Leaving!

by Amber Aqui

Phnom Penh, Cambodia, at Cambodia Adventist School 

We board our plane to Phnom Penh in twenty minutes. And just like that the greatest adventure of my life begins.  I still am not even completely positive as to how the process of becoming a student missionary began. It likely started as a mere possibility of an idea, a few pieces of redundant paperwork here, a couple of meetings there, and before I knew it, I had submerged so far in to the “idea” that my passport was in hand and my plane tickets to Phnom Penh had been booked. There is unquestionably no turning back now. With each step of the process I did not realize the magnitude of what all the meetings and paperwork would eventually add up to. Now, at the end of the beginning, (the hours and hours of planning and waiting) I realize.

I clearly remember the first time I too confidently waltzed into the Student Missions office at Walla Walla University and sat down with Jeanne, our SM coordinator.

“Jeanne,” I said, “I will take any call that does not, ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT require me to teach.”

Amber with her students in Cambodia.

I actually did believe myself for quite a while…and then God punched me in the face. Interesting how things work out.

In actuality I was not even slightly interested in leaving the perimeters of my lovely and mostly comfortable home country; I initially applied to a taskforce position as a dean, managed to launch myself pretty far into process,  only find out that I was one year too young. Although this frustrated me, I HAD to believe that God had different plans in store.  Teaching high-school math and English in Cambodia is so far off from my initial plan that it MUST BE a God thing.

Throughout the year one of my most amazing friends, Alexandria Drury, had also been furiously searching for the “right” call. Her application experience was somewhat similar to mine; her heart had originally been set in a completely different direction. I remember calling Alex shortly before hearing a yes or no on the taskforce position, “If God closes this door, I’m going to take it as a sign that we are supposed to look elsewhere, together.” She completely agreed, and after that call I instantaneously felt like God was leading me in a different direction, and quite honestly I was scared to absolute death about the new feeling He was placing deep inside of me, so deep it frightened me to search for it.

After my original let down from the taskforce position, I called Alex again, and a whole new set of emotions flew in, poured in, almost overwhelmingly in only the good sense of the word. We were going TOGETHER and it felt oh so exciting, but oh so incredibly intimidating. Now we just had to figure out where.

The only problem was that Alex and my original wants were polar opposites. I had somewhat selfishly wanted an “easy out” with many comforts of home, and Alex wanted a thatch hut in the middle of the desolate jungle, or so it felt. We talked about the islands, Pohnpei, Saipan, we even pondered Thailand…and after a few weeks, seemingly out of nowhere, Cambodia was proposed. We both, oddly enough in our indecisiveness, agreed within literal minutes that this was where we were being called to. We shot an email to the director in Cambodia right then and within two days we were told that we were wanted for the teaching positions.

This entire pre-Student Missionary experience has already been a test of patience and perseverance and I can already tell that we have been changed for the better.

I can say with entire confidence, God wanted us here. Right now I cannot tell you why, but wholeheartedly I believe that He brought us here. I not only want to believe that, I NEED to.

Note: Amber and Alex have now been in Cambodia for a month and a half.  They are enjoying their challenging but rewarding teaching positions and the adventures God allows them to experience every day.