Classic ministry update comin’ at ya!
One thing that gets me energized and awake is seeing how God ties and knots places around the world together for His purposes. We are working alongside LightBridge International this month in Cambodia which is an organization based out of Denver, Colorado. That’s only 7 hours from my hometown in Wichita, KS. My state is Colorado’s neighbor which awes me how God sews different countries together for His Kingdom but all have unique cultures, people, and languages.
LightBridge International started in Thailand with taking care of the poor and orphans. They then visited Cambodia and built a school in 2009. They have been a part of clean water initiatives, educating children, and job creation. I don’t know everything about them but I do know that they aren’t only humanitarians but they also share about a relationship with Jesus.
With them, we started the day we arrived helping with teaching English classes. The children and people here are eager to learn English even though their native language is Khmer. I only know a few words of Khmer but I am learning! We teach a herd of children at the missions house, students at the LightBridge school, and at one of the local churches. A rough guesstimate of the kid’s age is 6-17 but mainly in the 10-14 category.
Another part of ministry that has my team excited is LandMine Designs which started in Minefield Village. It’s a job creation program for the women in the village so they have a means of self-supporting themselves and their families. In the past, women and mothers had no options for work and few resources in their village so they had little choice but to leave their families months at a time for jobs to survive.
LandMine Designs hire women to create jewelry with paper beads and sell it in the United States which helps the women have an income and allows them to hire more women too. We get the opportunity this month to pop around to the villages that have this program to help the organization but mostly fellowship with the women that make the jewelry. Some are believers and some are not. The main purpose is not solely jewelry but Jesus.
Watching this process was eye-opening because you see the behind-the-scenes happenings of a mission-based business. It’s a circle of women with their children and babies in one of the school’s open air rooms on the floor cutting colored paper, laughing and chatting, and making a livelihood. This website tells much more about it and some of the women involved: http://www.landminedesign.org/about/.
Lastly, the other main ministry we are a part of is children’s ministry in a few villages. I’ve never been more of a jungle gym! The kids climb, jump, hang, play tag, hug, and tickle all the time. I’m so sweaty and exhausted by the end but it’s worth it! They love to be given love. The toughest village we go to is the village in the slums of Poipet, Cambodia.
When I walked past their homes to get to the church building, it was one of those moments you are taken aback by what you are seeing. I’m almost desensitized to it from media and pictures I’ve seen but when I really put myself in their situation, it was heartbreaking. It isn’t a display, it isn’t only for television, it’s reality for these families.
My gaze took in a house falling apart, barely held together by pieces of wood. Inside the house was a family napping on the bare floor on blankets. The house was elevated on poles and swampy, smelly, trash-filled water surrounded the base of the house. During church, the kids were like normal kids but there were moments you were reminded of where they came from.
Kelsey, a lovely lady on my team this month, was braiding hair and every child had head lice, sometimes you barely had to look to see the nits. My little buddy Manlee punched a kid in the arm twice and once in the face because the other kid was sitting in his spot. He’s only around 5. The only thing that keeps me from despair for them is the hope of Jesus that people are bringing to the slums. Also, that there are people that have a heart to be here long-term or locals here that want to serve them as much as they see possible.
You don’t have to be here to make an impact. I don’t even mean here in Cambodia, I mean where you’re at right this moment. This organization is in Denver, Colorado and there are multiple people, places, organizations and churches that have a heart not only for America but globally around the world. We are more connected than we realize. Don’t feel hindered by your location because God doesn’t see you as hindered.
