Wait, do you mean badminton? January 17, 2010

Well it has been another beautiful, life-giving week in Cambodia.  Our eyes have seen things that are ugly and devastating, yet our hearts have felt an abundance of gratitude for our Lord.  He is the King of Cambodia, and He reigns in this place.  We have seen it.

We were blessed with the opportunity to go to Svay Pak on Monday.  Ali and Ruthie have been working in Svay Pak at kilometer 11, which throughout the whole word has been noted to be the worst in regards to the trafficking of children.  In 2006, a brothel was raided in Svay Pak by IJM.  Many of you may have probably seen the Dateline episode that featured this brothel.  The Chief of Police was the owner of the brothel, which only goes to show the corruption and the difficulty many organizations face when raiding brothels.  Unlike many attempts, this raid was successful, and many girls were rescued.  Unfortunately, no one was prosecuted.  The most shocking finding was the 5 year old little girl found in the brothel.  For two years, the old building stood uninhabited.  Many Cambodians are superstitious and no one would purchase the building because they believed it would bring bad luck.  The director of an organization called Agape had a vision for the brothel and bought the building from the Chief of Police.  Agape restored the building and then teamed up with Hard Places, which is the organization Ali and Ruthie work for. Together they started Kids Club.

We had the opportunity to meet with the pastor who runs Kids Club and all of the ministries in Svay Pak.  This man was full of wisdom, and had such great faith in the Lord.  He was inspiring to just be around, and getting to spend a day with him was a blessing.  He told us that they started the Kids Club so that all of the neighborhood kids would have a safe place to be during the day.  In addition, it provides the kids with basic education and adults that they can trust.  But most importantly, the children are told about Jesus and are loved by people who know the Lord.  We loved watching the children sing and worship Jesus in what is a former brothel.  Talk about the Lord’s redemption- take that Satan!

Something that the Pastor is passionate about is working with the families in the community as well.  After the main brothel was raided in 2006, many children are now being sold by their parents in their own homes.  The Pastor is doing an amazing job loving on the people in the neighborhood and we are confident that the Spirit is working powerfully through him.  In addition, the Pastor is also reaching out to drug lords and brothel owners through a gym that he has opened and owns.  It is opened every morning and afternoon and he starts every work-out session with a devotion.  He told us that these men are both curious and receptive to the message of Jesus.  In addition to this, he also disciples 12 teenagers, who lead Kids Club.    The Pastor gave us a tour of the neighborhood and we were able to visit the building that will be the new school/church/ home of the Pastor’s family/ Kids Club location.  They are hoping that the building will be finished in the fall and they will support 100 students. The Lord has basically equipped him to do everything and anything you can think of, and He has faithfully provided the Pastor and his family the funds.  He shared with us how much the building cost and  then quickly followed with ” but, that is nothing for Jesus”.  The way in which he said that line, was refreshing to say the least.  He demonstrated a spirit that was completely relying and trusting in a loving Father who desires to provide for His children.  Before we left, the Pastor took us to the back of the restored brothel, where they have kept two rooms in the same condition of when they found it.  We were able to step inside those rooms and for a brief moment we tried to put ourselves in the reality these children lived in when they were held captive in the brothel.  It was emotional; on one side, we were angry and saddened that children lived in these awful conditions, but on the other side we were in awe that we serve a God of freedom, a God who literally frees the captive.  We serve a God who breaks the chains we are entrapped by.  We serve a God who also restores and heals the scars that were left from those chains.  Our God is a beautiful and powerful warrior, who relentlessly fights for His children.  We are grateful and humbled that this is who our God is.

Later that night, we went to the bars with Michael, Nee Mul (our Cambodian friend), and Bethany.  We went to an area by the river where all the Westerners stay.  This is where many girls are bought every night for sex.  We went to the bar, the Night Owl, and we sat down with some of the girls who work there.  Through translation, we had conversations about them and their lives.  We can tell you that despite what many believe, no girl enjoys selling herself.  These girls reiterated to us what we had heard before, which is that this is their only way to make enough money to support their families.  We have learned that sometimes in life people must make choices that are contradictory to their own will and to who the Lord has created them to be.  Even if a girl is choosing to sell herself, deep down she doesn’t enjoy her work.  It grieves her because the Lord did not create anyone to be an object of another’s sexual gratification.

When we were in the Night Owl, a western man walked in with two women, who he apparently had bought for the night.  Sitting by these girls, our hearts ached for them.  We were disgusted by this man’s pursuit of pleasure, but at the same time, our hearts ached for him.  He, like every other man who is deep in this addiction, need Jesus.  Like the women we have been talking about, these men were not created to exploit and force power over another.  Because of this, we know they are broken and in desperate need of our merciful God.

Throughout this past week, we worked with the girls in the bakery.  We are having a blast with them and everyday we are blown away by how talented they are!  Their cakes have been looking amazing.  Most Cambodians do not like sweets very much, so we have quickly become their taste- testers.  In this past week alone, we have probably gained ten pounds due to our inability to say no to anything sweet put before us.  The girls invited us to play “tennis” with them on Thursday.  We got on a motto, which is always an experience, and met them where they told us to.  They told us that they play on tennis courts, but when we got to a neighborhood, without a tennis court in sight, we were very confused.  The girls met us, and then led us to meet  all of their families.  This was such a sweet surprise for us.  We could not have felt more loved and welcomed by the girls families.  We were planning on taking the girls out for dinner on Saturday night and when we walked into Mey’s house, she said, “In my culture, you ask Grandma for permission to take me out”.  We were instantly intimidated and felt like teenage boys about to ask Dad permission to take out his daughter.  Thankfully, she said “it’s ok”, and then followed with how “cute and lovely” our voices were, “like a baby”.  After meeting the families, the girls asked us to come play tennis.  We stepped outside on the “tennis court” and the girls brought out their badminton racquets.  Apparently, in Cambodia, badminton is the new tennis.

On Saturday, we were able to take all of the girls out for dinner.  After eating some pizza, which is compatible for both the Cambodian and American person, the girls took us to a local mall.  We got to experience an Asian photo booth, where we indulged ourselves in cheezy Asian pictures.  They came over to Bethany and Ruthie’s apartment where we tried to teach them Mexican Dominoes.  It was definitely sweet to be able to treat them to a night out.  We will be able to spend a few more days with the girls in the bakery, which will be sweet but difficult to say goodbye at the same time.

This next week, we will be traveling to Bangkok to spend some time with Frank.  Frank also works with Hard Places, but is the only one who lives in Thailand.  We are excited to experience Thailand! Woo!

Again, thanks for the prayers.  We love you guys!