Creature Comforts and Hardship

We’re back in Poipet, minus Rod and Michelle who are staying in Siem Reap to do some sightseeing.

My new room at the hotel has a table and chairs, a window and a view, which I am enjoying. It also has the air conditioning on – air con is something for which we have all been consistently grateful since we arrived. All these things contribute to my sense of wellbeing at the end of the trip and reinforces a sense of gratitude to God for all his goodness to us over these two weeks.

Creature comforts like these make a lot of difference. The sights we saw yesterday at the Angkor temple complex were awe-inspiring, yet because it was so hot, one of the best parts of the day was an orange ice lolly in the car park (brilliant idea, Michelle!).  Without the creature comforts I have mentioned, our visit to Cambodia would have been a gruelling endurance test. Yet (and you will probably have guessed this) as I reflect on the difference these things have made to our enjoyment of the trip and our ability to cope, I cannot but be aware of the number of people who live here without a comfortable chair, a window with a view, air conditioning or enough money to buy clean water or food for a balanced diet, let alone an ice lolly to cool them down. In one way we have experienced so much, but our creature comforts have insulated us against any hardships on this trip. We have been immensely privileged during our stay, and this is a measure of how we are all correspondingly immensely privileged in terms of the way of life we enjoy in the UK, both at home and in church.

Yet I would like to thank those in BRBC who have endured a small measure of hardship for our sake. While we have been sweating in the sun or basking in the air con, working and travelling, a faithful group have gathered every day in what has sometimes been a very cold BRBC chapel to pray for us. If today we can look back on the trip and see that God has been good to us and has used us in some small way to make a difference here in Cambodia, then your prayers for us have been an essential part of that, so thank you for the difference you have made as vital members of the BRBC team who stayed and prayed. God bless you!

Tim