When becoming a squad leader, I knew that my World Race was about to change. I knew I would no longer stay in one place all month and be able to build relationships with people there… the things I loved most about ministry.
But, God is good. God is faithful. God knows the desires of my heart, and He is fulfilling them and more…
Thomas, Ryan, and I were able to take a few days of rest after debrief in Siem Reap before heading to visit our first team (which ended up being in Siem Reap… lucky for us, we got to stay longer than expected!). In that time, we decided to have an ATL (Ask the Lord) day. We prayed and asked God to give us opportunity for ministry and headed to the streets. That began a ministry of our own in Siem Reap.
We tried to spend as much of our free time spreading God’s love to these people while forming some great friendships. We practically felt like locals walking around there.
God gave me what I longed for… relationships and ministry opportunities. And yet, the three of us were simply doing life with the people there… letting God work through us.
Meet James
James sells fish massages (the fish eat dead skin off your feet). Stacey and a few girls from our squad met him during debrief and shared with him about Jesus. He had never heard of Jesus before then. Stacey went back the next day and gave him her Bible. Since we were going to be in town, the three of us decided to follow up with him every day. We ended up becoming good friends with James.
We talked about Jesus with him. And one day while we left to go get lunch, a group came along and gave him a “Jesus tract” in his own language. When we got back, he showed it to us and translated one of the pages for us. It was about how God lives in your heart, not inside a temple or idol. I’m telling you… God is after this man.
One night, we spent hours with him just talking and trying to sell fish massages. I wish you could see the looks we got… Americans trying to sell fish massages. We even learned a little Japanese in the process.
I had paint with me that was left over from our debrief, and I had been hoping that day to be able to find some kids to paint with. As we sat there talking with James, I prayed that God would bring me some kids… 15 minutes later they showed up trying to sell us postcards and books.
So we ended up starting a painting party. The foot massage guys joined in and wanted to paint too.
We treated the kids to a fish massage and dinner…
That is where we met Srey. She was selling flowers and bracelets. Srey goes to school in the morning and then works on the streets until 3 AM selling the flowers and bracelets on Pub Street… a busy street filled with restaurants and bars.
My heart breaks for these kids here… not able to go home from school and ride bikes or play with friends like I did growing up… Instead, they work.
Thomas, Ryan, and I loved the kids. This is Ryan’s birthday lunch… started with the 3 of us, and quickly became a party with 7 kids who work on the streets.
Thomas, Ryan, and I bought these hats back in Thailand and decided to give them away on our last night in Siem Reap…
The kids loved them!
The kids were so hard to say goodbye to. They loved on us with tons of hugs and kisses. They even gave us some bracelets to remember them by. I pray for them every time I see it.
We also met this beautiful lady in Siem Reap. I don’t know how to spell her name, but it is pronounced “Soap Pan.” She has a 2 year old daughter named Lisa.
The first time we met her, she poured her heart out to us about how she cannot marry her boyfriend because they are both “Year of the Cow.” It would be bad luck for them to marry, so their families will not allow it.
This is John… He also sells fish massages. Probably one of the funniest people I have ever met. He is full of energy!
Ratha is another guy who sells fish massages at the same place John does. He is 19 and has actually heard of Jesus.
We talked to John and Ratha about Jesus, but they kept telling us that their families are Buddhist and they live in a Buddhist country. We planted another seed in the hearts though…
James, John, and Ratha are all friends. We spent our last night in Siem Reap having dinner with them at the street vendors.
Jesus is pursuing these men… Maybe soon there will be a Jesus movement across this nation starting with 3 fish massage workers.
This is only some of the story and some of the people from our time in Siem Reap…
All of this and more in the span of a week! Just goes to show me… I don’t have to be at a ministry site for a whole month to be able to do ministry and meet people. I can do it by simply living my life intentionally seeking out ministry. Every morning I ask God for opportunities… And He will bring them.
