See these faces.
These were the faces we were greeted by.
The faces that stole my heart in a matter of seconds.
This is Cambodia.
This month our ministry host is a Youth Development Center (YDC).
YDC is an outreach program for the surrounding community.
They minister to all ages in health care, medical missions, and education.
We are here in the city of Kampong Cham; which is rural yet developing.
YDC is searching and continually praying about this developing city and I am super pumped about what The Lord will do through my team this month to help them.
Even though we have only been here a short time we can see the desires of the staff here at YDC. They have high hopes for the people of Cambodia and are striving to bring the kingdom here in Kampong Cham. One of the main resources for YDC is that they teach English classes for many of the youth. That is in fact how four of their staff members have come to YDC to act as translators. Along with these English classes, YDC offers guitar lessons to help further worship for young Christians. YDC is also involved with the local prison which is a part of my team’s ministry this month; leading worship and bible study for the inmates. The other half of our ministry is within the slum villages where YDC makes house visits sharing the Gospel along with providing food and water for the squatters.
I have yet to write a blog for a specific reason but I believe The Lord has placed my team here in Kampong Cham with YDC for a specific purpose. Which is not the least bit ironic that my team just began praying individually for “specific” goals for each month and what that would look like for us separately and even collectively as a team. And, well, here we are.
First week. First goal.
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Remember those faces.
They are the faces of people who are in need.
They live in a village called “42 houses.”
This is a continuously relocated village by the government.
They have been in this spot since 2006 on a 4×4 square meter of land that the government allotted these outcasts. Yes, outcasts.
The government offered to build small “houses” for some of the families who could afford to pay in staggered payments on this land. Yet most of them still live in huts, which are really just pieces of wood stacked together in some form of a shelter.
The government also built two wells to provide sources of water for these people.
Unfortunately after a year they both broke down, and no repairs were made. Ever.
“but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.
Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
-Jesus [John 4:14]
This is it.
This is the first HOLLAlujah goal.
Our first specific reason for being in Cambodia.
We want to fix these sources of water for these people.
They may be outcasts in this community, but they are still people.
People in need…
Of love.
Of food.
Of shelter.
Of water.
And ultimately Jesus.
One thing my team is constantly striving to do is to love through our actions.
Love is an act. We can say it all we want, but until we show it…its meaningless.
So here we are, acting.
Acting in love.
We want to show these people the love of Jesus.
And we believe that in fixing this well and investing in their lives…we can.
“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”
1 John 3:18
To put it in perspective, think of those TV commercials where you see the run down shelters and children who have tattered clothing and then you can call and pledge to sponsor a child or family for a month. Well that is exactly what we have stepped in to; except this is real. The biggest difference is that these children meet our tuk-tuk at the entrance of the village with huge smiles and literally run along side it screaming “I love you” as we leave. A phrase we have recently taught them along with the universal hand sign—which they LOVEEE.
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So the funniest part of this blog is I have attempted to write it at least four times.
I finally just left most of it because looking back at how God changed the call on our team moment by moment in our first week is awesome to look back at.
When my team first arrived we knew God was going to do some crazy things here, but I can honestly say I had no idea how quickly he would work.
To give you a quick run down:
1] First time attempting to write this blog was in an effort to reach out to you, our supporters, to help gain monetary support for the well and the squatting village.
2] Then after visiting the prison, we also wanted to help provide Bibles for the ones who did not own a Bible, but have it in their dialect of Khmer. So our efforts turned more into helping YDC reach Cambodia through all of their ministries.
3] Just wait. The Lord then revealed to my team that He wanted our money. If we were going to write about taking action, and being love. We literally needed to be it. So we decided to pool our money and fix the well first, then go from there with the other ministries.
4] As I write now, The Lord has already provided. You might want to read that again.
One of our teammates received a donation for whatever they needed, today.
Right after my team had committed to funding this with our own money.
When we answered his call, he provided.
[insert huge jaw drop here]
Not that I am at all surprised The Lord provided, because he always does.
But it is literally moment by moment.
And its hugeeeee and its quick, so quick.
The Lord is continually blowing my mind.
You cannot limit him. He is limitless.
If there is anything I have learned it is that our God is capable of the immeasurably more.
He is an immeasurable God.
Mind is still blown.
Words are not even close enough to describe how I feel right now.
—
I thought The Lord wanted us here for Cambodia.
But what I’m realizing is that at the same time He wanted Cambodia for us.
The Lord is continuing his revelations in my life and the lives of my teammates.
So as my blog frequently changed this week to the many “call(s)” of Christ…
I ask you to look at your life.
Are you willing to answer the call?
Whatever that call may be…big or small?
A very good friend once told me…
“A life without cause, is a life without effect.”
“Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of The Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you and you will come to life.'”
Ezekiel 37: 4-5
{PHOTO CREDS: MEGAN KENNEDY…she’s too fetch}
