Today began with yet another 5.30 start. After seeking out bricks, string, lunch, water and fruit amidst the mayhem of the early morning market traffic, we began work on the playground. It brings me joy to update you of the answers to prayer which we have received regarding the weather! It is soooo warm! We were delighted with the progress made on Saturday and were desperate for perfect ‘western’ conditions to work in today, thankfully God heard and he gave us a fabulous overcast sky and a moderate temperature of approximately 30 degrees! So I hear you guys have rain over there?!
The playground is coming along beautifully. The final coat of paint went onto the framework, the surrounding wall was laid, the giant concrete tunnel was put in place and painted green and will soon be decorated with multi-coloured flowers, we are so close but are starting to feel the pressure of time as our deadline is Wednesday lunch time. I would just like to emphasize the bricklaying mentioned previously, this is hilarious to those who know me (and possibly a few others in the group…ok anyone other than dave!) as it isn’t a skill that comes naturally although I think we did well considering we were using bricks with holes at both ends, an uneven trench and handmade mortar! What an experience in the scorching heat.
The village would like to have an official opening ceremony during which we are planning to run our outreach programme, so lets pray that the real reasons of our presence become clear through the songs, drama and testimony.
On our journey home this afternoon everyone fell asleep which is a pretty common occurance to be honest! However adrenaline kicked in quickly as we had 30 seconds to get changed from our very smelly, sweaty, dusty, or ‘just clean boggin’ work clothes! We were no sooner out of the bus than back on the road on our way to the Bridge of Hope for a prayer meeting. Teams of Khmer Christians do outreach work with street children in some of the poorest areas of Phnom Penh. They share the Gospel with children who are often in the middle of their 3pm – 1am shift of collecting rubbish to earn money to eat and pay rent to live in the slums. The prayer meeting was a multi-cultural experience as there were people from Australia, UK, France, Austria, Slovakia, New Zealand and Cambodia. Due to a recent law (as of last week) being considered by the Prime Minister as a result of concerns shown by Buddhist officials there are for the first time since Khmer Rouge regulations, restrictions on the work of Religious organisations. Hence we would appreciate prayers for our safety when working in the community.
Before I close for this evening I feel it is important to let you know about a scheme which Bridge of Hope have recently started. It is for street children who have to earn money picking up and selling rubbish. Their parent agrees to not let their child work in this way again and the organisers arrange for the money which would have been earned (10 dollars a month = 5 pounds sterling) to be donated by people who contribute to the scheme. This gives the child an opportunity to attend school with the intention of learning a trade which will lead to a prosperous job. This helps me understand why children here are so keen to learn, it makes you think.
Well, it is 10.45 pm here and approximately 4.45pm I guess in the UK so I am definitely saying Goodnight and God Bless! Hope this has kept you informed and please do leave a comment on our Blog! We thank you for all your welcomed prayers and thoughts.
Sarah Bell.
p.s. we had a really funny journey home – 7 of us in the back of the open pick-up bouncing around over the huge pot-holes!
The playground is coming along beautifully. The final coat of paint went onto the framework, the surrounding wall was laid, the giant concrete tunnel was put in place and painted green and will soon be decorated with multi-coloured flowers, we are so close but are starting to feel the pressure of time as our deadline is Wednesday lunch time. I would just like to emphasize the bricklaying mentioned previously, this is hilarious to those who know me (and possibly a few others in the group…ok anyone other than dave!) as it isn’t a skill that comes naturally although I think we did well considering we were using bricks with holes at both ends, an uneven trench and handmade mortar! What an experience in the scorching heat.
The village would like to have an official opening ceremony during which we are planning to run our outreach programme, so lets pray that the real reasons of our presence become clear through the songs, drama and testimony.
On our journey home this afternoon everyone fell asleep which is a pretty common occurance to be honest! However adrenaline kicked in quickly as we had 30 seconds to get changed from our very smelly, sweaty, dusty, or ‘just clean boggin’ work clothes! We were no sooner out of the bus than back on the road on our way to the Bridge of Hope for a prayer meeting. Teams of Khmer Christians do outreach work with street children in some of the poorest areas of Phnom Penh. They share the Gospel with children who are often in the middle of their 3pm – 1am shift of collecting rubbish to earn money to eat and pay rent to live in the slums. The prayer meeting was a multi-cultural experience as there were people from Australia, UK, France, Austria, Slovakia, New Zealand and Cambodia. Due to a recent law (as of last week) being considered by the Prime Minister as a result of concerns shown by Buddhist officials there are for the first time since Khmer Rouge regulations, restrictions on the work of Religious organisations. Hence we would appreciate prayers for our safety when working in the community.
Before I close for this evening I feel it is important to let you know about a scheme which Bridge of Hope have recently started. It is for street children who have to earn money picking up and selling rubbish. Their parent agrees to not let their child work in this way again and the organisers arrange for the money which would have been earned (10 dollars a month = 5 pounds sterling) to be donated by people who contribute to the scheme. This gives the child an opportunity to attend school with the intention of learning a trade which will lead to a prosperous job. This helps me understand why children here are so keen to learn, it makes you think.
Well, it is 10.45 pm here and approximately 4.45pm I guess in the UK so I am definitely saying Goodnight and God Bless! Hope this has kept you informed and please do leave a comment on our Blog! We thank you for all your welcomed prayers and thoughts.
Sarah Bell.
p.s. we had a really funny journey home – 7 of us in the back of the open pick-up bouncing around over the huge pot-holes!
2 comments:
Hi everyone. Thanks for the news update. The thought of an 05:30 start is pretty scary. Its good to hear of your pryers being answered. Here in the UK (plymouth) we could do with prayers for less rain! Tell Anna that Mutley went on a prayer walk around plymouth city centre on Sunday(some members did some gardening and litter picking) fortunately we had awindow of dry weather. God is good!
Sounds like bumpy rides are the order of the day - EVERY DAY! How you manage to sleep is a mystery - you must be really tired!
Glad to hear that the Koh Dach Island outreach went well and everyone seemed to join in the fun. We remembered you yesterday here at Mutley Baptist Church in sunny Devon (well it was pelting with rain here some of the day too actually!). We were assured that lots of people are praying for you all and they are keen to hear your news - not all have internet acccess, so we are doing our best to keep them informed.
Well today we too had 'a fabulous overcast sky' - people here wonder when summer is coming! Great for you folks though in the heat of Cambodia, helping you to make so much progress.
We will certainly pray for your safety when working in the community and for the outreach programme during the official opening of the playground.
God bless.
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