In July 2017 29 people left from Atlanta to Phnom Penh Cambodia. Our mission was to serve Sanctuary Church partners in Phnom Penh and Kampong Thom. Below you will find a quick breakdown of the day’s activities.
Saturday
The team broke into two groups
One went to widows island the other went to the killing fields and then at 1p we switched.
On Widow’s Island we celebrated the church’s anniversary in their new building. We also watched a small performance from the kids, gave them clothes, put on a VBS, and one team member lead an Identity in Christ seminar for the women. Another team member held a spontaneous time of fellowship for the men now living on widows island.
That evening we just had a calm night as a team with tuk tuk rides to dinner.
Sunday
This was another day of dividing and conquering. One groups went to Pastor Paul's church and the. Took his family to dinner.
The other team went to the dump site to do a medical mission, a VBS, and a place to give all the children new outfits.
They then went to Pastor Sihok's church.
The whole team came back together in the evening to visit Dr. Tago's church and see the orphans.
Monday
This was a big day for our team. We did a service project day at Haley’s House of Hope.
Our team painted both dorm rooms, cleaned the rooms, replaced the mattresses, bought new pillows, and a small group painted a mural in the entry of the orphanage.
About halfway through the day a small group took all of the children out for an afternoon of fun at kids play place. Their they got to unwind and just be children soaking up some intentional love and time with our team.
Tuesday
TRAVEL DAY FROM PHNOM PENH to KAMPONG THOM
In the evening we spent time with the children and toured Dr. Castro’s compound including the hospital.
Wednesday
The team split into two groups.
One group went to a baseball tournament put on alongside other American missionaries at Thavvy’s baseball field.
The other part of the team went to Angkor Wat for the day
That evening we attended church at Dr. Castros church and the children put on a recital to show some of what they have been learning in the new SSM Music Academy
Thursday
This was a beautiful day of serving the children at Bileg Solid Rock. We taught the children music, held an art lesson learning to draw faces, and put on a time of beauty and hygiene for the girls to get their hair and nails done. We also had a lacrosse clinic for the boys.
That evening a private donor sponsored an evening at a waterpark for the children as well as a dinner.
Friday
Goodbyes are always so hard and Friday morning we said goodbye to the children and partners in Kampong Thom. Then we made the journey back to Phnom Penh.
We had an hour at the market to shop and experience the crazy hustle of that place
Then we were off to the airport. The children always come to see us off so there were more tough goodbyes but also a joy in knowing that we are so connected in ministry together and we would talk again soon.
This whole week was incredible. We were stretched pulled and pushed into so many amazing places and saw God glorified in every day. We saw 31 people come together to make a beautiful family in Christ! We watched the Lord work in each of their hearts and saw them die to themselves to live for Him and lift their teammates up. The amount of giving, encouragement and prayer that was displayed was breathtaking. God moved mightily through Cambodia but also in the hearts of every team member.
This recap is just a drop in the bucket. I encourage everyone reading to pursue time with members of the team to get their stories and perspective.
