Sophie's Choice

"So, what happened to their parents? I'm assuming they're here because they don't have any parents, right?" That was Stephen's question to the group during a recent team meeting. "Not necessarily" was the collective response from those of us who've been there before. For some of the kids, their parents actually are deceased. But for most others, they arrived at the orphanage when their parent (usually singular) simply could no longer afford to provide for them. John tried to explain that the overwhelming poverty that exists in Cambodia, unlike anything we've ever seen here in the U.S., sometimes forces people into making unimaginable decisions, choices we can’t begin to fathom, like giving away some of your children so you can afford to keep your remaining children…or to simply survive yourself…or sometimes even worse – selling them into sexual exploitation/forced labor to put food on the table!

This is what happened to Kim Leng. As is quite common in Cambodia, Kim Leng's father either ran out on the family or died leaving her mother to care for her and her siblings all alone...with no job, no education and no resources. In order to survive, Kim Leng’s mother was forced to make a "Sophie’s Choice" decision. She began selling the “services” of Kim Leng's older sister to a neighbor in the village in order to afford food. Luckily, when her mother was about to sell Kim Leng as well, her grandmother stepped in at the last minute and arranged for the orphanage to take her instead.

Another boy, Sony, used to live at the orphanage but some distant relatives arrived one day and took him back; they then "sold" him into forced labor in Thailand. Takna’s mother was raped and became pregnant by a Vietnamese man; then when Takna was very young, a serious automobile accident left her unable to provide for him, so he came to the orphanage. Many of the kids talk of their biological siblings living elsewhere in Battambang or the surrounding countryside; and some of them have even visited the orphanage. Kea openly speaks of her biological mother, brothers and sisters living elsewhere in Cambodia, but she is careful to mention they "aren’t believers.”

Whether or not these kids know their biological parents isn’t all that important. Nor is it important how they eventually wound up at New Life Orphanage. And honestly, the important thing isn’t even that they all love one another, they all consider themselves and call one another brothers & sisters and they all surround each other with so much love, affection, support and encouragement. In the end, the most important thing, what really matters most of all is that, in a country that's 95% Buddhist, they all know who their heavenly Father is.

Estimates are that there are at least 27 million slaves in the world today. Thankfully, through the grace of God, New Life Orphanage and supporters like you there are now at least 27,000,000 minus 1!



Kim Leng

Read the fine print!!

Wow, I can’t believe it’s already been a year! In a way, it seems like just yesterday we were riding the bamboo train with the kids, getting Ratha’s head un-stuck from that street vendor’s umbrella, and shelling out three whole dollars to buy her a new one! Boy, how time flies.

And yet on the other hand, it also feels like it’s been forever, so much has changed in the past year. Speaking of changes, we have a few new team members to introduce for this year’s trip: Vince, Tim, Emily, Timothy and Stephen.

We tried to warn them at the first meeting that they don’t realize what they're signing up for, that this isn't a one-time thing but a life-long, life-changing metamorphosis; but they insisted on coming along. Of course, we said the same thing to Sherry two years ago and she came back saying that we should’ve put a stronger disclaimer on the application. Then last year, we tried to warn Stuart & Kasey what they were getting themselves into; but you can see how well that turned out – they’re about to make their third trip to Battambang in 12 months.

I wish someone had warned me of the consequences of this place, of these kids, when I first applied. There are times I wish I had never set foot in Cambodia; my life would be so much simpler if I hadn’t. For example, in 10 B.C.* I'd completely forgotten about the Khmer Rouge and the 2 million people slaughtered in the killing fields; now I know survivors of that horrible genocide personally and call them my friends. In 5 B.C. my biggest concern was whether I wanted my new 50-something-inch TV to be plasma or LCD; now I’ve learned to appreciate what it means to have electricity period. In 3 B.C. I lived in my own little world – population: ME, but now I have 38 kids, three of whom (Takna, Sobin & Breuch) who call me "daddy." And in 1 B.C. I went to bed every night thinking I was a Christian, now I’ve been taught by 38 Cambodian orphans what it really means to be a follower of Jesus Christ…and my life has been altered permanently.

2012 Team Members:

John B.
Billy D.
Scott E.
Kasey J.
Stuart J.
Michael R.
Sherry S.
Tad S.
Tom W.
Vince W. ‎
Tim B.
Emily R.
Timothy A.
Stephen S.



*before Cambodia

Ephesians 4:1-6

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

I read this passage this morning and God used it to weave a blanket of peace over my heart. This scripture reminds me of how our team interacted with one another, and how the amazing children showed us love. We were shown patience; we were patient. We were shown humility, and we were humble. We were shown love, we gave love, and we were loved. We served each other; we placed others before ourselves. We lifted each other up, and we in turn were lifted up. We traveled to the other side of the planet, and experienced God's love. One God and Father of all. Thank you Abba for loving us and loving our brothers and sisters in Cambodia.

Love and Other Drugs

We only arrived in Siem Reap last night and already the withdrawal symptoms have begun. We had a team meeting this morning to talk about transitioning back into the life we left behind in the U.S. and the one we’ll be heading back to shortly. It’s never easy to say goodbye to this amazing group of kids.

On the plane ride over last week, our 747 was equipped with an in-flight entertainment system that offered video games to play and movies to watch on a small screen built into the seat in front of you. After four hours of Tetris, I had had enough and flipped through the list of available movies, eventually settling on “Love and Other Drugs.” You’ve probably seen it – or at least heard of it; it’s about a pharmaceutical sales rep played by Jake Gyllenhaal, who falls for a sick Parkinson’s patient, Anne Hathaway. Anyway, at the very tail-end of the movie, Jake Gullyenhall’s character narrates, “…you meet thousands of people and none of them touch you...and then you meet one person and your life is changed…forever.”

As I thought about that line over the past week, I realized how perfectly it also describes what happens when so many of us come to these orphanages to serve these children. We’ve all met hundreds, perhaps thousands, of children over the course of our lives; but how is it that they’ve never changed us the way Takna has…or Vandom has…or Sreyly…or Sy….or Chhaiya & Pisey…or Kea & Vanna. What is it about these kids? …about this place? …that has such a tremendous and everlasting impact on everyone who experiences it? All of us have wondered that privately; some of us have even discussed it amongst ourselves. How is it that we can meet children everyday day back in the U.S. and never feel such love, Christ’s love, the way we feel it around these children? And why is it so difficult to explain, like Jake Gullyenhall’s character trying to explain romantic love?

I wonder if it’s because of Srey Nath, who weaves a beautiful lei out of flowers to give as a welcome to someone she doesn’t even know yet. Or because of Sivouch, who despite having only known Kasey for a day and a half, held her hand all afternoon and poured such tremendous love and affection into her while she was ill? Or maybe because of Breuch, who gave me a birthday card and a beautifully decorated jar full of very tiny origami figures as a gift for my birthday…which was four months ago – she remembered it from last year! Maybe it's because of Nat, all 89 pounds of her, who grabbed J.B.’s backpack – J.B., the former NFL lineman’s backpack – away from him and carried it to the classroom for him? Or it might be because of little Kea, who despite being physically and mentally handicapped himself, wipes our sweaty foreheads with a cool, damp cloth as we’re working? Or maybe because of Vanna, who massages our aching shoulders when we’re on breaks? Perhaps it’s because of comments like Pisey’s, who when we jokingly teased about winning a million dollars said, “I would rather have God.” And he meant it.

It’s funny, we joke that whenever someone signs up for one of these trips, unbeknownst to them, they’ve actually made a lifetime commitment. They say that of all the mission trips globalX offers worldwide each year, the ones to Cambodia have the highest number of repeat applicants. Why is that? Why are we all so changed? Why do we all keep returning? What makes these kids so addictive? For whatever reason, these kids touch us, they impact us, they change us…forever.

But you know, as I thought about it this week, I realized that maybe the explanation isn’t so complicated after all. Maybe it’s very simple. Maybe the reason we feel the way we do around them, maybe the reason they are constantly on our minds and in our thoughts all year, maybe the reason everyone keeps returning is because these children are themselves under the influence of the most powerful drug there ever was – the love of Jesus Christ!

"I will pray for you"

Last night was our last night with these unbelievable children! We all gathered at the orphanage and had a chance to hang out and play with all the kids! We played games and exchanged some letters! At the end of the night we all formed a circle and shared how important, and thankful we were for each other! We told the kids how they had changed our lives and how much we love each and everyone of them! They are our family now, and we are so thankful that God has his hand on every single kid at the orphanage! Even though goodbye is never easy we all tried to find peace in the fact that these kids are all in an amazing place where they receive love from God and each other everyday!

Today we are heading to Bantheay to hang out with the the kids at that orphanage for a little bit then we will get back on our bus and spend the rest of our time in siem reap reflecting on our unimaginable time with 38 wonderful kids!

Thank you so much for all your prayers and support... We saw our amazing God in these kids everyday this week!

Bamboo Train

Reason #817 as to why Cambodia is unique is their Bamboo Trains. Bamboo Trains are roughly 4’x8’ platforms of weaved bamboo, sitting atop two railroad axles with an old, old, old, old Briggs & Straton gasoline motor attached to the rear axle by a pair of rubber fan belts - imagine a Go-Kart on rails. They started out as public transportation, after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, to carry rural villagers into the city. Apparently, the Cambodians eventually saw the financial potential in them because now they are a popular tourist attraction. Western tourist pay to take leisurely rides out to admire the beautiful Cambodia countryside.

Thanks to your very generous financial support, our team was able to wire enough money over ahead of us that most of our work was well underway when we arrived. Conversely, we were able to accomplish our construction goals and still take a half a day off. We spent that half day taking the kids on their very first Bamboo Train ride. I’m not sure who had more fun, them or us. Ratha, the orphanage director, came up with a great idea: we would ride the trains out to a small village west of Battambang to a Buddhist Pagoda high up on a mountainside and have a picnic.

We picked the kids up from the orphanage just before 9:00 a.m. reservations. The train ride out was a blast; we split our party into groups and rode out on five separate trains. The kids laughed the whole time. After about an hour’s ride out, we stopped at a small village and piled into a truck for the one kilometer ride up the mountainside. I think we broke the Guinness Record for the number of people in the bed of a truck. The scene was comical…until we went around a corner and Ratha’s head went through the umbrella of a local woman’s umbrella stand. From then on, we felt it was safer to walk!

I’d say we had to climb about mooray pram steps (500) to reach the top of the hill, but once we were up there the view was worth it. We ate lunch beside a Buddhist temple overlooking all of northwestern Cambodia. Even though the sky was clear where we were, when Ratha called the orphanage his wife said it was raining over there. After lunch, the kids started playing along the trails that networked through the woods and forest on the mountain.

The ride back was a bit tougher. By this time, the bright sunlight, heat and humidity has us all drained and we were anxious to get back to the bus. A few of the kids even fell asleep on the ride back. Thankfully, God intervened in the form of a rain cloud, yet again, and a quick shower brought much needed relief. We also stopped at a (rail)roadside concession stand for a few refreshments. By the time we dropped the kids off back at the orphanage, it was 2:00 p.m. Already a long day, but so worth it to see these kids having so much fun.

Love

Who do you turn to when you need a hand? When was the last time you humbled yourself and served someone else? Jesus left His throne, lived a life on this earth, took our sins to the cross and paid the debt in the only way it could be paid - with his life. He died for you. In this he showed you agape love. These children showed me agape love. These children showed me Christ, and I will be eternally grateful to them and to our Lord and Savior, Jesus.