I’ve gone on many ministry visits in my life and encountered a number of very tragic and wild situations, but my first ministry visit with the Ministry Team in Cambodia was the first time I ever waded through knee deep water to get to a home. The stories of leeches the staff told me, and all of the strange plants, fungi, fish and snails I was walking through made it an even more interesting walk. What happened when I reached the home was the most heart wrenching and amazing.
Prey Sala is a resettlement community (urban slum) just outside Phnom Penh where the government has relocated individuals and families who had been living in real estate areas slated for development. As is the case for many resettlement communities the land they are often given in exchange is not always conducive for living. In the case of Prey Sala the entire community is flooded during the rainy season. Homes are either built on elevated foundations (piles of rock dirt and concrete) or on stilts, but are still prone to flooding. We walked about 200 yards in knee-deep water from the nearest road to reach the family’s home.
MaiBrazel had recently given birth to twin girls. During childbirth one of the twins died, but MaiBrazel was given no explanation by the doctor delivering the children. Today’s visit was meant to be a celebration of the birth of the healthy baby girl and the delivery of a small gift to the family. MaiBrazel and her husband have both been diagnosed as HIV positive. Their new baby girl has tested negative for HIV and the family was given free medicine to help build her resistance to the virus. This was a point of celebration as well. Sitting inside this small 15 foot by 20 foot small makeshift home surrounded by water, I was trying to process all of the many overwhelming obstacles this family was facing while my teammate Phka was telling stories and bringing joy into this tiny home. While the word hope has many meanings, not many of which I could think applicable in this families situation, we began to share about hope in Christ. MaiBrazel had already accepted Christ and attended a local church. Her husband often joined her, but still held to his traditional beliefs. Today was a divine encounter for him however. As our visit continued MaiBrazel’s husband made a decision to follow Christ! It was wonderful to see joy and hope enter this home. I went away that day with a deeper understanding of the word “hope” and some new challenges to my western worldview. I’m looking forward to the follow-up visits in days ahead!
Please pray for MaiBrazel, her husband and specifically for the future of their three children. Pray for the Targeted Child Nutrition Team who go out daily delivering parental training, child nutritional training and nutritional food vouchers. www.samaritanspurse.com.au/project/targeted-child-nutrition-project/ This is the team Tricia works with, the team who initially made contact with this family and had already been assisting them with these programs. It was their referral that led to this divine encounter.
