Adapted from a report by Syna Lao, who serves with The Alliance in northwestern Cambodia with her husband, Soeuth.
It was a very busy December for us, including our participation in 15 Christmas events across northwestern Cambodia where a church-planting movement is spreading! (See “Harvest Time in the Former Killing Fields” in the Jan/Feb Alliance Life.) Here are several highlights . . .
13 Villages Gathered
Early on Christmas morning, we attended a house-church dedication and baptismal service at Andong Chan village. Upon our arrival, 300 people cheerfully greeted us, who had traveled from 13 other villages!
My husband, Soeuth, gave the house dedication message, based on 1 Kings 8:22–53. It was so crowded, the people sat tightly together on a wooden floor inside the nearly finished small wooden building. Since there wasn’t enough room for everyone, some people stood outside, peeking their heads in through the open walls to hear the message.
While Soeuth spoke with the adults inside, I kept the little children occupied and entertained underneath the shade of a mango tree—coloring, playing with toys, and jumping rope. It was a joyful time!
At the completion of the house-church dedication, which was followed by a meal, the crowds excitedly turned to a nearby “pond” to witness another joyful celebration. (Since it is the dry season and water is scarce, local church leaders had done their best the night before, building a dam in to collect drips of water from a nearby stream.)
The new believers anxiously waited in two lines for their turns to be baptized—altogether, 52 were baptized on Christmas Day!
First Christmas Service
The first Christmas-evangelism outreach event took place at Toul Krous village on December 31. More than 150 people—mostly school-aged kids and their parents who were not yet professed believers—participated. The kids from Srae Nouy Church did an excellent job of performing a Christmas skit accompanied by a special choreographed song.
At the end of the 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 him! We rejoice that the opportunity was given and that the seed has been planted…
What You Can Do
Please pray for the new believers who were recently baptized to remain steadfast in their Christian walks.
Read more stories about what God is doing in northwestern Cambodia in Syna’s blog, “The Living Field.”