Our project directors arrived at a cluster of Cambodian villages, shocked to see the conditions most families lived in on a regular basis.
Alcoholism had pervaded nearly every home. Illiteracy rates had skyrocketed. Parasites, digestive diseases and chronic dehydration were more common than not. Children lived on one meal a day, and hospitals or clinics did not exist for hundreds of miles.
Our team knew they had their work cut out for them, so they immediately began hosting precautionary COVID classes to fight misinformation while distributing masks, soap and ceramic water filters.
Instructors taught personalized lessons in villagers’ homes about hygiene practices, water sanitation and farming techniques that helped several village gardens start pumpkin, garlic, avocado and passion fruit crops.
One villager, Saray, attended training in the hopes of helping her sick daughter. After class, she shared her husband wanted to learn more about the man called Jesus, so several partners packed into a car to drive to her rural homestead.
Upon arriving, Saray’s husband, Sumin, peppered our team with questions. After several hours of interrogation, Sumin suddenly jumped to his feet and grabbed an ax.
Sprinting into his home, Sumin began cutting down their altars to idols and asked to receive prayer as he committed his life to Christ. The joy on both Samir and Saray’s faces brought our partners to tears.
Saray told them, “If I had known about Jesus a month ago, I wouldn’t have sacrificed my pig and chickens to the spirits to heal my daughter. I would have prayed and just trusted Jesus!”
Pray for Saray and Sumin to grow in their new relationship with Jesus and for the villagers across Cambodia to find the resources they need to survive these difficult times.
Published December 12, 2022