The Crusades

  Hello weekend readers!  I hope that this post finds you in the same warm, sunny weather I'm enjoying today :)  This is the third installment of my Cambodia missions trip with JSMI/Global Ventures (1st: Why Start Small?, 2nd: In The Villages).  So pour yourself another cup of tea (a little honey please) and settle in...
  After small team ministry in the villages during the day, we would all meet at the crusade site.  Since we had two ministry regions, there were also two different outdoor crusade sites.  The church we worked with actually owned a small, portable stage, and it was generously loaned to us!  Setup took some time.  Decorations had to be put up, raffle prizes displayed, tickets handed out to every child who came to the children's crusade and adult tickets collected (they were part of the crusade flyers we handed out during the day).  Actors for the illustrated Bible stories had to get in makeup and costume, performers for the entertainment had to sound check, the camera crew had to setup and get all the audio/visual equipment prepped, and those preaching had to review everything they wanted to communicate.  Following a long, sweaty day of ministry, one crusade could be a challenge.  However, we had two crusades each night.  We began with a children's crusade, and then everyone preaching/acting/assisting re-prepared for the adult crusade.  Those of us who didn't have an onstage job during the crusades helped with crowd control.

First children's crusade of the week, held at a local school

 Remember how I told you that Cambodia's largest demographic is comprised of children? We had hundreds every night.  Think about that for a minute.  Have you ever tried to keep ten, maybe twenty children interested, occupied, and in one place for over an hour?  It takes the patience, creativity, and stamina of ten Mary Poppins!  If you don't have a bottomless carpet bag and a living chalk world to pop into (not to mention Dick Van Dyke), it's almost hopeless.  Now think about doing that with three hundred kids who don't understand a word you're saying until the translator repeats it.  Then add 90 degree, extremely humid weather and the shy skepticism of agrarian Cambodian culture.  Mmhmm. The curriculum that Martine Smithwick developed for the kid's crusades is brilliant and engaging, but it was truly only the grace of God that made every detail come together each night!

  We would begin the children's crusade with dancing and giveaways.  Sometimes the gifts were as simple as candy or a toothbrush, other times they were special toys.  In an area where hygiene was a problem, toothbrushes were almost as special as a doll or truck.  Bubbles and Stripes, our two clown characters, would pick kids from the crowd to play games in teams.  It helped the kids have fun and feel less shy around our team.  Then, we would tell Bible stories, using actors to illustrate each one. 

David and Goliath (Ms. Martine is speaking)

Illustrated sermons helped make these new stories more tangible for the kids.  After all, WE seemed like giants to them, so a story about a small boy defeating someone twice the size of a gigantic American would have been difficult to imagine!  After a few stories about God, we told them about Jesus.  Actors portrayed Jesus' love for people, how He healed while He was on earth, His crucifixion, and His resurrection.  For me, this was always the most exciting part of the crusade.  Many of these kids hadn't seen us during they day; they had been invited by their friends.  I wanted to see each one of them embrace the unprecedented hope we were offering them.  So many of these kids didn't have families; they were orphans.  We were offering them a new family--God's family.  Yes, they would have spiritual brothers, sister, mothers, and fathers, but they would also get connected with our host church in Phnom Penh and the house churches that it would start.  They would literally have a family and people who cared about them for the first time.

This fourteen year old was an orphan who wanted us to take her to America.

I wanted them to know the love of Father God, and I knew that they could experience it for the first time that night.  After we prayed with them for salvation, we would tell them about God's healing power.  Just like we saw in the villages, none of these people had ever received help before.  They didn't know what it was like to have a better life or to serve a God who loves them; they simply knew daily struggle and fruitless sacrifice.  Many children were healed.  I remember one boy who had lost hearing in one ear after a insect flew into it.  He hadn't been able to hear with that ear for over a month.  There is little to no medical care there, so what may have been quickly fixed in America was irreparable there.  When we prayed, he could hear clearly again!  Many children with stomach aches, headaches and pain in their legs or arms all told us they felt completely better.  Praise God!

After the kid's crusade, we held the adult crusade.  Each night, it would begin with different entertainment.  A comedian, singers, and dancers all performed.  Prizes were also given away to the adults.  Then, we would begin preaching.  Illustrated stories of Jesus' healing power on earth were shared.  Following these, different team members shared a testimony of how Jesus healed someone in the villages that day.  On the second night, I shared about a woman who had so much pain in her leg that she couldn't easily sit, stand, or walk.  She was healed completely.  (What you can't see in this picture is that there were bugs EVERYWHERE thanks to the stage lighting.  Huge beetles landed in my hair, little bugs flew down my shirt and landed on my feet.  Not cool dude!)

The night I preached at the adult crusade, there were over 700 people in attendance.

Telling these people about healings that happened for someone they know makes it real.  They realize that Jesus doesn't just love white people or Americans.  He loves Cambodians too and wants to heal them.  So many people were healed, and some who weren't healed when we first prayed were healed after individual ministry.

  After telling them about Jesus' love, a dramatic retelling of the Gospel using the Passion video was shared.  Finally, we prayed with them for salvation and then healing.  Because of their shy culture, they did not often outwardly show appreciation or excitement when they received salvation or healing.  However, those who did were clearly impacted for the rest of their lives.  What is even more exciting for me is that those who may not have shared with us will definitely tell their families.  After all, if Grandma who wasn't able to walk before can now dance, clearly something has happened!  It is my prayer that these people will share the love of God they have experienced.
  During our time in Cambodia, 8077 people that we know of received salvation and 88 were instantly healed.  In a nation that is approximately 98% unreached, that is amazing!  God is doing amazing things in the nations of Asia, and I was so privileged to be a part of it.

That sums up the ministry portion of my visit to Cambodia, but next week, we'll talk about my visit to Angkor Wat!  Angkor Wat and its surrounding temples are still in use today for Buddhist worship, and they have an incredible history.

Until then, keep living YOUR adventure, and always remember...

Keep Dreaming!

--Ellie :)

In The Villages

  The last time we talked, I so kindly ruined your morning coffee with the history of Cambodia's struggles.  (If you haven't read it, take a few minutes to go to my post "Why Start Small?"  It'll set the stage for this one.)  But now we get to talk more about what JSMI/Global Ventures' work with Cambodia's people!  So grab yourself a toasty bagel or make a cup of tea (with honey) cuz this is where it gets more fun :)

  While JSMI took a team of about 36 people, we were separated into smaller teams for street ministry in the villages.  My team was made up of 5 (sometimes 6) experienced missionaries and me.  My team leader, Lissa, had interned at JSMI some time ago, had been to Cambodia on JSMI's first trip there, and traveled from Canada to join us.  A friend of mine from school, Aleena, (who volunteers at JSMI, told me about the trip, shared her camera while we were at Cambodia, saved my life with electrolytes, gave me invaluable tips before and during the trip, and was pretty much the best) was on my team, as well as Kaitlyn (from Aleena's home town and future Rhema Bible student), Lindsey (a current intern), Dave (a Chicago businessman), and (when we weren't sharing with other teams) Jeff.    Each of these people were fun, committed, and seriously cared about everyone we saw.  Needless to say, as a first-timer, I was with the right people! 

Dave (thanks for the photo!), Lissa, me, Kaitlyn, Lindsey, and Aleena (in front)

  We had one more team member, Ja, a translator and pastor who worked at a church in Seim Reap.  He explained Cambodian culture and the life of the villagers with whom we were working.  His church will follow up on our work to start home churches in the villages with new believers.  This will provide the support and understanding these people need to not just go to heaven but have joy and relationship with Jesus in their daily lives.

  As a team we had a scripted drama that we performed to explain the Biblical story of Creation, sin and how it separates each person from a God who loves him or her, introduce Jesus and the Son of God and His sacrifice to reconcile us to God, and God's desire to heal sick people.  We would open with a mini clown skit to entertain and engage the crowd, and close with a prayer for salvation and then physical healing.  Each of us would perform a different part each time, performing in 3-5 villages each day. 
  The skit was clear, simple, and easy to understand.  You see, for many of these people, it was the first time they had ever heard about Jesus Christ, or even seen white skin.  Crazy, right?  Cambodians in the cities have seen white tourists before; after all, the country was colonized by France.  However, we weren't in cities or even smaller towns, we were in the jungles where the Khmer Rouge both started and retreated after they were overturned.  The villages where we ministered were actually settled by disbanded Khmer Rouge soldiers.  Their family and descendants, and sometimes the ex-Rouge soldiers, were the very people we were speaking to about the forgiveness of sin and having hope for eternal life in heaven with God.  A God who loves them.
  Because of the civil war and the genocide, there was an entire generation basically missing from the Cambodian demographic.  There were children, teenage to early 20-somethings, and 60+ age groups, but very few 35-50 year olds.  In most countries, Bubbles The Clown is the one who easily connects with children.  In Cambodia, the children had never seen white skin and, since their culture is very shy, they were usually a little scared of Bubbles.  Maybe you can see why...haha.

My day as Bubbles (thanks Aleena Visser for the pic & makeup job!)

  What was even funnier was that the elderly women in the villages LOVED Bubbles!  Clowns can't talk, but they do mime.  Whenever the person playing Bubbles would mime something, the crowd would be more likely to join in.  However, the older women would dance with Bubbles!  It was so cute to see them dance with our clown to "I Like To Move It" from the Pixar flick Madagascar or hip hop tunes by Lecrae.
  In the villages, after they had heard (for the FIRST TIME) that God both loves them and wants to forgive all their sin and be with them forever, we invited them to pray with us.  It was a simple prayer to Jesus, expressing belief in God, admittance of doing bad things, belief that Jesus died for their sins and was resurrected 3 days after His death, giving their life to Him, and asking Him to be their Lord.  The expressions on these people's faces were unforgettable.  Some of the people we invited to pray watched us so closely, and were so intentional about making sure we knew they wanted to pray, that it was clear that this was the first time they had ever been offered hope for forgiveness or heaven.

In this village, nearly everyone accepted the Gospel of Christ! (photo Aleena)

It was amazing to see some of these people smile for the first time since we got there.  Confusion, mistrust, timidity, and sometimes anger were replaced with joy and hope.  But salvation wasn't the only thing we offered them.  You see, we made sure that they knew "Jesus healed when He was on Earth and that He still heals today," showing people how much God loves them.  We invited anyone who was sick to pray with us.  Then, whoever had that particular part in the skit would pray a simple prayer, commanding sickness to leave each person's body in the Name of Jesus and praying for total health in each person's body.  Many people were instantly healed!  With the testimony of healing in my own life, this part was especially close to my heart.  I loved praying and seeing people healed.  Elderly people who had trouble walking, bending their knees, or standing from a squat (how they commonly sit or rest) were healed after we prayed in the Name of Jesus.  All pain had left their bodies!  People with pain inside their bodies, problems with their organs, even tumors were ALL completely healed!  A God they had just met and to Whom they chose to give their lives showed them how much He loved them by healing them!  It was so incredible to see their belief in Jesus be confirmed.  In any culture, being miraculously healed is a really big deal, but in Cambodian agrarian villages, it literally means life or death. 

One of the ladies in a village (I have character makeup on)

If they can't work in a field or in the house, they can't even attempt to sustain themselves or contribute to the community.  Being healed, whether young or old, gives that person a new chance at life.  It is also a daily reminder of God's love for them.  Even those who didn't see us will see their neighbor, grandmother, or child living life without sickness, and it will introduce them to Jesus.  These people pray to every God they know of, hoping for a chance at another life, never really believing they'll ever get to heaven.  A friend of mine who travels frequently with JSMI, Gianna, shared with me that Thai Buddhist temples depict the path of life as ending in Hell.  Yep.  Hell.  That's the eternal hope they embrace, knowing of no other alternative.  They have never heard of Jesus Christ.  When our teams asked villagers if they knew who Jesus was, they thought He was just another white man who came with "the Americans."  We had the privilege of sharing hope with them for the very first time.

  We didn't just visit villages.  We also visited the nearby government schools.  Cambodia is governed under constitutional monarchy, and it isn't exactly pro-Christian.  Local and state governing officials aren't open to Christians missionaries visiting schools, but they ARE open to an American drama troupe that teaches English and American culture all over the world. 

Across the street from a school (the blonde is me)

Bubbles The Clown's tricks and antics teach English, and the story of Jesus is introduced as part of American culture.  We also talk about each of the home regions of the USA represented by team members.  This allows us to go into schools without being blocked by the government.  However, sometimes officials are still leery of us, and refuse to let us in.  That's where our portable speaker, microphones, and Bubbles The Clown are extra handy.  At each site, we play fun music (Cambodians love American hip hop culture), invite people to come see a drama performed all over the world in English and Khmer (thanks to JSMI/Global Ventures missions trips, it is performed worldwide), and Bubbles The Clown dances and waves to shy watchers.  It brings people from fields and midday naps, but it also brings children outside during their lunch break or after school (classes are shorter in Cambodia) to watch our drama.  Usually, every child receives the Gospel as do some of the teachers (when we went inside the schools), and many children were also healed.  It was amazing.

  Here are a few more shots of the villages...

A group of shops in the middle of fields.  Everyone rode bicycles or small motorbikes here.

A crowd enjoying Bubble's dancing antics

As you can see, even though it was HOT in Cambodia (their winter temperatures never drop past 80 degrees Fahrenheit), most people kept as much skin covered as possible in an effort to avoid tanning.  I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to farm in long sleeves and pants in 110 degree weather...







Most children had either a shirt or pants, rarely both in the remote villages.  This cutie's necklace was made of beads and what looked like bone carvings.  The woman holding her had a matching skirt.  Usually they wore a strange mix of American and European knock-off brands, so seeing matching skirts was a little unusual.  This adorable little girl was terrified of white people ("look, don't touch"), but she loved watching us.

A school yard before the drama (they're watching Bubbles goof off)

Her home was across the street from the shop behind her.  She came out to watch from a distance as we performed.













There ya have it!  Village ministry--the short version.  We spent Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday in the villages ministering.  We would leave the hotel early, by 7:45 AM on our long days and at 10:30 or 11 AM on our short days.  We got back around 10:30 or 11 at night.  By this point, you might be wondering how many people accepted the Gospel or were healed.  I will tell you soon (it's really really exciting), but we'll get to that after we talk about the crusades.  For now...

Keep dreaming ;)

-Ellie

Quick Links (just click and you're on your way!)

Aleena Visser took these photos and plans to serve in missions the rest of her life. This is her Facebook page.

Curious about JSMI/Global Ventures? Check out their website!

Why Start Small?

This summer, on June 7, I left the country.
It was the first time I'd ever been outside America's friendly borders.  Where did I go?  Mexico, maybe? Canada? The warm beaches of Puerto Rico?  Of course not.  Cambodia.  You know, that small country home to 14.5 million people in Southeastern Asia.

(Don't get me wrong, any close-to-home destination is cool...but c'mon. It's Asia.)

This summer I had the opportunity to go with JSMI/Global Ventures on a missions trip to Cambodia.  Thanks to YOU, my amazingly supportive and generous friends and family, I was able to share the Gospel with people who had never heard the name Jesus Christ.  Often, they had not even seen white skin before.  Remember that dream 5 years in the making?  Yep.  This was it.  And I'm gonna tell you a little about what happened while I was there.  Grab a cup of coffee, find a comfy chair, and come with me...

  First, let's talk about Cambodia.  Based on conversations I had with my friends and family members, it's very likely that (until a minute ago) you only knew Cambodia as "that one country where grandpa went during WWII"...Or as some place in Africa...(Asia, Africa...I mean, the first letter is right anyway.)  Cambodia, however, has a pretty rough history.  (No need to take notes--there isn't a pop quiz.)
  Starting in 1960, a radical Communist military group known as the Khmer Rouge began guerrilla warfare in the jungles of Cambodia.  Their leader, Pol Pot, sought to wipe out all Western influences and turn Cambodia into a fully agrarian society.  There was a terrible civil war from 1970-75, ending in Pol Pot's capture of Phnom Penh (the nation's capitol). Once he was in power, Pol Pot began unfolding the second phase of his plan.  He ordered the Khmer Rouge to kill anyone who was considered to be a skilled worker or educated, who might speak a foreign language, or who possessed modern technology (i.e. glasses or a wristwatch).  Yep, the dude was certifiable.  Rouge general is great and everything, but maybe not for somebody who should be straightjacketed in an insanity ward...

  Anyone who survived and didn't escape the country's borders was herded onto communal farms.  "Cities were evacuated, factories and schools were closed, and currency and private property were abolished."  (See my second link at the end of this.)  By 1978, just three short years, an estimated 2 million Cambodians had died.  There were no gas chambers or concentration camps, just straightforward soldier to civilian murder.  At the end of those three years, Vietnam successfully invaded Cambodia.  In 1979, Vietnamese soldiers had overturned the Khmer Rouge and captured the capitol.  They set up a less trigger-happy version of Communist government.  It provided a little relief for Cambodia's impoverished, starving, and survival-driven (though dwindling) population.  The Khmer Rouge, however, wasn't gone.  It just retreated into the jungles under Pol Pot's command and continued guerrilla military tactics.  Pol Pot "retired" in 1985 but still ran the Khmer Rouge.  He was later arrested, tried, and put on house arrest.  He died in 1998.  As you can probably imagine, Cambodia's economy and quality of life were basically destroyed thanks to Pol Pot and his regime.
  Well, that was a fun little history lesson.  (Sarcasm, friends.)  This year, (14 years after Pol Pot's death), JSMI/Global Ventures made its second missions trip to Cambodia, and I went with them.
   We flew into Bangkok, Thailand.  Thailand is 12 or 13 hours ahead of my home time zone (can you say JET LAG???).  After a day or two of training, we drove into Poi Pet (the border city between Thailand and Cambodia) and walked across the border.  Borders in Third World-ish countries are an interesting thing.  There is a lot of cheap shopping if you like designer imitations or camoflauge prints, but if you have white skin and prefer to travel the globe without getting robbed or swarmed by child beggars trained as theifs, shopping isn't the best idea.  The children who beg on the borders are usually slaves, trained by adults who are their "handlers."  If these poor kids don't make a profit, it is likely that they will be starved, beaten/physically abused, or raped.  Or any combination of those.  They were so young, seemingly as young as 4.  (Malnutrition makes everyone small and underdeveloped there, so it's hard to guess exact ages.)  Even more frustrating, thanks to violently "protective" handlers, there is little that we could do to help them.  If you buy from one child, they will all surround you, talk to you in 20 different languages, use lies to manipulate you into another purchase, and likely try to steal from you.  So we had to walk through Pot Pet, ignoring these beautiful, fear-driven children, while tightly holding our belongings.  In the moment, you try not to think about it, but honestly...Knowing what circumstances enslaved these children and being powerless to help them was heartbreaking.

Entrance to Cambodia

  Getting off the bus in Thailand, our suitcases were piled into carts that were probably 5'x8'x4' in dimension.  Now...it's time for a guessing game!  How do you think these carts were powered?  Motor?  Horse?  Donkey?  Cattle?  Nope.  Man power.  One-man power, to be exact.  One person would get behind a wooden bar and push the cart stacked with our heavy luggage through the city.  There were probably 15 suitcases per cart, each weighing about 50 pounds.  I saw men of all ages and one pregnant women pushing them.  That woman had three other children with her.  I honestly can't imagine how she could physically do it.  All kinds of goods, mostly fruit and other foods I didn't recognize, were transported this way, usually stacked higher and heavier than our luggage carts.  Cart pushers would weave between groups of people and huge military vehicles to get across the border

  [Side note:  Cambodia is a Buddhist nation.  It's home to Angkor Wat and surrounding lesser temples.  It follows that there are spirit houses and deities everywhere.  The spirit houses are colorfully painted and almost always kept perfectly pristine.  Women, roosters, lion-esque creatures, and Buddhas are the most commonly seen deities.  Inside the border control checkpoints, guarding the border entrances and exits, carved into walls, inside and outside shop stalls and homes, the hotels we stayed in, in the center of small towns...everywhere.

Spirit House: See the incense, tea set, snacks, and guardian gods?

We were surrounded by foreign gods, goddesses, and spirit houses.  These intricately carved and adorned idols were seriously beautiful.  The stonework and artistry were incredible.  The absolute devotion apparent by the generous offerings of food, tea, and incense inside the spirit houses and in front of idols was convicting...and difficult to take in.  People in such great poverty give the very resources they need to "spirits" (rodents eat the offerings overnight) with the hope that, maybe one day, they will die and be born into a better life.]

  Traveling from our hotel in Thailand, through the borders at Poi Pet, to our first location in Cambodia took all day.  We passed rice paddies, palm trees, marijuana fields, water buffalo, and many small cities.  Anytime someone saw a white face in our bus, they would stop and stare or wave.  America means money and a better life to these people.  In Cambodia, Europeans and Westerners make a distant, small hope for different circumstances seem more tangible.
  The most exciting thing for us was this: We didn't just bring money, we brought Jesus.  You see, according to the Joshua Project, Cambodia is 98.7% unreached (this organization is dedicated to accurate world religion stats).  That means that 98.7% of these people have never heard the Gospel (or often even the name) of Jesus Christ.  We didn't just bring the hope of a few extra dollars for these people, we brought a hope they had never even dreamed of: forgiveness and eternal life with a personal God who gave Himself as THEIR sacrifice.  A God who loves them.  A God who could change everything in their lives.  A God they were about to meet for the very first time...

Whhhhelp I think that's long enough for today.  Your coffee is probably gone, your lunch break is over, and isn't it more fun to get a story in episodes?  Sure, I had to take this post to set the stage, but the good stuff is just beginning!  I can't wait to share with you all the incredible things God did in Cambodia (and in me).  But I don't want you to fall asleep on me, so, until next time...

Keep dreaming :)

--Ellie

I don't have a camera, so here are my picture credits:

(With my geography skills, we all know that map isn't mine...)

(Today's lesson on Cambodia taken from...)

Khmer Rouge Pic found here

Spirit House 

Cambodian Border