Among other things, this month’s ministry was outreach. If I’m honest I never thought that word and my name would be put in the same sentence. You can imagine my horror when I realized that was my placement for the month.
In my head, outreach meant walking up to adults who seemed busy and frustrated with life and straight up telling them about life with Jesus. Which isn’t totally wrong but I soon realized it could mean so so much more than just that.
Turns out my team and I spent our month with children. We’d spend mornings biking around seeking out those children who seemed neglected and stopped for them. We played with them and loved on the them and by giving them joy, I believe God’s work was done.
Mika is 5 years old. She goes to school where I teach English in the afternoons. She is shy and sweet and the smallest in the class. Because of this there are kids that find ways to bully her while making her think they’re her friend. By taking the time to sit with her, talk to her, care about her, love her, she knows now what a real friend looks like.
Boing is 4 years old. He’s the loudest kid in the first class I teach and SO full of energy all the time. He’s got all the answers to every question and loves every song we sing. By encouraging him to keep his extravagant joy and enthusiasm we showed him the freedom that comes with living in God’s joy.
Roeun is 5 years old. He has the sweetest laugh and funniest facial expressions. He also has a broken femur which means his leg is attached to the bed. I’ve visited him at the trauma hospital 2 times a week and when I do he instantly brightens my day. His excitement at being seen and loved on is contagious. His mother sits by his side day and night caring for his every need and entertaining him for the month he’s been there. He speaks no english and understands no english but I’ve played with him for hours at a time as he rambles on in khmer. By investing in him and his mother they can now know how God sees and cares for them.
Bubble friend is a little girl we visit every morning. We don’t know her name because she speaks no english. But her eyes brighten every time she sees us pull up to the park. She spends her days sitting around the parks while her mother cleans up the trash. This gives us the chance to meet her there and play with her. First this meant bringing a bubble wand. Then it meant bringing her flowers we’d bought. Then snacks, colouring, and finally we danced. No matter what we bring to share with her she meets us with full excitement and joy. Her smile is the sweetest and her hugs the tightest. By giving her our time she knows that she is seen, worthy of time and so lovable.
The Khmer Rouge is a recent tragedy, not a history lesson. The families here are broken in so many ways. One of these ways is that the caretakers of children have no idea how to show affection to their children. Love is not to be had here it’s to be earned.
By going out and being an open demonstration of how to love the least seen, we got to show who God is. I may not have preached the gospel at the top of my lungs but I lived it out. And by doing so I know God will continue to move in the lives of each child, caretaker and bystander we encountered.
