Global GospelSample

Geckos at the Table

BY DEBORAH MASTEN

“I am a companion of all who fear you, of those who keep your precepts” (Psalm 119:63).

Every week during chapel at my small Christian college in Florida, visiting missionaries would share their experiences with an enraptured audience. They spoke of encounters with tigers, scorpions, poisonous spears, and of eating honey-coated worms with the natives. They crossed snake- and crocodile-infested waters on do-it-yourself wooden canoes, with their Bibles in one hand and their superhero cape in the other. Or that’s how I remember it.

I am from LA, a city girl through and through. I do not cohabitate with insects. Zoos are the only places I’ve had audiences with wildlife. Hearing about protein-rich, all-you-can-eat worm buffets in the jungle did not make me want to join that life. I would not be signing up. No, thank you to your newsletter.

Which is why it was surprising that ten years later God gave me peace about serving in Cambodia!

When we arrived in Phnom Penh at the home of our Cambodian American friends, we were both exhausted and elated at the idea of sleeping off the effects of the past two days of travel. We were jet-lagged, culture-shocked, and trying to monitor the curiosity of our two-year-old and keep him from over-exploring. An amazing meal was prepared, with a rigorous competition between what was more impressive—the unending variety of culinary delights or the precision and artistic genius of the presentation! The long, wooden dining room table was adorned with ginger-seasoned whole grilled fish, curry-infused chicken, Chinese donut-like bread, raw and sautéed vegetables, bright orange, miraculously sweet-tasting sliced mangos, jasmine rice, and Chinese tea. There were a myriad of soy and oyster sauces, bean sprouts, limes, chili pepper mixtures, and basil leaves. It was a meal like none we had ever experienced, yet it had been prepared in advance by both our host and God to demonstrate welcome, hospitality, and abundant goodness.

We were all fascinated by the curious, omnipresent geckos playing a game of tag on the walls and ceilings. Given my extremely visceral reaction to insects and creatures of nature, I was momentarily frozen and transfixed. I would have been desperately fearful, skittish, and repulsed by their mere existence were it not for the Zen-like dismissal of their presence by everyone else in the room. That and the fact that my mind was being flooded with all the new surroundings—rapid-fire Cambodian language, the thunderous sound of the generator in the backyard. So I resigned myself to the obviously unchanging reality. Geckos were here to stay! Sure, they dart around, startling you with their off-putting game of hide-and-seek behind bookshelves and wall hangings, looking like pygmy alligators, while they victoriously catch and eat bugs. But they stayed at a comfortably secure distance. Our hosts, on the other hand, continued to lean in closer, providing a sense of calm, reassurance, and connection. It was certainly a moment of peace and serenity that surpassed all understanding. The paralyzing fear of my past became a mild and manageable discomfort.

It was a surprising first day in Cambodia. I was disoriented for sure, but I was also beginning to witness firsthand how God was able to meet my needs despite my places of concern and insecurity. God prepared a table before me in the presence of geckos, and now my confidence was running over. I could do this again tomorrow. God is setting the table as we embark on the journey of obedience, following where God calls us.

Reflection Questions

Think of a time when God was clearly calling you into your own “Oceans” moment of being called out upon the waters of the great unknown. A new job. A new community. A new educational environment. A new country. When the fear at times felt crippling. When there needed to be both a reliance on God and others.

• What was your greatest worry?
• What positively or negatively surprised you about yourself?
• How did you see God showing up in personal ways?
• What characteristic of God felt more real at that time?
• How was your faith impacted?

Prayer

Lord, thank you for surrounding us with companions who fear you and walk with you. Please be my companion, giving me courage in uncertainty and safe spaces to grow in you. When burdens feel heavier than we can bear, do not leave us alone. Walk with us, and draw us together as companions in your Word and Spirit. Amen.