Last blog I posted about Vuthy, the visionary and leader of Light of Hope ministry. Today I want to tell you about the spark that lead me to partner with him in bringing his dream to life.
Meet Jimmy or G-Mi when he's feeling gangsta!! ;o) This 20y/o young man has one of the biggest servant-hearts I have ever seen! A typical day in the life of Jimmy for the month we spent in Cambodia included:
Driving 3-6hrs a day on a hot not-so-comfy motorcycle/tuk tuk over bumpy (understatement) roads taking us to various village churches
Translating for 7 people 2-4hrs a day 
Joining us in all of our ministry activities including leading small groups, drama, songs, door-to-door, etc.
Living with us fulltime away from his home for nearly the entire month. It was too difficult to go home and get back early enough in the morning to serve us so he just stayed.
As incredible as that is, it's not exactly what inspired me. Jimmy is the oldest of 6 kids. His mother has been ill most of his life. His father works as a rock breaker which is so physically demanding he lives in pain. Despite his father's labor intensive job there is no money. They cannot afford to take his mother to the hospital as needed. There is constant struggle and hardship.Yet Jimmy was there every morning with a smile and a laugh taking us to our ministry for the day.
I spent a lot of time talking with Jimmy. I got to know him and his story very well. There is one particular conversation we had that completely broke my heart. After dinner one night, I noticed that Jimmy was really quiet (not his norm) and looked very sad. I pulled him aside and we sat in the tuk tuk talking. He shared a lot of what I stated above, but he said one thing in particular that blew my mind. At one point I asked him about how much time he spends here and why he hasn't gone home. He said it's hard and misses his family,
"but at least I eat here."
WHOA! Here is this young man giving his life to serving Christ through serving others and his family does not always have food. It's one thing to not be able to afford school fees or new clothes (also ridiculous), but that his 5 siblings, sick mother and hardworking father don't eat sometimes moved me to tears. Especially because Jimmy could leave Light of Hope and go do some random work to earn a little bit of money to at least help alleviate his home situation. However, he chooses to dedicate his time to serving God.
Jimmy, nor any of the staff get paid. It is completely volunteer work. All of the youth who teach classes, translate and lead church services do so because it is their heart's passion to see Jesus' love spread around their village and their country. When I say youth I mean youth. The servants of Light of Hope are teenagers to early 20s who encountered Jesus through Vuthy's discipleship and now want to give back. Jimmy's story is not the exception. They all deserve to be applauded and supported! I have decided to sponsor Jimmy for $25/mo which allows him to put some food in his home, pay school fees, etc. There are 10 other teachers who could really use your help…
February is the "love month" here in the states. What better way to show real love than by supporting a young person dedicated to sharing the love of the Father?
