We wrapped up our time with Rescue Friday night and flew to Siem Riep Saturday to begin the next leg of our journey. Saturday and Sunday have brought different and wonderful experiences altogether, most importantly, giving us the chance to connect with a brother and sister in Christ who are pouring out thier lives as Drink offerings to The Lord. It has been humbling, challenging and encouraging all at once. 

Once we arrived and had lunch, we headed off to meet with Reaksa Himm at his community centre, where a group of Cambodian youth were waiting to play hockey against the Canadians. The place is in the middle of a small community centre off one of the main highways. Even with the locals trying to lift the very low power lines with a long stick, our buses could not make it underneath and just about got stuck in the mud! This meant disembarking and walking in the muddy (lots of rain on this trip) road for about 10-15 minutes until we reached the centre. It was wonderfuL! A great chance to enjoy the community feel along the narrow road with homes on either side and folks coming out to wave hello to the herd of Canadians wandering by. When we reached the centre it started to pour so the game was postponed while Reaksa shared his testimony. If you have not read Tears Of My Soul I recommend it (I believe it is in the church library). Reaksa told us his harrowing tale of surviving the Pol Pot regime when just a boy, and how years later God would lead him back to Cambodia to for give those who slaughtered his family before his eyes and to begin the long and patient process of brining the Gosple to this village and other small farming communities (where many cannot read). We were challenged and blessed durning our time with him. The rain did not let up, but we noticed that the Cambodians had started to play. Some of us decided that it could not be said that Canadians would not play in the rai. (in fact the coolness helped us out). In the end it was Cambodia 3 and canada 2. Much joy was had by all! A small team from TAC headed back there Saturday afternoon at Reaksa's request.

After dinner Sunday night we had the opportunity to meet with Kim Bui (CMA missionary with the Vietnamese). Kim (from Rexdale Alliance in Toronto) shared about her work with this marginalized and poor community. She is sharing the Gospel by church planting, as well as working to provide opportunities for children to get a basic eduction and make some income doing crafts. Most of these families live in slums with no running water or toilets and spend time collecting garbage for small incomes. If emergencies arise, or there is too much rain to collect garbage, they go into steep debt quickly and daughters are often sold to help families survive.  It is a dark place and the work is hard and slow. We spent time praying with Kim for her work here, for the empowering and favour of the Holy Spirit and that the Lord would raise up others to join in His work here. There is one Canadian couple coming in January, but to have more native Vietnamise speaking Christians would be a blessing.

God has used this weekend to expand our vision of how He is working here and to deepen our understanding and call on our lives as fellow believers. I pray that we would not leave this treasure in Cambodia but that we would cherish the privilege of this opportunity and seek His direction for the race we are all called to run with endurance. We are grateful for your prayers. Please pray for continued safety and health (there are a few battling a cold or flu). Please pray for some quality rest and reflection as we and now on our way to the coast. Blessings to you our TAC family back home.