope and light to invade!
Fun team time: Murder mystery dinner!
Sweet kids in the neighboring Gypsy village
India
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Favorite Memory: The boys waking us up in the morning. Blake was always one of the last ones up and they would come in, get right in his face and say, “Blake! Coffee! Coffee, Blake!” I loved spending time with them and our Lion King movie night as well.
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Biggest Challenge: Everybody stares at you. Not a just a glance, but a “let me stop walking and watch you for 5 minutes” type of stare. Sometimes I would get angry because people even stopped to watch us wait in line for the bathroom or brush our teeth. Can I get some privacy?!
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Character Highlight: Roshen. A 12-year-old orphan boy who translated our sermons for us and loves the Lord. He will be a great leader in his village one day, I have no doubt.
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Best Food(s): Mrs. Lily’s egg curry and the Spanish Vanilla cake at Caramel bakery!
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Worst Food: Jill’s birthday cake that in no way tasted like a birthday cake should.
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Random WR Moment: There was always confusion with our translator. One day we asked him about the peanut butter snack we had earlier that morning. What was it called again? He just said, “Ah!” and brought us the bucket of kerosene we’d been using to clean our paintbrushes!
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What I’ll miss: The joy of the kids all around India and their real love for the Lord. They loved to worship, learn and talk about God. It was refreshing and encouraging.
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Ministry for the month: Sanding/Painting a children’s home, VBS day trips, being loud and boisterous with the boys at Tanguturu
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: Spiritual darkness is very present and very much at work in the land of India. Satan has a hold there while people cling strongly to worshipping idols and following sacred rituals.
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Prayer Requests: ICM (India Christian Missions) and their work with the Tanguturu boys’ home and other CCH (Children’s Covenant Homes) houses.
Team Rise Up with our Tanguturu boys!
Sarah and I at the Bay of Bengal in our matching culturally appropriate swimwear!
Nepal
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Favorite Memory: Sushila, an 11-year-old Hindu, volunteering to pray and lifting up the purest, sweetest prayer I’ve ever heard to Jesus. Glory to God!
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Biggest Challenge: Taking the initiative. Most days we created our own schedule, so it was tough to know what or how to teach. We just made up our mind to love well and pray hard through it all.
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Character Highlight: Furlamu, a sweet girl who didn’t speak much English. She had a beautiful smile and caring spirit.
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Best Food: Chicken chowmein from the restaurant across the street.
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Worst Food: Vegetable mix with our rice and dal bat. One of the veggies had some prickly spots that were chewy and weird.
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Random WR Moment: Going to a “picnic” where the Nepali people brought speakers, gas stoves, huge bowls of rice and raw chicken to cook. In all there were 3 goats, 2 cows and a stubborn horse that showed up. One cow even ate some of the tomatoes from a bowl!
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What I’ll miss: Mingmar, Sushila, Sagar, David, Sudip, Abisek, Manisha, Phulmaya, Rupali and all the other kids at Happy Home. And Shrijana who told me to never ever forget her name. I promised I wouldn’t.
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Ministry for the month: Teaching Bible in the morning and anything else in the afternoon, loving on orphans and some pretty sweet Hindu kids.
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: God answers prayers. This should be a given, but the Lord handed us a silver platter in Nepal. We went in thinking we wouldn’t be able to preach the gospel in a Hindu orphanage and the Lord had different plans. We were asked to teach the Bible because the kids didn’t know much about Jesus!
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Prayer Requests: That Christ’s light would invade all the walls of Happy Home. Pray that the leadership would become believers and that the children can come to know Jesus as well.
With Rupali :)
Sweet note from Sushila
Kenya
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Favorite Memory: Dancing before the Lord like a crazy person with the women at a local women’s conference.
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Biggest Challenge: Dealing with homesickness and plans of what to do after the Race.
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Character Highlight: Bishop Moses Walmalwa. Moses is one of my favorite people who is so strong, but gentle. He loves his family, his churches and his Lord. I learned so much from this patient man. He is also quite hilarious and we shared many jokes throughout the month.
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Best Food: The barbequed sheep we shared on our last night in Kitale. It was slaughtered in our backyard and served with a feast as we celebrated together.
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Worst Food: Funny tasting sour cream from a local restaurant.
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Random WR Moment(s): Talking with an 80-year-old Kenyan man about snow. He was intrigued by snowstorms and weather in Canada and the northern U.S. … And the time that we got to help make bricks by stomping in a mud pit!
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What I’ll miss: Spending time with Moses, Rosalyn and those in their home. Most of all I miss Vincent or Vinny, the cute 3-year-old with lots of swagger and lots of love. His smile would melt your heart!
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Ministry of the month: Anything and everything... Moses wanted us to find ways to serve Christ every day. Prison visits, preaching, hospital visits, kids’ homes, house visits and evangelism.
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: Be observant and don’t miss people. There are so many opportunities to love and serve. Moses encouraged us as we ministered in each new place.
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Prayer Requests: Moses and Rosalyn are looking for partners to their ministry and are also praying for a second job for Moses as they support many children at school.
Girls at a children's home where we made bricks, mudded a wall, and sang songs to Jesus!
Two of the most wonderful people I've ever met, and their whole family of which I truly feel a part.
Rwanda
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Favorite Memory: Going swimming with the team the day after Christmas. We tried to teach Steph and Ben how to dive and got to eat some wonderful pizza and pasta as well. Not to mention there was time to Skype home!
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Biggest Challenge: Everything. Rwanda was a tough month spiritually, physically and emotionally. It was the mid-way point of the Race and Christmas time. It was also very hilly terrain and we walked miles a day.
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Character Highlight: Maureen, Pastor’s 16-year-old daughter who loved to swim and check out the city with us. She was always serving us and laughing alongside us.
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Best Food: Sweet potato fries
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Worst Food: Fish. The whole fish: skin, bones, eyeballs and all!
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Random WR Moment: Christmas night our team watched Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken, one of Ben’s favorite movies. It was made in the 90s and it was about a girl who rode a horse off a platform into the water for a traveling circus! And…we went to “The Best of the Best” restaurant for Steph’s birthday.
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What I’ll miss: Maureen and Rosy, two of Pastor Robert’s daughters who took care of us all month!
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Ministry of the month: Evangelism and Bible study
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Spiritual Lesson/Revelation: Be careful not to get distracted by enjoyable secular things. These things aren’t necessarily evil, but they take away from time with the Lord.
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Prayer Requests: The country as a whole as it continues to heal from the genocide that happened only a few decades ago.
Two ladies receive their new Bibles!
A little spirit yell after I conquered the valley for the last time. Ben and I decided to jog the whole way up.
To be continued...
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Posted in Philippines by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/17/2012
“There is no better thing to do than to wait on Jesus Christ,” Pastora Marivic tells her children all the time. She smiled and laughed when I asked her if she lived close by to the church where we were seated. Extending her arm a mere 12 inches to her left, she raps on the church’s back wall. “My home is the other side of this wall.” I only talked with Marivic for a few minutes at best, but I was enraptured with how this beautiful lady spoke about her Lord. Had I earnestly tried, I could not have changed her mind from thinking of anything but Jesus Christ. No matter the topic, she turned it back to somehow include the Lord! I was flabbergasted at her faith. There are few people in this world that love like Marivic does.
Her t-shirt read: “Keep serving the Lord…the pay isn’t much but the retirement is ‘out of this world!’” How awesome is that? It’s not cheesy; she truly believes it. And she lives by it. After starting to minister in the trash dump community at 23 years old, she’s now 50. If I joined her today, it would take me 27 years of service to catch up. What a woman of God!
Pastora Marivic
Our team went to the dump community with a few other guys from the States who were able to bring in medical supplies and many medications. None of us knew anything about being a doctor or a pharmacist, but in the last four days we’ve helped hundreds of patients. While we were at Marivic’s community, the doctor saw 200 patients over several hours (most of them children) and the team counted and distributed tons of medicine at the doctor’s order. A few of us also served many dishes of a hearty soup, while some gave out a new donated piece of clothing to each child.
I asked Marivic how often she received help like this. “Do many people partner with you?” She told me they’d had a medical clinic back in 2002. 2002?! Then she remembered one in 2007. She was still beaming, thankful. I was appalled. Five years apart; a newborn in 2007 would be starting school in 2012. Despite the lack of outside help, Marivic presses on. When she doesn’t have something, she prays for it and the Lord provides.
The church building’s back wall is covered in an array of photos, some dating back to the 1980s. Marivic chuckled as she pointed to one small girl; “she’s all grown up and married now!” The other walls proclaim the Lord’s glory through scripture verses and song lyrics. There isn’t a spot left undecorated. In the corner, behind the rickety pulpit sits a speaker and ancient microphone. When we first entered I was overwhelmed at the number of children able to pack into a room of that size. We were told to sit up front, the kids just looked at us as we looked at them. After a while I realized I had my “deer in the headlights” look on as I anticipated serving all of these people…then I decided to start smiling and waving at individuals.
Soon after we arrived the music started up and a huge grin naturally appeared on my face as I heard them singing old hymns like, Just A Closer Walk With Thee and Rock of Ages. They prayed for us, thanked God for the help and then we started dishing out soup.
Maravic’s community was one of three that I was able to visit this week. These communities are built on the garbage dump sites, literally. The people are scavengers. They work by going to the dump and digging for plastic, metal, or anything to make money. I was told today that the men would receive around 100-135 pesos each day. That translates to about $3.20. Many of the children often have coughs, rashes, decaying teeth or other health problems because of their status of living.
I wore tennis shoes on the first day because I wasn’t sure of how bad the sanitation would be. There were often muddy spots or makeshift wooden bridges over a small “river”. I don’t fully know where the river came from or what floated through it. Trash was obviously everywhere, on the side of the walkways and streets, around houses, underfoot. It took the place of where grass would be in any normal neighborhood. On one street I noticed some interesting fences set up around different houses, later I realized they were nothing but rusty old mattress springs tied together. It’s hard to understand the deficiency of color and life when you’re in it because the surroundings become familiar so quickly, but once you leave to pass by the local golf course and country club on the way home with it’s lush green holes and pretty palm trees, it becomes quite easy to spot the vast difference.
The dump is a world of its own. Poor villages in India and some of the Gypsy communities of Eastern Europe compare to this. Still, despite their physical circumstances I have never seen people so happy. Those that came to the church for treatment were patient and polite. They said thank you, happily received prayer, sang songs and laughed along with us. None of the kids pouted or returned their clothing despite the fact that some pieces were simply too big for their small bodies. I could not spot a dissatisfied face among hundreds as we served the soup. No one turned his or her nose up at the meal (that’s probably due to our awesome cooks, but kids can still be picky at times). I had a few hours yesterday to sit at the prayer station and talk with the kids while their medication was prepared. We got to talk about our favorite colors, books, sports and everything else. Angry Birds was an easy conversation starter as 1 out of every 6 kids was wearing something with the logo on it. I taught a few kids how to thumb wrestle and play “rock, paper, scissors”. The pictures we took are hilarious. These people are just full of spirit, even if they’re not full of health.
I thank God for how He has allowed me to see His people this year. I’ve seen young and old, rich and poor, healthy and sick; I’ve seen His children, my family. I thank the Lord that He has shown me what really matters. While I may get a chance to visit the Mall of Asia next week, the biggest supermall in all of Asia, I don’t want to tell you about that when I reach the States. Instead, when you ask about my trip you better be ready to hear about Marivic and those like her who continue to blow me away with their unshakeable faith in our Lord. People and relationships are the point. Well, Jesus Christ is the point, but pointing people to the point (Jesus) is what I’m trying to point out to you as the supreme point. You get all that? Shopping, souvenirs, good photos, good food, travel, adventures, they’re all worthless if you miss the people along the way.
Lord, help me to see Your people as you see them. Forgive me when I judge by people’s circumstances or get overwhelmed at the filth and oppressiveness. Help me to lean on You and trust in You as Your saints do. Grow my faith even if you don’t grow my comforts in this life. Help me to follow You anywhere, Jesus.
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Posted in Philippines by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/13/2012
This is another shout out to all you future racers. If I had known some of these things a few months earlier, it would’ve made my life a bit easier. Here are a few tips and tidbits that may help you out. Take them or leave them!
For making memories:
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Think of an item or situation that you want to try to get a picture of in each new country. For instance, this is random, but I saw the same Coke advertisements in each place with a different nationality on each one. Or you could take pictures of church buildings/services to show how different groups worship.
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Take photos and videos of your living spaces. I want to put them all together and sort of “walk through” where I’ve lived this past year.
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Keep a small notebook for special people to write in. Whether it’s your ministry contact, a new friend, a neighbor or church member, sometimes people will give you gifts or notes. This may be a cool way to remember them. (Wish I had thought of it before month 9!)
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Record your favorite Bible verse in each country/language. I’m working on putting together a video with kids in most places reading the Lord’s Prayer in English.
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Choose a small item to try and collect from each place. I’ve gotten a few postcards, but my main goal is to find earrings. (They’re light and inexpensive in most places. These also make a great gift for your girl friends!) I’ve also bought small patches from each place we’ve been.
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Make a video journal with your team. Just take lots of videos along the way. You won’t regret it!
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Print a picture every month and get your new ministry friends to sign it. Or at least try to print a picture for them to keep.
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Most importantly: don't freak out if you can't find every little thing in every country. Most places are not the touristy fun places, you'll be in the middle of nowhere. It's ok if you miss something here or there.
Completely random tips:
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If you’re using an internet stick you can set up a network to broadcast for others to use it as well. Sometimes this slows down the connection, but it can be a good way for more than one person to get some time online. (I can’t tell you how to do this but there’s always that one computer genius on each squad. Find him and I’m sure he’ll help you out!)
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Resize your photos before you upload them to your blog. Whatever the WR website has as a tool to upload photos is a piece of junk. Seriously. You can wait for hours for one tiny photo to upload at times. Depending on your photo’s quality, just resize it to 25-50% and give it a try. It takes much less time this way and makes you a happier blogger.
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You may want to set a personal budget or make a list of goals for each month. I’m more organized this way and it helps to keep focus. For instance, in Thailand I went in and spent lots of money in the market without planning it out ahead of time. Hopefully next month in the Philippines will be better financially!
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Bring a small bottle of baby powder for greasy hair or crazy rashes. Told you this list was random!
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If you are team leader or finance person for your team, make sure you split up your emergency cash! It’s never good to have too much money in one place or on one teammate. I usually have a money-belt (I wear it rarely, but keep it in a separate bag) and my wallet. My squad lost a considerable amount because it was all with one person.
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Keep your extra passport and visa photos somewhere that’s easily accessible. If you need them in the airport before you get your big luggage that could be a problem. I keep them in my purse or daypack all the time.
For team troubles and woes:
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Don’t expect your teammates to read your mind. Be open and honest as you communicate your successes, struggles and frustrations. They are there to help you and community works a lot better if you’re willing to share where you’re at. (You’ll know what I mean after a few feedback sessions.)
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Don’t freak out if you are put on a team with people who are different from you. I’ve been amazed at the way my teams have worked together despite our differences. And once you take the time to pursue your teammates and see what makes them tick, you actually find that there’s more in common than you thought.
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Try to plan fun activities that the whole team will enjoy. Even if you’re not completely excited about a team outing, give it a shot and try to enjoy being with your new family.
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Be flexible. Sometimes living situations are tight and uncomfortable. You will be forced to give up some personal space and learn to let the small things roll off your back. At the same time, be a considerate roommate and take care of your teammates.
Again, these are some things that my teammates and I have observed and collected along the way. Hope this helps you out. Feel free to email with any questions.
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Posted in Philippines by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/12/2012
Wednesday, May 9th
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4:00am - Wake up and get moving
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4:25am - Down to the lobby with our packs
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4:30am - Packs loaded, short one tuk-tuk to drive us.
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4:40am - Found a driver, motorcycle won't start.
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4:45am - Silent prayer, bike starts and we're off!
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5:30am - Arrive at airport, weigh bags (20kg limit!), weigh ourselves (you don't often find scales anywhere else), eat breakfast (2 pastries from the corner bakery), talk with other squadmates we haven't seen all month!
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Sometime after 5:30am and before 7:44am - go through security. Logan and I chugged our water and threw the bottles away (I really hate that regulation) only to find out that everyone else got their water bottles through! Logan was held back to be questioned about his bug zapper which was then confiscated!
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7:44am - Board plane
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8:05am - Sleep
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8:34am - Read
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8:45am - Breakfast. Steak and noodles w/ banana bread. Best meat I've had in some time!
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10:30am - China! (Time change 1 hour) Layover for a few hours.
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11:41am - Through customs. Restroom break...automatic squatty potty! Blew my mind.
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11:50am - Wander around the airport.
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12:15pm - Lunch in one of two restaurants past the security gate...$9 for a chicken sandwich and $5 for water. Outrage at spending so much for a not so good meal. Find out 30 minutes later that there's a vending machine with water for $0.50.
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1:01pm - Rest, talk to Sachi (Sarah Ruplinger).
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1:55pm - NCIS episode on my laptop.
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3:15pm - fight with the vending machine and finally obtain a water bottle for 3 Chinese Yeun.
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5:10pm - takeoff.
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5:15pm - dive into Leviticus with the guy beside me looking over my shoulder. Awkward.
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5:45pm - Dinner.
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6:17pm - Music.
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8:09pm - Arrive in Manila.
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8:47pm - customs.
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9:00pm - Met with tuna sandwiches, chips, apples, oranges, cookies and apple juice. Yay!! I love the Philippines!!
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9:15pm - Big, spacious bus arrives to take us to our ministry site.
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10:42pm - Home at last.
One of our guard dogs, a Rottweiler, named "Mr. Darcy". There's also a Doberman named "Savage" and a Bull Mastiff named "Maximus".
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11:15pm - Shower.
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11:38pm - Sleep.
Foggy view of the skyline.
This travel day was smooth, but still tiring. Can't wait for our last one, from Manila to LAX! I'm sure that one will include a little more jetlag and sleep deprivation. As always, thanks for traveling with me. 28 more days to love the people here in the Philippines, then it's back home to NC.
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Posted in Cambodia by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/8/2012
You know you're on the World Race when...
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Your teammate uses dirty underwear to clean up spilled coffee.
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Your teammate uses the end of her toothbrush to stir instant coffee.
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You avoid using too much toilet paper to wipe your nose when you have a cold because it’s a precious item.
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You choose the squatty potty over an American toilet in the airport and even take offense when an older Malay woman tries to pass you up because she thinks you won’t go for the squatty. Rude!
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You are forced into your tent at 7:30pm due to great plagues of bugs similar to those recorded in Exodus.
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You pray for any type of furniture to sit on. Even a metal folding chair will do.
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There are ants in your teammates cereal and they are still not willing to throw it away. (This happened to me in Thailand with awesome cereal and granola!)
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You see your hotel room and are close to tears because of the huge beds and nice shower.
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You are occasionally woken up at 6am for prayer time at the local temple. The speakers go on and on for 1.5 hours.
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You decide it may be better to just avoid laundry because it smells worse after using the dark yellow/brown water.
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You are able to do laundry and shower at the same time.
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As you watch a Disney movie with your teammates you all envy the princess because her cartoon bed looks so comfortable. This seriously happened and we all talked about it!
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9pm seems late!
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Your team talks about going into the capital city on your day off just to rent an air-conditioned hotel room and take a nap with a real bed.
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Angry birds has taken over the world, or at least SE Asia. Bookbags, t-shirts, watches, notebooks and flip-flops!
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You see Lexus brand underwear.
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Some knock-off brands are just too easy to spot...
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You have a sweat mustache 24/7.
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Scorpions at lunch provide entertainment, not fear.
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You want to play musical chairs with the kids then realize you only have about 5 total for 13 boys.
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Flies cover your food everyday but you don’t care anymore.
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You see a boy riding a bike and walking his cow on a rope simultaneously.
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You play BINGO with English words and small rocks as markers. The kids shout out “Mango!” when they win, haha.
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You enjoy being tested for malaria and typhoid because the room where the nurse draws your blood is air-conditioned.
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Another team suggests that the smoothies on the corner may have given them typhoid but you go anyway. Eh, if I’m sick, I’m sick!
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Your teammate adds orange-flavored rehydration packs to your water just to taste something different. You’re so tired of drinking hot water!
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You try and clean your water bottle with a chlorine packet because there’s no dish soap to be found.
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A trip to the corner “store” is fun when you buy a water bottle from the cooler. Cold water is so good!
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You are invited to a wedding that begins at 6:30am and ends after the lunch is served at 2pm. We may have opted out of this one, no matter how culturally cool it could’ve been.
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You have a water war with the kids and throw plastic bags that burst on impact. The water is hot from sitting in the sun and it may have small shrimps in it…
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The kids beg you to watch “Kung Fu Hip Hop 2” and when you put it in the player, the DVD menu pops up saying “Hit Hop”. Worst 2 hours of my life!
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As you’re sitting in traffic you see a guy use a feather duster all over the car next to you, then ask for money. International version of a window washer?
Thanks for reading about the journey in Cambodia. My squad leaves for our final country tomorrow morning! We’re flying into Manila in the Philippines, where we will work with street kids and those in the slums. More details to come. And, as always, your prayers are appreciated!
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Posted in Cambodia by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/8/2012
Leviticus has never been the most fascinating book for me and I’m betting it’s not the favorite of many other Christians either. There’s a lot about sacrifices, rules and regulations, offerings and so on and so forth. Yet, as I continue to read through the Word I know that each book is included for a purpose and I should try to dig deep, even if it is a bit “old school.”
As I was sitting in a hostel in Phnom Penh last night, I started into Leviticus 11. The heading in my Bible reads “Clean and Unclean Food.” Ok, that sounds like it could be fun at least. In one night I found out that the horned owl, the screech owl, the little owl, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl and the stork are all ceremonially unclean. Who knew?! And…get this… “Of the animals that move about on the ground, these are unclean for you: the weasel, the rat (I saw that one coming), any kind of great lizard, the gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink and the chameleon” (Lev. 11:29-30).
Let me just give a little advice…if your readings of Leviticus seem dry, you should go on the World Race and read them afresh and anew. It will make such a difference! In every country since Eastern Europe we’ve seen little and not so little geckos hanging out on the walls, floors and even ceilings. They’re just like the cute Geico gecko, but they’re tan instead of green. I’ve kind of grown fond of them; it’s too bad that they’re unclean.
I digress. I kept on reading in chapter 13. That one’s a doozy…it talks about infectious skin diseases. “When anyone has an infectious skin disease, he must be brought to the priest” (Lev. 13:9). It goes on to describe how to determine if you’ve got an infectious skin disease. Please know that I read this verse a few hours after I realized there was a scratch across the back of my arm that had become infected. It’s puffy and red and a bit sore to the touch. Yikes! The beginning of chapter 14 explains how to cleanse from these skin diseases. I actually chuckled to myself when I read it: The person to be cleansed must wash his clothes…” (Lev. 14:8). I thought, Bump that. It’s too much effort to wash clothes here!
It continues to get better… Regulations About Mildew - Lev. 13:47-59. When we packed all of our things yesterday morning I tried my best to put all the dirty, sweaty clothes together in plastic bags, covered in lavender dryer sheets and securely closed up in a stuff sack. My exercise clothes hadn’t been washed in days, nor had the outfit that I jumped into the brown water with. When I got to the hostel I threw one shirt away and even that action was long overdue. We washed our clothes in dark yellow water that had bugs and dirt particles floating in it. So what was that about mildew? Haha! I’m telling you, read Leviticus on the Race and it will certainly come alive to you.
Leviticus. Exodus precedes it, so you can guess what I was reading last week. I had a few interesting thoughts that may connect…we’ll see. But hey, you’re already reading this because of the catchy title anyway, so I figure I’ve got your attention.
Exodus 28 and 29 go into great detail about the priestly garments for Aaron and his sons, as well as strict instructions for the consecration of the priests. Ex. 28:2 reads, “Make sacred garments for your brother Aaron, to give him dignity and honor.” While Moses has been on Mt. Sinai receiving these laws and regulations for the people from God Himself, the people grow restless. When he is gone for too long, the people turn away and say to Aaron, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him” (Ex. 32:1).
Aaron seems to agree rather quickly and fashions a calf of gold by his own hands (32:3-4). When Moses confronts him, he’s quick to say, “They gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!” (32:24). I thought, Really Aaron? You’re going to give an excuse like that? Lame. I would’ve judged Aaron harshly. And while Moses does grind the calf to powder and make the people drink it, he does not second-guess God’s decree that Aaron be a priest in the Lord’s tabernacle. The priestly garments are made in chapter 39 and by 40:12-13 the Lord commands, “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and wash them with water. Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest.”
God gave instructions from the top of Mt. Sinai to make Aaron an honored priest while Aaron was at the bottom of Mt. Sinai sculpting a repulsive and idolatrous golden calf. That’s something significant right? The fact that God saw Aaron and chose to use him despite his blatant mistake? Moses himself was a murderer for crying out loud! I don’t want to be that person who regurgitates clichés or old themes, but this is an important one. God uses messed up people. That’s not just an Old Testament idea about David the adulterous murdering king, Gideon the petrified fighter who kept asking for reassurance or King Solomon who gave his heart to follow the gods of his many wives.
God used messed up people for His Kingdom then and I believe he’s still in that business today. I have heard countless testimonies of people who have overcome drug and alcohol addictions to follow after Christ. (Well, Christ pursued them first and led them to change their lives but that’s another story). I know one girl (pretty well actually) who was saved from a very prideful attitude of believing in her own self-righteousness. The Lord knows our pasts; he knows who we are now and who we’ll be tomorrow. He helped me to see with His eyes as I looked at those precious boys at Teen Challenge this past month. I didn’t see them as poor, dirty, street kids who had been addicted to glue. I saw hope. I saw a future with an education and an unshakeable faith.
Don’t ever believe that you must try and change yourself to somehow be more worthy of Christ. For one, He’s seen worse – Paul was the worst of all sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). Secondly, you can’t do it. Even God’s chosen people rebelled and fell away on countless occasions. Look at Israel in Isaiah… “Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the Lord, defying his glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it” (Isa. 3:8-9). These were the people God had called out for His own; they were the ones who were filthy and unclean, lost in their sin. Later the Lord tells them, “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it” (Isa. 30:15). Still, he pursues them! “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” (Isa. 30:18).
When we really start to chew on and internalize the message found in Romans 5:6-8, we’ll understand how beautiful His grace really is. “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless (not weak, fragile or broken, but incapable, unable, and dead), Christ died for the ungodly (not the self-righteous, perfect, goody-goodies, but the dirty, ceremonially unclean, hopelessly lost sinners). Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. (We’re not even righteous or good, so what chance do we have?) But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. While we were still eating ceremonially unclean geckos on a stick, dealing with our infectious skin diseases and making golden cows, Christ died for us. He initiated, he rescued, he saved us. You see all those action verbs there? He took action, we were just passively acted upon. We were rescued, we were saved. He did the rescuing, the saving.
You know, all those crazy laws of Leviticus do have a point….they point to the One who came and by grace, set us free from the Law of sin and death. “The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace might increase all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 5:21-22).
God sees our sin, our filth, the grime that collects in our souls and on our consciences and he is not afraid of our stench. He sees the sin (He can’t excuse it because it is detestable to Him and must be punished), but He also sees what we can be in Christ. He looks past our sin (again, he doesn’t excuse it but forgives freely when we choose to repent and trust Jesus) and sees us as clothed in the righteousness of His son.
I can’t believe all of those thoughts started out with a verse about a gecko, but I’m glad they did. You can never have too many sweet thoughts about the Lord and how He beautifully redeems us.
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Posted in Cambodia by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/5/2012
Maybe it’s the humidity, maybe it’s the fact that this is day 301 of the Race, I don’t know…but I’m sorry the blogging has slacked off this month. My last blog about Cambodia shared lots of the hardships of being here. The physical circumstances are pretty much the same, but I haven’t told you anything about what we’re actually doing here!
My team has been serving at the Teen Challenge farm in the Takeo district of Cambodia. We’re a little more than an hour outside the capitol city of Phnom Penh and there’s not much to see out here. There are dirt roads, ox carts, bicycles and a smoothie stand on the corner…that’s it. Really. That’s all.
The team with our guys at Teen Challenge
Toward the beginning of the month I struggled with how to spend my free time. We each teach classes during the day, but my Bible class only lasts from 10-11am. I had a bit of a schedule going for me:
6:45am – running
7:45am – walk to breakfast
8:30am – walk back home for a shower
9:30am – walk to class
10-11am – Bible class
11am – lunch
12 – 5pm – free time
5pm – dinner
6pm – walk home
Having five free hours in the afternoon is a ton of time. Some of you are wondering why I’m complaining because you’d love to have more hours in a day! There was usually a little time for a nap since I don’t really sleep through the night anymore. I would read, read some more, watch an episode of NCIS (the ones with Chinese subtitles that I bought at the “market”), talk to my teammates, or sit around and count how many flies simultaneously landed on me. Even when we came home after dinner it would be very dark by 7:15 and around 7:45 it felt as though it were midnight. Some nights we thought about going to bed early because there was nothing else to do! We’d watched movies, listen to podcasts, check email, you name it. There’s just so much down time this month.
Taryn's house of cards is proof of loads of down time! That's impressive, though.
Because we have been out here for 10 months now the down time is a bit dangerous. Yes, I like to rest, but it leaves so much time for thinking of home. I promised myself I wouldn’t Skype home this month because I’d be there soon enough. Turns out I’ve talked to most of the members of my family more than once just because they’re available and so am I. I am so excited to see my family in the airport, but deep down I know that after a few weeks at home I’ll be wishing for the experiences of a foreign country again. I don’t want to get home and look back to wasted days.
So now, I’ve got 35 full days left. Yes, I am the nerd with the countdown. It’s NOT 35 days until I finally get to leave this hot, smelly, dirty trip (sometimes the adventure can wear off after a while!), but it’s 35 days that I have left to push myself, to love my teammates, to be energetic for the kids and to give everything I have so that I have no regrets when I’m sitting on my couch in America. (Praise God for couches! Praise His Name! What a glorious reunion that will be!)
Now, I can’t tell you that I’m excited to go to Bible class and repeat the same phrase to the translator 3 times or wait 15 minutes and then eventually start class late. Still, it’s worth it when I see my boys. I’ve grown to love these kiddos. There are 13 younger boys here between the ages of 11 and 17. The other 8 are in their 20s, 30s and even one man in his 40s. So while it is tough to teach sometimes, I enjoy it because these kids really want to learn. I was able to try different teaching styles from story-telling to incorporating a little art time and even some acting! The boys have such spunk and energy. They’re always running, dancing, playing. It’s not so much what we can teach them through books or lessons, but how we can teach them through our actions and our love.
Steph and I taught the kids Bingo to help them learn English words.
Drawing in Bible class.
This week was our last week here. I knew I wanted to make it count. Last Saturday the team took the initiative to plan some games and a movie day for the guys. Most days that we don’t plan things, they just hang out. None of the boys are allowed to leave the farm and they stay here for one year to get help dealing with their addictions. Most of the younger ones are here because they were street kids in the city that had problems with sniffing glue. Some show the scars of their past life externally, others cover it up inside.
It’s been good to be here for them, to give high fives, thumb wrestle, to chase each other and have dance parties. The boys have been through so much, but they still have joy. Their personalities are hilarious and they’ve brought me out of a crappy mood more than once. You can’t help but laugh when one of the boys runs fearlessly down the hill and dives into the lake to rescue the volleyball only to come out soaking wet from head to toe. You can’t help but laugh when one of the older guys asks your teammate, “Are you delicious?” when he really meant, “Did you enjoy your lunch?” You can’t help but laugh when the kids capture a scorpion in a water bottle and proceed to play with it throughout lunchtime (Note: I almost cried before I laughed, but then I loosened up).
Taryn getting ready for our fun day with lots of balloons to pop!
We have been to the Christian bookstore to buy some Bibles, music CDs and even some cool Bible story DVDs that have been dubbed in the local language! The ladies at the store gave us free comic books that told the story of Jesus! When the boys got them they were beside themselves with excitement. Not having much to call their own, it is a special treat to have these things.
Besides material things, we’ve strived to provide the boys with good memories and fun times. Thursday was our off day, but as we’ll be in the city on Monday anyway, we decided to stay back and have a water fun day. IT. WAS. AWESOME! Before lunch we did an hour’s worth of relay games that I adapted from a list saved on my computer. Thanks to my younger brother, creator of the “Dagenhart Relay” for the youth of my home church, I had lots to work with. (There is a ton of hilarious video footage on the way; you can count on it.) At lunch we gave out soda and cookies, a real treat. The boys had to grab some empty water bottles from the recycling and cut them off to make cups. We also bought ice, a luxury!
After lunch we put in a movie to distract the kiddos while we made water bombs. Apparently in Thailand and Cambodia there’s a huge water festival each year where innocent bystanders or pedestrians get pegged with bags of water. We went down to the corner “store” and found tons of bags and rubber bands. I have no idea how many we filled, but it was enough to have some fun. Steph and I hid them in 5 different buckets around the farm and waited. We tried a water balloon toss (no one followed the rules, so we tossed the rules with the balloons and had a good time anyway) and also launched a few with a towel so they just rained down on a group of screaming, jumping boys.
Water balloons and bags!
Finally the war began. By this time the water bags had been sitting in the sun and they were so hot! Seriously, can’t anything in this country be cold?! Still, they loved it. After 5 minutes the weapons were gone, or at least I thought so. Soon Kelly snuck up on me with a basin and doused me! The kids squealed with delight as they ran to do the same thing. They must’ve thought I was the only one who could get wet because I got about 4 buckets in a row! I was able to grab one and come up behind the smallest and funniest boy. I soaked him and he just stood there with a stunned expression. For a second I thought it was a mistake, maybe I scared him or something. Two minutes later I see him coming at me out of the corner of my eye. He is sloshing water everywhere and struggling with the weight of the basin, but a huge grin is spread across his face. I turned and screamed at the last second and he got me good. Victory!
My cute little opponent in the water war
These kids have done well to bring out a better side of me. Sometimes I’m too uptight and worried that they’ll break an arm while wrestling with each other or slip and bust their head on the concrete floor while they chase each other. Good grief, I feel like a mom sometimes; I guess that’s okay to an extent. But it was fun to “let my hair down” (Figuratively of course. My hair has been up for the past few months because of the heat and the big state of nasty that it’s in) and take a risk for a change. After water day the boys walked across the street to a “pool”. (A huge pit with dirty water where they went swimming.) There were cannonballs, cartwheels, belly-flops and all. Normally I would NEVER EVER jump into a body of water like that, but these boys are so darn cute and adventurous I couldn’t help myself. Before I knew it I had taken off my hat and glasses, handed my camera to Taryn and said, “What the heck am I doing?” It was only later that I found out that cows walked through the water (and probably left a few presents there). Also, the water bombs we threw had small shrimps floating in them because we made them from the water in a big stone jar. Oops. Oh yea, and we were out of water at the house so there was no chance for a shower or laundry. Sometimes I guess you just have to be adventurous.
It may have not been the best decision, but it was fun!
This has certainly been an eventful month in more ways than one. It is a place that I will always remember because of the people that I’ve met here. Even the smoothie lady on the corner wears a smile each time I see her. Cambodia is a sweet place and somewhere that I’m glad to say I’ve been.
Everybody after our water fun day!
Team Deepest Roots drenched from head to toe!
**For more info on the organization of Teen Challenge Cambodia, you can check out my teammate Stephanie's blog, "Life at Teen Challenge".**
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Posted in Cambodia by Hannah Dagenhart on 5/2/2012
A little while ago I sent the folks back home an email. I just asked a few of my friends and family if they had anything to share about how God has been working in their lives in America lately. Any stories, testimonies or answered prayers to show that the God who is over Bulgaria, Romania, India, Nepal, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines is the same One who is working in my home state in America. I thought it might be a fresh perspective to remind us all that God’s goodness and faithfulness is not restricted to borderlines or nationalities. So, while these might not exactly flow or mesh together perfectly, they are stories from some sweet people back home that are giving thanks to the Lord and exalting His Name!
From my aunt, Freda:
Hannah, Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be a part of your blog. Your Race has opened my eyes. I live in my own little world and in my own little routine. I read your blog and see your pictures of people who do not have the simple things that I take for granted. When I take a hot shower, I think of you and the people you are ministering to. From what you have shared, some of them don't know what it is like to have that hot shower, much less shampoo, conditioner and shower gel that is a must for me! This humbles me. I think of the clean water that I drink, my comfortable home, my clothes, my food, etc. We truly are blessed here in the US. Yet I fear we have lost sight of our Christian heritage. I am grateful that you and your teammates are willing to step out and spread the gospel to those who have not heard. I am grateful that you have shared what you have seen and experienced so that people like me who live in our "little Iredell county box" can appreciate what you are doing and can appreciate more the blessings and grace that our Lord showers down on us each and every day.
I will continue to pray for you and your team. I am also praying for your return and for the decisions that you will be making after you get home. I believe in the power of prayer and that our Lord is in control of ALL things. I want to trust Him and not ever lean on my own understanding.
Thank you again for sharing the love of Jesus with those who may have never heard.
From one of my best friends, Blair A.
“Just because I don’t understand what Jesus Christ says, I have no right to determine that He must be mistaken in what He says.”
I nearly choked on my cereal when I read the first line in My Utmost for His Highest (Chambers, March 28) one morning about a month ago. See, God had revealed to me a couple of days prior the answer to an important decision I needed to make. However, what He showed me was the complete opposite of what I, in my “oh-so-great wisdom” (ha!), had already decided in my head “made the most sense” (ha! again). So, I had been wrestling back and forth since God said something I wasn’t really sure made sense. Even within a few minutes of getting out of bed in my early morning fog, I was already debating the whole thing in my mind yet again. Needless to say, God used Oswald Chambers that morning to wake me up from the nonsense that was going on in my head. I knew what I had to do right then and there. In fact, if I was honest with myself, I knew deep down what I had to do right when God whispered it in my ear a day or so before. Chambers also wrote, “…Faithfulness to my own ideas means that I first clear the way mentally” – what I had been agonizingly trying to do - “Faith, however, is not intellectual understanding; faith is a deliberate commitment to the Person of Jesus Christ, even when I can’t see the way ahead.”
Thank You, Father, for being faithful when we are faithless. Thank You for being perfect when we are so far from it. Thank You for Your forgiveness when we, yet again, miss the mark. Give us the grace to do whatever You tell us, Jesus (John 2:5). No turning back.
Testimonies from another friend in NC:
You have stated many times throughout the past year about "spreading His word throughout the nations". In my opinion it should be "spreading His word to every person - everywhere, everyday!" Because God works in my life on a daily basis. I was really worried about my husband for several months, he didn't seem to be getting well, and of course, thoughts were in my mind about cancer, heart problems, etc. I always pray for every member of my family daily, but I was especially praying hard for the Lord to help my husband. It turned out, he had a thyroid problem! A simple pill daily for the past month has raised his thyroid to where it should be and he is feeling so much better. That is a miracle from God.
My best friend of 28 years, was working at Dollar General, part-time and hated it! She finally got fed up and quit. She is a widow and has been raising her grandson for the past 10 years, he is now 17. The bank was about to foreclose on her house, her car broke down, she was behind on all of her bills and didn't know what she was going to do. I prayed extra prayers for her and within a month's time, she got another job, working more hours and making more money! She is now doing just fine. That is a miracle from God.
I always pray before I go into work for God to help me to do my job to the best of my abilities, and to help me to be kind to all of my customers, regardless of how impatient they may be. And that always helps me through the work hours. My customers undoubtedly notice, because there are several, especially the older generation who make it a point to come through my line at the grocery store.
I pray for God to keep you and all of the members of the World Race safe. I especially ask God to guide your words and your feet throughout this journey you are on. You are safe and I know you are touching lives everyday with God's love. Another miracle!
I firmly believe that there are no coincidences, everything happens for a reason and only God knows the reason. Miracles happen in my life every single day.
And it’s me, Hannah, again:
Thanks for taking time to read about the simple ways that the Lord is working in the lives of my friends and family. So much has happened on the Race, but I’m beginning to see lots of changes back home as well. It’s good to know that we serve a mighty God who knows no boundaries and who is fighting to make His name known among every people and nation, including our own!
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Posted in Cambodia by Hannah Dagenhart on 4/21/2012
Thanks to those of you who informed me about the pictures not working. I've (hopefully) fixed the problem and even added a few more!
Here’s the deal…I’ve already tried to write this blog two times and I don’t know why it’s so complicated. I want to tell you about the hardships of the month and why they’re turning out to be blessings. I want you to be able to understand the tough physical environment without thinking I’m whining like a baby or boasting because I’m enduring it. I just want you to know what’s really happening out here, or rather in here, as most of the changes and growth are taking place internally this month. I guess it’s tough because I know that you won’t understand. I don’t even expect you to be able to; I didn’t understand until I came here myself.
The first day we were here we were hit with many challenges. As we sat with our contact to discuss the needs of the ministry and the role we would play, not much was determined. The language barrier was no mere plastic hurdle, it was a solid brick wall. One of the staff here speaks a little English and there’s another guy with a bit of a vocabulary, other than that the verbal communication is zero. I have never faced anything like this on the Race. You may think I’m overreacting a bit, but everything takes five times longer when you can’t understand each other. We have relied on non-verbal games or ones with very little instruction. In class we try to draw and act things out instead of always lecturing. We watched Kung Fu Panda today for two reasons: 1) the boys love Kung Fu and everything Bruce Lee and 2) it’s got enough action that the conversation doesn’t matter as much.
My attempts at drawing/teaching the days of creation.
Don't be jealous of my skills...especially that land mammal on Day 6.
Aside from the translation, there’s the wildlife. Geckos I can handle; they’ve been in every country aside from those in Eastern Europe. It wasn’t until SE Asia that I found out that they make the most ridiculous screechy-bullfrog-growling sounds though. Maybe I’ll catch one on video for y’all…anyway, there are other creatures here too. I’ve seen spiders that are scary but tolerable, and ants that show up everywhere. Most of them are not fire ants (my right foot experienced two fire ants yesterday), but they are just miniature freckles or dirt spots on your arm until they start moving and you lazily flick them away. There has been a rumor of cobras, but I didn’t see any in Malaysia and haven’t found any here…yet. I did come across a delightful baby scorpion in the bathroom this week. By this point I was more frustrated and so over the insect/reptile/nasty things threat that I didn’t care. I shut the door and walked away mad that I couldn’t even pee without being harassed by the prospect of a painful sting. (I found out later that they’re just really painful and not lethal, so that’s good I guess.) Oh, more bugs. Day one we were also in our tents (and sweating profusely because it creates a sauna-like atmosphere) because of the mass amounts of flying creatures coming through the windows. I woke up the next day, dripping in sweat with wings stuck to my legs. Yea, disgusting. Those are about all the nasty creatures I can think of, so I’ll move on to the heat and humidity update…
Steph was fearless, she held the scorpion first!
Facing my fears: Holding a live scorpion that the dog caught.
Don't worry, the stinger was cut off at this point.
Temperatures and humidity in a nutshell: unbearable! Some nights it may rain for a few minutes and cool off a bit, but for the most part it’s just hot. April is the worst time to be in Cambodia. The girls live in a “tree house” (elevated house with no trees around it…but “tree house” just sounds fun!) that is about a 15 minute walk from the Teen Challenge farm. We walk there and back at least 2-3 times a day for meals and teaching. That’s 1-1.5 hours of walking. We buy two 20 liter water jugs and refill them every two or three days. One morning I drank 1.5 liters before 9am and still felt dehydrated! Some of us have been running in the mornings down a little cow path between the villages. It’s through the field on a dirt path and there is literally no shade. Needless to say our jogs have started earlier and gotten shorter than those of previous months.
A field nearby the Teen Challenge Farm. It's similar to our jogging route.
After working out and walking 30 minutes to breakfast and back, I take a bucket shower with dark yellow/brown water. It’s good to check to make sure bugs aren’t in the bucket before I rinse my hair. I washed my clothes with the same water. Well, washed is an overstatement. I let them soak with laundry detergent for 3-4 hours, then swished them around and rinsed them out to hang up. Some of the girls hung up their wet, sweaty clothes only to find an ant infestation had taken over!
Large pots to collect rainwater and hold water from other sources.
I've never seen a tap anywhere, just these pots and a bucket in the bathroom!
What else? Oh yea, food! Last month the food was a bit of a challenge on some days. This month, everything has been phenomenal! We have a fruit smoothie lady on the corner who sells them for .50 each. There is rice at every meal, but also eggs, and sometimes mango, banana, pineapple or watermelon. We don’t eat fish (praise God!) and there is pork, beef and chicken. We may be eating a certain dog soon if it doesn’t quit nipping at our heels!
With the sweet smoothie lady. Her small son gives us high fives
and there are two adorable puppies at her place :)
One of our delicious meals with mango and watermelon.
Our little "cafeteria" where we eat all of our meals.
That reminds me…one more interesting obstacle. Dogs. I’m not talking your nice Cocker Spaniel or Golden Retriever. These are crazy, flee-infested, mean dogs. Two of them bark at us every time we come home at night even though we’ve been here for over a week. There’s one on the corner that is berserk. He lies in the middle of the road waiting to torment us and stands to growl and bare his teeth whenever we pass. If he’s not feeling as despicable on a particular day he’ll simply bark his head off loudly and suppress the growl. I got fed up yesterday and told the guy who doesn’t speak a lick of English, “Control your dog!! Grrrh!”
Animals abroad are simply an adventure of another kind. We live next to a chicken coop with quite a few hens, chicks and those infernal roosters. (I looked up 'infernal' to see if it was really the word I wanted…1. Very annoying, and 3. Diabolical in nature. Yep, that’s an accurate description.) Most mornings I wake up to their calls between 3am and 3:30am. That’s when I realize my air mattress has deflated again. It usually lasts about 2-3 hours before the air leaks out slowly and I’m on the ground again. If I’m super uncomfortable I muster the strength to roll off, blow it up again and roll back on. If I happen to sleep through the roosters, as was the case this morning, the loud speakers from the neighboring village kindly wake me up at 5am for Buddhist prayer chants and announcements. That goes on from anywhere to 1 to 2 hours with music as well. At least I’m not sleeping with a mouse trapped in my mosquito net like the guys on our team! (Update...a mouse just ran past my teammate's tent as I was about to post this. No lie!)
Infernal rooster and chicks.
Taryn made the comment the other day as we were riding into town that it was the first time we’d been in a motorized vehicle in 8 days. I thought about how comfortable I was (even without AC) because I was sitting on a cushioned seat as opposed to the cement floor or wooden bench. That got me to thinking…I’ve only slept in a bed 4 times since Chiang Mai, Thailand, 40 days ago. No wonder my body feels like that of an 80-year-old grandmother. My teammates make fun of each other because of the groaning noises we make when we try to stand up, then we all bust out laughing.
That’s the thing, the kicker. These hardships, challenges, whatever you want to call them… bring laughter now. Well, most of the time. Sometimes they bring not so nice words to my mind, wishes for home, or the urge to bust into tears. But I’m starting to learn to smile and pray. That was quite a lengthy description I just gave, but it’s my life now. It’s where I am and I have to learn to deal with it somehow.
There are two possibilities: give up and check out early (mentally, I’m not going home now!) or give it all and push til the end. I can look back to times in my life when I’ve done things halfway. I hate it. Why didn’t I have the drive to continue? What’s the use of doing something if it’s not done correctly? I know my dad is reading this and agreeing…he works hard at everything and takes twice as long to do something if it means it gets done right.
I’m getting away from my point though. I like the hard stuff. Not that I welcome the scorpions and lack of communication, but they’re here and it makes me work hard to overcome. The Lord blessed me with a good family and group of friends. Academics and athletics have both come pretty naturally to me. I haven’t had to push myself in a lot of areas.
The Race has brought a lot out of me that I never knew I had. Learning to live in community with 5 or 6 other people is not always easy. Dealing with physical living conditions can be pretty rough in some places. Seeing spiritual strongholds over the lives of those you have grown to love is difficult. I remember packing for the Race and freaking out. I’ve never backpacked in my life! I can’t fit all of my things in this space! What am I getting into?
If you would’ve asked me in 2010 to: walk through jungles, eat fried squid, pray for random homeless people, preach on a street corner, go exploring in a cave, ride a train for 32 hours, watch a sheep get slaughtered, bungee jump or sleep on the floor for two months, I probably would’ve been hesitant or bailed out all together.
Preaching in the street in Bulgaria.
Bungee jumping at the Nile
It’s the experiences that have built me up so that I’m able to handle what comes today. When you say “Yes” to God with one small thing, he keeps taking you one step further, one step higher. I can look back to see how the Lord has built me over the past few years. I said “Yes” to his call to be a missionary when I was 17. Since then He’s patiently guided me through being a camp counselor, sharing the gospel with coworkers at a theme park in California, interning at my church back home and now loving the nations and proclaiming His name abroad. I never could have done the Race at an earlier time. He knew that and walked with me until I was ready. He knew that Cambodia needed to be month 10 instead of 2. He knows because he’s created me and loves me more than I can ever fathom. He not only knows best, he himself is the best for me.
Beautiful sunset at the farm.
So the prayer I have for the month is to have the determined mindset like Paul:
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
- Philippians 4:11-13
I know that Phil. 4:13 is such a popular verse when people want to win a sports game or get a big promotion or overcome some personal obstacle. Maybe that’s fine, but it means much more to me. Call me crazy, but I think Paul’s words “I can do everything” refer to what he just mentioned in the previous verses. I can be content in need or with plenty, with food or without it, living in luxury or poverty. This means I, Hannah, can live with or without a nice bed. I can deal with bugs, heat and dirt. I can choose to love me teammates and my ministry host. I can do everything – whatever he asks me to do – because he is with me and he gives me strength.
These temporary circumstances (both for the Race and for this temporal life) may not be what I prefer at times, but they are helping me to understand Who I need. And I’m thankful for that.
But we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.
-Romans 5:3-4
Another sweet sunset. The Lord continues to amaze me with His beauty :)
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
- James 1:2-4
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Posted in General Posts by Hannah Dagenhart on 4/17/2012
Electronics:
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Computer – I brought my Mac and I like it. It is bigger and heavier, but it’s worth it for me. I use it for photos, videos, our team movie nights, blogging and skyping. It usually connects to the internet quicker as well. Some of my teammates have netbooks and they are happy with them. They are slower with internet and pretty much just good for blogging and email.
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Ipod with extra headphones.
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Nook or Kindle – I got a Nook before I left and have enjoyed having it on the Race. There are plenty of books to choose from and lots of down time to read.
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Flash drive or Hard drive – I brought two flash drives but needed an external. I got a package month 7 and was able back up photos, share movies and get resources like sermons or podcasts.
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Speakers or a splitter – Some people on my squad have a splitter for travel days so they can watch movies together. I haven’t really needed one. I would bring a small speaker to plug into your laptop. The volume is never loud enough for group settings and I’m glad my teammate has one.
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Camera – bring one that you like and know how to use. Some squadmates have huge nice ones that I could never work. I have a simple Canon Powershot that works well for video and photos.
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Adapters and surge protectors – I have a set of adapters that I got at Target or somewhere. They’ve come in handy. Usually a teammate will have a surge protector. They’re nice but not a necessity.
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Watch – I have a sports watch that I use as a stopwatch and alarm. Make sure you can work it and that it’s waterproof.
Gear
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Tent – I have a Mountain Hardware tent that says it sleeps two but is pretty cozy. Make sure it’s not more than 5 lbs. or so. I have used it a lot in Asia, even if just to avoid the bugs. I wish mine had more ventilation, as it's very hot in most places.
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Backpack – I have an REI 80 liter pack. It’s a mammoth. Sometimes I’m ashamed that I have such a big pack, then I remember that I only move a few times a month and that I have clean clothes and plenty of band-aids and I’m ok with it! Some of my teammates have gotten along fine with 65 or 70 liter packs from Osprey.
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Daypack – You don’t want a huge daypack. I would say a normal school bookbag is too much. Mine is about 21 liters. It fits my computer, other electronics, journal, Bible and travel day snacks.
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Airporter – You will want an airporter because your bag will be beaten and bruised without it! You don’t need a rain cover, an airporter will do.
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Packing cubes or compression sacks – I have one small packing cube for underwear, everything else is in compression sacks. I have two, an 8L and 13L for my clothes. Make sure you roll your clothes (I usually roll two shirts together) when you pack, it saves lots of space.
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Water bottle: I started with a Nalgene and enjoyed using it. Eventually my splashguard and bottle got smelly. They are extremely hard to clean without dishwashers or clean water. Still, I bought a smaller one in Thailand and lost it. Now I use plastic bottles from the store and refill them as I go, getting a new one every few days. My teammates have used Camelbacks as well but those can get mildew in the straws. If I did it again I would still bring my Nalgene.
Bed
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Sleeping bag – I had a nice one from REI that packed down well and was lightweight. I used it every night in Nepal and at other places too. After Africa I sent it home because Asia is so hot. There were a few times I wish I’d kept it, but you should definitely bring one.
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Sleeping pad – Now is a bitter time for me to write about this one. I have a Big Agnes sleeping pad from REI. It worked well for me, but the past two months where we’ve slept on concrete or bamboo, it has failed me. Air leaks from the mouthpiece and it only stays inflated for 2-3 hours. Others have had this trouble too…so a curse on Big Agnes! My teammates mostly have Thermarest ones that are a bit padded but also inflate. Whatever you get, make sure you test it out and that it’s comfortable. It could be your bed for many months. Also, make sure it packs down nicely.
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Sleeping bag liner – I have a cotton cocoon and I love it. I’ve used it as a sheet several times in almost every country and it keeps your sleeping bag clean too.
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Pillow - I got a package with a Thermarest compressible pillow in month 7. I almost shed tears it was so fantastic. Some places will not have pillows and you may have to use a rolled up jacket. That just wasn’t getting it done for me…I love my new pillow!
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Mosquito Net – Sometimes they’re provided, sometimes you can find them in other countries. I just brought my own. Make sure it’s big enough to cover your bed, some of my teammates’ are too small.
Random things to add:
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Multi-tool - This has come in handy on so many occasions.
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Hat – I brought a Nike quick-dry hat and have used it often.
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Sharpie markers and pens – I hate when pens don’t work. I brought several of my own favorites from home and some sharpie minis as well.
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Sunglasses – Don’t bring nice ones. They will break or get lost. It’s inevitable…good news is that you can buy more anywhere.
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Straightener – Yes, I actually brought one. I used it maybe two times and gave it away. Honestly, I wouldn’t bother because your hair will be up or in a braid most of the year anyway.
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Tide to-go pen – I had one teammate that brought one and between the 7 of us we used it up in two months. It would be nice to have, but not a necessity. You just wear the clothes even with the stains!
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Small calculator – I’m the finance person for our team so without my calculator exchange rates would be a headache!
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Clothesline – Comes in very handy.
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Pictures of your family – Other people love to see pictures of your family back home and it’s good to have a sweet picture to remind you of home.
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Eating utensils – I had a Light my Fire spork from REI but it broke. I bought another fork/spoon/knife set in Nepal. It’s good to have with you. I carry a plate that I’ve used a few times and a cup that I’ve never used…don’t know why I still have that thing!
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Quick dry towel – I have one and it’s still going strong in month 10. It doubles as a blanket on cold nights. I also brought 5 washcloths to use for the shower and washing my face.
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Glasses – If you wear contacts, you may not always be able to. Sometimes it’s dirty and dusty, sometimes my eyes are just tired. I brought enough contacts for the whole Race and my glasses as well.
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Makeup – I wear it on occasion now, but it mostly sweats off. I’m still using the same mascara and eye shadow that I started with. I’ve been through two face powders and one foundation.
Don't freak out about bringing too many baby wipes or bottles of shampoo. You will be able to find all of your toiletries: shampoo, toothpaste, etc. overseas. There are many name brands available as well and you can restock in any city.
I hope this has been helpful. The best advice to give: do what works for you. Don’t feel like you have to get everything on this list. Along the way you will drop more things than you expect and find that you can live without a lot of stuff. Please feel free to email me if you have questions. May God bless you on your World Race!
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