November 2004 |
Prince Sihamoni was crowned king of Cambodia on October 29th. Some are hopeful he�ll usher in changes to benefit the country; others think he was chosen because of his political inexperience. However history unfolds, we�re confident it is God who establishes kings and rulers. But do pray with us that his heart will be toward the poor and powerless within his kingdom. As in America, it�s a time of both hope and uncertainty. Pray with hope. Bethel Church just hosted a short-term team from California and will have a medical/dental team coming this month from the same church. Ministry within the church has kept us busy but we are happy to be serving in these capacities � teaching English, Sunday school, coaching soccer, some medical things. David will start Khmer discipleship materials with two of the young men. Planning has started for Christmas outreaches December 12th, both at the church and the school. David is scheduled to give his testimony and lead prayer� in Khmer! We�re praying that He�ll go before us in these preparations. While we were stateside, we shared with some of you about future possibilities for our family. One was moving to Siem Reap province in the center of Cambodia to help with church planting and the development of several small villages there. (Siem Reap province is the site of the Angkor temples. We�ll be in that general area.) We plan to visit the last weekend of November to discuss making monthly trips beginning in 2005. Pray for road-safety. I know those of you who�ve been in developing countries can understand the gravity of this request! Just on a funny note � our neighbors got a new dog. At first we thought they named it Doo doo which sort of fits with our dog Poopy. (what kind of names are they coming up with?!?) Fortunately, we found out it�s really Doo loo! Looking forward to this Christmas season, David, Lara, Benjamin and Jonathan |
| Driving in Cambodia What is driving like in Cambodia? Think chaos! Imagine a combination of trucks, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, carts, pedestrians and livestock (cows, pigs, chickens, dogs, rabbits, rats, and the elephant) all moving in different directions � some traveling with you, some coming directly at you, and some crossing your path at various speeds. No wonder traffic fatalities are at twice the goal set by the region�s ASEAN guidelines and some thirty times higher than in developed countries! |
 |
| A New King for Cambodia |