Monday, July 10, 2006

I Need A Wira!

Here in 'MY,' the Wira is a popular car named 'hero' in the native Bahasa Malaysia...and I need both the car and the superman version right away. Greg accelerates at work, we girlies are just marking time, waiting for our furniture to arrive, seeing the sights, being tourists, and we've just about had it. Brooke has aptly named the condition "culture anxiety;" longing for some familiarity- our doggie, a logically organized grocery store, a nice meatball and a plate of pasta, cooked to my specs. Um, none of that? How about food I can PRONOUNCE?!


Things take so much more time and energy here; conversation, traffic, grocery shopping, understanding customs so as not to offend. Something that we are not used to yet is the curiosity of the locals- it is common for anyone to ask you how old you are. Another thing is the unflinching racial divisions: it is normal for someone to use your race in descriptions, like, "she is an Indian lady," or, "those shrewd Chinese women run the shop," and one of my favorites, "only Indonesians do that." These descriptors make us squirm from the politically correct environment of the US, where we would shy away from using race to describe someone because we separate performance from ethnicity or skin tone. Oh, and there is a 'Non-Malaysian' tax on everything from phone service to automobiles. Our cell phone deposit is about $360 for each phone because we are not Malaysian natives; many of the fees are attributed to Malaysia's goal to become a first-world nation by 2020. Ok, fine.


Anyway, churches are different here, too. The names are mixed-up sounding and cross descriptors we would usually understand in the states, like the 'Lutheran Redemption Center,' or 'International Church'... so one that sounds charismatic is actually just an enthusiastic evangelistic church. We've visited two so far, and boy do we miss our wonderful church in Houston, CFCC. Sigh.


I'll go out on a limb here and say that there is a reason we are here; not just Greg's job, but a reason why I call a Muslim country home for now, a reason why we will cross paths with Hindu and Buddhist people every day, a reason for radically different experiences in daily life and schedules. I just hope I catch it; I need the faith to trust God's got good stuff in store. Yes, this is a great opportunity to explore, to see a different part of the world, but there has to be more to it than that. I yearn for my faith to grow and and my perspectives change so maybe I can make a difference- in my family, my circle of influence. Anywhere.
There are times when my faith is so fainthearted, when I lack vision for my relationship with God and rely too much on others for my identity as a Christian. Maybe being aware of that will help keep me from falling for that line? Or maybe, in removing me from all that is familiar and comfy, God's plan is to remind me (again) that I really have no control over any of that except to make way for Him: to trust God, remain in Him, and hang on for the ride as He provides the rain or sunshine or wind or clouds or whatever. The John 15:5 tutorial. Again. Yay.

When we find a church, I hope we'll feel a little more grounded, but for now, it feels like aimless wandering. Remind me of this in about a month, when our shipment arrives and we're longing for these lazy days of summer.
For now, the girls and I continue to meander and cheer Greg on in his new position, loaded with responsibility and not a little stress. He's our hero!
PS~ Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you... Dad! Come see us soon!

chryl left the ground at 14:07 4 comments