End of February 2025 Update
A word to the wise: when traveling in the Cambodian provinces, accommodations vary drastically! On a recent trip, tired after a long day of travel, we booked into an unfamiliar guesthouse. Soon after entering our cabin (which, incidentally, had no air conditioning) and switching on the lights, I noticed the table (and later…to my horror… the bed and chairs and the bathroom sink) had deposits of what looked like rat turds. I hurried back to the front, explaining, sotto voce, the situation. The proprietor was shocked; she utterly rejected the possibility of rats, which, she whispered, would be “wely, wely bad.” I then produced photographic evidence. Her brow cleared immediately. “Oh, Madam, is legaavon (gecko-like lizard) poo…NOT rat! We in jungle…many legaavon…legaavon poop all place, all place (although she used a more colorful term).” She smiled charmingly, glad to have sorted that out for me.
Somehow, identifying the perpetrator of the stains and deposits wasn’t all that comforting. However, it was late, our location was remote (did I mention we were tired?), and the thought of wending our way back to a town and finding another place at that hour was just too daunting. I flipped the sheets, turned the pillowcases inside out, swept a clear path to the toilet, gingerly got into bed, and prayed a mantle of protection over us both. In the morning, we beat a hasty retreat!
That’s not the only “accommodation surprise” we’ve encountered lately: one place’s bathroom’s sink had NO drain whatsoever, another featured a large bucket of water and scoop instead of a shower (standard in the villages but not in a guesthouse), and a third (la pièce de resistance) had a padlock and key on the outside of the door… but no way to lock it from the inside! We were tired enough that it didn’t bother us...and grateful to have shelter when so many people don't.
As can happen when the weather changes, germs flourish, and people gather in one training room sneezing, coughing, and…well…breathing, we both finally succumbed to flu (my UK cousin called it “a beastly lurgy,” which is apt). One forgets how miserable the flu can be, causing you to alternate between fearing you’ll die…and fearing you won’t. On the bright side, there is NOTHING Asians enjoy more (or are better at) than bringing: a) special healing herbs, drinks, fruits, inhalations, and ginger tea, b) chicken-type special soups and noodles, and c) an assortment of totally inappropriate sweets designed, I can only assume, to encourage the patient to recover rapidly to eat them. Seriously, what kind and considerate people Cambodians are! We had to work hard to fend off bedside visits; sporting a fever-soaked nightie surrounded by mounds of used tissues is not my best look! The virus wasn’t anxious to depart quickly, either, reminding us by rattling coughs, fatigue, and scratchy voices of its lingering grip. Amazingly, Peter struggled through, missing only one commitment in the entire month, and is finally back (praise the LORD) at full (although raspy) throttle, which is a blessing as our schedule is full. He is a tough old bird!
Beginning in January, our challenge in training and equipping indigenous pastors has been to design programs appropriate for their specific needs. To build the curriculum, we interviewed several groups and presented “menus” of leadership topics from which they could select the most relevant. Many Cambodian pastors, though not all, have sound Biblical knowledge but lack practical application. For example, they may never have been shown how to baptize a new believer, conduct a wedding or funeral, run a house church meeting, what basic concepts new converts should be taught, how to manage finances, how to handle personal and church conflicts, and a host of other practical considerations that can…and will…confront a pastor whether in the city or province. Because our three groups of trainees are diverse, one being exclusively village church planters, another comprised of pastors of existing churches, and the third of aspiring church leaders, what was chosen as important has varied substantially, making it exciting for us to prepare for and teach each group.
In February, the well-established and well-organized group, AMG Cambodia, led by Pastor Lak, launched another group of church planters, six of whom we trained in Disciple-Making and will support in establishing churches in unreached villages in Takéo and Kampot provinces. These are enthusiastic and committed believers, obedient to the LORD’s command to Go and Make Disciples; we’re thrilled about the possibilities! As you know, our goal is to replace ourselves in each country where we have trained.
In the Dominican Republic, Pastor Jaime continues to recruit Haitian pastors, help them plant churches, and train them in the basics of pastoring, replicating what we are trying to do here. The persecution by the Dominican government that the Haitians are experiencing is only serving to speed the growth of home churches, just as it has in other oppressed countries.
When we speak of trained disciple makers carrying on despite opposition, in some of the most remote areas imaginable in the civil war-torn country of M________ the spread of the Gospel of Good News continues relentlessly. Despite great physical hardship and considerable personal danger, these missionaries (not spring chickens themselves) soldier on, bringing the Word, baptizing new believers, and helping where they can. Our Children’s Rescue Home pastor over the border is still battling electricity issues as the war has obliterated many power sources. It means her children must all study for their exacting governmental exams during the daylight hours, as they have no light at night. They are praying for solar panels, which, if the war is not soon resolved, will be critical.
Interestingly, the destruction of power sources in M_____has had other ramifications. You may have read that on the M_________side of the Thailand border, giant scam compounds have been set up using foreign workers, tricked by the enticement of a job, who are forced into criminality. The trafficked victims’ job is to scam people of their savings in the US, Canada, and the UK; the means the operators use to obtain compliance from their workers are brutal. These compounds, with the destruction of local power, became dependent on Thai electricity, which Thailand recently cut off. This resulted in the collapse of the operations and the release of thousands of trafficked individuals, who are now streaming over the border into Thailand and trying to get back to their countries. Many of our friends in MaeSot are actively involved in helping this wave of desperate people with food and basic necessities. (To learn more, check out Global Advance Projects on Facebook, Kelly and Judah Tana).
The other day, when we were training church planters in Kiri Vong (close to the Vietnam border), the heat was oppressive (again!), and sweat dripped into Peter’s eyes and drenched his shirt. He looked around at me and the sixty or so eager participants who had traveled by motorcycle the-Lord-only-knows what distances, and said joyfully, “There isn’t any place in the world I’d rather be.”
Ain’t THAT the truth! Thank you, thank you, thank you for partnering with us and helping us bring training in disciple-making and Church Planting to these dear people.
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.” 2 Timothy 2:2