Sous-dey!
My time here in Cambodia has been nothing but incredible. The people, the ministry, the lessons, the sunrises and all that God has blessed us with. Our ministry has been one of my favorite types since I have been on the Race. We get to work with Maricel and YDC (Youth Development Center, part of YWAM [Youth With a Mission]) in Kampong Cham. She has a huge heart for her community where we visit different villages, pray for the people there and teach English to the children. Our typical day starts with an hour-long time of worship with a devotion or intercession. We then go prayer cycling to a different village every day or go play with children at the village nearby. I really enjoy the prayer cycling because we get to pray for the people of Cambodia and for a Spirit of Hope and Peace to come rain down on them as they are searching for the Truth.
After we return and eat lunch, Ga’Nene and I head back out to go teach English to the 42 Building Village. This is one of my favorite ministries because some days the whole team will go to this village to love on the children, but in the afternoons, I get them all to myself for a full hour. We taught them the ABC’s by going through about 5 letters a day for a week. Our 13 students are supposed to be ages 10-15 but we ended up teaching to a group of 28 students that are between the ages 3-40. Being around the younger children and loving on them as they hold on to each finger as I try to explain how to say “fish” correctly. That is what makes my heart sing and dance. The children are all so eager to learn and when they can run up to the board and find the correct letter that was called, they do not stop smiling the whole time we are there. I am so thankful for our time at this village because there are so many children that light up my day and bring me so much joy.
Rasmee is one of my favorite ladies from 42 Building Village. She is always coming up to me and saying “Hello Teacher Kaitlyn! How are you? “
“I am so happy to see you! How are you?”
“I am fine, thank you (she laughs as she responds; she is filled with so much joy and love that it is so contagious!)! Do you like my English? I study, no?”
“Your English sounds so wonderful!”
“Oh, thank you teacher! I study Lesson 1 English, but I want to study Book 2 English, Book 3 English. Do you speak Khmer?”
“Oh, very little. Ha ha! But I want to learn!”
“Oh good! You study Book 1 Khmer?”
Our conversations go on and on like this every day I see her, oh she just melts my heart. She teaches me words like sous-dey (hello), aw kuhn (thank you), soum toh (sorry), sa ahht (beautiful) and is always encouraging when I try to pronounce the words.
After teaching English to the children in 42 Building, we come back to Alison and Michael starting to teach Bible class. They are teaching Luke, verse by verse, to 3-4 students on a daily basis. They help the students understand some of the words and help them practice their English more. The best part is that the students are learning so much about the Gospel and are asking hard questions to further their understanding and yearning for Christ.
From 4-5pm there are 2 English classes that are being taught. I take part in helping teach the Beginner’s English class with Amanda and Chip while Alison and Tyler teach the Advanced English class. We teach a small group of young adult girls and I really enjoy this time of having a more intimate lesson with the students. They do not understand when we speak English but they can read and write English very well. It is such a fun challenge of breaking down the language barrier and being able to love them.
From 5-6pm we teach another Beginner English class while Tyler and Alison teach another Advanced English class. This time our class is filled with a younger group of teenagers that are passionate and excited about life. They are so eager to learn and hold a special piece of my heart. We presented the Gospel to these students a few times and hearts are not only being softened but are searching. There are students that are speaking Truth, whether some of them know it or not, but their hearts are stirring.
During the 4-5 and 5-6 time blocks, Michael teaches Guitar Class. He is so talented and it is such a treat to hear him spreading his knowledge and using his gifts to help others.
On Saturdays we have our free day, but teach Computer Class from 5-6pm. The students use the Mario Typing computer game to help with their skills. The fun part about that is that I used this game to help with my typing skills when I was in elementary school.
On Sundays we visit different churches each week. We do the “normal World Race” church routine and share about the World Race, a testimony and we all sing a song. I really enjoy going to different churches and even though I don’t understand a lot of what is being said, it is beautiful seeing the Body. After church we split up and go to different villages to either share the gospel and encourage the believers or to participate in a Bible study. We then come back in the evening and have informal worship with the students that study at YDC where we teach. There have not been a lot of students that come to this, and it is hard seeing how passionate Maricel is for the students to come participate and hear more about the goodness of God because when no students show up, her heart aches. She is so excited about sharing Who God is, but when no one comes, she starts to doubt. I am praying for encouragement for her, knowing that her labor is not being ignored and that the Lord sees it. I am praying for students to show up, to have a curiosity that only the Lord can satisfy.
Our time in Kampong Cham has been quick. We leave on Monday morning for Siem Reap to visit Angkor Wat before we join our squad in Phnom Penh on the 29th. We will travel to Vietnam on December 1st where my team will be serving in Ho Chi Minh City. We are not sure what we will be doing there, but we will be working under a man named Timmy, alongside with 2 other World Race teams. I am so thankful for our time in Kampong Cham because the ministry has been nothing but amazing. God is so good.
Prayers: Maricel as she continues to work at YDC and serve the community. Specifically more so for a community where she can fellowship and worship God with them (not for a change of location in her community, but for the lives of the people surrounding her to be changed). Also pray for Maricel and Kim Sreoun as Kim Sreoun (her wonderful assistant) leaves YDC in January to do training for DTS (Discipleship Training School) with YWAM.
Pray for our team as we travel.
Pray for my teammates, Chip Carnes, Michael Clevenger and Ga’Nene Edwards. They are in need of some financial help to stay on the Race. They are each around $3,000 away from the last and final deadline. If you are interested in helping them meet this deadline (and having an end of year tax deductible gift), please check out their blogs (chipcarnes.theworldrace.org, michaelclevenger.theworldrace.org and ganeneedwards.theworldrace.org) and click on the Support Me! tab to support them financially.
Please continue to pray for Chip Carnes’ leg. The story is that he was born with a leg shorter than the other. This has caused a lot of bodily pain and different situations over the years. Anyways, the story now is that he is ready to receive God’s healing and extended growth of his leg. We have seen and heard of stories of God growing someone’s leg right in front of their eyes, and we are ready to see a miracle in our own brother’s life.
Pray for the squad as we continue walking with the Lord through the holidays. I know it is a hard time for a lot of families during these times, but there is so much to be thankful for during this time. I pray that there is a Spirit of Comfort and Peace as all of our loved ones on other sides of the world. God is doing something great in each one of our lives.
I am so thankful for each and every one of you, you are all a blessing!
Love, Kaitlyn Michele
