Please look through the following list:
| 1 | Lweah Kaum (Kandaal) | Sarun | Mar-10 |
| 2 | Lweah (K. Chnang) | Taon Ton and Preap Kain | Mar-11 |
| 3 | Pum Plong | Njol | Apr-10 |
| 4 | Koh | Theun | Apr-11 |
| 5 | Teah | Theun | Apr-11 |
| 6 | Pum Jo-Aan | Seeuw Haing | May-11 |
| 7 | Pum Peak | Seeuw Chol | Jun-11 |
| 8 | Pum Kohl | Chuel | Mar-10 |
| 9 | Camka Kabah | Bin David/Kum Een | 2011 |
| 10 | Ang Tosoum/ Kum Tosool | Bin Navi | 2010 |
| 11 | Bat Num | Pauw and Sokun or Theun | Oct-10 |
| 12 | Sambua | Tea, Houng and Tuck | May-11 |
| 13 | Lweah (Varin) | Seiha | Sep-10 |
| 14 | Chuk Sohh | Hein Moch | Jan-11 |
| 15 | Anlong Veng | Phearum/Srei Noi Church | Mar-11 |
| 16 | Srei Noi | Nhorn | May-11 |
| 17 | Rung Wean | Camraen and Kam Pui | Mar-11 |
| 18 | Bay Domraam | Tree | Mar-11 |
| 19 | Kabaal Crobei | Chung | Mar-11 |
| 20 | Pum Puyou | Mimi and Oreang | 2010 |
| 21 | Trean | Can Ton/Elim Bible School | 2010 |
| 22 | Srei Amboung | Cin Tan and Klum | 2010 |
| 23 | You Ondeang | Cin Tan and Tea | 2010 |
What are all these strange names? The first column is the name of a
Cambodian village/town that now has a group of believers meeting weekly
to study God's Word and worship. 18 months ago, none of these
communities had a Christian presence. To re-emphasize... since the
beginning of time, there has not been a Christian presence in these
places... at all... but praise God, over the past 18 months, there is
now.
The second column has the name of the Cambodian Church Planter(s) who
took the initiative to get each of these new groups started. The last
column is the date when this new group was started (all within the past
18 months).
Three years ago the Khmer Evangelical Church (KEC--the name of the
Cambodian Alliance Church), asked the C&MA Cambodia Mission to help them
strengthen and expand their church planting ministry in Cambodia. The
table above is the fruit of these labors. With encouragement and
training from the C&MA Cambodia Mission, the KEC has started
house-churches who meet weekly for worship in each of these 23
communities... this means that over the past 18 months, on average,
more than one unreached community per month has a new Christian presence
(house church).
In addition, there is ongoing work to start new house churches in many
more unreached communities. One of our Alliance missionaries, Erik
van't Ende, is working with 47 KEC Church Planters who are being trained
and are actively taking steps to start new churches... Just a few of these
church planters receive some reimbursement funds for their travel expenses but
none of them are paid by the Mission to carry out this work. They are
donating their time, talent, and treasure for this work out of their love for Christ.
When we see this long list of names, it is merely an obscure and
meaningless list. In reality, each of these names represents a unique
place that now has an active house church where people are learning
God's Word each week and coming together to worship the Lord. Each of
these communities represents hundreds of families who, until recently,
have never had a Christian presence near them. Each of these names
represent people who are now "within earshot" of God's Word and are
able to see Christ's transforming power through the lives of their
friends and neighbors who have become Christians.
The Cambodia C&MA Mission is one of the leading voices within a
movement called "MK2021". MK2021 means "Mission Kampuchea (Cambodia)
2021. It is an inter-denominational effort to see a Christian presence
(typically house churches) established in every village in Cambodia by
the year 2021. It is a God-sized vision since there are 14,000 villages
in Cambodia and less than 3,000 of them currently have a Christian presence.
There are a lot of things being done today that are popularly promoted
in missions... medical help in the developing world... helping women
and girls in danger of being trafficked in the s-x trade... having short-term
teams come to assist with English or other felt needs... providing
education to kids who have never had the opportunity to receive a decent
education... helping widows and orphans. The Cambodia C&MA mission is
also involved in each of these good and important initiatives.
However, in my opinion, the most significant area where we as a mission
can be involved is seeing people come to Christ and grow as His
disciples. The rest, as good as it is, must be secondary to Christ's
Commission to make disciples of all nations. I have been Field Director
over the Cambodia Alliance field for ten years. I have seen it over and
over again that people change destructive behaviors and patterns after
they have had a radical encounter with the living Christ. THAT is why
starting groups of believers in unreached communities is foundational to
any lasting change. This ministry, to be long-lasting, can not be
done without a deep understanding of local language and culture. It is
best done in close partnership with local Christians who have a proven
track record of integrity. These are some of the reasons it is so
important to have long-term missionaries serving in Cambodia.
I want to thank you who come alongside us in prayer. Thanks also for
giving to the Great Commission Fund. This is what enables our team to
be here for the long-haul to bring the Gospel of Christ to the peoples
of Cambodia. I am not ashamed to say that your investment in prayer and
sacrificial giving is making an eternal impact for Christ in this land...
Praise God for 23 house churches birthed in unreached communities
over the past 18 months! We can not do this without you. Bringing the
Gospel to the unreached of the earth truly requires a partnership between the
sent ones and the ones who send. Your support for the Great Commission
Fund can be given either through your local Alliance church or online at
www.cmalliance.org/give. At the website, you can designate your gifts
specifically to support the ministry in Cambodia if you would like.
Thank you for your ongoing partnership to come alongside us to bring
Christ's light to the peoples of Cambodia.
In regards to Praise and Prayer needs:
Praise God for a wonderful Field Forum conference in July with our
Cambodia Alliance missionary team... We sensed that God's Spirit met us
and we also had encouraging and supportive connections between our
missionary team. Our team has now grown to about 35.
Praise God that we will have the joy of meeting our first grandson,
Caleb Manfred, as we travel to the US for vacation in August. We will
also help our daughter Janelle get settled into life as a freshman at
Crown College. Finally, we will most likely be saying our earthly
farewells to Dave's dad who is in hospice care. He is 93 years old and
knows and loves the Lord.
Please look through the list at the top of this email and pray for the
evangelism and discipleship that is happening in each of these
communities (the names in the first column)... God knows each place and
each soul. Your prayers can impact hundreds of families in each
location as the Gospel is beginning to take root in that community for
the first time ever.
Please look through the list at the top of this email and pray for the
names in the second column... These are the names of the Cambodian
volunteer church planters who are bringing the Gospel to unreached
areas. Pray for their strength, wisdom, and perseverance as they take
on this pioneering work of evangelism and discipleship...
Pray for open doors for the Gospel and for the other church planters who
are being trained to bring the Gospel to still more unreached
villages... that the vision of MK2021 would be accomplished through us
and others. Our desire is to see a sustainable church planting movement
that will truly transform Cambodia for Christ. We appreciate you
praying with us towards these ends.
Thanks again for being our senders and partners in Christ's Call to the
unreached in Cambodia.
Dave and Chris
