Dust On My Feet, Dream In My Heart: 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