Vol. #285
As I sit here at a beginning of a very hot day, listening to the birds chirping and the traffic on the streets, I look back to a busy 3 weeks with a grateful heart to our Lord! Let me begin to share what He has been doing, not only through me, BUT also through YOU, as YOU are my sending team and dance partners here in my heart country of Cambodia!
Many of you know that I have been going to the same salon for the past 8 years, building heart connections towards Jesus Christ. Over the past few months, about 5 of my co-workers became pregnant and I thought, hmmm, what will be the best way to celebrate such blessings of the next generation of His children, yet at the same time being His light for those who have yet to acknowledge Jesus as their Saviour? I have been inviting the staff at the salon to come to church and have spoken to them of the many events we have had over the years, but the fact is that they are at work all of the time! The salon is open 7 days a week, and even during the holidays they are still open to accommodate those who are not working! As I prayed, I got the idea of bringing the church to the salon! Why not? I invited those who were pregnant, along with their spouses, who also just happened to be church leaders, to go to the salon. I watched their interactions with the staff, the laughter and the shared stories about ‘Bong Srey Vidya’ (!), and saw the building of another kind of ‘church’, one in which there were no physical walls, but where walls of misconception of what Christian church people are like begin to change in the eyes of the salon employees and their boss Jheri. All of those who were my guests there are Khmer brothers and sisters! Lokru Samdy and Sister Navy also went but I do not have their pics to show you. Two of the guests said they would go back on their own next time because the service given by the staff there was so good!
 |
| SALON MINISTRY |
Global Leadership February 16th Cambodia:
I was helping Pastor Leah, the Country Director for GLN Cambodia, and her able assistant and right hand, Sister Kimlang, in being their ‘runner’ on that day, doing whatever needed to be done, so that things would go smoothly for those who came to learn more about leading more effectively and compassionately with Jesus the Christ as our mentor leader. This time we had pastors and lay leaders from the provinces also linking in to watch as well, with the English-speaking presenters being translated into Khmer. We gave out the curriculum that was presented both in English and Khmer and in total had about 125 attendees in Phnom Penh with 20 volunteers and about 85 watching from the provinces! We were happy to see that 77 of those who attended in PP were women! That number has grown over the years that we have been doing GLN here in Cambodia!
 |
| GLOBAL LEADERSHIP SUMMIT: CAN YOU FIND ME? |
On that morning after being there for about an hour, I felt an urge to go the main office of the International Church Assembly (ICA) that was hosting the event to say hello to their pastor, Pastor Ann who I probably meet once or twice in a year! When I entered the office, she looked up and said, I was just praying and asking God to send someone in to pray with me and there you are! Will you pray with me over this issue? And as I knelt and prayed with this humble amazing woman of God I was in tears because only OUR LORD could orchestrate such a timely meeting! One hour later, I had to go to the office again and there was Bro. Matt sitting and chatting! Matt is a fellow Canadian who is married to a Khmer and leads the Recovery from Addictions Ministry which has an office at ICA. As I walked in Pastor Ann said, “There is Vidya she can pray for you!” Matt and I know each other well so I thought he was kidding around, but then quickly realized they were being serious. Matt was restarting the Ministry for the new year and that day was a retreat for his leaders to come in and be refreshed! So again I knelt and we all prayed together! At the end of the day, I thought, Jesus, did you bring me in today so I can see Your hand and Your glory in the way You put people and events together? His Holy Spirit again blew me away!
Yes, my brothers and sisters, the hammocks on the rooftop are no longer the seating option (and the floor) for those visiting! In December, Bro. Chetra and his wife Julia talked about a member of their congregation who was starting his own business in wood making, building furniture. That conversation led to the sofa seating you see in the pictures! It came with storage, and yes, also with wheels so it can be moved easily to clean! I marvel at His timing for me to get this so that Bro. Borey (who is the carpenter and builder) not only would get some business and be encouraged but also that his neighbours, who are a couple of women, would also be part of this micro business. They sewed and made the seat cushions! I still have to get cushions for the back and foot type stools, but how exciting it is! Bro. Borey’s wife is a schoolteacher and they have 2 children but they need to have additional income to support their family. Borey has started to teach Bible classes to the men in their growing church. And to think this started with Julia witnessing to Borey as he is also a tuk tuk driver so many years ago. She invited him and his wife to her church! Then Julia married Chetra and Chetra has become his mentor as well as his pastor!
NEW SOFA
FIRST GUESTS TO USE SOFA
 |
| BOARD GAME |
And now back to the cafe at church. Again I was sitting there last Wednesday and one of the youth came to sit by me and I asked him how he was doing which led into a conversation about life, then praying together! I never know whom God will bring to that small cafe table when He urges me to just go and sit there at a certain time!
Prayer: On the 30th and 31st of March we are celebrating our 30th anniversary of New Life Church at one of the biggest malls here in Phnom Penh, Aeon Mall 3. Please pray for the logistics and for the team from our church that is planning this. Already weariness is setting in. My prayer is for them to experience the preparation as an act of worship to Him as God has sustained our church in spite of the leadership changes over the past years! I am helping with setting up the VIP room for the expat and regional/local leaders who have been here from the beginning establishing His church in Cambodia. Please pray as I try to create a fun question sheet to send out to the leaders so that we can better serve them (what foods they like, allergies etc.) They have never sent out such questionnaires before but we want to do our best to acknowledge and honor them by creating the best VIP environment for the foreigner and local leaders! Thank you!
Please continue to send me your prayer requests and stories/pics of your life as WE do this dance of life in Him together!
Love, His Warrior and Disciple,
Submitting to be His Dance partner here in Cambodia,
Your sister, Vedya
No comments:
Post a Comment