VBS Photos

I know that some of you with smaller computer screens had trouble viewing the photos from the VBS last month, so I will post some photos here for you to see.

Singing in Sasada

Acting out the Bible story

Boys' carpentry project

Student taking his project home on his bike.

Girls' sewing project in Ou Thmaa

Girls' final product in Wiel Wong

 Getting the swingset back in action.

Ezra enjoying the slide

 We had many different modes of transportation to get to the different VBS locations....motorcycle, "mechanized cow", and this motorcycle with a sidecar.

VBS 2012

VBS 2012 will be here soon, and we'd love to have lots of people involved!  Even if you aren't able to join us in person, would you pray for us?  We really need it!  The rains and the roads are major needs, but above all, we want the Lord Jesus glorified in all that we do.

Please remember that Thailand and Cambodia are 12 hours ahead of central time, and 14 hours ahead of pacific time.


Here is a daily schedule you can be praying over:


August 29th: Team departs from Seattle.  Departures can be hectic and stressful.  Please pray for calmness of heart and trusting in the Lord.


August 30th: Team arrives in Bangkok late at night- please pray for a good night’s sleep …and for quick jet lag recovery


August 31th: Orientation and preparation for VBS in Bangkok; sightseeing. Please pray that our team will get to know one another and be united as a team.


Sept. 1st: Team building continues in Bangkok.....


Sept. 2nd: Please pray for safe travel to Cambodia (5:30AM departure from Bangkok).  We hope to arrive in time for afternoon worship (2PM) at the ministry center. Please pray for a sense of “oneness” as we worship – even though the team won’t understand what is sung or preached.

VBS Schedule and locations:

Sept. 3rd & 4th: VBS at a school in Sasada
Sept. 5th & 6th: VBS in Wiel Wong
Sept. 7 & 8th: VBS in Ou Thmaa


Prayer requests:

- Pray that the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth will control the rain. The crops need the monsoon rains. So we ask for prayer for God’s timing with the rains…. that the farmers get what is needed for a great crop, but that the rains won’t interfere in our travel or for the VBS activities.

-Please pray for the children that come….that they would be attentive and listen to the Bible lessons, that God’s Spirit will work in their hearts to draw them to Himself if they don’t know Him yet. And if they already have put their faith in the Lord, that they will grow in their faith and trust in Him. Pray that the kids will have fun with the activities. 


-Please pray for God’s protective Hand over all the VBS locations. Pray that everyone who comes will sense that this is a safe place….a place to learn and know about God. Pray that the enemy would not be able to disrupt anything that God has planned for this week of VBS.


-Please pray for the team to have the energy and strength to work effectively in the heat, and with culture and climate changes. Pray for good sleep each night. Pray that they will love the kids and be able to communicate the love of the Lord to them – even though they don’t speak the same language! Pray for good health for each team member. Pray for safety as we travel on motorcycles every day on slick muddy roads.


-Pray for Sophan and Sopheap as they teach the Bible lesson each day, lead daily memory verses, and lead the singing. Pray that God’s Spirit will speak and teach through them. These are tiring days for Sophan and Sopheap, too, so please pray that they will be encouraged by the team being there, and energized by God working in them and through them…strengthening them. Please pray for Gideon (now 3 months), and Ezra (3 years old), as their mom and dad will be busy.


-Pray for our national helpers – Pei, Thal, and Ramon. They are the ones that can speak directly to the students. Pray that their words and actions would be pleasing and honoring to the Lord, speaking clearly how to believe and trust Christ as Saviour.


- Pray for the English teaching that the team will do in the afternoons. We will be teaching English using a Bible curriculum. Please pray that God – by His Spirit – will touch the hearts of these students. Pray for the teachers to have clarity and teach effectively.


We will hold a closing program and invite the parents to attend at Sasada and Ou Thmaa. Some of these parents have never heard the Gospel before, so this is an important time for them. Pray that they will feel welcomed and loved, and sense the presence of the Lord. Pray that they will desire to know Him.  Pray that God's Light will shine in each of the VBS locations, that many will come to know Him as a result of His working through the VBS.

Sept. 9th: Travel back to Bangkok. In the evening the team will have a time of worship together, debriefing, and prayer. 


Sept. 10th: Leave for the US early morning flight. Pray for safety in travel- and for rest. Please also pray for each member’s ability to process their time here. Give praise, thanks and glory to the Lord for all He did and accomplished.




“Father, thank you for the opportunity that you are giving this team to serve you in Cambodia. Prepare us- your team - for acts of love and good deeds. We pray that the team will be the aroma of Christ through all that is done each day. We pray that at every place of ministry where we serve, that Jesus would be seen in us, and the love of Jesus expressed through us. May your name be great in the streets and homes throughout Sompovloun. Anoint our lips and prepare our hearts that we might be prepared to give the reason for the hope that we have with gentleness and respect. Use this week of serving together to further unify us, your people, and to further your Kingdom. May those we serve see how we love You and one another, and may their hearts be drawn to You. May Jesus be exalted and darkness pushed back in His mighty name.

Father, we pray that the seeds of the Gospel that are sown in Somvpovloun will be watered by Your Spirit and produce an eternal harvest! Bless each member of the team with the presence of Jesus. May many come to know You, oh Lord. Amen!!!”




Thank you so much for joining our team by committing this work and these people to the Lord in prayer. 


Gayle

Evangelism Workshop

In July, a group called "Cambodian Christian Ministry Center" based out of  Phnom Penh, came to Kilometer 13 to hold a two day evangelism workshop and outreach.  Anyone was invited to join the training.  There were two pastors from other areas that came, as well as about 20 people from the K13 church.  It was wonderful to see nearly 10 men join the training....along with several young people, and women.  Seeing all those men attend was such an amazing answer to prayer as I thought back to when the church started 5 years ago and was all women!  God has been answering our prayer to build men up to be leaders in the church!!  Praise Him.

Pastor Naro teaching on evangelism

Sharing a meal during lunch

The trainees and trainers

Outreach at the government school - telling Bible stories using puppets

The Jesus film was shown in the evening, and other gatherings of children heard stories from the Bible with the puppets.  Praise God for His stirring in the lives of men, women, and children to share their faith with others!

Goat Milk Production

For the past few years we have been raising goats as a means to have the ministry center self-sustainable.  We have raised a lot of goats and sold many for their meat, but it still hasn't been enough income to provide regular income for the center.  The past year we have worked to begin milking the goats with the hope of selling the milk - both as income for the center as well as a milk source for the community as there are very few cows locally and very little milk available.  This past month, Ra - the man now responsible for the goat project - separated the goats so that we could begin milking.  

Ra milks two goats every morning and every night.

The beginning milk production is about 3-4 liters/day.  Once there is a solid market for the goat milk Ra will milk more goats.  The milk is filtered through a cheese cloth and then boiled for 10-15 minutes before drinking.

Since the mama's are being milked. that means the babies have to be 

hand fed.

The sign in front of the ministry center announcing the sale of goat milk!!

The largest key to this being successful is having a market for selling the  milk.  We would appreciate your prayers that this would take off as a sustainable project to support the ministry center on an on-going basis.  This first month we are allowing anyone that is interested, to try the goat milk for free as it's a new....and unusual....food item for the community.

Baby Gideon

I thought you might like to see photos of baby Gideon!  He is one month old in these photos.  Ezra loves his little brother and is very tender and sweet with Gideon.

Harvest

 We had a reasonably good rice harvest this year, but unfortunately no profit was gained.  After working the field this past year we saw a number of problems that will need to be slowly worked on over the next few years.  The ground is uneven and needs to be leveled out and cleared in several areas.  We started this task this year to obtain better boundaries with one side of the field, and will try to do a bit more each year.  As we are able to clear and level off more area, our crop production will improve.  Below are two photos from the rice field.

Beautiful grains of rice

The rice field

We have had a good fruit harvest this year.  Sophan has been working with the land behind the ministry center to improve the soil and improve the condition of the fruit trees.  It yielded an increased fruit crop this year for "lemut" or sappadillo trees.  

Sopheap washing and sorting sappadillos

We have had an increasing problem with snails at the ministry center making it difficult to plant any vegetables.  We have tried a number of different natural methods to try to get rid of them, but they have taken over!!  Sophan decided to see if he could grow vegetables using a simple hydroponic method he had seen used.  

Various vegetables newly planted and suspended from bamboo poles.

Sophan also recycled some broken water filters and is using them to try growing vegetables in pots.

Farming isn't easy, so we are constantly seeking new ways to improve production.  Poor soil, huge problems with pests, masses of weeds that are difficult to get under control....are all challenges Sophan and our farmer, Ra, continually work with.