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 :)