January Update 2020

Dear Friends and Family,

Happy New Year! I trust you had a wonderful and merry Christmas.

It has been a very busy December for us with a lot of traveling and participating in Christmas events in the northwest region of Cambodia. Overall, we’ve participated in 15 Christmas events in December! So glad that Christmas season is behind us now, until next year. Here are some of the events took place since our last update…

                                                Three Events on Christmas Day…

Early on Christmas morning, we drove to pick up 11 church people from Toul Prich village to a house-church dedication service and a joined baptismal service at Andong Chan village-- their first time to visit and meet other believers from other villages. Upon arrival, we were cheerfully greeted with so many other believers! Soeuth spoke a house dedication message based on 1 Kings 8:22-53 to nearly 300 people who traveled from 13 other villages! The people sat tightly on a wooden floor inside the nearly finished small wooden house building.

300 people participated in house church dedication on Christmas Day!

Since it was not enough room for everyone, some people had to stand outside the house while peaking their heads in through the open walls to participate in the serve and to pay close attention to the message spoken from inside the house.  While Soeuth spoke with the adults in the house, Syna kept the little children occupied and entertained underneath the shade of a mango tree with coloring pages, plastic toys, and jump ropes. It was a joyful celebration…

At the completion of the house church dedication, followed by a joined meal, the same crowds excitedly turned to a nearby “pond” to witness another joyful celebration as new believers anxiously waited in two lines for their turns to get baptized! Being it is a dry season where water is scarce, local church leaders did their best, the night before, to build a dam in order to collect drips of water from a nearby stream.  At the beginning of the service, the water was still decent enough for new believers to wade into the pond with muddy soil underneath, one after another.  By the time the last person was done, the color of the water resembled the dirt of the village! Despite of the circumstances, everyone seemed excited. Altogether 52 people got baptized on Christmas Day!

52 people baptized on Christmas Day!

About 50 kids said the sinner's prayer at Toul Krous village

At three o’clock on the same day, villagers hopped onto their designated vehicles (“mechanical cow trailers”, motorbikes, bicycles, ox charts, and cars) and traveled 27 kilometers to another joined celebration at Sray Nouy village! Soeuth spoke a Christmas message from Luke 2:8-20. The host church generously provided delicious home cooked meals with red and green curry with rice noodles. Altogether about 300+ people participated.

Surprised Visitors…

December 27: while helping with Christmas preparations at Ang Salaa village in Poipet, God graciously protected Syna from a huge poisonous and deadly snake! Syna was sitting in a hut for at least 40 minutes wrapping presents and doing other decorations. Minutes after she left, a 26- inch Russel Viper was discovered hidden underneath a pile of wrapping papers, next to the same spot where she was sitting! In the same night at another village Christmas event, an Alliance church member killed a king cobra weighting 2.6 kilograms! The Church families from both villages enjoyed a feast of snake soup!

A king cobra visited a Christmas service

This deadly snake was spotted nearby a place where Syna was sitting!

First Christmas Service…

December 31: The first Christmas-evangelism outreach event took place at Toul Krous village. About 150+ people (mostly school aged kids and their parents who were not yet professed believers) participated.  The Srae Nouy kids did an excellent job performing a Christmas skit accompanied by a special choreography song.

Kids perform a skit at Srae Nouy Christmas event

At the end of an evangelistic message, Soeuth asked if anyone would like to pray to receive Jesus. About 50 people raised their hands and recited the sinner’s prayer after Soeuth! Only God knows the true motives and the sincerity of the hearts of those who prayed.  We simply rejoice that the opportunity was given and that the seed has been planted…

Soeuth spoke an evangelism Christmas message to about 150 school aged kids at Toul Krous village!

Youth Ministry…

The National youth committees had a productive meeting on January 4th to discuss about the up-coming youth camp.  The annual youth camp will take place at Rawling Highland Camp in Kampong Speu province on April 7-9, 2020. The theme of the conference is “First Love” based on Revelation 2:4. Please pray for the youth committees for the overall preparations and other needs required to run camp including guest speakers and seminary/ workshop leaders.  The estimated cost for traveling from Anlong Veng to the camp site, including meals on the roads to and from and the registration fee, is $38.00 for each camper. We are hoping to bring as many young people from Anlong Veng to the camps as possible. For most of them, this will be their first time in a youth event. So, if you are interested in sponsoring some young people to go to the camp, please let us know.

Our desire is to bring some of these Toul Krous kids to the camp in April

A Growing Team For Growing Ministries…

As this writing, we rejoice that our new team mate, Aide Rose Fernandez, has returned from the Philippines and will soon launch into the children ministries to the two nearby villages: Toul Prich and Toul Krous. Aide will be teaching evangelistic outreach-English classes to school aged kids. Initially, we plan to come alongside Aide until she feels confident enough on her own, then we will devote our focus on teaching discipleship and leadership classes at villages of distant places. Words cannot express our deep gratitude toward God for providing all needs concerning Aide’s housing and other logistic needs.

Dates & events needing your prayers…

1. It’s wedding season in Cambodia.  Soeuth was asked to do two weddings in January, both of which will be the first Christian weddings in their villages.
2. Jan. 12-15: Soeuth will take Jonathan back to school in Penang, Malaysia.
3. Jan. 13-27: Syna will go to Colorado Springs for meetings and to visit family in MN & WA.
4. Jan. 18: Soeuth comes back Poipet to resume teaching leadership class.
5. Please continue praying for the potential land site that we hope to purchase, this year, for the Anlong Veng Ministry Center. Some of you have been very generous with your financial support toward this ministry project, so thank you! We’re almost there, about 80% of the total amount requested already received! Pray for the right location that would meet the needs of the community.
6. Pray for the new believers who recently got baptized to remain steadfast with Christian walks.

Please share with us what God is doing in your midst.  Thank you so much for being partnering with us in the overall the Cambodian/ Anlong Veng ministries through your continuous prayers and financial supports toward Alliance Mission. We appreciate you!

Blessings,
Soeuth and Syna