April Update 2019 (part 2)

Dear Friends and Family,

Su-sadey-cha-nam-thmey! Happy Khmer New Year!

Most homes, hotels, guesthouses, and streets in Cambodia are all decorated with lights and ornaments of glittering paper stars and sparkling wreathes in preparation for the coming festive Khmer New Year (April 14-16). To get a head start, some people already made traveling arrangements for the long weekends to visit their hometowns located mostly in rural areas. All schools, companies, NGOs, and any official work places will be closed so people could travel home for the holidays. To celebrate the new year, people blast out popular traditional music on loudspeakers and aggressively invite any observer to join in the circular dances. It is a week-long continuous party. Being it is April, the hottest time of the year, using water guns or any bucket, young people enjoy splashing cool water on to any unsuspected passerby. So, if you don’t want to get wet, don’t venture outside, especially around new years time...

New Years decorations

Happy Khmer New Year!

National KEC/ Alliance Conference…

National Alliance conference took place on April 1-3 in the capital city of Phnom Penh at the Khmer Evangelical Church (KEC) headquarter where 350+ Alliance church leaders from all over the country attended. Among the attendees, 20 people from the Anlong Veng church ministries participated in conference for the first time! This year's conference was special because there was an election for National Alliance church president as well as elections for all national coordinators for men, women, youth, and children ministries. It was a beautiful sight to see former national president, Rev. Sok Sophon, passing on the baton to the newly elected president, Rev. Roum Chamroeun.

350 church leaders attended the National Alliance conference

National Alliance Youth Conference…

Alliance youth conference

Soeuth & Syna at Alliance youth conference

670 people attended a recently Alliance youth conference

Young people performed traditional dance at Alliance youth camp

We left the adult conference a day early and traveled to Thma Koul Eden Center in Battambang province to prepare the place for the youth conference. There was a lot of works to be done ahead of time and every helping hand was needed. Late afternoon on the first day of the conference, excited and energetic young people rushed out from buses, vans, and other vehicles carrying their backpacks and personal belongings. They scampered off to their assigned sleeping quarters, while their leaders registered and paid for their youth groups. One large group (145 of them) of tribal people from Mondoulkiri province, due to transportation issues, did not arrive until 11:30 pm. They left their homes at 6am that morning! The next morning, they were wide awake and excited enough to enjoy the rest of the conference. Various speakers spoke encouraging, yet challenge messages based on the conference theme: “No Compromise to Sins." Throughout the conference there were opportunities for young people to sing special songs and perform skits and dramas. The unique part about this year conference is that, some of the former youth committees had volunteered to oversee the cooking and   preparing 7 meals for the entire conference! Their helping hands were much appreciative by all.  Although only 640 people registered and paid for the conference, 670 people attended!

Former youth committees volunteered at recent Alliance youth camp

Family News…

Since spring break fell on the same week as the conferences, Jonathan went along with us to Phnom Penh and then to Battambang. He spent time in the guesthouses playing his new video games while we attended conferences. At the youth camp, Jonathan earned many community service hours collecting garbage! In between conferences, Syna managed to bake an apple pie (his favorite) to celebrate Jonathan’s early 17th birthday (his birthday was April 9th).

Jonathan helping grandma selling t-shirts at youth conference

It was a joy to have Syna’s sister, Nay, and her 87-year-old mother visiting us from Tacoma,
Washington State, for a few days also to help us at the youth conference. Nay served as a camp nurse while Mom helped to sell t-shirts, a fundraising project for youth conference… Syna is counting the days remains until she can hold our first grandchild, Jesse Dominik Lao…

Dates & events needing your prayers…

1. The Cambodian churches are looking forward to celebrate the Resurrection Day.  For many new believers in the Anlong Veng areas, this will be their first Easter celebration.

2. April 10-24: Syna’s niece is visiting Cambodia for the first time in hope to learn about her Cambodian heritage. Pray for protection, safe traveling, and family time.

3. People will be traveling home for the Khmer New Year.  Pray for safety and protection. This is one of the major testing times for new believers. Pray that they would remain steadfast with their decision to follow Christ.

4. April 19-21: We will be traveling to Poipet for our next leadership class and to join the Living Water Alliance for Easter celebration. Soeuth will give an Easter message that Sunday.

5. April 24-30: Syna will be visiting Justin and his family in Saint Paul, MN.

6. April 27: Soeuth will be traveled to our next national youth committee meeting in Phnom Penh.

7. May 13-16: Northwest Alliance regional youth ministry is preparing for the annual motorbike mission trip. This is one of the most sought after events of the year. Pray for the region youth committees as they prepare for this special event.

We are grateful for your on-going support in prayers and finance. We appreciate your partnership in the Anlong Veng and overall Cambodian church ministries. Please share with us what God is doing in your midst.

Because He Lives,
Soeuth & Syna