from Martha Parker, Individual Volunteer in Mission
I don't know how this really happened. I only know that when I prayed with a young girl in Cambodia, the prayer was answered. I would like to tell the story from my point of view.
My daughter Katherine Parker is a missionary in Cambodia working to improve the lives of the poor. I am a community health nurse in California, serving the elementary schools of Mill Valley, my home community. The schools have a long break during the summer and I volunteered through the UMVIM program of our church ("United Methodist Volunteers in Mission"). I raised money for my expenses and to provide funds to carry out the work of the CHAD program within which Katherine works. "CHAD" stands for community health and agricultural development.
While in Cambodia, Katherine and I visited a newly formed congregation in rural Kompong Chhang province. At the end of the Sunday worship service, the pastor told us that one of the families that was present that day had lost all hope of finding help for a 12-year-old daughter who had a heart that was not healthy. The mother said she had been to many doctors in Phnom Penh and that the girl needed to have surgery, but the family had used up all its money. In fact, she said she had sold all her land to try to get help for her daughter. She said her husband had deserted her and that she and her three children were destitute.
What I had learned from Irene Mparutsa, the nurse with the CHAD program, was that the government hospital in Phnom Penh would care for the very poor if they had documentation from their village chiefs. I also knew that CHAD had pastors who were trained to assist families with the process of going through this system. I asked the mother if we could pray about this, and the congregation and the family prayed together. I asked the mother to prepare her documentation and gather what she needed and that we would contact her. Then, I talked directly to the young girl through an interpreter. The girl said she wanted her heart to be healed, and we prayed together.
Being a nurse, I knew she probably had lived with the condition her entire life. The mother said the doctors just told her not to drink coconut milk; they did not say anything else she could do. I could feel a murmur when I placed my hand on her chest, probably something that would have been corrected as a young child in the US. It was like looking at medical books that were 50 years old about children who had murmurs that kept them from activities and that meant they always would be tired and weak. This girl had difficulty breathing and her muscles were not well developed, because she had to rest so much.
The following week, I started my volunteer teaching of the nurses at a hospital in Phnom Penh. I found out from CHAD's Irene Mparutsa that a team of Methodist missionary heart surgeons from Korea were coming the following week. All was very vague and we had no easy way to communicate directly with the woman and her daughter other than by going to the village that was a three-hour drive for us.
We reported to the pastor and made plans on our end to help the girl come for the heart clinic, but were disturbed to hear back a few days later that the girl's condition had worsened, that the mother was also sick, and that they had set out from their rural village for Phnom Penh with their letter from the village chief, but *without* the information from us as to the specific hospital to which they should go.
I was so upset! I had so hoped to connect the girl with the heart surgeons from Korea, who I had learned were doing their surgeries at Phnom Penh's large public hospital. All I could do was continue to pray, and I asked my home congregation and healing prayer group in Mill Valley also to pray.
Another week went by, and still no one had word of the woman and her daughter. The surgeons had come and gone. Katherine and I visited the village again and we all continued to pray together.
Two more weeks passed and, one day, the pastor called Katherine and me with the joyful report that the girl had returned to the village! She had had open heart surgery and was better! We drove the three hours to the church that Sunday . . . and, who was there? The girl herself and her mother arrived by bike at the small bamboo-stilt church, beaming and praising God for the miracle of the surgery.
We asked where she had the surgery and it was at the hospital where the missionary team of Korean heart surgeons had been, and it happened the week that they were there. Did they do it? No one knew, except that the girl now had a heart to provide her a normal life.
If I have ever seen a miraculous answer to prayer, this is my witness.
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
First Mission Conference
Last week I served as a Conference Secretary for the First Annual Session of the Methodist Mission Conference in Cambodia. It has been a busy month as my assistant Vannak and I put together the "Conference Book" of reports and I worked together with Pastor Var Borom to take minutes of the Conference. It is incredibly exciting to be part of the church in Cambodia during these formative stages.
During Conference, the Implementing Board shared a vision based on Isaiah 54:2 of "Expanding God's Kingdom in Cambodia" and shared our goal of establishing an autonomous structure for the People called Methodists in Cambodia. These are goals laid out for how to establish an autonomous (not independent) church: self-governing, self-propagating, self-supporting and self-theologizing. This year was a milestone as we previously were organized as a "meeting" and now we have met for the first time as a "mission conference."
There were many exciting reports at Conference that pointed to the successful steps in increased autonomy. There is a time-line in place for the goal of self-government to be achieved by 2016 with the election of the first Cambodian Bishop. To this end, we celebrated the ordination of 11 new Deacons and 8 new Elders. Self-propagation has always been a strength of the church in Cambodia. Many new baptisms and full membership reports were given and for the first time congregations were designated as Local Church, Preaching Point or Outreach. The Treasurer gave an astounding report on the goal of self-supporting. The "5% offering" from local churches to MMC increased from $364.06 in 2007 to $3,729.36 in 2008 and the Cabinet resolved to raise $10,000 from local congregations in 2010. The first book of Cambodian sermons will also be published this year towards the goal of self-theologizing. The vision is moving forward.
The vision for the CHAD program parallels this development, has grown, and is bigger than just establishing livelihood development projects for rural communities and training health advocates. It is also to help create local organizational structures to continue this work. We are focusing not just on the current activities, but the long haul, and how to support the next generation of the church in Cambodia to continue the work of being the hands of Christ in this world.
At the same time, Bishop Roy J. Sano reminded us that sometimes we get caught up in building organizational structure because that is actually easier than the hard work of creating a just and peaceful society. He encouraged us to stay focused on our true goal.
CHAD is excited for the coming year again to support the Social Concerns Committee (SCC) of the MMC as it implements its vision: Inspired by our faith in God, Methodist Mission in Cambodia churches are working together with communities to improve the quality of life and to respond to emergency and disaster situations in Cambodia. Using the Community Based Organization (CBO) model from The Philippines, CHAD is helping passionate pastors to establish what we are calling Local Social Concerns Committees (LSCC) in some of the communities where we are working.
One of the biggest challenges we have faced in all of our work as CHAD is monitoring and following up to support the various projects and ministries as they face challenges and adapt to meet current community needs. One immediate dream is that the LSCC will be able to work with the SCC to help solve some of these problems so that we few folks in the central office don't spend all of our time running around the country on crisis calls. The long term goal is that there will be transparent structures in place to initiate ministries of social concern that lead to personal and communal transformation.
During Conference, the Implementing Board shared a vision based on Isaiah 54:2 of "Expanding God's Kingdom in Cambodia" and shared our goal of establishing an autonomous structure for the People called Methodists in Cambodia. These are goals laid out for how to establish an autonomous (not independent) church: self-governing, self-propagating, self-supporting and self-theologizing. This year was a milestone as we previously were organized as a "meeting" and now we have met for the first time as a "mission conference."
There were many exciting reports at Conference that pointed to the successful steps in increased autonomy. There is a time-line in place for the goal of self-government to be achieved by 2016 with the election of the first Cambodian Bishop. To this end, we celebrated the ordination of 11 new Deacons and 8 new Elders. Self-propagation has always been a strength of the church in Cambodia. Many new baptisms and full membership reports were given and for the first time congregations were designated as Local Church, Preaching Point or Outreach. The Treasurer gave an astounding report on the goal of self-supporting. The "5% offering" from local churches to MMC increased from $364.06 in 2007 to $3,729.36 in 2008 and the Cabinet resolved to raise $10,000 from local congregations in 2010. The first book of Cambodian sermons will also be published this year towards the goal of self-theologizing. The vision is moving forward.
At the same time, Bishop Roy J. Sano reminded us that sometimes we get caught up in building organizational structure because that is actually easier than the hard work of creating a just and peaceful society. He encouraged us to stay focused on our true goal.
One of the biggest challenges we have faced in all of our work as CHAD is monitoring and following up to support the various projects and ministries as they face challenges and adapt to meet current community needs. One immediate dream is that the LSCC will be able to work with the SCC to help solve some of these problems so that we few folks in the central office don't spend all of our time running around the country on crisis calls. The long term goal is that there will be transparent structures in place to initiate ministries of social concern that lead to personal and communal transformation.
Sunday, August 02, 2009
An open letter about chickens to the Vacation Church School children in Bakersfield, CA
From your missionary in Cambodia, Katherine.
To the children, youth and adults of the church in Bakersfield that gather this week for Vacation Church School: Grace to you and peace.
“I always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in my prayers, constantly remembering before our God your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For I know, brothers and sisters, beloved by God, that God has chosen you… And you have become imitators of Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 6a NRSV)
I hear that you are learning about Caring for God’s Creatures this year. In Genesis, we learn that God wants us to care for God’s creatures in the same way that God cares for us. And so, I write to you again this year in the style of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians to remind you of the words from Isaiah that “The Lord is the everlasting God; God created all the world. God never grows tired or weary.” (Isaiah 40:28b NRSV)
Here in Cambodia, we raise a lot of different animals, such as fish, frogs, crickets, cows, water buffalo, pigs, ducks and chickens. Raising chickens is an important part of family life. Every family wants to be able to have a few chickens, even in the city.
One of the hardest parts of raising chickens is getting enough food for them to eat because all animals that are raised by families need to be fed by the family. This is how we take part in caring for God’s creatures. If you have a pet dog or cat or fish, you need to feed it every day; the same is true for chickens. Chickens in particular love to eat vegetable scraps. What happens when you don’t eat all of your dinner? In Cambodia, the chickens get to eat all of the left-over vegetables; they help to keep the farm clean. The left-over rice is dried in the sun and the chickens get to eat this too. Chickens also love bugs. They are particularly fond of termites and worms. A lot of families have a termite mound at their house, which is good for feeding both the chickens and the fish.
Last week, I went to visit the Minister of Agriculture in one province. He was very happy to meet me and to hear about the good work that our churches are doing. He encouraged me to support more families to raise chickens. It is a very good way for the church to help the poorest people in the community. Raising chickens is not too hard and it can give a family a good sense of accomplishment. The United Methodist Church, through the CHAD program is helping families to raise chickens in three ways.
First, we provide gift-loans to community groups so that they can start raising chickens. A group of about five families starts working together, and each family receives about five chickens. When the first baby chicks grow to about bantee size, they are given to a new family. In this way, the gift of chickens from the church is passed on from family to family until everyone in the village has a small flock of chickens. Chickens get sick very easily, and this can kill off an entire village of chickens, so this is an important way for the church to help a village rebuild after a natural disease epidemic. The initial gift is not very big, just a few chickens for a few families, but because people share with their neighbors, everyone can benefit.
Another activity of the church is to start savings and credit groups. Every week, members of the savings group contribute a small amount to their savings account. Families can then take a small loan from the savings union to help them expand their farm. Many families will take a small loan of $25 for three months to help them buy chicken feed from the store so they can produce chickens to sell. When the family pays back the loan, the interest stays in the community, thus increasing the community's wealth.
The third way the church helps is to provide technical assistance about how better to raise chickens. Through our partner organizations, we can share information about proper housing for chickens and improved feed such as worms. Chickens are not very smart creatures; they need the help of families, especially the children, to go in and out. In the morning, it is the responsibility of the children to shoo the chickens outside where they can hunt for bugs and vegetables. Then, at night, the children need to gather the chickens back to their safe house again so they don’t catch cold or get stolen. With research from our partner CelAgric (which is funded in part by Heifer International), the church in Cambodia has distributed information about how to build better chicken houses. We have also provided information about what vegetables are best for improving chicken health. During my meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, he encouraged me to start teaching more about worm farming so that families would know how to raise worms, which can also improve the diet and health of chickens. We hope to start a pilot project about this in Methodist Amen Church in Kampong Chhnang province soon.
Learning about Caring for God’s Creatures is an important activity for the children in the church here in Cambodia and I am glad that you are also interested in learning these same lessons. We can sing praises for God’s care of creatures by saying: “You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for people to use, and bring forth food from the earth” (Psalm 104:14). We are all made in the image of God and called to continue taking care of God’s creatures. Thank you for your care. Beloved in Christ, pray for us in Cambodia as we continue to keep you in prayer as well and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
To the children, youth and adults of the church in Bakersfield that gather this week for Vacation Church School: Grace to you and peace.
“I always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in my prayers, constantly remembering before our God your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For I know, brothers and sisters, beloved by God, that God has chosen you… And you have become imitators of Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 6a NRSV)
I hear that you are learning about Caring for God’s Creatures this year. In Genesis, we learn that God wants us to care for God’s creatures in the same way that God cares for us. And so, I write to you again this year in the style of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians to remind you of the words from Isaiah that “The Lord is the everlasting God; God created all the world. God never grows tired or weary.” (Isaiah 40:28b NRSV)
Here in Cambodia, we raise a lot of different animals, such as fish, frogs, crickets, cows, water buffalo, pigs, ducks and chickens. Raising chickens is an important part of family life. Every family wants to be able to have a few chickens, even in the city.
One of the hardest parts of raising chickens is getting enough food for them to eat because all animals that are raised by families need to be fed by the family. This is how we take part in caring for God’s creatures. If you have a pet dog or cat or fish, you need to feed it every day; the same is true for chickens. Chickens in particular love to eat vegetable scraps. What happens when you don’t eat all of your dinner? In Cambodia, the chickens get to eat all of the left-over vegetables; they help to keep the farm clean. The left-over rice is dried in the sun and the chickens get to eat this too. Chickens also love bugs. They are particularly fond of termites and worms. A lot of families have a termite mound at their house, which is good for feeding both the chickens and the fish.
Last week, I went to visit the Minister of Agriculture in one province. He was very happy to meet me and to hear about the good work that our churches are doing. He encouraged me to support more families to raise chickens. It is a very good way for the church to help the poorest people in the community. Raising chickens is not too hard and it can give a family a good sense of accomplishment. The United Methodist Church, through the CHAD program is helping families to raise chickens in three ways.
First, we provide gift-loans to community groups so that they can start raising chickens. A group of about five families starts working together, and each family receives about five chickens. When the first baby chicks grow to about bantee size, they are given to a new family. In this way, the gift of chickens from the church is passed on from family to family until everyone in the village has a small flock of chickens. Chickens get sick very easily, and this can kill off an entire village of chickens, so this is an important way for the church to help a village rebuild after a natural disease epidemic. The initial gift is not very big, just a few chickens for a few families, but because people share with their neighbors, everyone can benefit.
Another activity of the church is to start savings and credit groups. Every week, members of the savings group contribute a small amount to their savings account. Families can then take a small loan from the savings union to help them expand their farm. Many families will take a small loan of $25 for three months to help them buy chicken feed from the store so they can produce chickens to sell. When the family pays back the loan, the interest stays in the community, thus increasing the community's wealth.
The third way the church helps is to provide technical assistance about how better to raise chickens. Through our partner organizations, we can share information about proper housing for chickens and improved feed such as worms. Chickens are not very smart creatures; they need the help of families, especially the children, to go in and out. In the morning, it is the responsibility of the children to shoo the chickens outside where they can hunt for bugs and vegetables. Then, at night, the children need to gather the chickens back to their safe house again so they don’t catch cold or get stolen. With research from our partner CelAgric (which is funded in part by Heifer International), the church in Cambodia has distributed information about how to build better chicken houses. We have also provided information about what vegetables are best for improving chicken health. During my meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, he encouraged me to start teaching more about worm farming so that families would know how to raise worms, which can also improve the diet and health of chickens. We hope to start a pilot project about this in Methodist Amen Church in Kampong Chhnang province soon.
Learning about Caring for God’s Creatures is an important activity for the children in the church here in Cambodia and I am glad that you are also interested in learning these same lessons. We can sing praises for God’s care of creatures by saying: “You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for people to use, and bring forth food from the earth” (Psalm 104:14). We are all made in the image of God and called to continue taking care of God’s creatures. Thank you for your care. Beloved in Christ, pray for us in Cambodia as we continue to keep you in prayer as well and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Alcoholism
This summer I have made a commitment to visit two churches in Kampong Chhnang (Solang Kandal and Methodist Amen) every other Sunday and lead a Bible study on "Mobilizing the Church." This is one of the core curriculum models being used by the CHAD team to help churches organize a local social concerns committee that can plan and implement community development activities. Last week at Solang Kandal, we studied the Good Samaritan story (Luke 10:25-37) and talked about “who is my neighbor.” It was a challenging lesson, and the class worked really hard at thinking about what it means to love your neighbor.
Alcoholism is a huge problem in Cambodia, and Solang Kandal is no exception. During rounds last week, while my mom was volunteering at Center of Hope Hospital (a free hospital for the poor in Phnom Penh), she observed 3 of the 12 beds had folks in their 30s dying of liver failure.
At a previous meeting at Solang Kandal, we prayed for a young man that wanted to come to Phnom Penh to study at the Bible School, but his non-Christian, alcoholic parents were resistant because they didn’t want to lose his labor on the farm. The pastor had invited the parents to meet with the church community and was working to help them accept that this is a good opportunity for their son to improve himself. I only observed a little of the exchange, but I admired how the pastor was able to work with the parents.
This week, two of the women leaders of the church shared during the lesson about the struggle of having alcoholic husbands. After become a Christian, one woman stopped giving money to her husband to buy alcohol. It is not easy, she said. They argue a lot; he still finds other money to drink, and he blames her for many things. We talked about how as a Christian she wants to love her husband and wants the best for him, and so she no longer supports his alcoholism by giving him money. This was a very powerful example to the class of what it means to love your neighbor. Sometimes, loving our neighbors (or our family members) means not enabling them to go down a bad path. I think it was also helpful to the members of the community to be able to express their pain to an outsider and to have it acknowledged. As a guest in the church, I cannot solve the problems, but I can help provide a space and encouragement for people to give voice to problems, and we can pray together for guidance. In the middle of our conversation, one of the alcoholic husbands joined the meeting and was able to participate for part of the Bible study.
This week the pastor called me with encouraging news. The man who joined the meeting had not drunk any alcohol this week and he had been helping his wife with the farm. Even he was able to find encouragement in the discussion. Please keep praying for these families. It is not easy, but our faith gives us hope, and hope gives us strength, and day by day with God’s help we can persevere.
Alcoholism is a huge problem in Cambodia, and Solang Kandal is no exception. During rounds last week, while my mom was volunteering at Center of Hope Hospital (a free hospital for the poor in Phnom Penh), she observed 3 of the 12 beds had folks in their 30s dying of liver failure.
At a previous meeting at Solang Kandal, we prayed for a young man that wanted to come to Phnom Penh to study at the Bible School, but his non-Christian, alcoholic parents were resistant because they didn’t want to lose his labor on the farm. The pastor had invited the parents to meet with the church community and was working to help them accept that this is a good opportunity for their son to improve himself. I only observed a little of the exchange, but I admired how the pastor was able to work with the parents.
This week, two of the women leaders of the church shared during the lesson about the struggle of having alcoholic husbands. After become a Christian, one woman stopped giving money to her husband to buy alcohol. It is not easy, she said. They argue a lot; he still finds other money to drink, and he blames her for many things. We talked about how as a Christian she wants to love her husband and wants the best for him, and so she no longer supports his alcoholism by giving him money. This was a very powerful example to the class of what it means to love your neighbor. Sometimes, loving our neighbors (or our family members) means not enabling them to go down a bad path. I think it was also helpful to the members of the community to be able to express their pain to an outsider and to have it acknowledged. As a guest in the church, I cannot solve the problems, but I can help provide a space and encouragement for people to give voice to problems, and we can pray together for guidance. In the middle of our conversation, one of the alcoholic husbands joined the meeting and was able to participate for part of the Bible study.
This week the pastor called me with encouraging news. The man who joined the meeting had not drunk any alcohol this week and he had been helping his wife with the farm. Even he was able to find encouragement in the discussion. Please keep praying for these families. It is not easy, but our faith gives us hope, and hope gives us strength, and day by day with God’s help we can persevere.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Prison outreach ministry
Last time I was home in California, one of my partner churches in Bakersfield gave me two suitcases of health kits prepared by the VBS kids to bring back to Cambodia. During a recent visit to Kompong Chhnang for a Medical Outreach Clinic, I shared the kits with Rev. Ean Hun and his wife Pastor Sophean. They were very pleased to receive them in support of the prison outreach ministry of the church in Kompong Chhnang. They shared a few stories with me about the significance of this ministry.
The prison in Kompong Chhnang has 280 men in terrible conditions. Rev. Hun said that the men have to sleep in two-hour shifts because there is a shortage of beds. There is also a shortage of food, resulting in swollen bellies and a prevalence of itchy skin rashes due to insufficient soap and hygiene supplies. Rev. Hun has been visiting the prisoners, and, when available, bringing food (basically only men who have relatives who visit have food to eat), soap and detergent for washing clothes. He has been leading a Bible study and recently distributed 12 bibles to men who have been participating.
He was very pleased to have the health kits sent from Bakersfield and shared them with the men with whom he is working. We talked a bit about his hope to be able to provide soap, detergent (for washing clothes) and liniment oil to all of the men, at another point in the future. He also hopes to establish a library of Khmer language literature for the men to use during their one hour time each day where they could have access to such a collection of books.
Recently, one of the prisoners Rev. Hun has been working with was released. Rev. Hun has invited him to stay at the church and to lead a nearby church group without a pastor.
This is a wonderful partnership that has come out of the Bakersfield generosity. I am so pleased that we could support the outreach of the Cambodian Christians in this prison ministry in this way.
The prison in Kompong Chhnang has 280 men in terrible conditions. Rev. Hun said that the men have to sleep in two-hour shifts because there is a shortage of beds. There is also a shortage of food, resulting in swollen bellies and a prevalence of itchy skin rashes due to insufficient soap and hygiene supplies. Rev. Hun has been visiting the prisoners, and, when available, bringing food (basically only men who have relatives who visit have food to eat), soap and detergent for washing clothes. He has been leading a Bible study and recently distributed 12 bibles to men who have been participating.
He was very pleased to have the health kits sent from Bakersfield and shared them with the men with whom he is working. We talked a bit about his hope to be able to provide soap, detergent (for washing clothes) and liniment oil to all of the men, at another point in the future. He also hopes to establish a library of Khmer language literature for the men to use during their one hour time each day where they could have access to such a collection of books.
Recently, one of the prisoners Rev. Hun has been working with was released. Rev. Hun has invited him to stay at the church and to lead a nearby church group without a pastor.
This is a wonderful partnership that has come out of the Bakersfield generosity. I am so pleased that we could support the outreach of the Cambodian Christians in this prison ministry in this way.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Language update
I am almost finished with Book Two for learning reading and writing in Khmer, so my teacher asked me last week about what I wanted to study next. Basically, she told me that I am doing fine with reading and writing, but my conversation skills are lagging behind. This is understandable since I work in an English language office and always travel with a translator when I go to the field.
Last weekend, I took a plunge and decided to travel to the province of Kampong Chhnang by myself. On Saturday, I visited the church of Lun Sokom. About a year ago, they started a saving group in the church. The 20 members of the group (both Christians and non-), each save 1000 reil ($.25) every month. They have also been giving out small loans of about $15-25 to the members (repayable in three months). Three members took loans last year in order to buy feed to start raising chickens. They pay 3% interest. According to an earlier plan, they would start the savings group and after they demonstrated its success, then CHAD would come in to provide additional capital, which would allow the group to give larger loans out to the members. I went to evaluate their progress and also to introduce the curriculum "Mobilizing the Church," which is a Bible study designed to facilitate group formation.
Lun Sokom has relativly good English and said I didn't need to bring a translator. Turns out, he was a great Khmer teacher. He forced me to speak as much as possible in Khmer and also to listen hard to the group (only translating enough back to English so that I didn't lose the thread of the conversation). I probably only actually understood about 10-20% of the dialogue, but it was enough to know that they were on track and would continue to work on the suggestions I introduced.
On Sunday, I joined church at Plau Nou Chivet (Way of Life). While I still don't actually understand most of the hymns, I am getting much better at reading and singing along and can catch about one-half of the words.
I then went on to Solong Kandal Church where we continued with the "Mobilizing the Church" study. I brought a local translator, Nara, with me. He was a good group leader and we had a very dynamic workshop. But he didn't do so well as a translator. He kept forgetting to keep me in the loop. So, I just had to struggle along with my own understanding for most of the day. (Luckily, I basically knew what we were doing.) The congregation at this church is really warm and welcoming, and I always feel like a member of the family when I visit.
Last time I visited Solong Kandal (church of Pastor Sophean), we talked about the past outreach activities of the church and a bit about their future plans. Currently, they worship in the house of one of the members. It is a very simple house, the type that is often translated into English as a "cottage." (The house has walls made from woven palm leaves, rather than bamboo slats or wood. It also has a metal roof, which is nicer than thatch, but hotter than tile.) The church members are very active and have worked hard to raise funds themselves for various things. They are engaged in a lot of visitation (to the poor, alcoholics, etc.).
This time we were talking about "outsiders" and how we can be more welcoming to folks different from us. It really struck me about how marginalized Christians are in Cambodia when I asked about visiting people with AIDS. They said that there are folks with AIDS in their community and that, yes, they have gone to visit them. I asked if they experienced that people sometimes look down on people with AIDS. They said yes, but also that sometimes the people with AIDS looked down on the Christians!
They have also been collecting rice through a first-fruits offering. Recently, they sold a portion of their rice and bought a small paddy field (50 square meters) for $580. It will be used to grow rice to raise additional money for the church. They are asking CHAD to partner with them to purchase some farm equipment (such as a hand tractor or threshing machine) that they can rent out as a small business venture to raise funds for the church. Since this is a much more costly investment than CHAD usually engages in (about $3000), we are moving very slowly and making sure that everything is in place first.
From a learning perspective, I was feeling really proud since I went by myself. Even though I still can't actually follow the conversation, I was able to pick out a lot of words and when I knew the big picture I could keep up in a way. It also gave me more confidence to travel by myself and to use pastors or local translators rather than bringing someone with me from Phnom Penh.
Last weekend, I took a plunge and decided to travel to the province of Kampong Chhnang by myself. On Saturday, I visited the church of Lun Sokom. About a year ago, they started a saving group in the church. The 20 members of the group (both Christians and non-), each save 1000 reil ($.25) every month. They have also been giving out small loans of about $15-25 to the members (repayable in three months). Three members took loans last year in order to buy feed to start raising chickens. They pay 3% interest. According to an earlier plan, they would start the savings group and after they demonstrated its success, then CHAD would come in to provide additional capital, which would allow the group to give larger loans out to the members. I went to evaluate their progress and also to introduce the curriculum "Mobilizing the Church," which is a Bible study designed to facilitate group formation.
Lun Sokom has relativly good English and said I didn't need to bring a translator. Turns out, he was a great Khmer teacher. He forced me to speak as much as possible in Khmer and also to listen hard to the group (only translating enough back to English so that I didn't lose the thread of the conversation). I probably only actually understood about 10-20% of the dialogue, but it was enough to know that they were on track and would continue to work on the suggestions I introduced.
On Sunday, I joined church at Plau Nou Chivet (Way of Life). While I still don't actually understand most of the hymns, I am getting much better at reading and singing along and can catch about one-half of the words.
I then went on to Solong Kandal Church where we continued with the "Mobilizing the Church" study. I brought a local translator, Nara, with me. He was a good group leader and we had a very dynamic workshop. But he didn't do so well as a translator. He kept forgetting to keep me in the loop. So, I just had to struggle along with my own understanding for most of the day. (Luckily, I basically knew what we were doing.) The congregation at this church is really warm and welcoming, and I always feel like a member of the family when I visit.
Last time I visited Solong Kandal (church of Pastor Sophean), we talked about the past outreach activities of the church and a bit about their future plans. Currently, they worship in the house of one of the members. It is a very simple house, the type that is often translated into English as a "cottage." (The house has walls made from woven palm leaves, rather than bamboo slats or wood. It also has a metal roof, which is nicer than thatch, but hotter than tile.) The church members are very active and have worked hard to raise funds themselves for various things. They are engaged in a lot of visitation (to the poor, alcoholics, etc.).
This time we were talking about "outsiders" and how we can be more welcoming to folks different from us. It really struck me about how marginalized Christians are in Cambodia when I asked about visiting people with AIDS. They said that there are folks with AIDS in their community and that, yes, they have gone to visit them. I asked if they experienced that people sometimes look down on people with AIDS. They said yes, but also that sometimes the people with AIDS looked down on the Christians!
They have also been collecting rice through a first-fruits offering. Recently, they sold a portion of their rice and bought a small paddy field (50 square meters) for $580. It will be used to grow rice to raise additional money for the church. They are asking CHAD to partner with them to purchase some farm equipment (such as a hand tractor or threshing machine) that they can rent out as a small business venture to raise funds for the church. Since this is a much more costly investment than CHAD usually engages in (about $3000), we are moving very slowly and making sure that everything is in place first.
From a learning perspective, I was feeling really proud since I went by myself. Even though I still can't actually follow the conversation, I was able to pick out a lot of words and when I knew the big picture I could keep up in a way. It also gave me more confidence to travel by myself and to use pastors or local translators rather than bringing someone with me from Phnom Penh.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
The gift of knowledge
From time to time, I meet someone for the first time, but I know them instantly because the ripple effects of their ministry in the world have been hitting me for a long time. Pastor Sophean, the wife of Rev. Ean Hun, is one such person.
Pastor Sophean came from humble beginnings. I don’t know much of her story, only that she had to stop school at just second grade. I can’t tell you when or how she became a Christian, only that she did. But when that happened, her passion and desire to know God’s Word was so great that at the age of 35, with the help of her family, she learned to read. A woman with formal education only up to the second grade was inspired and empowered.
To look at her ministry now, you would never guess her background. She brings a fervor and passion to prayer that is unique. She led the opening worship service on the second day of our medical mission clinic with Louisiana UMVIM at Chrolongkok Church. Even our volunteers from the US commented to me later that they could feel the spirit move when she sang and prayed, despite the language barriers.
But, I could have told you this before I even met her because of my experience working with one of the churches she started in the northern part of Kampong Chhnang. In a house church, less than two years old, was one of the most vibrant and generous ministries I have seen, engaging in outreach not only with external resources, but also with rice from their own bowls. In addition, I was so impressed because she had trained the congregation to have the best record keeping I have seen of any church in Cambodia.
She has nurtured many young folks in the faith, inviting them into her house and teaching by her example. Pastor Lun Sokom said that when he and his wife were living under her care as youth, that she was very strict with them, instilling a sense of discipline reminiscent of John Wesley’s Holiness Club. Pastor Lon Sokom's love and respect for Pastor Sophean is obvious.
Sophean is currently a student at the Methodist Bible School in Phnom Penh, and her teacher, Rev. Romy del Rosario, is greatful for the depth of experience she brings to all of the classroom discusions. Her quest for knowlege is inspirational. And I could go on and on.
It was a joy for me to join in the wedding of her son last week; I pray for continued blessing for this wonderful woman and her family.
Pastor Sophean came from humble beginnings. I don’t know much of her story, only that she had to stop school at just second grade. I can’t tell you when or how she became a Christian, only that she did. But when that happened, her passion and desire to know God’s Word was so great that at the age of 35, with the help of her family, she learned to read. A woman with formal education only up to the second grade was inspired and empowered.
To look at her ministry now, you would never guess her background. She brings a fervor and passion to prayer that is unique. She led the opening worship service on the second day of our medical mission clinic with Louisiana UMVIM at Chrolongkok Church. Even our volunteers from the US commented to me later that they could feel the spirit move when she sang and prayed, despite the language barriers.
But, I could have told you this before I even met her because of my experience working with one of the churches she started in the northern part of Kampong Chhnang. In a house church, less than two years old, was one of the most vibrant and generous ministries I have seen, engaging in outreach not only with external resources, but also with rice from their own bowls. In addition, I was so impressed because she had trained the congregation to have the best record keeping I have seen of any church in Cambodia.
She has nurtured many young folks in the faith, inviting them into her house and teaching by her example. Pastor Lun Sokom said that when he and his wife were living under her care as youth, that she was very strict with them, instilling a sense of discipline reminiscent of John Wesley’s Holiness Club. Pastor Lon Sokom's love and respect for Pastor Sophean is obvious.
Sophean is currently a student at the Methodist Bible School in Phnom Penh, and her teacher, Rev. Romy del Rosario, is greatful for the depth of experience she brings to all of the classroom discusions. Her quest for knowlege is inspirational. And I could go on and on.
It was a joy for me to join in the wedding of her son last week; I pray for continued blessing for this wonderful woman and her family.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
A new school
Sam Oeurn, assistant pastor from Spien Church, stopped by our office today to share about his new business. He has just purchased a school he named LTS (Language and Technology School). He wanted to know if we would come and participate in the ceremony to welcome students for the new semester.
It was a novel request for me, but as Oeurn shared more about his vision for his church and for Cambodia it became clear. Oeurn's dream is three fold: 1) that folks will have the knowledge for a better life, 2) that folks will have the resources to accomplish their dreams, and 3) that the church will have good leadership.
It is big investment for Oeurn, a young man in his 30s, to buy and run this 10-teacher school with 250 students. (There have been 50 new students in the last month since he took over operations!) I know that he prayed a lot before taking this step. But I understand that his vision is big and that he doesn't see this as running just another school in Cambodia. He sees it as a way that he is living out his faith. We are all involved in building a better world (in religious terms: The Kingdom of God), and Oeurn sees his part in this as providing education for kids in his community.
I think it is exciting to see a young Cambodian take his faith seriously and listen to how it influences major life choices. And I applaud him for being able to articulate how this step is helping him to live an authentic life true to his vision and calling.
It was a novel request for me, but as Oeurn shared more about his vision for his church and for Cambodia it became clear. Oeurn's dream is three fold: 1) that folks will have the knowledge for a better life, 2) that folks will have the resources to accomplish their dreams, and 3) that the church will have good leadership.
It is big investment for Oeurn, a young man in his 30s, to buy and run this 10-teacher school with 250 students. (There have been 50 new students in the last month since he took over operations!) I know that he prayed a lot before taking this step. But I understand that his vision is big and that he doesn't see this as running just another school in Cambodia. He sees it as a way that he is living out his faith. We are all involved in building a better world (in religious terms: The Kingdom of God), and Oeurn sees his part in this as providing education for kids in his community.
I think it is exciting to see a young Cambodian take his faith seriously and listen to how it influences major life choices. And I applaud him for being able to articulate how this step is helping him to live an authentic life true to his vision and calling.
Monday, October 20, 2008
A story of healing
Pastor Kieu Sophal came by our office this morning to help with lesson planning for our health volunteer training workshop that starts tomorrow. I was just sitting at my computer as she told this story, so I am quickly typing it up to share with you.
A woman in Sophal’s district had been battered by her husband and received a back injury that caused her to be in bed unable to walk for about three weeks. Sophal, a new pastor since July, heard about this woman from one of her church members. But Sophal told us that she was worried and hesitant to visit the women: “I don’t have money, what could I offer to this woman.” Sophal doesn’t have a moto (motorcycle/scooter), but the church member took her to see the woman using her own moto.
Sophal told the battered woman, “I don’t have money to offer you, but I have God, and I would like to pray with you.” She came with three other church members and they all prayed for the women. The members reported a sense of the presence of God in that place. “Everyone in the room could sense the awesomeness of God in their hands and throughout their whole bodies.” The battered woman was very encouraged. The church member continues to visit with her and reported that within a week she was able to walk again. Everyone felt that the prayer meeting was a turning point in her recovery.
I wish I could convey to you the sense of gratitude and awe that Sophal brings when she tells this story.
Irene gives thanks to God for Sophal’s testimony… not only for the healing that took place but also for the attitude of the pastor. Many of the pastors in Cambodia feel discouraged because they feel like they don’t have money to offer to people. But Irene likes to remind me (and them) that Jesus sent us out to do ministry without taking anything with us… the people will take care of us or not… but we need to trust that God will be sufficient and provide what we need for the situation… we need to act first and trust that we will be able to find the resources we need for the situation, but if we just sit at home then there will be no way for God to act through us.
It reminds me of the song we used to sing at VBS: Silver and Gold have I none, but such as I have I give thee. Let’s start by giving people what we have. We have the love of God in Jesus Christ.
Irene says, “many times I don’t have money to help poor sick people, I can only give advice and prayer… but I just take the person to the hospital and sometimes we can find a doctor who can help us or another way becomes clear.” We can’t be paralyzed by our fears of what we don’t have. God asks us to just do what we can with what we have and the rest will come.
The song Silver and Gold
A woman in Sophal’s district had been battered by her husband and received a back injury that caused her to be in bed unable to walk for about three weeks. Sophal, a new pastor since July, heard about this woman from one of her church members. But Sophal told us that she was worried and hesitant to visit the women: “I don’t have money, what could I offer to this woman.” Sophal doesn’t have a moto (motorcycle/scooter), but the church member took her to see the woman using her own moto.
Sophal told the battered woman, “I don’t have money to offer you, but I have God, and I would like to pray with you.” She came with three other church members and they all prayed for the women. The members reported a sense of the presence of God in that place. “Everyone in the room could sense the awesomeness of God in their hands and throughout their whole bodies.” The battered woman was very encouraged. The church member continues to visit with her and reported that within a week she was able to walk again. Everyone felt that the prayer meeting was a turning point in her recovery.
I wish I could convey to you the sense of gratitude and awe that Sophal brings when she tells this story.
Irene gives thanks to God for Sophal’s testimony… not only for the healing that took place but also for the attitude of the pastor. Many of the pastors in Cambodia feel discouraged because they feel like they don’t have money to offer to people. But Irene likes to remind me (and them) that Jesus sent us out to do ministry without taking anything with us… the people will take care of us or not… but we need to trust that God will be sufficient and provide what we need for the situation… we need to act first and trust that we will be able to find the resources we need for the situation, but if we just sit at home then there will be no way for God to act through us.
It reminds me of the song we used to sing at VBS: Silver and Gold have I none, but such as I have I give thee. Let’s start by giving people what we have. We have the love of God in Jesus Christ.
Irene says, “many times I don’t have money to help poor sick people, I can only give advice and prayer… but I just take the person to the hospital and sometimes we can find a doctor who can help us or another way becomes clear.” We can’t be paralyzed by our fears of what we don’t have. God asks us to just do what we can with what we have and the rest will come.
The song Silver and Gold
Peter and John went to pray, they met a poor man on the way. He asked for alms, and held out his palms and this is what Peter did say: Silver and Gold have I none, but such as I have I give thee, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk. He went walking and leaping and praising God, walking and leaping and praising God. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Building confidence
This week we had our second foundational workshop with the pastors in the Battambong district. The new church at the district headquarters is just about finished being constructed with just some final cleaning to do (sorry no pictures). We used an upstairs open air porch for our gathering. The CHAD team was much better prepared this time and we were able to complete a full lesson in one day. The theme was “God’s extravagant love for the transformation of the world.”
My personal successes focused around language. I asked Mr. Thy and Tola to pre-translate some of the discussion questions into Khmer and had them print out the questions for me (I still can’t read anyone’s handwriting, only the precise characters as printed by the computer). I then made big posters with the relevant questions for each section. Then, when we gave our oral explanations (which are translated in real time) people could be simultaneously reading the task. I only made one mistake of putting a line-break mid-word. It would be generous to say that I recognized ¼ of the words I was writing, but there was some recognition and it was good practice for me.
The second big language success happened at the beginning of the day as folks were gathering. I was in charge of the warm-up (devotion), and I wanted everyone to collect an object and then share with a partner how that object symbolized God’s love. With minimal prompting and filling in with English words, I managed to successful say “before you go upstairs, please get a thing that is God’s Love and then talk together with another person.” The shocking bit was that the pastor I was talking with actually understood me!
My personal successes focused around language. I asked Mr. Thy and Tola to pre-translate some of the discussion questions into Khmer and had them print out the questions for me (I still can’t read anyone’s handwriting, only the precise characters as printed by the computer). I then made big posters with the relevant questions for each section. Then, when we gave our oral explanations (which are translated in real time) people could be simultaneously reading the task. I only made one mistake of putting a line-break mid-word. It would be generous to say that I recognized ¼ of the words I was writing, but there was some recognition and it was good practice for me.
The second big language success happened at the beginning of the day as folks were gathering. I was in charge of the warm-up (devotion), and I wanted everyone to collect an object and then share with a partner how that object symbolized God’s love. With minimal prompting and filling in with English words, I managed to successful say “before you go upstairs, please get a thing that is God’s Love and then talk together with another person.” The shocking bit was that the pastor I was talking with actually understood me!
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