1 Feb 2020
PCC we got to a village 15 km short of Kampong Thom. Dennis had a bearing go out.
We had one sent from SReap and one from PPenh. SR arrived 1st and so we got it on by 4:30 and on the road by 4:48. Got to DomDaek at 6:20 and it was just turning dark. We will pick up the second set of bearings on Wednesday when we come back through K Thom
We prayed to start, prayed through Stoung, prayed for our bearing situation, prayed that God would intervene and reveal himself to many Cambodian people. We prayed for protection and safety and to keep our families safe while we are away. The delay put us in Dom Daek for the night and we did not go north through the countryside at Stoung. We are going to get to Anlong Veang tomorrow about 2 ? so that we will have time to visit folks in the afternoon since they have more time on Sundays/weekends. We are praying for good meetings tomorrow and for God’s promptings.
2 Feb 2020
Peter met us at the hang bye for noodles/rice this morning. Left from DomDaek and went and prayed over Beung Mealea. Traveled on through Svay Leu. Past svay leu we stopped for water and asked about any church in the area. They said there was one 5 km up the road to the left. The church was holding services on this Sunday morning, so we prayed without entering the campus. There were several buildings there and looked like they may have some ties to Korean benefactors due to the style of the campus with a school and eating area, open air auditorium and another building, but we don’t know that for sure.
We stopped by the Health Center on the road to tropaing Prasat where Wendy had helped with some training in years past and the director still had her picture displayed on his desk. They were very happy to see her again and were very honored that she made the effort to come for a visit.
We went on from Trompaing prasat to the Thai border and we went west along the border and then south to Anlong Veang. We met with the leaders of Christian Fellowship of Cambodia. They told the story of their mission in Cambodia.
The leaders took us to meet some of the people they have had contact with through their church. We had 3 good visits with people who had varying stages of illnesses. The first stop was an older gentleman that had diabetes. Physically he was weak but not in any discomfort. They claimed faith but had not been baptized. We were able to have a good spiritual discussion and we prayed for them.
2nd place was a 57 year old woman that had a stroke 5 years ago. Her body was showing severe signs of atrophy from the neurological/circulatory compromise of her medical condition. She could not talk or sit up, so I squatted down to look her in the eye and give some word of encouragement. I was overwhelmed with emotion as i talked about how God cared about her and could relate to her even though she could not talk . I prayed that God would give her comfort and reveal himself to her and that she could know God .
3rd visit was a Grandmother that had difficulty speaking clearly. Some folks shared with her and she claimed she believed it God, so she prayed to follow God and serve Him. I’m not sure how much she understood but that would be a good place for the local leaders to re-visit in the near future.
We then went to eat and get a fruit shake before bed. 7:30 am start tomorrow to travel with local leaders and visit with folks in the area around Anlong Veang.
3 Feb 2020
We met Mesa for breakfast this morning and then went for visits around Anlong Veang.
The first house was a woman that had a stroke and we prayed for her. We also tried to visit her neighbor but they told us that they did not fully believe and so we prayed for them from the gate of their house.
We then went to visit an elderly woman that was a leader in the Khmer Rouge during Pol Pot. She is an old woman now. She was part of the KR tribunal trials as one accused of war crimes during Pol Pot. Now she lives a life of faith in God. Truly amazing the transformation in her life. As she grabbed my hands and smiled, I couldn’t help but imagine the atrocities she has witnessed and has been responsible for in her lifetime and yet now I see a new life in Christ. Anyone figure out how they erected that huge cross in the front yard?
- In the neighboring house we received a warm greeting from the man that lived there. The son of KR grandma had married his daughter. They had a child together that had a congenital heart defect and they were told that the child would probably die within the first year of life. This caused the father, KR grandmas son, to get depressed and commit suicide. This left the mother to take care of 3 boys by herself and the youngest was predicted to die in the upcoming year. This family trusted God and prayed for healing of this child. God did heal him and the congenital defect is no longer present. God healed the child. The grandfather was giving God the glory for this healing but in a mocking and insincere manner. The young mother told us her testimony of how God met her at her lowest point. She was broken hearted when her husband committed suicide and God met her where she was. It was midnight one night and she was having difficulty breathing . She had experienced persecution from evil spirits before and she felt oppressed by them. She explained that she was not confident in knowing how to pray but God taught her to pray right then. She called out to God to help her and He did. The evil spirits left when she prayed for God to help her. She felt free and she was overwhelmed with comfort when the evil spirits left and she felt the presence of God. Tears streamed down her face. She expressed overwhelming joy in being in the presence of God even in the midst of losing her husband and the certainty that her baby would die in the next year. She also had the vision of seeing a large road with many people walking down it. And then a small road cut across the large one. She knew she needed to go down the small road as God was directing her to do so. She felt that during this time that her body was weak and lifeless but that her spirit was awake and strong. At first I thought she was describing a dream, but in the end she said that she felt she died at midnight and that her spirit returned to her body at 6 am.
- Her mother also shared a testimony of how she had heard God speak to her clearly and audibly in the night. This had happened to her several times.
- Both these women have strong faith and they were strong in their testimonies of God intervening into their lives with very real personal experiences and healing of a child’s heart condition . They were unwavering even in the face of persecution from people in the market and their husband/father living in the same house.
- Next visit we visited with an old couple. The husband could not see or hear very well and he was 100 years old. His wife was 88. These folks lived just outside of town and not many no people have started coming to worship. They had a water filtration business going in that village and the water quality was very good. We prayed for God’s blessing on this family and their business and for the growth of the fellowship and the spread of the gospel.
- In another village we prayed for another believing family and for their cement ring and tank business to flourish. We prayed God would increase their spiritual capacity as well.
- We went to find the chicken farm that Peter is consulting/encouraging/coaching as David is going back to Switzerland. We met the pastor, Dee, next door and prayed with him. We asked for his requests and he said his building is in disrepair and not big enough. They normally have 150+ on Sunday and most the folks stand outside the building. He also said it would help if he had a better Moto in good repair. He also asked us to pray for his ministry. His church is KEC and he knows Phearum in SR , Koy and Kia.
- We met the new chicken farm manager and prayed for him to be strong in his convictions and not give in to temptations that come his way. He shared that he had prayed specifically for God to show him the way for a job and that Hid had directed him to this position on the chicken farm.
- We met the pastor in Angkor Chum. He told us that they are building a church in this village. We met and visited together there. He is part of an association that meets in various locations once a month. They also coordinate together to perform funerals so that the services are God honoring and they have a lot of people present to honor the dead. He told us the story of how his son had rebelled even after going to Bible school. He came out as gay and sometimes leaves for days at a time and doesn’t communicate with his family or respect their wishes. We prayed for this pastor and his family and are planning to go on visits with him tomorrow.
For additional photos, here’s the whole album.