Posts
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Thank you for praying
Hi everybody,
We are in our last hours here in Siem Reap. The last blog post was made by Eun-Sook and can be found at
http://kcpc-cambodia.blogspot.com
We had our debrief last night and this morning with the NIBC missionaries and overall it was a great time of ministry. We never could have done it without you. Within the next week or so, we'll be posting some final blogs and pictures and we'll send one last email then.
Philip, Eun-Sook, Sarah, AND George will be leaving in an hour. The Richards are leaving for Seoul, Korea a few more hours later.
God bless you and talk to you soon,
-George
The hustle and bustle of Phnom Penh!
The insane traffic jam caused by motorcyles, cars, vans, tuk-tuks, and pedestrians. Its the survival of the fittest.
The nice serenity of Siem Reap (Kontrak Village)
Dinner!
George standing on a mound of trash. We vistited the city dump and found HUGE mounds of garbage piled next to people's homes.
People picking through garbage for anything that might sellable and/or redeemable for money.
Phil's and Sarah's 7th grade class at Hosanna School.
6th graders singing "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High".
Teaching them something.....
Would you try this?
Our last day..(Eun-Sook)
Hello Everyone!
We have returned back to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh. The capital of Cambodia is crazy! Its good to be back in Siem Reap.
In about 12 hours, we will be heading back to America. Its hard to believe that two weeks have already come and gone, although I am secretly yearning for a high pressured shower, clean clothes that smell like the springtime, and Bay Area weather. Relatively
speaking, 14 days is a very short time frame to do anything, but as previously shared by my team members, we leave Cambodia having witnessed God's hands at work
throughout this land.
Up until several days ago, I was unclear as to why I had come to Cambodia. My prayer requests prior to coming were to have an open heart and to eagerly anticipate any changes/improvements within NIBC in regards to building projects. They were open-ended and vague prayer requests to say the least, but the lesson that God wanted to teach me was grossly obvious and simple. God wanted me to learn about being a faithful child, nothing more and nothing less. Boy, did He make sure that I would learn this lesson. I must have met a dozen or so people (at least one new person a day) who have faithfully answered His call to come and serve Cambodia. Their testimonies of faith, ministries that have begun on no real foundation except faith, and their obedience to God's great commission has been challenging. Moreover, the fruits of their labor are visible. I have had the pleasure to getting to know a good handful of students who have met Christ through the missionaries and the work of their ministry. This idea of having faith (or the lack of it) was being pounded into my head and I leave here knowing that God is asking me to trust Him more.
Even in regards to anticipating a new elementary school at the NIBC site was a lesson in faith in and of itself. Upon arrival, I noticed immediately that the building project for a new primary school that has begun last summer was nowhere near finished. In fact, the missionaries didn't even know if a primary school was going to be possible. To say the least, I was disappointed. It made me sad to think that after Kindergarten, many of these students would not have access to a good primary education. I think I might have actually even grown a little bitter toward the organization and started questioning their vision. Long story short -- a week later, we were informed that NIBC had decided to officially start a primary school THIS fall. They will complete the building by September and have their first class up and running. Not only was this a pleasant shock to me, but the FAITH that these leaders are taking to start up a primary school in two months is what is fascinating. Humanly speaking, NIBC is not ready or prepared to open up a new elementary school. They don't have a director, teachers, nor a curriculum. There will also be a HUGE transition in staff as long-term missionaries from various departments take their leave and new blood steps in. Yet, despite these obstacles, the leaders of NIBC took a a leap of faith and decided to serve the youth in the villages and trusted that God will provide as needed.
These aren't huge revelations and mind-blowing experiences, but reminders that God will never let go of me. He is indeed sovereign and only He knows what will happen. In the mean time, all I am asked to do is to pray and be obedient.
I will see you all soon. Please pray for our safe arrival back in the states and a safe arrival to Korea for the Richards. Thank your for your faithful support in prayer as well. We've been a little sick and we have been bothered a bit by the mosquitoes and ants, but we'll all be back home in one piece. Praise the Lord!
Eun-Sook
We have returned back to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh. The capital of Cambodia is crazy! Its good to be back in Siem Reap.
In about 12 hours, we will be heading back to America. Its hard to believe that two weeks have already come and gone, although I am secretly yearning for a high pressured shower, clean clothes that smell like the springtime, and Bay Area weather. Relatively
speaking, 14 days is a very short time frame to do anything, but as previously shared by my team members, we leave Cambodia having witnessed God's hands at work
throughout this land.
Up until several days ago, I was unclear as to why I had come to Cambodia. My prayer requests prior to coming were to have an open heart and to eagerly anticipate any changes/improvements within NIBC in regards to building projects. They were open-ended and vague prayer requests to say the least, but the lesson that God wanted to teach me was grossly obvious and simple. God wanted me to learn about being a faithful child, nothing more and nothing less. Boy, did He make sure that I would learn this lesson. I must have met a dozen or so people (at least one new person a day) who have faithfully answered His call to come and serve Cambodia. Their testimonies of faith, ministries that have begun on no real foundation except faith, and their obedience to God's great commission has been challenging. Moreover, the fruits of their labor are visible. I have had the pleasure to getting to know a good handful of students who have met Christ through the missionaries and the work of their ministry. This idea of having faith (or the lack of it) was being pounded into my head and I leave here knowing that God is asking me to trust Him more.
Even in regards to anticipating a new elementary school at the NIBC site was a lesson in faith in and of itself. Upon arrival, I noticed immediately that the building project for a new primary school that has begun last summer was nowhere near finished. In fact, the missionaries didn't even know if a primary school was going to be possible. To say the least, I was disappointed. It made me sad to think that after Kindergarten, many of these students would not have access to a good primary education. I think I might have actually even grown a little bitter toward the organization and started questioning their vision. Long story short -- a week later, we were informed that NIBC had decided to officially start a primary school THIS fall. They will complete the building by September and have their first class up and running. Not only was this a pleasant shock to me, but the FAITH that these leaders are taking to start up a primary school in two months is what is fascinating. Humanly speaking, NIBC is not ready or prepared to open up a new elementary school. They don't have a director, teachers, nor a curriculum. There will also be a HUGE transition in staff as long-term missionaries from various departments take their leave and new blood steps in. Yet, despite these obstacles, the leaders of NIBC took a a leap of faith and decided to serve the youth in the villages and trusted that God will provide as needed.
These aren't huge revelations and mind-blowing experiences, but reminders that God will never let go of me. He is indeed sovereign and only He knows what will happen. In the mean time, all I am asked to do is to pray and be obedient.
I will see you all soon. Please pray for our safe arrival back in the states and a safe arrival to Korea for the Richards. Thank your for your faithful support in prayer as well. We've been a little sick and we have been bothered a bit by the mosquitoes and ants, but we'll all be back home in one piece. Praise the Lord!
Eun-Sook
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Cambodia: A journey of faith through Hebrews.
I had come along on this vision trip with KCPC after much deliberation both personal and theological in nature. And despite all my prior reservations about short terms "missions" and the like, God broke my pride and convicted me to open my heart and and see how He was working in this country. And in light of this conviction I went with nothing but open ears, eyes, and heart/mind. And it is in this context that I have witnessed and learned much about who God is and a glimpse into the meaning of faith.
During my stay in Cambodia I had resolved to read 1 Corinthians 13 every morning to remind myself daily of what the nature of my every action should be: the love of God. And on Monday morning this passage coupled with a hymn that a few may know:
Before the throne of God above,
I have a strong, a perfect pleas;
A great High Priest whose name is "Love"
Whoever lives and pleads for me
My name is graven on His hand,
My name is written on His heart;
I know that while in heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart
No tongue can bid me thence depart.
When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end to all my sin.
Because the sinless savior died
My sinful soul is counted free,
For God, the Just, is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me.
Behold Him there! the risen lamb,
My perfect, spotless righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The king of glory and of grace;
One with Himself I cannot die,
My soul is purchased by His blood;
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ, my savior and my God
With Christ, my savior and my God.
(I'm sure many, if not all, people just skimmed it but I do encourage you to read it in full when time permits - I started writing with the intention to stop at the first verse but I couldn't help myself :D)
-led me to browse through Hebrews, once again being reminded how amazing our mediator is. As I skimmed through chapter 9 and eventually ended up in 10:19 I was reminded of all that I had seen and experienced in Cambodia. Testimony after testimony and observing these fellow brothers and sisters in Christ doing their utmost to live faithfully starting to fall into place in the backdrop of Hebrews; namely, Hebrews 10:19 to 12:2.
"How do I live faithfully at this point in my life?"
10Often times we view faith as something we will into existence and sustain by our extraordinary actions but what we fail to see is that faith comes not from our will but from God's. Often times I would find myself trying to mimic the remarkable actions of faith of others in order to convince for myself that I too was living faithfully. Little did I know that my view of what faith was in fact so narrow and limited. Faith is not a result of action but rather it is action that is a result of faith. Furthermore, in our anxieties and uncertainties concerning our faith we need not look any where else but upwards to Christ on the cross. For it is "by the blood of Jesus" (v.19) which grants our hearts "full assurance of faith" (v.21) not our works. Faith is not conditioned on who we are but who God is. "For he who promised is faithful." (v.23) I knew that God was faithful but I didn't KNOW it. Only after meeting countless individuals who were living faithfully in radically different manners and through the Word by the illumination of the Holy Spirit did I truly realize the implications of the fact that God was, is, and will always be faithful. It is God who will carry us through with our decisions made in faith and it is God who will sustain the path we have chosen in faith. It is not our ability or competence that ensures anything but it is God's supremacy and sovereignty that ensures everything. This liberating truth eliminates all feelings of doubt and anxiety and allows us to live freely in His grace, in faith. (John 8:32)
11Another trap I often found myself in was my endless search for visible and tangible signs of confirmation by God approving or disapproving of my decisions and actions. Faith is not a journey taken on a smooth and paved road lit with the light of man but it is taken on a road set before us, prepared for us before creation, to be taken in faith guided by His light. For "faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. By faith we understand the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible." (v.1;3) Too often I find myself amazed and awestruck by examples of actions of faith being based on answered prayers. For example, "if you want me to go God, such and such circumstance will occur/not occur." Now God does in fact guide us in various means; however, take a step back from the shell shock of amazement. Consider now what is even more miraculous and amazing - the very fact that we can have faith at all despite how little and deficient it may seem. Too often we look for the extraordinary and extravagant signs but fail to see that what is truly extraordinary and extravagant is the internal working of the Holy Spirit in the lives of individuals which produces faith. Faith; particularly in missions, is less about how equipped or unequipped you feel and more about the God who humbles and equips you. In faith, "Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain,"(v.4) "Enoch was taken up,"(v.5) Noah was warned, and "Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance" - going "not knowing where he was going." (v.8) This list continues to go on and on and even the author of Hebrews feels as though he has exhausted the point in saying, "And what more shall i say?"(v.32) Great now we have examples of faithfulness, but how does this truly apply to me? As i read through the multitudes of examples listed there resided a common thread, other than faith, that became apparent: "all of these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised."(v.39)... Wait a minute, didn't Abraham receive his inheritance and was also able to keep his son? And the type of response I initially had revealed something about my view of faith and the things which I hope for: My vision was far too temporal and too fleeting. Too narrow and void of the wider and exhaustive kingdom view that God has. Faith is not about the immediate and tangible goals but about the things unseen and the eternal perspective - the kingdom perspective. For "God had provided something better for us."(v.40)
12To think that I could ever be so foolishly confident about what God had in store for me; how foolish I had been and probably will continue to be. However, I do not despair or sorrow in my inadequacy but I rejoice and glory knowing that "Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, ...is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."(v.2) This is love, our mediator and giver of our faith. What wonderful reason for praise and worship we have daily in our lives. Having now gained a glimpse into what it means to have faith and live faithfully; I come in humility, a fool relying fully upon God and His Spirit given in grace to begin to be led forward along the path lit by the Word - the light of the world - Jesus Christ.
Through my time in Cambodia God has revealed to me just how apparent it is that we are indeed "surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses."(v.1) And if I learned anything in my time here, it is that faith cannot be sought apart from God and He is wholly essential and sufficient for its' very existence. The journey of faith has been walked by many before us and will continued to be walked by our fellow saints - each will have their own paths set before them - but all will share in the light which guides them on their paths which lead them through the valleys and over the mountains home to His kingdom.
Thank you for your continual prayer and support. Let us continue to stir up one another to love in and through the gospel.
God bless,
Phil
Monday, August 3, 2009
Pictures from the last few days
Just wanted to share some pictures from the last few days.
The Kim family, who will be the eventual replacement for Ju-Hwan and Wha-yun, when they leave for sabbatical in October 2010. They have a daughter, Seh-rin (almost 2 years old) and another son coming in 4 weeks. They're a great looking family.
Seh-rin was hard to win over, but she was a cutie and Richard L. and George worked hard to befriend her
To give you a sense of how hard the Khmer language is, there are over 70 consonants and vowels, and the blue and red colors signify group 1 and group 2, which changes the pronunciation of a word, based on what group of vowels or consonants are being combined. Es muy dificil.
We visited the S-21 prison which was a former high school turned prison camp during the Khmer Rouge years. It is now a memorial / museum and a fairly depressing, but insightful place to visit.
The rules which prisoners had to live by in S21.
Several rooms are full of pictures of the prisoners of S21. Most peole who came here did not survive. It was a very dark chapter for this nation and its people.
On Sunday, after we visited the International Worship service, we happened to run into a friend who is working with Hagar International, an organization devoted to social entrepreneurship and redeeming the lives of many Cambodians. Nathan Chan is on the far left. We ate at the restaurant that Hagar runs as one of its ventures, the proceeds supports the ministry and provides employment opportunities for the people they are ministering to.
We visited a Korean missionary who is running a youth center in a village outside of Phnom Penh. We met a lot of high schoolers who were excited to follow Christ.
A picture with Pastor John, Ju-Hwan, Wha-yun, & Jarunee before we left for Phnom Penh. The night before, he challenged us to live by faith and to not hold onto treasures in this world through sharing his testimony.
The Kim family, who will be the eventual replacement for Ju-Hwan and Wha-yun, when they leave for sabbatical in October 2010. They have a daughter, Seh-rin (almost 2 years old) and another son coming in 4 weeks. They're a great looking family.
Seh-rin was hard to win over, but she was a cutie and Richard L. and George worked hard to befriend her
To give you a sense of how hard the Khmer language is, there are over 70 consonants and vowels, and the blue and red colors signify group 1 and group 2, which changes the pronunciation of a word, based on what group of vowels or consonants are being combined. Es muy dificil.
We visited the S-21 prison which was a former high school turned prison camp during the Khmer Rouge years. It is now a memorial / museum and a fairly depressing, but insightful place to visit.
The rules which prisoners had to live by in S21.
Several rooms are full of pictures of the prisoners of S21. Most peole who came here did not survive. It was a very dark chapter for this nation and its people.
On Sunday, after we visited the International Worship service, we happened to run into a friend who is working with Hagar International, an organization devoted to social entrepreneurship and redeeming the lives of many Cambodians. Nathan Chan is on the far left. We ate at the restaurant that Hagar runs as one of its ventures, the proceeds supports the ministry and provides employment opportunities for the people they are ministering to.
We visited a Korean missionary who is running a youth center in a village outside of Phnom Penh. We met a lot of high schoolers who were excited to follow Christ.
A picture with Pastor John, Ju-Hwan, Wha-yun, & Jarunee before we left for Phnom Penh. The night before, he challenged us to live by faith and to not hold onto treasures in this world through sharing his testimony.
Cambodia 8-2-09
We visited a church called International Christian Assembly yesterday, and a pastor named Tim Paton spoke to us from 2 King 6:24-33. The passage talks about a famine in the city of Samaria, and how a woman cries out to the king in distress. The woman goes on to tell the king that she had a deal with another mother to give up her son to eat one day, and then they would eat the other son the next day. However, the other woman had hidden her son the next day.
The noteworthy point about the passage is not the mother's cry for help, but the king's reply in verse 30, "When the king heard the woman's words, he tore his robes."The challenge is that you should respond in the same way when your heart is broken for a country for some social injustice. When people hear about third world countries and how much need there is in this world, they often respond with indifference or pity. However, if your heart is ripped open, then that is probably a good indicator that God wants to use you. In whatever capacity God will use you may be unknown; but if you keep your clothes torn and your heart open, then God will open doors for you.
The message is particularly challenging for me because I am not entirely sure if my heart is torn open for Cambodia or any other country for that matter. I feel like I lack so much faith and that I am not ready to be used by God. The way that I have selfishly planned out my life is that I will go to law school, get a nice job, get married, have a family, and only after I have completed everything on my list, will I start to focus on what God wants me to do. I think this mission trip has really challenged my faith and outlook on life, and I really need to pray about how God is working in my life...
richard park
The noteworthy point about the passage is not the mother's cry for help, but the king's reply in verse 30, "When the king heard the woman's words, he tore his robes."The challenge is that you should respond in the same way when your heart is broken for a country for some social injustice. When people hear about third world countries and how much need there is in this world, they often respond with indifference or pity. However, if your heart is ripped open, then that is probably a good indicator that God wants to use you. In whatever capacity God will use you may be unknown; but if you keep your clothes torn and your heart open, then God will open doors for you.
The message is particularly challenging for me because I am not entirely sure if my heart is torn open for Cambodia or any other country for that matter. I feel like I lack so much faith and that I am not ready to be used by God. The way that I have selfishly planned out my life is that I will go to law school, get a nice job, get married, have a family, and only after I have completed everything on my list, will I start to focus on what God wants me to do. I think this mission trip has really challenged my faith and outlook on life, and I really need to pray about how God is working in my life...
richard park
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Day One in Phnom penh (08.01.09)
Leaving behind the students, the facilities at NIBC(the school where we taught) and the city of Siem Reap that we've become so familiar with in just a week, we headed south today on a city bus for the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. Upon arriving at the Phnom Penh bus station after a pretty comfortable 6-hour ride(like SF to LA) and grabbing a quick lunch we were told that our next stop was the Genocide Museum, which used to be a security office for the purpose of interrogation, torture, detainment and countless inhumane actions by the Khmer Rouge. Having already been there and seen the numerous displays of pictures of detainees and the 0.8 m x 2.0 m cells during my last visit with my parents last winter, my anticipation for this particular experience was probably much less than that of other team members who were seeing for the first time the thousands of terrified faces of the detainees who ranges from little girls and boys to the elderly, and some of the photos being taken at the time of their death (I'm not sure why they took such pictures). So as we entered the building, I recognized the the horrified looks of the numerous people in the photo display from my previous trip. To be honest, I had a strong urge to skim over them since I'd been there before. But I told myself I would take the time to look at each of the faces. And as I was doing that, I realized that a picture of me, a picture of Richard, Phil, Sarah, George, Eunsook could be up there had we been born a few decades ago, and just a little away from the states. And a few other faces from Berkeley came to mind and then the reality of this country's history felt a little more real to me. To the people of Cambodia, it wasn't just some foreigners or people in history books and old black-and-white photos that lost lives during Khmer Rouge. It was their little brothers and sisters they used to play with, running around the streets together. It was their mothers and fathers who were their shelters. It was their husbands and wives whom they swore to spend the rest of their lives with. But all those loved ones were gone, so quickly, leaving most of them nothing else but grief and anger.
How would I tell about God's love to someone's who has been through something like that when I myself have only lived barely over twenty years and all of them years spent in blessings upon blessings, great opportunities and resources all around? What can I, a mere college student spoiled in my little world, possibly do to open closed hearts and clenched fists? Knowing there's nothing I can do to change anything except to pray to our God, I am humbled. And knowing our Good Lord hears and answers our prayer, I am hopeful.
Well, I was going to end there but I remembered we did some things after that. So after visiting the Genocide Museum, we made our way over to one of the missionaries' homes here in Phnom penh. We met two missionary couples, their cute little babies(one of them was only 23 days old, and maybe that's why Eunsook said "look at its hair!"), and a missionary who's studying Kahmer at a language school. It's so encouraging to see so many servants who have counted gain what many would count loss and are living lives that are so flexible and available. George, as well as other missionaries, shared with us that much of being a missionary is about flexibility and availability for God. And I've been seeing just that in the lives of the men and women who are here for God and whose plans are to ask and seek God every step of the way, whatever it is they are doing. Really, it is so encouraging, and also challenging because I see so little of that in the way I live. Tomorrow is Sunday, international service in the morning and Cambodian service in the afternoon. Good night
Richard Lee
How would I tell about God's love to someone's who has been through something like that when I myself have only lived barely over twenty years and all of them years spent in blessings upon blessings, great opportunities and resources all around? What can I, a mere college student spoiled in my little world, possibly do to open closed hearts and clenched fists? Knowing there's nothing I can do to change anything except to pray to our God, I am humbled. And knowing our Good Lord hears and answers our prayer, I am hopeful.
Well, I was going to end there but I remembered we did some things after that. So after visiting the Genocide Museum, we made our way over to one of the missionaries' homes here in Phnom penh. We met two missionary couples, their cute little babies(one of them was only 23 days old, and maybe that's why Eunsook said "look at its hair!"), and a missionary who's studying Kahmer at a language school. It's so encouraging to see so many servants who have counted gain what many would count loss and are living lives that are so flexible and available. George, as well as other missionaries, shared with us that much of being a missionary is about flexibility and availability for God. And I've been seeing just that in the lives of the men and women who are here for God and whose plans are to ask and seek God every step of the way, whatever it is they are doing. Really, it is so encouraging, and also challenging because I see so little of that in the way I live. Tomorrow is Sunday, international service in the morning and Cambodian service in the afternoon. Good night
Richard Lee
Friday, July 31, 2009
Greetings from Phnom Penh
Hi everybody,
We're in Phnom Penh now after about a five hour bus ride. The ride
wasn't that bad, so we are just waiting to meet up with the
missionaries here. Thanks for praying for us. The six of us and the
three missionaries, Jarunee, Ju-Hwan, and Wha-yun, are here with us.
Jarunee and Wha-yun are going to a conference about children's
education and the rest of us will be busy with the Hosanna School.
We'll post more later.
-George
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Planting seeds and moving concrete
Sorry we haven't written in awhile. Needless to say, it's been pretty busy and we conk out every night before getting a chance to write.
In a nutshell, things are going well here and we thank you for your prayers. Each day, we are building bonds with the staff and BGU students here and it's been a blessing for us, hopefully for them, too.
This post might be a bit long, but it's going to cover a lot of things, and not in chronological order.
2nd Kontrak Graduation
The kindergarten at Kontrak village just had its 2nd graduation ceremony. You can easily tell from the parents faces that it's a special event for them. The kids proudly wore their makeshift graduation caps and sang their songs that they practiced. Guests included members from a sponsoring church in Korea, Dongbaek Church, Handong professors Ezra Kim and SK Lee, NIBC president John Lee, and the Commune leader (ie. mayor) for the village.
The graduation is another sign that NIBC is still making inroads to the village and establishing itself as a safe and nurturing place for their children. All the families that attended seemed to be really happy. And in the midst of it all, Jesus Christ is being introduced to this village.
Professor SK Lee
We also ran into Professor SK Lee, someone the past two teams have been fortunate enough to meet. He was in Siem Reap for only two days and we were lucky enough to spend an hour with him after lunch. I (George) was also able to have a short conversation about the latest news about NIBC and ministry here.
SK zeroing in on Richard
The long and short of it is, SK is an amazing person with an incredible testimony. After retiring from a long career with Bell Labs and Motorola as a General Counsel, he has devoted his life to trying to redeem Cambodia spiritual and economic plight, usually trying to combine both in the same projects. The latest initiative involves a U.N. sponsored program that is encouraging entrepreneurship that engages the global markets with local resources, like rice, mangos, and other plentiful resources within Cambodia. Ask me about it if you want to know more.
Helping the harvesters
The Richards, Philip, and Sarah have been meeting with the BGU students throughout the time we've been here, starting on Saturday. It's a blessing to see their desire to learn more about God and also serve the NIBC ministry here. It was really easy to get to know them.
Each BGU student has a neat story and I hope that future blog posts will share them with you. According to Operation World, Cambodia's population is about 1.5% Christian. These young believers represent the future of the Cambodian church and their strong faiths will be needed to reach the rest of the country. We'll definitely be sharing more about them later.
Richard and Sarah's class: (L to R) Rotanak, Soken, and Pong. Soken was one of the students in our English camp last year.
Rotanak and Pong discussing the New Testament during the morning sessions.
Lastly...moving concrete
One of the ways we were able to help out was help move some consruction materials for a new school building. The story behind the building is that now that they are graduating children from their two kindergartens (Kontrak and Rainbow), where will the kids go? It was a burden for the NIBC leaders to see their kids leave, so plans were quickly made to establish a primary school a couple of years ago.
The building is a work in progress, and just like many other projects involving Cambodian labor, it's a T.B.D. type of situation. The hope is that the construction can be finished by late Fall 2009 and they will be able to welcome students for the new year starting October 2010. In between now and then, this project will need a lot of prayer, because construction is the easiest part. Staffing the primary school with Khmer teachers, finding the right leadership for a school, and financing it all will require God's hand. If you are interested in helping, please let me (George) know at missions@sfkcpc.org
The fun part of construction was serving with the BGU stduents. These women are built tough (the guys also). Each concrete sack was 112 lbs. We ended up moving about 6,200 lbs of concrete to the second floor to help out.
A view from the second floor of the not-yet-finished building.
Sarah and Eun-Sook enjoying the fruits of our labor.
Group picture in front of the 6,200 lbs of concrete we just lifted.
Richard assuming a squat position while Soken and Philip gladly dump the concrete sack on his back.
Lastly, I leave you with this funny shot. One of the missionary's dogs, Harry, is feasting on a dinner of thai curry and rice and whatever leftovers they had from that day. Not a bad dinner, if you ask me.
This meal would cost about $9.99 back in California. Eat up, Harry
In a nutshell, things are going well here and we thank you for your prayers. Each day, we are building bonds with the staff and BGU students here and it's been a blessing for us, hopefully for them, too.
This post might be a bit long, but it's going to cover a lot of things, and not in chronological order.
2nd Kontrak Graduation
The kindergarten at Kontrak village just had its 2nd graduation ceremony. You can easily tell from the parents faces that it's a special event for them. The kids proudly wore their makeshift graduation caps and sang their songs that they practiced. Guests included members from a sponsoring church in Korea, Dongbaek Church, Handong professors Ezra Kim and SK Lee, NIBC president John Lee, and the Commune leader (ie. mayor) for the village.
The graduation is another sign that NIBC is still making inroads to the village and establishing itself as a safe and nurturing place for their children. All the families that attended seemed to be really happy. And in the midst of it all, Jesus Christ is being introduced to this village.
Professor SK Lee
We also ran into Professor SK Lee, someone the past two teams have been fortunate enough to meet. He was in Siem Reap for only two days and we were lucky enough to spend an hour with him after lunch. I (George) was also able to have a short conversation about the latest news about NIBC and ministry here.
SK zeroing in on RichardThe long and short of it is, SK is an amazing person with an incredible testimony. After retiring from a long career with Bell Labs and Motorola as a General Counsel, he has devoted his life to trying to redeem Cambodia spiritual and economic plight, usually trying to combine both in the same projects. The latest initiative involves a U.N. sponsored program that is encouraging entrepreneurship that engages the global markets with local resources, like rice, mangos, and other plentiful resources within Cambodia. Ask me about it if you want to know more.
Helping the harvesters
The Richards, Philip, and Sarah have been meeting with the BGU students throughout the time we've been here, starting on Saturday. It's a blessing to see their desire to learn more about God and also serve the NIBC ministry here. It was really easy to get to know them.
Each BGU student has a neat story and I hope that future blog posts will share them with you. According to Operation World, Cambodia's population is about 1.5% Christian. These young believers represent the future of the Cambodian church and their strong faiths will be needed to reach the rest of the country. We'll definitely be sharing more about them later.
Richard and Sarah's class: (L to R) Rotanak, Soken, and Pong. Soken was one of the students in our English camp last year.
Rotanak and Pong discussing the New Testament during the morning sessions.
Lastly...moving concrete
One of the ways we were able to help out was help move some consruction materials for a new school building. The story behind the building is that now that they are graduating children from their two kindergartens (Kontrak and Rainbow), where will the kids go? It was a burden for the NIBC leaders to see their kids leave, so plans were quickly made to establish a primary school a couple of years ago.
The building is a work in progress, and just like many other projects involving Cambodian labor, it's a T.B.D. type of situation. The hope is that the construction can be finished by late Fall 2009 and they will be able to welcome students for the new year starting October 2010. In between now and then, this project will need a lot of prayer, because construction is the easiest part. Staffing the primary school with Khmer teachers, finding the right leadership for a school, and financing it all will require God's hand. If you are interested in helping, please let me (George) know at missions@sfkcpc.org
The fun part of construction was serving with the BGU stduents. These women are built tough (the guys also). Each concrete sack was 112 lbs. We ended up moving about 6,200 lbs of concrete to the second floor to help out.
A view from the second floor of the not-yet-finished building.
Sarah and Eun-Sook enjoying the fruits of our labor.
Group picture in front of the 6,200 lbs of concrete we just lifted.
Richard assuming a squat position while Soken and Philip gladly dump the concrete sack on his back.
Lastly, I leave you with this funny shot. One of the missionary's dogs, Harry, is feasting on a dinner of thai curry and rice and whatever leftovers they had from that day. Not a bad dinner, if you ask me.
This meal would cost about $9.99 back in California. Eat up, Harry
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Thanks for praying
We had a pretty good day and I don't know if some of you started to immediately pray after getting the email, but within an hour, Eunsook, who was feeling the worst, was ready to go. The human part of us wants to praise Aleve, but we give all glory to God. We are reminded that God's grace is made perfect in weakness. Everyone else was feeling better by the afternoon, too. Please continue to pray for us and the ministry here. We've been having a good time working with the Riainbow School staff and students, as well as the interaction with the BGU students as well. Tomorrow, we'll go into greater detail.
In a couple of days, we should be meeting up with Pastor John and hopefully will have a meet and greet with one of the NIBC leaders that has always challenged us in the past two years we've come (Prof. Lee). One of the best things about coming here is being challenged and having our eyes opened by the staff and workers here.
It was sad to see Jongmin go (or as some of the team called him, Uncle Jongmin), but it was a blessing for us to fellowship with our brother who is now living in Singapore and get an update on how life has been the last few months for him.
-George
team
jump
rainbow
sweep
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street no.9Monday, July 27, 2009
Prayer request
hi everybody,
This is George. Right now, it's Tuesday morning in Siem Reap and everybody has woken up sick to some degree. Symptoms include sore throats, fevers, and body aches. Ugh. Please pray for a quick healing and the strength to be as faithful as possible. Despite being reminded this morning that God's grace is sufficient in our times of weakness, it's still hard. By God's grace, I'm feeling okay, so please pray that I won't fall to the viruses in two or three days, also.
-George
The Last Four Days...
in pictures:
Summer cleaning at Rainbow School
Angkor Wat covered in rain
Angkor Wat
Chum-Reap Soo! (Hello in Khmer)
Richard trying to figure out how to say "Where is your friend?"
Group picture at Tonle Sap River (home of the floating villages)
Playing with children after Sunday service
Bikes of church-goers
Bible study
Children's ministry service
Marketplace
Chum-leap Lea! Good bye!
Summer cleaning at Rainbow School
Angkor Wat covered in rain
Angkor Wat
Chum-Reap Soo! (Hello in Khmer)
Richard trying to figure out how to say "Where is your friend?"
Group picture at Tonle Sap River (home of the floating villages)
Playing with children after Sunday service
Bikes of church-goers
Bible study
Children's ministry service
Marketplace
Chum-leap Lea! Good bye!
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