Home Sweet Home

We are home safely.  Thank you for your prayers and support!

Beauty from Ashes

Today wraps up our mission in Cambodia.  We were invited to visit White Doves Cambodia.  They provide living resources and a safe home for women aged 17-25 (and often their children). Here they have counselling, daily devotions, schooling and life skills training with the end goal of finding appropriate vocational training and a job placement to support themselves outside of sex trafficking.  White Doves http://www.whitedovescambodia.com/ is run by Cambodian and funded by the Netherlands.  We had the opportunity to tour the facility and see them learning new vocational skills.  They were sewing and weaving purses.  They also have a salon they train them in.  We had the opportunity to shop for the boutique and support them at the same time.  Please keep your eyes pealed for these beauties and the Tea.  I love to see how God brings beauty from ashes. 

We were trying to go to the Children's Center to host their Kid's Club.  Unfortunately, do to the heavy rains we were not able to reach the facility.  We did a quicky course to Sang to explain how to use the items we brought.  Thank you to to volunteers who make the crafts.  God is using some of those items to bless the Children's Center in the slums.

Thank you to all of those who made this trip possible.  Thank you to the volunteers who put together 1000's of crafts for the teacher to learn and the children to receive.  Thank you for those who support us financially through giving and fundraisers.  To those who serve in the fundraisers, I hope you know your service is being put to good use ongoing.  I can never thank you enough for those that are in prayer for us.  It means so much to us and I know that they have been instrumental.  Thank you to our families who stay behind and cover the slack for us while we are away.  They spend some sleepless nights covering us in prayer and entrusting us to the Lord.  Thank you for all you sacrifice.  I know your sacrifice truly is greater than ours.

I feel like God did a mighty work in Cambodia.  I hope that we can come back and see how He used the work to further His kingdom.  

We fly out tomorrow, Thursday, at 9:25 am (7:25pm Wednesday California time).  We have 2 days of travel back home.  We arrive in Cali Friday at 10:40 am.  Please pray for safe travels.  

A Bittersweet Day

What a bittersweet day.  We completed teacher training in Siem Reap.  Pastor Vuthy and Soknang did a wonderful job of coordinating the training.  Although I was discouraged that it was abbreviated, it was powerful and effective.  Pastor Vuthy brought in people form other denominations and from the province.  It ranged from young teachers to Pastors.  He was a great host assuring all the details were handled for those attending.

Pastor Vuthy said that for the 7 days of creation or the 10 commandments he had to look them up.  Due to the practical learning he could now teach it from his hands (hop on over to https://www.facebook.com/Fifty5five/ to see a video on this teaching).

Those who attended were great fun.  They were very participatory and full of laughter.  Please pray that what they learned will be taken back to their churches and homes and taught to others.

We had to say good bye to our friend, Soknang, tonight.  He really took such good care of us on our trip from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap and while we've been here.  His presence and knowledge have really been instrumental.  I thought he was a pretty serious guy and then I seen his funny side come out. 

Soknang

We had a lot of great laughs and are just so thankful for his sacrifice of time.  He had to leave tonight to get home to take a placement test for the University.  Please join us in praying for safe travels, that he is well rested and focused for the test.

Tomorrow we will be doing a Kids Club here in Siem Reap.  I have a couple of meetings to hold tomorrow as well as preparing for the trip back home.  Thank you so much for all of your prayers.

Answered Prayers

Today's blessings are multifold. The weather drop by 10 degrees and it is very pleasant. We were inside a cool room at Agape School  that had air but it wasn't needed. Nearly 40 pastors and teachers came in from the province. They quickly interacted (thank you for praying specifically for that) to the training as they learned storytelling using the 5 senses. Laughter and joy filled the room.  The interpreter was great.  We also got a gig for Wednesday (another answered prayer) which makes me happy!

Tomorrow we are back at the school. Thank you for your continued prayers. The prayers of a righteous man are powerful and effective.

Just a Quick Update

Not much to report about today.  We rested up, spent time with the Lord, prepared for training, met Pastor Tymthy, and viewed the Agape School where the training will be held.  We
also got to explore a bit of history.

Please pray over every aspect of Teacher Trainer tomorrow as well as safe travels.

May God bless you for your faithful prayers.

The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round...

The wheels on the bus go round and round...unless you are stopped for 3 hours.  Yesterday proved to be a very long travel day.  We stopped along the highway to have lunch.  Soknang was showing off his Red Bull.  It's a good thing he had one and was energized because we left Phnom Pehn at 9am and arrived in Siem Reap at 7pm.  It's normally about 7 hours.  There was an accident along the way and we were able to witness a swift justice system including the investigation process, verdict, and penalty take place.

The terrain was so beautiful (hop on over to our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Fifty5five/ and I'll post some scenery video) along the drive.  Rice fields and stilted homes line the highway.  Watching the men fish with their nets and seeing the kids play in the water on the hot humid day made me smile.  There is just so much to take in visually.

One of the things that is always a mystery is our accommodations.  I'm always trying to be a good stewart of God's finances yet take care of the team.  The only information I had to go on was it is a small city.  We aren't sure where the training is being held (yep still don't) so it wouldn't matter where we stayed.  Priceline has this little feature that you can let them select a room for you and you get it for cheaper.  We use it all the time back home.  As we drove past all of these high class hotels exiting the city and driving down a dirt road it caused a bit on concern.  However, we arrived at our little Oasis and were quite pleased.

As of last night we still were not able to coordinate anything for today.  We are going to rest up from the travel, spend some time in study, prepare for tomorrow's teaching, find out were we are teaching, and venture out a bit.

First of all, thank you for your prayers.  There was a point that I wanted to reach out to the prayer warriors but it was the middle of the night back home.  We felt Ephesians 6:12 and watched the Lord at work.  We had some unique prayer time.  Honestly, we could feel the struggle intensely.  The Holy Spirit would move us in prayer and then reprieve.  That process repeated several times.  All you can do after such a thing is worship Him in awe.  My human words can not express the depths of respect, reverence, and awe this produced.  If the Lord had you awake last night praying be assured He was using you in a mighty way, thank you for your sacrifice.

Please keep us in prayer for continued travel mercies, health, and unity.  Also, for the final details to come together today and that I'll be able to get together with a few people I've received references to connect with.  God bless you all for your faithfulness in prayer.  I can not thank you enough for doing this trip with us.

Launch of Kids Club

Such a sweet day.  Bob and I ventured out into the neighborhood with the teachers to recruit kids to come to the launch of Kids Club while Becky and Linda prepared the teaching.  It only took about 15 minutes time to gather about 25 kids who weren't in school.  Bob and I were a little bummed about that.  We'd have love about 2 hours=-) It's a photographers dream.  Kayla is a missionary with AIM who so graciously opened her home to start a Kids Club.  She was happy to see the kids filter in.  It was a good gauge to see what the capacity could hold.  There were at least 45 people in her home and room for lots more.  Becky and Linda taught stories on creation, sin, forgiveness, and salvation. The Teachers did such a great job working with the kids.  Their Kids Clubs are 1 1/2 hours so they got a bit warn out with the 2 1/2 hour event that day.  Pleases continue to pray over this new Kids Club that as the kids go back home with their crafts and tales that it would multiply.  That their would be such a impact in that community for Jesus.

Oh my heart is full.  Back in 2007 I was able to connect with these sweet ones during a training session.  Daleep came to the states in 2007 and we got more time together.  2 years ago we were able to connect with Daleep and Teda.  This trip we got to connect with Phealy too!  We've kept in touch over the years but it is a super blessing to give them a hug.  Most of all it is beautiful to see how the Lord is using them.

We ended our time in Phnom Penh having dinner with these lovely ladies.  We had a great time catching up and laughing.  Thank you Lord for such beautiful heart to heart connections.

We are getting ready to head out to Siem Reap.  This will be a long day in the van.  Please pray for safety.  One of the local AIM staff will be traveling with us to Siem Reap to help with the continued coordination of the trip.  Pray that we can be a blessing to him as he is blessing us by coming.  Please also pray for listening ears so to any additional ministry the Lord will have for us in Siem Reap.  Also, for successful connection to coordinate future trips.  Thank you for your continued prayer!

Lasting Impact

Today was a delight in many ways.  Some teachers that received our training a little less than two years ago popped in to say hi.  They were sharing how much they had received from the training.  It is always a joy to see God's work carried out and have a lasting impact.  

Today was fun to see Bob's inner actor be revealed as little skits were done to teach discipline.  The current trainers learned about different personalities and how to handle them in the classroom.  They learned some additional story telling ideas.  They really came alive with the sock puppets and memory verse games.  

I posted some live video feeds over on our facebook page so I hope you'll check it out. https://www.facebook.com/Fifty5five/

Tomorrow they will put their new skills into practice as we all head out into the neighborhood to round up kids to come participate.  We'll be working together to help launch a new kids club.  What a privilege it is to see a new work that God is doing that will have an eternal impact.

Please pray for little hearts to be open to the message tomorrow.  Please also keep our trip in prayer for Siem Reap.  Half of the training there was cancelled.  I'm praying and doing the footwork to see if there is anything else He has for us there.  Thank you again for your prayers for safety, unity, and health.  Everyone is doing great.

It's bedtime here so I'm hoping my post made sense.  May God bless you as you go about your day.

Rising Up a Generation

Yesterday we were greeted by 25 teachers to be trained.  Most seemed to be teens and young adults. Remember my earlier post saying half the population is under 25?  We were expecting to do a Pastor training.  I love the adaption that Linda and Becky can make on the fly to accommodate those they are training.  The teachers vigorously took notes.  They were taught how children learn through the 5 senses.  They learned different story telling ideas using the five senses, facial expressions, and tones of voice.  They giggled as they learned simple costume creation and story telling with simple props.  Many of them came in from the province.  It is our prayer that they take these ideas back to their churches and train others.  God is rising up a generation.

I was hoping to take a live Facebook video of the training but I couldn't get service.  I'll work on some photos today.  They are such a beautiful people.

Today will be another hot day.  It is 4:30 am and already 88 degrees (it does wonders for the skin).  Please pray that the trainers are energized today as well as our trainers.  There is a lot of information to finish up today.  

Tomorrow we will be going through a different neighborhood recruiting kids for a new Kid's Club.  Kayla, an american long term missionary, is going to start a kids club out of her home.  She's been our right-hand-woman at the training facility.  We will help her launch it.  In kids club they are multipurpose.  The kids will be provided a safe place to go while there parent's are at work.  This will assist in them not being vulnerable to those who prey on children.  She will teach them simple techniques like washing their hands and hair.  Most importantly they will learn about Jesus Christ. The sparkle in Kayla's eyes when she talked about it showed her love and commitment to the Cambodian people.  Please pray that God will use tomorrow to full capacity for His glory. 

Thank you for praying! Please continue to pray for health.  We are so grateful to Him for keeping us healthy.  Please pray that God would be glorified in everything these 3 days and not wo/man.  Please pray for clear communication and readied hearts.  Please pray that we'd continue to be in step with His will and plan and not ours.  I thank you for praying how the Holy Spirit leads you.  Thank you prayer warriors!

Markets & Prisons & Heat, OH MY

The weather forecast says 89 degrees and feels like 105.  It rains some everyday.  You get a bit of refreshment before the humidity attacks but it is thick!

One of our main fundraisers is the Boutique that we hold at our Teas.  We've been hard at work replenishing our stock. I want to share a bit about the market place.  It is called the Russian Market. The reason it is called the Russian market is because it was a popular market among the Russian expants during the 1980's.  The market itself is narrow and jam packed with vendors.

It's sweltering heat is not for the faint of heart as you pour buckets of sweat  under the corrugated and tarp roofing.  As you weave your way into the market it is easy to get lost and have difficulty finding your way to air.  The best part of all of this is the limited amount of clothing we brought to save room in our suitcases to accommodate the extra weight of these items to transport back home.  We should be good and ripe the next several days.  We are now well stocked up on our teacher training supplies as well as our fundraising supplies for the Tea Boutique.

This is what we do to volunteers who leave their passports in their room:

I think it is really important to understand the culture that we are serving in. In order to get a better grasp on the magnitude of the genocide Bob and I did a speed tour through the Museum.  It is about all you can stomach.  It was a high school converted into a torture and execution area. It is great having Bob with us.  Seeing the city through fresh eyes is always a delight.  He has an inquisitive mind.  We've deemed him the honorary Historical Consultant for all of our trips.  

We are getting ready to head out to teacher training now.  Please keep us in prayer for safe travels, open hearts and minds for all involved, great communication, a lively interpreter that can translate Becky well, and energy!

Connections of the Heart

The Apostle Paul went on many missions to encourage believers.  There are times in our missions that God allows us to do just that.  Yesterday was a productive and blessed day. At the top of the list was connecting with old (young) friends. Due to the genocide between 1975-79 carried out by the Khmer Rouge regime led by Pol Pot which an estimated one and a half to three million people died. This accounts for 50% of the population being under the age of 25.  We met Phealy & Daleap in 2007 on our first trip to Cambodia. They attended teacher training to learn new skills for Sunday School teaching.  We've been blessed to connect with Daleep multiple times as she came to the States for a year and we connected back up on our last visit.  Phealy was in Columbia at that time so we missed her.  Our hearts were just so full yesterday spending some time with both of them.  

We took a little break in the pouring rain at the end of our busy day (so excuse the hair between the humidity and the pouring rain) to take Bob to see a little of the local culture.  We took tuk tuks to the Palace Gardens.  The grounds were very lovely but it really must grieve God's heart to see all the temples erected.  

The team is doing well.  Bob is still talking about another trip with us so he isn't over us yet=-).  Thank you for your continued prayer.

From the Coccon the Butterfly Emerges

It's 6:45 on Monday morning here in Phnom Penh.  I've been up for hours sipping Starbucks Via (it'll do) gazing out into a city that is waking up.  I'm Thanking to the Lord this morning.  There are so many things that can go sideways in our travels.  But things went pretty smoothly:

• We made it in plenty of time to SFO (ok maybe a little too early) to make our first flight to Hong Kong.  One just never knows with Bay area traffic. We made our first flight with no problem.
• In Hong Kong we had to exit the plane and go through security.  This always makes us laugh because really....what are we going to get on the plane that is going to cause us to go back through security to get back on THE SAME PLANE! Well, the bonus was we got to stretch our legs a bit and grab a Starbucks coffee before getting back on the plane.
• The landing in Singapore got our attention, well Linda and I's anyway.  We were kind of spread out on the flight and Linda I were over the landing gear.  Singapore airport was very lovely!  We took our time exploring the butterfly gardens, this, that, and the other.  We settled into a comfy spot, relaxed a bit, chatted with another traveler and then went to our gate for...you guessed it, another security check.  To our surprise they moved gates.  We hoofed it to the next gate.  I thought we missed our flight.  That would have stunk.  Ended up the flight was quite delayed.
• Our final flight to Phnom Penh was pretty short in comparison.  We were all exhausted to non thinking mode by this time.  Fortunately for us it didn't take much brain power.  Our transition through obtaining a visa, getting through immigration, and collecting our luggage was the fasted we've ever encountered.  
• Thank you Jesus!  All of our luggage arrived, all the travelers made it and healthy, no flights were canceled, driver was waiting for us, and no glitches at the hotel.  Thank you for partnering with us in prayer.  

I got about 7 hours sleep.  A little jet lag but not too bad. I haven't heard from the others yet so I am thinking they are rested too.   

Today we'll be meeting up with our sweet friends that from our first trip in 2007.  We'll be shopping for supplies for the training as well as for our boutique back home (For those that don't know we hold 2 Teas a year and have a boutique.  This helps us fund our trips.  Ladies if you haven't signed up for the Tea get over to our page at Fifty5five and find the link to sign up).   We'll be doing lots of prep in the next 2 days.  

Prayer Requests:

• Our planning for training in Siem Reap has been a bit challenging.  We've had to cut out some of our training due to conferences.  Please pray that we are able to fill the time with what the Lord would have for us.  Maybe He's orchestrating another training or a vbs.  My prayer is that those of us planning the trip would be so in-tune with His voice we'll hear what His plan is.
• My brain is a little foggy from the Maleria meds.  Prayer to adjust quickly would be awesome.
• Continued health, energy, and unity.  
• All praise and glory be to God.

As I wrap up, I was thinking of the discomfort the butterfly must feel as it fights to escape the comforts of the cocoon.  But if it didn't fight the discomfort what beauty would be lost.  As we left the comforts of home to sit in confined spaces for 30+ hours, we are prayerful that God will bring beauty and glory to His name through it!

Arrived Safely

Exhausted would be an under statement. Just a quick update before I head into an amazing slumber.  Our flights were pretty good and only 1 delay. We're all doing well just exhausted from 30+ hours  of travel. Thank you for your prayers!

Hong Kong

Made it to Hong Kong. Now off to the next layover in Singapore.

Cambodia 2016

 Our small but mighty team of 4 hits the road today.  Please keep Linda, Bob, Becky, and I (Theresa) in prayer.  We have a couple of busy travel days.  We'll be departing the comforts of home today for the exciting economy seats of Singapore Airlines.  We'll snuggle into our not-so-spacious seats for the next 23 hours.  I figure about now you're getting a little bit jealous;-)  Not to worry, there will be plenty more trips you can join us on.
Keep up with what we are doing by following our blog.  You'll probably find photos on our facebook page and instagram.  Look for Fifty5five on both. Thank you for your prayers and support.

Joyfully Serving Him,
Theresa