Cambodia Video

Here's a great 5 minute video that gives an overview of Cambodia and the state of the Church in Cambodia...  including a couple of cameo appearances from yours truly.  www.vimeo.com/63839363

COOL Season

It’s COOL Season in Cambodia… both literally and figuratively.

In the mornings, the temperature gets down to the low 70s, highs in the mid to upper 80s, with a brisk wind at night… Compared with the rest of the year, it feels wonderfully and positively frigid! Chris and Jenna wrap themselves in blankets and I actually shivered on a motorcycle ride home a few nights ago… We know you’re not giving us a lot of sympathy right now.


But it’s also “COOL” Season because it’s the Christmas season. A time when people in Cambodia are more open and interested in the Good News about Jesus. Stores are decorated… Christmas music plays in many shops… yet most Cambodian people don’t really have a clue what it’s all about. Less than 2% are followers of Christ. So there are always curious people who come to the Christmas services that are held around the country. And a good many discover the amazing Truth about Jesus, our Savior.

Our family in Cable, Wisconsin in June

It’s also “COOL” Season because we stop to give thanks and praise to the Lord for the ways that He has provided and blessed over the past year.  For our clan this includes 4 kids, 1 daughter-in-law, and 2 grand-kids who all seem to us to share Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon qualities: “all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average”.

Since going back to Cambodia in July, Chris has been overseeing our Phnom Penh office and Guest House ministry. Additionally she has been working to develop discipleship tools for those who don’t read well. She continues to be the quiet, behind the scenes, strength behind so much that goes on.

David has returned to the Field Director role overseeing an amazing team of about 30 International Workers serving in Cambodia with the C&MA. As you may be aware, he had a pretty major vehicle accident in September but, to the glory of God and through His grace (and the prayers of His people), he is now fully recovered. David continues to invest his life in training and facilitating Christian leaders… both Cambodians and in the missionary community, in Cambodia and beyond.

Finally, it’s “COOL” Season because of this amazing message of Immanuel… The Lord of the universe came to us as a baby out of love to save us from all the crud in our lives and in the world…

How COOL is that!

We would also like to ask you to consider giving a special year-end offering to the work of the Alliance around the world through the Great Commission Fund. See the video "We are There" at this link www.cmalliance.org/resources/church/2014/yearend. Many Alliance churches will provide an opportunity to give. Online giving is also available at www.cmalliance.org/give. Thanks for considering this.

Blessings to you and yours. Merry Christmas, Dave and Chris

Quite a Journey… A Multi-Faceted Tale of God’s Graciousness in Answer to Prayer

Oct. 2, 2014

NOTE:  This is a LONG story…  But God has been so powerfully at work that Chris and I wanted to get these details down so we don’t forget them…  and to give glory to God.  For those who have been praying for us, this is the story of how God has been very much at work in answer to your prayers…  If you don’t have time for the full read, you can just jump to the bullet points at the end…

* * * * * * * * * *

It has been 3 months since we arrived back in Cambodia and it has been a full three months!

In July we attended our Cambodia Team Field Forum with all of our teammates, got reconnected with missionary colleagues and national church leaders about key things that went on over the past year we were gone, found a house to rent, and got settled in.  We also started an almost daily one-minute video blog called “Manfred Minutes” about life and ministry in Cambodia.  Feel free to check them out at www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4w6I-H8LAe-JwbMBsPDCZNXJJblMDyKc

In August and the first half of September, David was on the road most of the time getting caught up with our team of International Workers around the country and working with them to set goals for the coming year in life and ministry.

After a lot of traveling, the trip on Sept. 10-12 was to be David’s last trip for a while.  He was going to visit some churches in far NE Cambodia, in Ratanakiri province, about 10 hours from Phnom Penh.  He was with the Cambodia Alliance National Church President, Rev. Sok Sophon.  It was a very important visit because 5 of the churches there were struggling with some very difficult issues that could have led to significant divisions in the churches there.  We met at one of the churches in Blang village and had a good and full day speaking with some of the key leaders who were struggling. Along with other missionary colleagues, we can honestly say that the Lord did an amazing work to bring healing to those churches and the issue of divisions were dealt with through sincere repentance and a fresh and sincere desire to work together for the building of Christ’s Kingdom.  The 

National Church President was scheduled to return to Phnom Penh with me on the 12^th but he had some additional matters he had to deal with so decided to delay his return by a day…  We’re so glad that he did.

As many of you are aware, on Sept. 12, I was traveling back to Phnom Penh by van with 14 other passengers, all of them Khmer except for me.  Like every van in Cambodia, there were no seat belts.  This van had a heavy load hanging off the back end and about an hour into our 10 hour trip, a back tire blew out at 60 mph.  Because of all the weight on the back, the van began to fishtail side to side and then rolled over completely, one time, amazingly and thankfully, ending back upright.  

Amazing we all lived

That's my window

I remember praying quickly as I felt the van start to roll, “Jesus save us”.  Amongst the passengers, there were broken bones and cuts and bruises…  but no injuries that appeared life threatening to any of us.  Noticing that no one was killed, a couple of the passengers told me “we were lucky” and I responded to them with deep sincerity, “I am a follower of Jesus Christ, and I prayed that He would save us…  and He did“.  Just one small example of His grace in the crash, all of the windows on the van completely shattered with the exception of the one window that my face was squished up against as the van rolled.  My eyeglasses were completely destroyed but I didn’t have a single scratch on my face.

I could tell however, that I was hurt in my back and called Chris to say that I suspected I had some broken ribs and maybe a problem with a lung.  She got lots of people praying and made contact with one of our missionaries, Joyce Johns who is a nurse who lives about 40 minutes from the crash location.  There are no ambulances in this remote area of NE Cambodia so the other passengers and I waited about 15 minutes until we found another van to bring us towards Phnom Penh.  I got off that van about 20 minutes down the road and asked if any of them wanted to go to the small provincial hospital where I was going… they decided to stay in the van to go to a larger hospital about 5 hours away.  Joyce met me as I got off the van and brought me to the provincial hospital in Stung Treng.  They did a 5 minute examination and took one x-ray.  They said no broken bones so I headed back to Joyce’s house.  Through the goodness of our colleagues, the Kesses, they drove me 8 hours, all the way to Phnom Penh that night…  taking it extra slow on the bumpy parts.  I was very sore but still believing the initial x-ray that said there were no broken bones… 

Good medical advice in Cambodia is hard to come by.  During the first three days after the accident, all medical consultations were done by phone and email…  including taking photos of x-rays and sending them to our team doctor, Kent Copeland who lives 300+ miles away.  Thankfully, the Lord worked through this process to provide missionary doctors (Kent Copeland and Tim Benadum) who were very diligent in providing the best advice possible.  I was able to stay in my own bed for the first 4 days after the accident, with Chris and Jenna as my nurses.  In Cambodia, recuperating at home, cared for by family, is common practice and I much preferred that to being in a Cambodian hospital.

The good doctors recommended a CT scan which was done on Tuesday, Sept. 16.  It showed 6 broken ribs in the back, a broken collar bone, a pneumothorax (which is air in the chest cavity from a hole in the lung), some bleeding at the bottom of the lung (from the broken ribs), and bruising of the lung.  My right shoulder was also very bruised and difficult to move. Ironically, although I hurt, I didn’t feel THAT bad and had no idea to the extent of the injuries.  I was told by our expatriate MDs that I needed to go to Bangkok for proper treatment.  Since I was quite stable for several days, I decided to go overland (because of the pneumothorax and differences in air pressure when flying, going by air wasn’t medically allowed). 

On Sept. 17, Joe and Kay Kong, along with Chris, Jenna, and myself began the 12 hour overland journey to Bangkok…  About one hour into the trip I began to feel air bubbling up from my lung on the right side.  The air was filling up under the skin on the right side of my chest… actually making the skin look like there was a balloon underneath it.  This was potentially dangerous and we knew it.

Lots of prayers were said in the car and we immediately decided to return to Phnom Penh.  We were directed to the Phnom Penh Heart Hospital.  Dr. Tisophea is the chief heart surgeon there.  I have directed several heart patients to him in the past and he is a very gifted Cambodian surgeon. Amazingly, about 15 minutes BEFORE reaching the heart hospital, while we were still on the road, I felt the air bubbles stop…  and by the time we got to the hospital, the swelling under my skin had already begun to go down.  An amazing and immediate answer to prayer!

Chest Tube... No Fun!

One more piece to add to the mix…  several days later, we heard from one of our missionary colleagues, Heather Williams, that on Sept. 17, the very day we were driving to Bangkok…  on the same road that we were traveling on… at Pursat town which is about 2 hours further down the road from where we turned back, there was a terrible accident that completely closed that road for about 12 hours.  If we had not turned back, we would have most likely been stuck in that traffic jam with nowhere to go.

While I was at the Heart Hospital, in dialog with our acting Field Director, Jeff Williams, Dr. Kent Copeland, and Dr. Tim Benadum, we made the decision to life flight me to Bangkok.  Because of the pneumothorax, they had to put in a chest tube.  A chest tube allows a person with a pneumothorax to fly since it mitigates the problems with the changes in air pressure.  Amazingly, after the decision was made to fly, an additional x-ray was made at the heart hospital and the pneumothorax was gone.  The Cambodian heart surgeon said that I did not need the chest tube anymore…  but the air ambulance people said that they had seen the CT scan from the day before that clearly showed I had a pneumothorax and that I would not be allowed to fly unless I had a chest tube…  at this point everyone was of the opinion that I needed to get to Bangkok as soon as possible…  and the only way they would fly me was with a chest tube…  so the Cambodian heart surgeon, using local anesthetic, reluctantly put in a chest tube…  not an experience I will want to do again anytime soon.

Our Jet...  the one and only time I've flown first class

The small 8 passenger jet arrived around 6 PM with a Thai Thoracic doctor and 2 nurses…  very professional.  They loaded me on a gurney and brought me by ambulance to the airport.  Fortunately, there were 2 extra seats on the plane so Chris and Jenna could go along as well.  We arrived at the Bumrungrad hospital at 9 PM after an uneventful trip.  They took a bunch of x-rays and confirmed…  no pneumothorax… so I was able to get the chest tube out early the next morning.

The Thai thoracic surgeon, Dr. Kittichai, strongly recommended that I have surgery on 2 ribs that were badly broken and out of place.  He would put them back in place along with a couple of permanent metal plates and screws to keep the ribs together.  He explained that without the surgery, healing would take a lot longer and there were dangers of additional long-term problems.  On Friday morning we found out that he would do the surgery on Friday night, Sept. 19…  one week after the accident. 

But before the surgery, we had one more major surprise… At around 1:30 PM on Friday, we were told that the surgery would cost about $10,000 and the policy at the hospital is that you have to pay for the surgery BEFORE they do the surgery.   They told Chris to get them the $10,000 by 3 PM…  Chris talked to the hospital finance people and asked if they could delay and they said they could only delay one more hour until their finance office closed at 4 PM.  Additionally, Dr. Kittichai was the only doctor at the hospital who had experience with this kind of surgery and he was preparing to go on vacation in the next few days…  so if the surgery didn’t happen that Friday night, it would have to be delayed for more than a week. 

We were in a city of 10 million people, we only knew about 4 people in the city, we tried to contact them but couldn’t get through, we needed $10,000 in about 2 hours, and we don’t have a bank account with that much money.   

Pastor Sang from the Evangelical Church of Bangkok

Chris immediately thought of the story in Matthew 17 where Jesus tells Peter about a fish with a coin in its mouth that God would provide to pay the tax…  Her immediate prayer was “Lord we need a fish…  I believe you will provide that fish!”.  At just that time David got an email from a former Cambodia missionary colleague, David Strong, who now works with CAMA in NW Thailand…  very far from Bangkok.  David M. skyped him and told him of our predicament.  David Strong was not the fish but he led us to the fish!  He contacted a friend of his, Pastor Mark Patterson, at the Evangelical Church of Bangkok.  Mark was in the middle of an important meeting.  He told us later that he usually doesn’t take calls in meetings but for some reason, he decided to take that call.  Mark heard about our need and promised to float us the needed funds.  By this time it was about 3 PM.  Mark sent one of their other pastors, Pastor Sang, to get the money from their bank.  The bank closed at 3:30 PM.  Pastor Sang arrived there at 3:20, just 10 minutes to spare.  He then left the bank to come to our hospital.  He hand delivered the cash to our hospital room at 3:55.  He and Chris brought the money to the hospital finance office at 3:58…  2 minutes to spare before they closed.  God provided the fish!

Battle Scars!

The surgery went forward Friday night as planned under general anesthetic.  Dr. Kittichai informed us that it went well…  I now have a nice 12 inch scalloped-shaped scar to prove it.  I was very sore Friday night and Saturday and could only take a few steps. By Sunday I began to feel quite a bit better and we even received some guests for a few hours.  By Monday I was easily walking the length of the long halls at the hospital.  In dialog with the doctors, we felt I could be discharged on Monday (just 2.5 days after surgery) as long as I stayed in Bangkok for a few more days.

We went to the Alliance Guest House and continued to recuperate in that restful place with lots of good food.  On Friday, Sept. 26…  exactly 2 weeks after the accident and 1 week after the surgery, we all flew back to Phnom Penh where we were warmly met both by some missionary colleagues and Cambodian church leaders.  It felt so good to be home!  I have been told to take it slow for the next few weeks which I am trying to do…  each day, I feel less pain, greater movement in my right shoulder, and more stamina.   We would humbly ask for the Lord to bring complete healing…  and I am well on that way.  Thanks for your ongoing prayers.

Throughout this journey, we have had a strong sense that there was a spiritual battle that has been going on throughout this time.  Some of the ways that battle has been manifest include:

• The two weeks around mid-September are known as “Pchum Bun” which is a festival in which spirits manifest themselves powerfully throughout the country.  For years, missionaries know from experience that this is the spiritually darkest time of the year in Cambodia.
• The potential division in the churches in Ratanakiri that led to the trip in the first place had a strong sense of the Enemy’s work.
• The accident itself.  David was originally supposed to be in another van whose driver is known as a careful driver but at the last minute, that van did not show up, the only van available was the one that was overloaded.
• When David was at the heart hospital with significant problems with his lungs and there was a real danger for pneumonia (which is very hard to heal with broken ribs), the hospital staff decided to clean the dust and mold out of the air-conditioner that was right next to David.  It looked like it had not been done for years and they decided to clean it out right then. Fortunately, Chris asked them to put a mask on David but immediately after they cleaned the air-conditioner, Chris had respiratory problems that lasted for 4 days.
•  One of the Alliance church leaders whom we know well and who is a trustworthy person had a dream that woke him up in the middle of the night…  It was so vivid that he was in tears and he felt he had to wake up his wife to tell her about it… in the dream, he saw the Alliance national church President, me, and one other person that he could not identify.  There were three open graves, one in front of each of us.  He cried because in the dream he knew that we would die…  but then at the end of the dream, he had a sense that we would somehow be raised back to life…  This dream happened before he heard anything about the accident.  He told his wife about it and it was only later that day, when he heard about the accident, that it made sense.  Remember, the national church president was originally planning to ride back in the taxi with me but he delayed his trip by a day.

The Lord has been so gracious and faithful to answer the prayers of so many…  He is winning the battle and we have seen so many touches of His grace… 

• Preserving my life and the life of everyone else in the van… 
• Not allowing any spinal cord or nerve damage… 
• In one of the most remote places in Cambodia, providing a very experienced nurse and C&MA missionary colleague, Joyce Johns, to see me within one hour of the accident
• Having missionary colleagues willing to drive me to where I needed to go for hours on end
• Having a group of Alliance church leaders and missionaries anoint me with oil with prayers for healing
• Many different medical professionals who have been key players in facilitating the healing process
• Miraculously closing up and healing the pneumothorax along the road… 
• Redirecting us away from a 12 hour traffic jam…
• An email that was sent to me at just the right moment…
• An important phone call that was answered at just the right time…
• $10,000 cash from a stranger hand-delivered to us with 2 minutes to spare…   
• Ongoing healing and strength as the bones and sinews quietly and steadily re-knit themselves together…  
• An amazing wife, daughter, and family who have given me such help, strength, and encouragement
• Clearly feeling the support and prayers of so many around the world…

We thank the Lord and we thank you!

Blang Baptism, September 14

One final blessing to share…  Our meeting to address the church problems in Ratanakiri was held at the Blang church…  I later found out, just 2 days after my accident, there was a baptismal service at the Blang church where 16 people were baptized as followers of Christ…  What joy to see new life in Christ! In the light of eternity, it truly makes it all worth it!  But it also reminds us that there really is a battle…  Revelation reminds us that those who have faith in Christ, whether we live or die, are on the winning side…  the battle is real… but ultimately, it belongs to the Lord!

We are thankful for the many ways that the Lord has so graciously been at work in our lives and in answer to so many prayers.  But we also know that there are many who are facing much more difficult battles than ours.  And there are many to whom the Lord may not seem to be answering in the ways you would like.  May I encourage you to keep hanging on to Christ.  It’s when we don’t see, but continue to believe, that faith is most real (Hebrews 11:1).

“But we have this treasure in clay jars to show that its extraordinary power comes from God and not from us. In every way we're troubled but not crushed, frustrated but not in despair, persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed.  We are always carrying around the death of Jesus in our bodies, so that the life of Jesus may be clearly shown in our bodies. While we are alive, we are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be clearly shown in our mortal bodies. And so death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. “  -- 2 Corinthians 4:7-12

Update on Uch Tith's Surgery

Thanks so much for your generous donations and prayers for Uch Tith's heart surgery.  He was seen by the US Christian cardiologist on February 20th and I just got this follow up report:

"He has severe MS and pulmonary HTN, class II NYHA.  We have added metoprolol 25 mg twice per day and will reevaluate him in two months.  He will need a Mitral Valve Replacement in the future. We have to triage our patients.  We have so far already scheduled 13 patients for open heart surgery, and will probably have 15 other patients who need surgery now.  We will have to try to get funding for the other 15 patients.  Our other patients, class II to III will have to wait until next year".

Dr Tim who is the Director of the MMC Clinic here in Phnom Penh went on further to explain: 

NYHA is an abbreviation for the New York Heart Association classification rating the severity of the disease. 1 is mild and 4 is severe. Since he is a 2, and there are those who are more severe than he is, he has been put on the waiting list. The balance is making sure that we don't wait too long. He may be stable for the next year on medications but it is possible that he would deteriorate. They are certain that he will need a Mitral Valve Replacement (MVR) in the near future. 

So this is both good news and bad news.  The bad news is that he will need the valve replacement surgery and they have a number of more severe cases that the visiting cardiac team from the US have prioritized to treat first.  This means that the US surgical team will most likely not be able to do Uch Tith's surgery on this trip.  The good news is that his disease is not yet at an advanced stage and he will be re-evaluated in 2 more months to determine how soon they will need to schedule his surgery.

This is one of the challenges of living in the developing world where there are only a finite number of heart surgeries that can be done at a time when this visiting team of US cardiologists come to Cambodia for short-term medical ministry...  They are doing surgery on the ones who are most critical and who have a good prospect to be helped.   Uch Tith will need the surgery but there are others who are in even greater need than him right now so the US cardiologists have had to prioritize.

In terms of how to pray,

1.  I have been in close dialog with Uch Tith's pastor who has explained this to him.  Pray that Uch Tith and his family would have God's peace and sense of God's care in the midst of this.  This can be a good opportunity for him to grow and exercise his new found faith
2.  Pray that the medications would be effective in holding off more damage to his heart and the Lord would work out the perfect timing for his surgery.
3.  Pray for the US cardiologists to have wisdom from the Lord as they make the very difficult calls about the people they need to prioritize for these surgeries and of course pray for these many people who need these surgeries.

I know it is disappointing that Uch Tith will not be getting this surgery right away.  I want to assure you that the funds that have been donated for his surgery will be kept for him until his surgery is done.  As there is clarity on the timing of his surgery, I will be sure to keep you posted.

In Christ, Dave Manfred, C&MA Mission, Cambodia

Finances for Uch Tith's Heart Surgery have been met

Dear Praying Friends:

We are so thankful to the Lord and to God's people that the full amount for Uch Tith's heart surgery was just committed today.

We thank all of you who either gave or prayed for this need.  I spoke with Uch Tith's pastor today and Tith was overwhelmed by the response of so many strangers as he heard that we were getting close to the amount that he needed for the surgery.  This has been such a boost to his new faith and such a powerful testimony to both his close family and extended family.  Thank you for being an answer to his prayers and giving him a new chance at life.

For your ongoing prayers, he is scheduled to meet the cardiac surgeons on Feb. 20 and then a date for his surgery will be set.  I will let you know with a follow up email after the surgery is completed.  If there are those of you who would like to get an ongoing update on how things are progressing, I will post the surgery date and any other significant details on this blog as they develop.

Thanks once again for your faithfulness in praying for this man and for this good work that the Lord has begun...  and that it would be brought to completion (Philippians 1:6).

Blessings, Dave and Chris

What in the world is God doing in Cambodia

As the field Director overseeing a team of about 30 very gifted and committed International Workers, one of my privileges is to see the big picture of what God is doing in and through our team.  I just completed my 2012 annual report and wanted to share with you some of the things for which we praise God over the past year:

Dave, Chris, and Jenna in front of a 1,000 year old bridge

• The C&MA Mission continued to strengthen our church planting training program in cooperation with the Khmer Evangelical Church (KEC).  More than 40 KEC church groups have been started by the KEC in the past 2 years.
• C&MA International Workers have been intentionally and directly involved in a number of new church plants in addition to the ones done by the KEC.
• International Workers serving with our team have had the privilege of leading several hundred people to Christ over the past year, all the way from generals to poor people on their death beds.
• 21 students are studying full-time at the C&MA's Elim Rural Ministry Training School.  For the first time in the 4-year history of the school, there were more applicants to enter the school than places for students.  This signifies that the school’s reputation is growing.  We continue to see good fruit from the lives of the graduates of this intense 2-year residential program to train young people as leaders in the church and as church planters
• More than 240 people are currently enrolled in the 2-year Theological Extension by Extension program to train church leaders.  This is a course that meets once/week at local churches.
  
• At the KEC annual youth conference in April, the plan was for 500 youth to attend but nearly 700 young people attended.
• At a KEC regional youth meeting in October, 178 youth attended.  At the altar call, about half of them committed or recommitted their lives to Christ
• The Mission assigned our first worker to Stung Treng (Joyce Johns), one of the least reached provinces in Cambodia.  She will begin her ministry there this Summer.
• The number of baptisms in the KEC increased to 413 in 2012 which is an increase of 18% over last year.  The total baptized membership of the KEC is now more than 4,300 people which is  a record high.  The number of people who attend KEC churches is actually several thousand higher than the number of baptized members.
• Samaritan’s Purse and CAMA Services are working with the mission to support an ambulance ministry in Banteay Meanchey province.  In 2012, our Cambodian staff conducted more than 300 ambulance runs and trained Cambodians to successfully operate an Emergency Medical Services program throughout the province.
• NewHope schools helped more than 350 Vietnamese children with grade 1-5 education.  Most of the children are from very poor, sometimes destitute, backgrounds.  They learn reading, writing (in both Cambodian and Vietnamese languages), arithmetic, and the Gospel.  Most of these children are now believers.  For the students who graduate from the NewHope schools and then matriculate into the Cambodian educational system, they have a track whereby they can become Cambodian citizens.  Previous NewHope school students, who just this year completed high school, have now matriculated into university level classes for the first time ever this year. 
• The C&MA Guest Home built four more guest rooms. In addition, the number of people staying at the Guest House increased by more than 50% in comparison to 2011.
• Gene and Carol Hall, retired C&MA Cambodia International Workers, spoke at our annual prayer conference.  It was great to hear their testimony from the significant spiritual harvest period from 1970-1975.
• The HIV/AIDs ministry in Battambang continued on under Cambodian leadership.  The mission now has only limited input and oversight into this ministry.  It continues to move forward with four teams of church volunteers going out twice a month to provide physical and spiritual support.  They are currently helping 47 people living with HIV/AIDS who are being served by this ministry.  Many of these 47 have come to faith now along with some family members as well.
• In partnership with four of our International Workers who have been secunded to the C&MA from Wycliffe Bible Translators, Bible translation progressed significantly in two languages:  Bunong and Kuy.  The Bunong New Testament is now more than 50% done.  The Kuy New Testament is about 25% done
• A new initiative began to encourage Bible reading groups amongst the Bunong people in Mondolkiri province.  They are learning to read their own language through the newly translated portions of the New Testament just completed.  About 150 people come out each week for these Bible reading clubs.
• The mission, in partnership with CAMA, helped set up a solar power system at a prison in Mondulkiri province.  This is the first electricity available in the prison.  This helps the prisoners in a general way but it also helps the prisoners, who learned literacy and the Bible from one of our International Workers, to be able to read the Scriptures and other Christian literature at night.  Some of the prisoners are now believers.

Prisoners installing the solar panels

We know that when you see a list like this, it can seem likes it's just a list...  maybe even a bit overwhelming...  but in reality, each of these bullet points mark significant progress for the Kingdom of God in a land that has been ignorant of the Gospel for many millennia.  Each bullet point signifies real people who are being changed by Christ in profound ways. 

We praise God for the ways He continues to build His Church here in Cambodia. We couldn't do this work without the Lord's provision and enablement.  We also couldn't do this work without the prayers and support of people like you. 

Some prayer requests for us include:

• Pick any one of the bullet points above and pray for God's ongoing work in the hearts and lives of the people involved.
• Pray for the upcoming 90th anniversary celebration of the gospel coming to Cambodia which will be held Feb. 15-16. The C&MA pioneered this work in 1923 and there is quite a celebration planned. Pray that it would all honor Christ
• Chris and I return to the US in June for our one-year home assignment.  We will serve again as the International Workers in Residence at Crown College for the year.  Pray that we would finish well over the next few months in Cambodia and the Lord would lead our team as they elect a new Field Director in early March.
• Our daughter Janelle is a 2nd year nursing student at Crown College.  She plans to go on a 2 week trip to Macedonia in June to assist the C&MA work there along with some other Crown students.  Please pray for the Lord's provision for her in this ministry.

It is through the Great Commission Fund (GCF) that we are able to continue our ministry and live in Cambodia.  Thanks for considering supporting us by clicking on the links to the right.

In Christ, Dave, Chris, and Jenna

Manfred's Christmas Update

Merry Christmas to one and all...

Here is our annual update on the Manfred clan...

Joshua, Kelsey, and brother Caleb welcomed Lydia Christine to the world on August 2.  Whoo Hoo!!!  Joshua is working full-time at Bethel University and started studies at Bethel seminary in the Fall.

Joel is a senior at the University of Minnesota studying Family Counseling.  He is living at our family home in Saint Paul.  He and his girlfriend Nikki continue to enjoy each other's company :)

Chris and Jenna with Molly, Max, Flamingo, and Tinkerbell

Janelle is a sophomore at Crown College studying nursing.  She is very involved with the missions group at Crown but also found some time to have her first experience skydiving.

Jenna is in 5th grade at Hope International School in Phnom Penh.  She enjoys her family, her friends, her dogs (Molly and Max), and her birds (Flamingo and Tinkerbell)

Chris has been overseeing the C&MA Cambodia Guest House as a ministry to the missionary community throughout Cambodia.  She also coordinated construction of four additional rooms at the Guest House. 

David continues as the Cambodia C&MA Mission Field Director. He traveled to the US in October/November to visit churches and had a great Thanksgiving with our US based kids.

David with (L to R) Kelsey, Josh, Caleb, Joel, Lydia, and Janelle

In June, Dave, Chris, and Jenna will return to the US for our one-year Home Assignment.  We will once again be based at Crown College where we will be the International Workers in Residence at the college.

We have been blessed with the Good News of Jesus Christ who loves us so much that "though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." (Philippians 2:6-7).  It is still a radical message that is changing lives and can change our eternity!

We pray for God's richest blessings on you and yours over Christmas and into 2013.  

Dave and Chris