MDTS: Life in DTS

你好！(Nay ho!)  你好嗎？(Nay ho ma?) In Cantonese, this means, Hi!  How are you?

My Compassion DTS (we’re call it MDTS, short for mercy DTS) officially started on July 3, and we hit the ground running!  Already we’ve learned about having a heart of servanthood, communicating lovingly in an international setting, and being part of a family here at the YWAM Hong Kong base.  The base here is full of full-time staff/missionaries from around the world: I’ve met people from Samoa, Fiji, Switzerland, South Africa, Australia, Singapore, Netherlands, Canada, Brazil, and of course America!  It’s been really great.

Here’s what an average day in my life looks like:

7:00 am breakfast

7:30-8:20 personal quiet time with God

8:30-9:30 Corporate worship session with the whole base

9:30-12:30 Lecture

12:30 Lunch

2:00-3:30 Lecture

3:30-5:30 Work Duties

5:30 Dinner

7-8:30 Team Time

11:00 Lights out

            Our day is very full, and it’s been taking a while for my mind and body to get adjusted to everything.  Hong Kong is EXTREMELY humid in the summer.  We live in a small village near Yuen Long, HK, which is in the New Territories, almost an hour ride away from HK Island, where I usually stay and where all the air conditioning is.  Here, there is lots of farms surrounding us, and village houses.  We have fans that are semi-effective, and only have air-conditioning privileges from 10 pm to 6 am every night.  Most of the time, I’m covered in a thin layer of sweat and humidity; everything feels sticky all the time. 

            I’ve also been covered with LOTS of mosquito bites.  I tried putting on some cream to counteract the itching, but it just seemed to exacerbate the feeling of stickiness, so now the method I employ is to sit very still, breathe very deeply, and spend time praying to God and for others while trying to ignore the itch.  So far, it has been working!  It also helps me to cool down and not feel so gross from the heat.  God is teaching me to be still and to spend my thoughts on more worthwhile matters than complaining about not being comfortable.  Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again, I say, rejoice!