Children everywhere selling bracelets to make just enough money to help their families and go to English school. As little as 7 or 8 years old to 19 or 20, clothed in tattered shirts with stained knees. There are bars everywhere, people drinking, Westerns and Cambodians alike enjoying their time at the beach as these little faces try to make a dollar.
Everything inside of me wanted to crumble.
Peter is a handsome little man and i don’t know what drove him to want to be a girl, but i can imagine a few reasons.
Then i met Thay (Thai) who is a beautiful 19 year old girl trying to make enough money to go to school. She was one of the prettiest Cambodian girls i had seen so far. Frail and thin, but full of life.
Sham was next, 12 years old with 4 little sisters and 2 older brothers. She was beautiful and had a sassy little attitude but as sweet as can be. She told me she was the oldest of her sisters, her dad works, but her mom doesn’t and they rely on her to make money to help feed the family. She’s 12.
Then there is Jessica. Jessica is 9 years old. She’s as little as can be, but an incredible bracelet maker. For a 9 year old she was stripped of her innocence and placed around things she shouldn’t hear or see.
There were many children we’ve met the last few days and each one seemed to be scarred by a harder life then i could ever imagine. Every time i would see them, all i could think was, “G-d, please get them out of here. i want to get them out of here and bring them somewhere safe, where no one can hurt them or touch them.”
Did you know that 50% of the people in Cambodia are under the age of 20 and 80% are under the age of 30? Young little faces everywhere you go. Innocent children born in a culture where their grandparents were slaughtered in the Khmer Rouge. A 3rd of the Cambodian population was killed or in truthful terms, slaughtered and still to this day do they have “killing fields” where bones and skulls lay bare for all to see.
These people need Jesus, not Buddha, not Muhammad, but Jesus.
i was able to share the story of Jesus with almost all of the children i met. i told them that theres a man named Jesus Christ that loves them, they would look at me, and say, “Who is this man?”
With a big smile on my face, “Who is He? He’s the Son of G-d. G-d, the Creator, the one who made you and me,” i would say. And then i would tell them the story of Jesus, how He came and lived a perfect life and never did anything wrong. i would tell them how He healed people and how He taught people about His Father, the Creator. Then i would share with them how people hated Jesus and they would very quickly say, “But why? Why did they hate Him?”
“Because He said He was the Son of G-d and people got angry and killed Him. They put Him on a cross.” And their faces would grow sad and weary, but then i would say, “But guess what? You know how people die and they get buried? Well Jesus, He was different. After 3 days HE WAS RAISED FROM THE DEAD!” i remember this little girl, Mab looks at me with the biggest smile and says, “WOW!!” i told them how He was the perfect sacrifice so that we would never have to give another sacrifice and if we believe in Him and ask Him to come be the King of our life, we will spend forever with Him after we die.
Each one listened intently, but very quickly as i finished they would change the subject or talk about something else. All i can do is pray that G-d plants the seed and there reminded that Jesus loves them.
All i can do is be obedient and boast about the One who has saved me. i know the harvest is ripe and people are ready. i might not always see the harvest, but what i can do is plant the seed and pray that He has the glory.
Sham
Peter
Jessica
Emily
Mab
Dok La
Thay
