What gift will you give Jesus this Christmas?

What gift will you give Jesus this Christmas? That was a question a friend asked me a week ago. A good question considering that we are all busy buying gifts to give our loved ones this season but do we remember the One whose birthday it is?  What gift do we give Him? I am struck by how easily we can quickly forget the Giver of good gifts. I know my heart is prone to wander as I get caught up in this season of giving gifts to others but do I stop to think what gift I am giving Jesus? We can never out give God and He is no man’s debtor, so what can we possibly give Him? After all, He has everything, He owns the world and all that is in it, He is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. He owns a cattle on a thousand hills, He is sovereign, He omnipresent, omniscient, so what does one possibly give to our Lord! Not an easy question really as we know how hard it is some times to buy gifts for those who are near and dear to us. 

As I ponder this my mind has been reflecting much on Mary during the Advent season. She received a very special gift some 2000 years ago when the angel Gabriel appeared to her proclaiming that she was highly favored and that the Lord was with her (Luke 1:28). The angel said to her: ‘you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”  ³⁴And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" ³⁵And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.

God initiated this conversation with Mary. He sent His angel to speak to her to tell her of the gift that was being formed and shaped in her, a gift no less than the Holy Child of Israel, the One who is the Way, The Truth and The Life, The One who is the Bread of Life, The One who is The Light of The World, The One who Is the Good Shepherd, The One who is The Resurrection, The One who is the Alpha & Omega, the One who is the Great I Am and yet the One who is the Lamb of God, The One who came to set us free from sin, The One who came to give us eternal life. What a gift that God was giving to Mary. I wonder how much she really understood about this gift that was being bestowed upon her and in her that would shape and transform the history of the world. This was God’s gift to her, a gift that was surely beyond anything she could ever ask or imagine.

But what was her gift to God? Could she even give Him a gift? Really, here she was a young 17 year old girl, a virgin, what could she possibly give to the Creator of the Universe. Mary’s response is simple and yet profound. Mary said to Gabriel, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:38) Mary’s gift to God was simply accepting the word given to her. She believed in her heart and received in faith the promises spoken to her. Jill Carattini, from RZIM ministries writes:  Two thousand years ago, a young girl believed that the promises of God spoken to her were miraculous enough to affect generations to come.  But more than recognizing God's words as true, Mary allowed truth to have its way with her.  Such an orientation may seem irrational to many, but it reflects the beauty of a soul able to stand on a greater rationality. Mary received God and his promises as more than mere words.  She surrendered to God as Savior, allowing her life to be deeply and personally transformed, in both wonder and pain.  The sacrificial birth of Christ into the world among us brings about some of the loudest knocking ever known to human hears.  The gift of a Son into hands that would harm him presents a most sacrificial gift and a striking invitation to sacrifice everything to have it.  As C.S. Lewis describes, "The Christian way is different: harder and easier.  Christ says, 'Give me all.  I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want you—No half-measures are any good.  I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down.  Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent, as well as the ones you think wicked—the whole outfit.  I will give you a new self instead.  I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.'"(2) 

To each of us, Christ comes as he came to Mary herself, wanting to stretch us spiritually, physically, emotionally, and socially, taking away everything, even all we might have thought good or godly of ourselves: our good names, our good futures, our innocence.  Mary certainly had reasons to say "No" to the invitation that came to her on angel’s wings.  She was facing an assuring future: a husband to wed, a home to create, a good reputation.  Saying "Yes" to God and the words of the angel Gabriel was to put all of this on the line, everything she had and might have once clung to with good reason.  Could you do the equivalent?  Could you release security, love, reputation, or even your youth from your own determined grasp?  Mary’s risk was no less difficult than the most sacrificial act you could imagine of your own life.  Saying "Yes" to the Christ child and to the knocking of his love will surely bring down the houses we have built, even the rooms that house the things we hold onto most fiercely.  

Yet this is precisely his invitation:  "⁶For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace"  (Isaiah 9:6).  He comes with the annunciation of great sacrifice and pregnant impossibilities, and he assures us not to be afraid.  Where meek and foolish souls give everything to receive him, they still find themselves the wisest.

So as I think of Mary’s gift, I am reminded that the gift that we can give to Jesus this Christmas is our hearts, our souls, our minds, our everything. Jesus wants it all. He is asking each of us to say ‘yes’ to Him to whatever He is asking us to do or to be. Like Mary, are we willing to say ‘may it be to me according to Your word’ or ‘may your word to me be fulfilled’. Are we willing to believe God and take Him at His word? Are we willing to let God’s word, His truth have its way in us? Like Mary, the gift that we can give to Jesus this Christmas is to believe in His promises, to take His word to heart, to accept His truths, to walk in obedience to His word, to receive whatever He wants to give to us. ----that may not be easy, for these gifts that we may give to Him may come in the form of pain, in loss, in grief, in brokenness but as God gives and takes a way, He never takes Himself a way from us. And so as we celebrate His birth afresh, may we like Mary yield and surrender to His Lordship daily,  may we offer our lives to Him as a living sacrifice as a spiritual act of worship, as we say ‘Yes’ to Him, as we give Him our hearts completely and unreservedly,  may the gift that He unleashes in us lead us into a journey of greater freedom, greater wholeness, greater power, deeper hope, deeper joy, deeper peace and most of all a deeper love for the One whose love toward us is everlasting. After all, the greatest gift that we can give to Jesus is to love Him with all that we have and all that we are!

Cambodia Bound!

Over the past 10 years as I have had the opportunity to go to Cambodia each year, God has been shaping and forming His call upon my life. In 2008, I along with 5 others had the privilege to run a vacation bible school in Svay Pak---a community renown among the world as ground zero for child sex trafficking. Little did I realize then the impact this dusty town would have on my life and the seeds God would plant for this year’s trip.

Last summer while in Cambodia, I was having a meeting with a missionary who was serving in Svay Pak and she shared horrific stories of kids who attended the daily kids club held by our Ratanak partners at Rahab’s House. Some of these kids were so badly assaulted and abused that they could barely walk, others could barely sit and others had bruises on their thighs. These were kids that I knew. kids that I had played with, held, hugged as if they were my own children. I left that meeting disturbed in my spirit, overwhelmed by emotions that I could not express. God had planted something in my heart but I didn’t know what.

The following morning the Lord revealed what He had deposited in a way that I had not anticipated. Two of my team members asked if there was anything they could pray for me on and instantly Psalm 2:8 came to mind ‘Ask the Lord for the nations and He will give you them as your inheritance.’ That morning, I felt led to ask the Lord for the community of Svay Pak as my inheritance. This is one of those outrageous bold prayers as Svay Pak is not exactly the type of promised land flowing with milk and honey, at least not in the visible reality, yet I was reminded that we serve a God who is in the business of doing the impossible—of transforming and redeeming communities that the world has forsaken but God has not forgotten.

THE VISION

And so upon returning home I began to pray daily asking the Lord for a vision for Svay Pak. About a month into that prayer, God began to reveal what this vision would look like when I received an email from my colleague Brian McConaghy who runs The Ratanak Foundation. Brian described a ‘red building, that was being built to be the largest sex tourist hotel/child brothel on the main street in Svay Pak. It would be a place where sex tourists and pedophiles from all over the world could come and live as long as they want and rape and assault the kids in the community to their hearts content. But because of the surveillance going on in the community, because of the raids and Christian presence of our Ratanak partners from Aim4Asia, the owners of that building felt it was too high risk to continue to build and so the opportunity arose for the Ratanak Foundation to buy this building at the end of October. The vision for this building which we now call ‘The Sanctuary’ would house a Christian school for kids in the community who had no other access to education. It would also have a medical clinic to support the community, it would be a place of residence for local staff and expat missionary staff and finally, it would be the new home for the growing church that had run out of space at Rahab’s House (a former brothel, that is now an outreach centre and church). When I first heard of this vision, I began to cry for I felt God saying to me ‘Lisa, this is the vision, this is the vision, your future is tied up with this building.’

The ‘Sanctuary’ officially opened on Wednesday May 26 with over 600 people (including government officials, village leaders and villagers) sitting through the sweltering heat for 3+ hours. They heard the gospel in song, drama, word and action (see photos from the previous blog entry)

WHAT WILL I BE DOING?

While God had shown me the vision, I am a person who likes to be in control and likes to plan ahead and know details, and so I began to pray asking God ‘what my role in Svay Pak’ would be. The Lord’s response came via my colleague Brian McConaghy who said ‘Lisa, you don’t need a role when you are going home. God has blessed you with amazing friendships in that community, go and spend time there and the Lord will show you the next step. At that moment, I felt that God was challenging me to take a step of obedience, to trust Him, to let go of my need to control and to go with a blank slate that He would fill and shape as He so desired. After all, Kenny Luck in his book on Risk says: Predictability, Control, Safety and Comfort are words that Jesus challenges us to throw out the window. Because, when it comes to our faith, all the energy spent eliminating risk from our life actually becomes a barrier to progress in our spiritual journey. Jesus said, “If you try to keep your life for yourself you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake…you will find true life” (Mark 8:35). There really is no such thing as the “safe life” when you are committed to Christ–when you seek to become a person after God’s own heart. Instead, Jesus personally challenges us to bet our life totally on Him.

So on June 3^rd, I will be leaving to go and serve in Svay Pak for 2 months and the Lord has indeed been preparing the way. Over the past 5 months, I have had the privilege of having regular skype phone calls with Pastor Chantha and his wife Bunthan who oversee the ministries in Svay Pak as they have shared the needs in Svay Pak and we have spent time praying through them. These conversations have fueled my burden for this community, a community that 2 years ago, I had such a revulsion towards.

As I head on this adventure to Svay Pak, I would value your prayers for I know there will be bitter and sweet moments. After all, the darkness still exist in Svay Pak---there are still little kids being sold into sexual slavery on a regular basis ---they are like sheep being sent to the slaughter, but I am convinced that as we join together in praying big and bold prayers, that the God we serve and love will breakdown and tear down the walls of injustice and the ancient gates in this community so that the King of Glory can fully enter in and transform both the people and this place from one of darkness to a place of light. For in Svay Pak, Christ has so clearly moved in to take up residence and He has already begun to give us the privilege of seeing treasures in the darkness, of seeing Jesus in the least of these, in the faces, in the laughter, in the hugs given and received from the 120 little girls and boys who come to Rahab’s House Kids club. We have seen Him transform a former brothel to a community outreach centre called Rahab’s House. We have seen Him thwart the plans of man who would seek to destroy lives by halting the construction of the largest child brothel in Svay Pak and transforming it to His Sanctuary, and we are witnessing the first fruits of a harvest as the church at Rahab’s house has grown to over 200 people in just two short years as young and old come to know Him as Lord and Savior. Indeed we are seeing the forgotten become the chosen, the broken become the restored and the captive become free. These are some of precious gifts that we have witnessed, yet we ask Him for more, to see His kingdom come in all its fullness and His will be done in Svay Pak as He redeems an entire community to worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

For those of you who would like to journey along with me in prayer on a daily basis, you can follow my activities on the Ratanak blog: http://ratanakmissions.blogspot.com where I hope to provide daily updates. As well, keep checking on the Ratanak Facebook page for video prayer updates from Svay Pak. Thank you for your prayer support and for your willingness to stand in the gap!

What Does It Mean To Say 'Yes' To God

Wow its been such a long time since I written on this blog. There has been so much going on inwardly and outwardly that some times it just takes time to process. To share prematurely is to release the treasure before the time is right. So recently I have been pondering what it means to say 'yes' to God. This thought has entered my mind through an Advent meditation I read on Mary. The author Kathleen Norris wrote:

Who is she, a peasant girl that an angel of God should appear before her? Who is she to bear the Savior God promised to Israel? Why should this great blessing and burden come into her humble life? Mary believes. For her question to the angel is not 'how will I know' but 'how can this be?' She has already accepted the truth of what the angel tells her. But Mary still has to assent to it, to answer 'yes'. And on that our salvation hinges. The answer depends on Mary and it depends on us.

The questions God asks us are always questions of being rather than knowing. And simply recognizing these moments, stopping for a moment because something or someone wants our attention can matter.....but it will be clear that we are being asked to say 'yes' or 'no' to embrace or ignore what God has set before us.

Like the ancient Israelites in the desert, we can long for the security of the world we know in Egypt. Slaves after all have the security of knowing their place in the world. Or like Mary, we can say 'yes' to the new, uncertain reality that promises true freedom. Say 'yes' to God will always mean more than we can possibly imagine, both for us and for others. Walls and stumbling blocks that seemed impossible crumble suddenly, as we let our fears go. Like Mary, we have no way of knowing any of this. We can ask for courage, however and trust that God has not led us into this new land only to abandon us there.

My spirit is arrested on so many levels when I read the words of this devotion. For my heart is prone to wander but God beckons me back showing me that when I say 'yes' to Him, He is opening up new vistas for me to see and doors to step through. As this year ends and a new year enfolds, I want to find myself always in that posture of willingness to say 'yes' to Christ for in doing so I am being led to a deeper faith, deeper trust, a deeper knowledge of His heart. Saying 'yes' will mean greater sacrifices, counting the cost, saying 'no' to what seems like other good choices which aren't the 'best' choices. Over the years, my desire has always been to live without regret and so saying 'yes' to God is to say 'yes' to new adventures, to walk through fears. It is truly a journey to greater freedom in Christ but is one that God calls us all to take individually. No one can do it for us but we do have the promise that when we say 'yes', God promises to go before us, to part the proverbial Red seas and Jordan rivers. Saying 'yes' may mean saying 'goodbye' to friendships that once fed our souls, to letting go and again allowing God to bring other sojourners and pilgrims who will join us in a journey of courage to a new land, the promised land that God has in store for us. Like Mary of old, I am reminded that her blessedness was born out of faith, a faith that choose to believe, that took God at His word and in so doing, lives were impacted for eternity. Oh Lord, quicken that kind of faith in me that you planted in Mary's heart so many centuries ago, that like her, each of us who chose to walk by faith and not by sight, may taste the blessedness she tasted and we may find favor in your eyes!

Expect The Unexpected

Today is a new day and after yesterday's emotional rollercoast experience I am not at all deterred but all the more thankful to God. Many of you have been praying and following the story about SN for the last few weeks, praying for her safety and protection. Just to recap, yesterday we thought she was really safe...but as I did a double check on the facts it turned out that she was not completely safe humanely speaking. But in a sense she is safe. Perhaps this is why I have so much peace in my heart today. She is in the safest place and that is under the shelter of the Almighty. I was so moved by many who emailed responding with cheers and words of encouragement...friends who have prayed for this little girl's protection. It made me realize more than anything else that God is using SN's life to bless us in the most unusual ways. For each of those who have prayed and continue to pray are the invisible army who stand or in some cases who are bowing their hearts and their knees before the Lord of the universe pleading on her behalf. This is just another dimension of what it means to seek justice for the oppressed. To perserve in prayer and to have the resolve to not give up. Whether we realize it or not, He is knitting our hearts with hers. He is knitting our hearts with the things that are on His heart. He is drawing us deeper into His purposes and for that there is much to be thankful for.

This morning in my quiet time, I was meditating on 1 Corinthians 15:58 which says: Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. To seek justice on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves involves standing firm, not being troubled by the visible reality but having the resolve to give ourselves fully to that which God has called us to do knowing that when we are laboring for Him we are indeed not laboring in vain. The fact that SN is still in Svay Pak is indeed a cause for concern, but more and more, as we wait for her to truly be safe, to truly live a life free of fear and free of oppression, God is raising up a community of believers to pray and in the process, He is enlarging His army and enlarging our faith, our trust and causing us to lean on Him in ways that we are not normally used to. This journey is not just about SN's life but it is also about our lives. I am learning that He is teaching me (and perhaps others) to live on the edge, to expect the unexpected, to accept the twists and turns as we labor for Him and for His purposes. To not yield to the visible reality, but to rest in Him and to wait patiently in Him. Psalm 37 has become one of my life verses for this cause for as it says 'commit your ways; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.' So let us not grow weary but keep commiting our ways to Him--- commit to intercede, to not forget these who He holds so dear in His heart, commit to press on with hope in Him, commit to speaking up for the voiceless and as we do, indeed we will have the privilege of experiencing and seeing the justice of the Lord.

A friend of mind once said to me the journey is the destination. This is the journey that He has called us to. It is a journey that has many tears but it also is a journey that has inexpressible joy, a term that my dear colleague Brian shared with me yesterday. For some strange reason God has given me an inexpressible joy as I think of SN. Regardless of the uncertainty that she lives under at this moment, regardless of the uncertainty that we may feel at this time, I happen to believe that God has set her apart as His, I happen to believe that its just a matter of time when she will enjoy a life of true freedom, I happen to believe that despite these times of waiting, He is weaving something that when finished will bring Himself glory and make us more like His Son as we persevere in obedience to Him. But for now He has given to me (and to others) a very special treasure --- to love her as if she were our own daughter and to allow our hearts to be stretched to a new level of faith. So let us walk with eyes of faith for without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)

August Newsletter Update on Cambodia Trip

Dear Family & Friends

It’s been just over a couple weeks since we’ve been back from Cambodia but my heart and emotions still seem to be in Asia. This is a normal aspect of the re-entry process that we are called to embrace. In many ways, it is the most difficult part of any mission experience because it is a time to be still, to listen and to wait on the Lord for another chapter to enfold. Nonetheless, as I reflect on our journey, there is much to give thanks to God for. I especially thank Him for each of you who have sown so generously into our lives. Because of you, we experienced His faithfulness in providing for all the needs of our team---whether it was your prayers for us, whether it was the financial resources given, whether it was your words of encouragement, whether it was your support at the Our Thai Fundraiser, whether it was your gifts for the Cambodians, God blessed us way beyond what we could imagine. He indeed was not only watching over us, but time and time again, we saw His hand directing our steps and giving us opportunities to encounter Him through the poor, the oppressed and the broken. So on behalf of the team, thank you for your investment of time, energy and resources to stand in the gap not only for us but for the people and children in Cambodia. This service that you perform not only supplied the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.(2 Corinthians 9:12)

Jesus In the Least of These
This year’s trip, the verse that seemed to reverberate in my soul was from 2 Corinthians 12:9. “For my power is made perfect in weakness." Each time I visit Cambodia, it is the weak and vulnerable that God uses to speak to my heart. For it is in their vulnerability, my vulnerability is revealed. In their brokenness, I am forced to confront mine, in their helplessness, I see my own. This is not about dwelling on the pain and suffering of others but rather gaining understanding about an aspect of ‘the cross’ that we so often seek to avoid. For the cross of Christ challenges us to enter into the suffering of the world in all its darkness, hopelessness and pain, yet it is the cross of Jesus that also reminds us that where there is brokenness, there can be wholeness, where there is despair there can be joy, where there is ugliness, there can be beauty, where there is rejection, there can be acceptance. It is in the spending time with the ‘least of these’ I find Jesus and discover that His power is made perfect in weakness. What do I mean by this?

Jesus With The Rejected
At a tender age of 4 days old, baby Bayana who I met at Daughters experienced rejection. Because of her disabilities (she was diagnosed with spina bifida and had club feet) she was rejected first by her parents and then by a pediatric hospital where the doctors suggested to her parents to just take her home and let her die. But Jesus is on the side of the rejected and one phone call and a few hours later, baby Bayana was ushered into a whole new world; a world where her weakness became her strength, a world, where new opportunities and new hope arose. She was given a new name, Neang Rua (which means ‘Ruth’ but also ‘live’), ‘adopted’ by Place of Rescue run by my dear friend Marie Ens and was sent back to the very pediatric hospital where she was initially rejected and is now receiving treatment for each of her ailments. As Marie said, God has a plan for Neang Rua’s life. Yes Jesus’s power made perfect in the weakness of the abandoned. Though the world may reject Neang Rua, He accepts her just as she is. Though the world may want to write off Neang Rua, God has engraved her on the palm of His hand. Though the world may want to forget her, He has not, for He has created her for such a time as this!

Jesus With The Oppressed

But Jesus was not only present to rescue a helpless babe, for He was standing in the midst of one who continues to live a life of oppression as I thought of a former sex worker from Daughters Cambodia, whose tears were a visible reminder of the pain that she endured each day. The violence against her has been transferred from the brothel to her home where she experiences daily beatings from her husband. In one of our seminars, she came forward for prayer, she could barely look up, her body language, a reflection of the downcast spirit within. How does one possibly offer hope to one who is so crushed? I asked her what her name was and asked if she would look into my eyes. I began to tell her that Jesus sees her pain. He knows what she goes through each day, He hears the cries of her heart. He is not a God who is distant but who cares what happens to her and He will rescue her because He loves her. She began to cry and so did I. There is something special in having the privilege of sharing in another person’s suffering, in sharing their pain and helping them to know they are not alone; that we stand in solidarity with them just as Jesus does. I wanted her to know how much she was loved and valued as a human being. That day, she laid her pain at the foot of the cross trusting that God could make something beautiful out of her brokenness. That day she stepped out in faith choosing to believe that God’s power is made perfect in her weakness. That day, I prayed that she saw the loving gaze of Christ, offering her hope that a new day was coming in her life.

Jesus With The Exploited
Svay Pak, the village 11km outside of Phnom Penh notorious for being the pedophile’s paradise is a place where strangely I have come to experience God’s love through the little ones I reconnected with from last year. For it was here that I was confronted with the reality of the statistic that 80% to 100% of the girls in this community are trafficked. Such was the case one Saturday when I learned that within 24 hours one of my little “daughters” was going to be taken to a brothel up north owned by her parents. She had come to the sanctuary of the Lord—Rahab’s House asking for help from the pastor. This time she did not want to go for she knew the fate that awaited her. Each time she had been previously and returned, Pastor Chantha had to take her to a medical clinic for treatment. It is here that both my fear and faith collided. Fear as I thought of the ‘worse’, tears welling up in my eyes, as I sat with her and others, yet ‘faith in Christ’ as we prayed and pleaded for God to intervene. For the first time in my life I felt compelled to fast for the life of this precious one that evening. God’s word to me over night was ‘don’t worry she will be okay.’ Indeed the next day I saw her at the Sunday school program and gave her my cross necklace not only as a symbol of my love for her but more importantly, as a symbol that Christ loves her and that He would never leave her nor forsake her. Praise God, as of this writing she is still safe. Her grandmother who attends Rahab’s House church had refused to let her go, but the tension remains. She remains ‘at risk’ of being sold for sadly she is a ‘favorite’ in the pedophile catalogue. What is it like for a child to live under such a cloud of darkness? I have no answers to this question, but through this process, I am reminded that to love the way Jesus loves, is costly—for it demands that we persevere with an enduring hope despite the visible reality, trusting that in the invisible reality, Christ will be faithful to His promises of protecting the defenseless so that one day, they will terrify no more.

Jesus With The Redeemed
But all is not dark and dismal. For God also is in the business of restoring the years the locusts have eaten from those who have experienced years of sexual slavery. Such was my encounter with 3 of the former victims of the first ever convicted Canadian pedophile/sex tourist Donald Bakker. These special ones are now under the care of a Foster care program that Ratanak funds in Cambodia. I had the awesome privilege of spending a few hours with them, celebrating their birthdays, asking them about their hopes and dreams for the future. They are all believers, doing things that any teenager would do—enjoying junk food, going to youth camp, posing with their favorite stuffed animals, giggling and laughing as they each shared their hopes of being a lawyer, a hip hop instructor, or a business woman. But I was struck by their spiritual maturity as one of them prayed for us and asked that God would use the words that we had prayed for them to touch their hearts deeply. Their story and journey demonstrates the power of Christ to heal, to bind up wounds, to set free and to release new hope and new life. In them, I see evidences of God’s grace restoring and redeeming shattered lives.

Indeed each of these stories are reminders that the oppressed and the brokenhearted will continue to call us out of our comfortable apathy and indifference, just as Christ himself calls us to set aside all that entangles and follow after Him. It is an emotional roller coaster with bitter and sweet moments intertwined, but the poor and the downcast are in need of hope and justice; they need mercy, they need love, they need to know that someone cares, they need to know that they matter and they need our time, even as Jesus seems to tell us that it is we who need their time. For in gaining a glimpse of their darkness, in spending time with them, I become more keenly aware of the words that Henri Nouwen once penned: In these suffering bodies of people we must be able to recognize the suffering Christ. They too are chosen, blessed, broken and given to the world. As we call one another to respond to the cries of these people and work together for justice and peace, we are caring for Christ, who suffered and died for the salvation of our world." In each one of them we not only see Jesus in disguise, but it is the poor and needy who teach us how to love Christ even more. In the cup of cold water delivered to the least of these, He is there among us demonstrating that His power indeed is made perfect in weakness.

Thank you again for your incredible support. For those who would like to read more details about our experiences in Cambodia, check out the Ratanak Missions blog http://www.ratanakmissions.blogspot.com/

Child of God

It is interesting that my blog site is called 'Child of God'. The other day I received an update from IAST (Initiative Against Sex Trafficking) formed by the Salvation Army. For any one who wants to learn more about this issue and get updates from all over the world, I would highly recommend signing up to recieve their emails.

Child of God is a song that was written by Steve Siler, founder of Music for the Soul a Christian nonprofit ministry of music. Steve has been involved in the production of a documentary film called: Somebody's Daughter, the very powerful documentary about men's struggle with pornography. According to Lisa Thompson who oversees IAST, the film is a powerful tool full of the strength, truth, and light of the Holy Spirit against the darkness, isolation, and hopelessness of the sex industry. The film and music project Somebody's Daughter was spurred because of a friend's late night call to Steve. Steve's friend confessed to him about his ongoing battle with pornography. That night Steve and his friend decided, "We wanted to plant a flag; to say to the world that every woman is a child of God, deserving of dignity and respect and to be loved for who she is on the inside."

I have highlighted the lyrics below as they speak. To hear the song simply go to the Music for the Soul home page at http://www.musicforthesoul.org/ and look underneath the green tabs at the left hand side of the page, and click Child of God. To contact Music for the Soul for your own copy and permission to use simply e-mail them using the contact page at the site or call the toll free number at 1-877-298-9081. You should know that Music for the Soul intends that Child of God be available to be used free of charge to minister to those rescued from sex trafficking or those coming out of the sex industry by organizations on the front lines.

Child of God (Lyrics distributed with permission)
by Steve Siler copyright 2009
Music for the Soul


I paint on the face
I strap on the heels
I shut down my heart so it won’t have to feel
the hands that don’t know me all over my skin
and the eyes that don’t love me drinking me in

Under this make up
I’m black and blue
The petals were crushed before I could bloom
I didn’t choose this
No one ever would
And I’d break these chains if only I could

I’m a child of God
I hide in plain sight
I’m a child of God
Slave to the night
Powerless, broken, abandoned, abused
Do you see a child of God
Or just a prostitute?
The world looks away and calls me a whore
and each day I die just a little bit more
A disposable person to keep at arms length
Human trash…
Is that what you think?

I’m a child of God
I hide in plain sight
I’m a child of God
Slave to the night
Powerless, broken, abandoned, abused
Do you see a child of God
Or just a prostitute?

What I’ve become is not who I am
We both were created by the very same hand

I’m a child of God
I hide in plain sight
I’m a child of God
This isn’t right
See my humanity
Look for the truth
I am a child of God
I am a child of God
Not a prostitute

Cambodia Newsletter - June 2009

DEAR FAMILY & FRIENDS

In the fall of 2006, as I was reflecting on what it meant to invest in the lives of young girls who were caught in the web of child prostitution, I was reminded that evil seeks to destroy their future by stealing their hope. Yet it is in these very environments, that God calls us to face the darkness head on, to not block it out, or run away from the horror and reality of the situation but instead to enter in and grieve with those who suffer, so that we can offer Christ’s incarnate love, His compassion, His hope and His dignity to them, in order that they may begin to discover their true value and worth in Him. During that time, the Lord laid on my heart a vision based on the verses from Isaiah 61:1-3 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me, to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.

Since then, God has begun to raise up His Isaiah 61 team – people who come from different denominations, life experiences and backgrounds, but who are united under one purpose and passion: to seek justice on behalf of the oppressed, speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves and see Christ’s healing love bring forth a new life of freedom, hope and peace to lives that have endured much enslavement, despair and violence. This year, God has chosen 11 other individuals from 5 different churches to join me on my annual trip to Cambodia. From my home church Rexdale Alliance are: Tara, Prem, Charlene, Marty, Vidya, Pastor Nancy and her husband Peter. The other team members include: Genie (Young Nak Korean Presbyterian Church), Stephanie(Grace Toronto Church), Melinda (First Alliance church) and Joy (Runneymede United).

WHAT WILL WE BE DOING?

Many of these victims of sexual slavery have lived in the brothels for so long that they have no skills, no viable alternatives or no other source of income but, with families to support, they have no choice but to endure a life of abuse. In 2007, one of the Ratanak Foundation partners Daughters Cambodia was established in the heart of a local brothel district known as Stung Meanchey, to reach out to victims of sexual trafficking. Its aim was to demonstrate Christ’s love in tangible ways by offering holistic care through a variety of programs in order to break the yoke of brothel life and enable and empower girls to rebuild their lives and make healthy choices that would ultimately result in long term transformational impact. This year we have the privilege of sowing seeds into these precious lives by teaching a variety of workshops to 50 girls at Daughters. These workshops include: budgeting, nutrition, anatomy, drug addiction, domestic violence, haircutting, choosing a mate, spiritual warfare, healing prayer ministry and member care. This will not be easy as the girls range in age from 13 to 20 years old but their educational and literacy level is that of a 10 year old or younger.

For me, this is another step deeper into the calling God has on my life and while I am excited to use my business skills to teach a daily budgeting class along with my team mates, it will be quite a challenge, as the majority (if not all) of the girls have never learned basic arithmetic skills of adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing. For someone like myself who works in the finance world, this experience gives a whole new meaning to the word ‘creativity.’ No doubt I will be stretched way beyond my comfort zone! Thank God, there are 4 school teachers on this team! It is times like this that I am reminded of the Lord’s promises from John 15:6 ‘apart from Him, I can do nothing’ and am encouraged by the words of Mother Theresa who said ‘love Jesus trustfully and He will use us to accomplish great things on the condition that we believe much more in His love than in our own weaknesses.’ Indeed if any significant learning and transformation is to happen in the lives of these young women, it is because of what He does in both their lives and our lives.

As Cambodia is notorious for being a source, transit and destination for sexual trafficking, this year we are also planning to prayer walk some very specific areas where sex tourism flourishes and where the illicit trade of selling underage girls occurs.

VISITING OTHER MINISTRIES

One of our visits will be in Svay Pak--- a village located 11km outside of the capital city of Phnom Penh that is notorious for the selling of their daughters into the sex trade. Last summer, our team had the privilege of running a VBS at Rahab’s house ---a former brothel that is now an outreach centre and a church. Through the perseverance of our partners who run the Newsong centre, God’s light is penetrating the darkness in that village and a pandemic of hope is starting to rise within the community. As Don Brewster our Newsong director wrote: Villagers are now believing maybe there’s a way to overcome the evil that has touched every corner of the village and assaulted every family. Just two years ago the Ministry of Social Affairs said, “Don’t waste your time in Svay Pak, it’s hopeless.” The village leader told me, “I’m happy the people traffic their daughters, then I can get money from them.” What a difference the unconditional love of Christ can make. This love first came to Svay Pak through the outreach done by girls at the Newsong centre who were once trafficked and held as slaves in this village. Today that love is multiplied through the Svay Pak Ministry Team and the church. Indeed God is using His redeemed ones to rebuild and bless this community. Two former victims of sex trafficking who have been reintegrated from the Newsong centre have chosen to open up a beauty shop in the heart of Svay Pak in order to be reflectors of God’s light in that place. I am looking forward to meeting them especially since one of them recently announced her engagement to a young Christian man. What a joy it is to witness how God is beginning to rewrite the script not only of this community, but of individual lives such as this young girl by restoring to her what she thought was lost forever—her dignity and her purity. Indeed, she is a living example that God not only hears the cries of the oppressed but He will rescue them and bestow on them a crown of beauty for ashes so that they will become a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.

Beyond the ministries at Daughters Cambodia and Svay Pak, we will be visiting some familiar places: joining AIDS orphans in their monthly birthday celebrations at Place of Rescue run by Marie Ens, a dear friend and mentor whose life and dedication to God’s purposes epitomizes ‘a long obedience in the same direction.’ As well, we plan on spending time with Pastor Sok & Savy Em who oversee the Tahas Bible Institute that seeks to equip and train young pastors and leaders in the church and finally, we look forward to reconnecting with Kim Bui who continues to reach out to Vietnamese children who are vulnerable to sexual trafficking.

For those of you who would like to journey along with us in prayer on a daily basis, you can follow our activities on our blog: http://ratanakmissions.blogspot.com/ where we hope to provide daily updates. We value your prayers for we know they will be like arrows shot into the heart of rape, destruction, and evil. For you will be interceding on behalf of innocence, justice, and righteousness and most of all, joining forces with the One who loves these young lives and who would choose to be abused and beaten for them. Indeed He did that and much more. He died for them but through His resurrection they too may rise again from the pit of shame, guilt, pain and trauma and experience new life in Him! A life filled with new dreams and possibilities to become all who He intended and designed them to be! A life that ultimately will reflect His beauty, His glory and the power of His redeeming love. Thank you for taking this time to read this prayer letter and for standing in the gap for us.

If you are living in Toronto, our Cambodian church friends that run Our Thai Restaurant are hosting a fundraiser buffet luncheon on behalf of our team (Adults: $25, Youth (13 to 17 yrs) $20, Kids (6 to 12 yrs): $10) on Sunday July 5th at 12:30pm. If you would like to attend please RSVP to me by Thursday July 2nd by email: or by calling me.

John 6:29 - What Should We Do?

Today's chapter in my one year bible reading plan is taken from John 6:22-42. The day before the crowd had witnessed a miracle---Jesus feeding 5000 with 5 loaves and fishes and this new day, they are hungry for Him, searching for Him first in Tiberias but He was gone. So they jumped into their boats and off they went to Capernaum. In finding Him, Jesus says 'I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. But don't be concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of His approval. They replied, We want to perform God's works too. What should we do? Jesus told them, 'this is the only work God wants from you. Believe in the one He has sent.'

We are just like these people, asking God what should we do because we want to perform the type of miracles that He does. And yet, Jesus's answer is simple 'believe in the one He (God) has sent.' Believing comes before doing. From believing flows all our actions, all our doing. What we believe determines how we respond. We cannot win any battles if we do not believe they can be won. God's message to us is first 'believe' and when you believe, the Lord indeed begins to work out that 'doing' in us in ways immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine.

If I believe in the One God has sent, then no challenge, no trial, no conflict, no darkness, no evil, no pain, no suffering, no struggle cannot be overcome. If I believe in the One God has sent, then my life ought to reflect the attributes of God---His love, His kindness, His compassion, His tenderness, His righteousness, His justice. If I believe in the One God has sent, then my heart can be transformed to reflect the fruit of the Spirit---love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. If I believe in the One God has sent, then my choices ought to reflect His choices. If I believe in the One God has sent, then the things on His heart, ought to be the things on my heart. That which breaks His heart, should break my heart, that which grieves His spirit, should grieve my spirit, that which He says is true, I ought to be believe is true. If I believe in the One God has sent, then my entire being on this earth is to reflect His glory.

John 6 goes on to teach that Jesus is the Bread of Life and that whoever comes to Him will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in Him, will never be thirsty.

Dear Jesus, help me, help us to keep coming to you, we need your nourishment, we need you, we are only laboring in vain, if we are not abiding in you. Come and breathe your life in us afresh each day that we might daily believe in You. Flood our souls with your truth that we will believe your word and in so doing, stand firm against the fiery darts of the enemy and proclaim your truth that you being the Bread of life, will provide food for our souls, nourish us for the journey ahead, satisfy our longings and refresh us as we continue to run the race you have laid out for our lives. Let it be said of each of us, 'because we believed in the One whom God has sent, we like the saints of past, overthrew, kingdoms, ruled with justice and received what God had promised. We shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, escaped death by the edge of the sword, our weakness was turned into strength and we became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. (Hebrews 11: 33-34)

The Sanctity of Life - A Good Friday Reflection

"Do we believe in the sanctity of all human life, or do we believe in the sanctity of some human life?" I read this quote recently from a movie trailer on the Terry Schiavo Story that is soon to be released. Now this is not a commentary on euthanasia but I love the quote because it goes to the heart of how we see and value human beings. The dictionary describes ‘sanctity’ as the quality of something considered so holy or important it must be respected totally. The thesaurus gives other synonyms for holiness as the quality of being sacred. Christians believe that life is a gift from God. Jesus showed in his teaching that all people should be valued with dignity.

Do we really believe in the sanctity of ALL life or just SOME human life? As I ponder this, my mind instinctively goes to my little sisters around the world especially those who live in Cambodia---young girls for whom a life of captivity and sexual enslavement is the world they only know. I think especially of those who the Lord has given me the privilege of interacting with in Cambodia. I call them my ‘little sisters’ because I believe it is important to personalize their journey. To see them as if they were my own daughter or my own little sister so that I might in some small way enter into their world and share their pain and stand with them. I believe the moment we begin to ‘depersonalize’ these little ones by focusing on the statistics ie: over 1.2 million children enter into the sex trade each years---we fall into temptation that the problem is too huge, that little can be done. We see them as numbers, facts and figures and no longer human beings. But this is why I love how Jesus responds to the multitudes. For Him all life was precious. No one was a statistic, He knows all of us by name. He knows everything about each one of us. All life for Him was sacred. All life was created by God and for Him. He never de-personalized and kept the crowds at a distance, but saw that deep within their hearts, the longings and struggles of harassed souls. He never avoided the places of pain or suffering. Going to the pool of Bethsaida and noticing the many who were sick with various maladies, he was not overwhelmed but rather reached out His hand of love and say ‘do you want to be healed.’ In Jesus and through Jesus, I am reminded that all of life is sacred. Every human being is sacred, treated with utmost respect and dignity. No one is overlooked, no one is marginalized. Everyone is valued---the healthy, the sick, the poor, the rich, the disabled, the broken, the socially inept, the paralytic, the leper, the demon possessed, the oppressed, the prisoner and yes even the perpetrators and the murders.

As I reflect on this, my mind wonders to the Cross---that rugged cross in which He died upon. The cross symbolizes pain and suffering --- emotions and feelings that we so often want to avoid by medicating ourselves or distancing ourselves from. But Jesus set His heart resolutely on Golgotha. How do you and I react to that? Perhaps we cringe and turn our eyes and heart away. But He turned His eyes towards the cross, for our sins both past and present. He turned His heart towards us and demonstrated through the cross the depth of love He had for us and the depth of suffering He was willing to go through for your sake and mind. He embraced a level and depth of pain, mocking, suffering and torture that we will never fully comprehend. This is the mystery of the cross and the words of a song we sang at our Good Friday service rings in my brain. It brings me back to the foot of the cross and reminds me of the price paid for my life. The song is called ‘Jesus Thank You by Pat Sczebel:

The mystery of the cross I cannot comprehend
The agonies of Calvary
You the perfect Holy One, crushed Your Son
Drank the bitter cup reserved for me
Your blood has washed away my sin
Jesus, thank You
The Father’s wrath completely satisfied
Jesus, thank You
Once Your enemy, now seated at Your table
Jesus, thank You
By Your perfect sacrifice I’ve been brought near
Your enemy You’ve made Your friend
Pouring out the riches of Your glorious grace
Your mercy and Your kindness know no end
Lover of my soul
I want to live for You
© 2003 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP)

Jesus as I think of the words of this song, I am reminded that for you ALL life is sacred---You offered yourself as the perfect sacrifice to demonstrate how much you love every single one of us. The cross symbolizes the depth, breath, height and width of divine love that truly mystifies me.

But do we stop there? How quickly it is to forget and lose the awe and wonder of the Cross. But in these days, the Cross gives me a strange comfort and peace. For each Good Friday, I am reminded of the encounter I had with the Lord many years ago as He opened my eyes and revealed Himself to me in the most profound way that all I could do was cry and say ‘why would anyone die for me.’ The scales fell off and I discovered my worth and value in Christ. Amazing grace how can it be that thou my God would die for me.

For in the cross of Christ, I discover hope, meaning, purpose, healing and resurrection power. In the cross of Christ, I see the hope that is possible for those who the world does not value. For my little sisters in Cambodia who have been treated not as ‘sacred beings’ but as ‘sexual commodities’ I take heart knowing that in the cross their pain is known and through the cross, the shame, guilt, fear and trauma of their experiences can be healed and they will rise again to become a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendour. Today I cling to this truth as I received news of a little sister at the Newsong centre who I have not yet met but who attempted to commit suicide recently on two occassions. I pray that she will encounter the risen Lord Jesus Christ this weekend and in the days to come. That the despair, hopelessness and darkness that is overshadowing her soul will instead, give way to the truth that Jesus would and did give His life for her’s. That He values her and that she is worthy in His eyes and worthy of His love. That He is for her and she is more than a conqueror in Him. Oh Lord, hear the cries of this little one and come quickly to her as you come to all of us, carry her in your arms that she might experience your peace, your love and your tender compassion as you wipe away her tears and by the very stripes that you experienced on this day so many years ago when you were tortured, and beaten, may your very stripes be the healing balm upon her small body. Take her sorrows, take her shame, take her pain and take her suffering dear Jesus, and give her you peace. Oh Prince of peace, flood her heart with a fresh outpouring of your Holy Love, with a new song, flood her heart with the truth that though she may be struck down, she is not destroyed, for in you and through you, she has the resurrection power to rise to again from the ashes and experience new life with fresh hope in You. You have overwhelmed the grave Oh God, let her taste the victory of Calvary in a way that is meaningful for her at this time that she may look to you and say 'it is well with my soul, it is well with my soul.'

What Makes You Cry?

I've just finished listening to a sermon from my pastor and in it he was asking us 'what makes you cry?' Recently it seemed that CNN noted that Starbucks was now going to be selling instant coffee and one of their Ireporters commented that this news about Starbucks made them so angry they wanted to cry.' How sad it is, that something like this would make us cry? It's so easy for us as a society to focus on our trivial pursuits when there are far greater things that should move us to tears. My mind wondered to recent conversations I had had and an article that I had read---both of which made me cry. They both had exercised my anger as I sought God in prayer with the proverbial question of how long O'Lord? How long do you tolerate evil and the wickedness of moral depravity, how long?

The conversation that got me going was one in which a young friend who has been involved in development work in Africa shared about a seminar she went to. For the first time she heard about the atrocities done to women in the Congo. Innocent young women once being held captive and experiencing a level of evil that seem so hard to comprehend. One story my friend relayed was of a young woman who was strapped to a bed for 3 months and repeatedly gang raped on a daily basis. When she finally escaped her internal body completely destroyed. Now I am not a medical person but what was described to me was that her reproductive organs were deciminated as well she had no control over her bladder functions. This young victim commented that even now, the stench of semen surrounds her and she can't get rid of it. How long O'Lord do you tolerate this kind of dehumanization and degradation? My friend could hardly contain her emotion when she first heard this story. She went home and as she described it, cried so hard one night that she wanted to vomit. It was as if something inside of her needed to be expelled. The defilement she heard made her sick to her stomach.

What makes you cry? Is it the trivial? Or is something far greater or deeper? So often we may say Lord break our hearts with the the things that break your heart but do we really want that or is it just lip service? It is so easy for our hearts and minds to wander, to be distracted with the here and now, to be busy for the sake of being busy. I can't help but wonder if our busyness is just a protective cover that keeps our hearts from being broken with the things that break God's heart. My friend is back in Africa for a brief visit but I shared with her that when God reveals such levels of evil and brokenness in our world to us, it is a call to pray and seek His face. It is a treasure that He has deposited in us because He wants to show us what grieves His heart and to challenge us to respond. I don't want my heart to grow cold to these stories. I don't want to avoid them. For the day I ignore them, is the day I stop allowing my heart to be broken by the things that break God's heart. As hard as they are to hear them, I want to learn about them. This is the way of the cross. To walk the way of the cross is to enter into the suffering of the world. So often we want the 'crown of glory' but we don't want to wear the 'crown of thorns.'

The other story that made me cry recently come a bit closer to home. It is the calling that God has placed on my life to speak up for children who are sold into prostitution. Recently, I got a prayer letter from a missionary friend working in Cambodia. She works among the Vietnamese community, below is an excerpt from her letter:

On Saturday, December 20, 2008, at 06:15 I set out with two friends to help me visit the five NH schools that are under my care. At each school the individual classes performed a Christmas song together and several children read from Scripture. After the Christmas program was finished it was my turn to speak to the group. The children were very well behaved and listened well to my presentation of the gospel message. Starting with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, I explained to the children with pictures how sin entered the world and that we are each sinners who are separated from God. God sent Jesus to die on the cross for us so that we can go to heaven to be with Him, and not have to pay for our own sins. I explained that only through faith in Jesus can we go to heaven.

At the end of my presentation I invited all the children who wanted to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour for the first time to join me on the stage and prayed. The numbers of children responding to the gospel were for a total of 140 children. At first when I saw so many children came up to receive Christ, I was sceptical about their understanding of my message because some of the children were very young about 4 or 5 years old. I asked the children whether they knew that they were sinners; that Jesus died on the cross for their own sins; and if they wanted Jesus to forgive their sins and to become His children. All of the children understood and wanted me to pray for them. I praised the LORD for drawing so many young Vietnamese children to Him so that they could embrace His love in their rough lives and know that they can call on God when they are in trouble.

"ML" is a grade 3 student in NH school at KM 11. She comes from a Buddhist family and is the oldest girl in the family with one sister and two bothers. I noticed "ML" about a year ago because of her faith in Jesus and her village. She walked to NH church almost every Sunday and carefully listened to sermons. She always greeted me with a gentle head bowing and a sweet smile. One Sunday, I went with her to visit her family who lived in a small hut in “NC” village. I saw some of our drop-out students (13 to 15 years old) who worked as prostitutes. Later on, I found out that all the girls above 12 years old in “NC” village were sold by their parents into brothels. This information broke my heart and made me fearful for ML’s future since she was 11 years old at that time.

I visited ML many times and met only her mother who was busy selling some snacks in front of the house. I asked for her parents’ permission to take ML to a place where she would receive scholarship to study even in a university. Her mother always refused my offer and said that they loved her very much and could not bear to be away from their daughter even for one day.

I saw ML on Feb 4/09 and felt that some bad things had happened to her. She acted differently than at the Christmas time I last saw her. She still went to school but not the church. She wore a long sleeve black sweater at noon with the heat over 30 C degree. She was quiet, sad and not interested in choosing gifts from a Canadian team. It seemed like nothing could comfort or cheer her up.

I went back to school a few days after to talk to "ML" privately. She still wore the same long sleeve black sweater in a hot baking noon time sun. She did not look at me or greet me with her usual sweet smile. I found out that her parents went to Vietnam for the Vietnamese New Year (Jan. 26) to build up her grandmother’s tomb and left her and her 9 years old sister alone in their house. Her father lost his job about 4 months ago and lost a lot of money in the cock fights. I asked her where her parents had money for the trip and for the gold chain they bought for her. She told me her parents borrowed money. "ML" did not tell me, but through our conversation and feeling her unspoken pain and suffering, I knew that she had been sold for her virginity before the New Year to pay off the debt. I cried for her loss of innocence and broken spirit. I cried also for ML" younger sister and the many other young girls in the “NC” village. They would likely be sold just as "ML" and many other older girls.

Every time I read this story about "ML", I cry. I ask the Lord many questions. 'ML' is not just another child sold into prostitution. She is not just another statistic in this horrible travesty. She is a 'sister in Christ'---she is my 'little sister', she is a child of God for whom Christ died. How long O'Lord do you allow this evil to continue? How long O'Lord do you allow your precious children to be treated as commodities? How long O'Lord?

It is easy to be discouraged in this battle, when the tears are dried up what next? WHen the questions remain unanswered, what next? How do you persevere? I think of my missionary friend who faces these situations day in and day out. This is the bitter sweet experience of this ministry. Seeing many children become followers of Christ and yet seeing one be carted off like a sheep to the slaughter. But I have hope, this is what Easter is all about, we are called to enter into the darkness of Good Friday but we are not called to stay there. For Easter beckons us with the call of hope that Christ not only rose from the dead but His resurrection power is in everyone of us. His resurrection power is in "ML" and I have hope and faith that He did not put His seal on her for naught. But that she will rise again and He will restore, redeem and repay every single one of the days that the locust have eaten from her and she will no longer be shamed.

Thank you Lord Jesus for giving us the privilege of weeping with you over the brokenness of your world. You who were a man of sorrows, well acquainted with grief, know the pains and sufferings of the 'ML's of the world. Thank you that because you rose, ML can rise again. So while weeping may remain for a night, rejoicing comes in the morning.

LENTEN READING: Beloved

'No, the answer is not to say to oneself,'I am the beloved.' The answer is to claim our belovedness.

There are anything between six and twenty-six ways of saying,'I claim my belovedness.'For instance,there are all sorts of inner disciplines.

Some questions leading to an inner discipline are:'Do I keep choosing joy over sadness?''Do I keep choosing to speak a word of forgiveness instead of a word of revenge?'That is a very inner discipline.'How do I spend my time?'because there is a choice.'Do I read novels that don't get me anywhere,or watch TV that just makes me distracted?'Or,'Do I choose to read certain books or watch certain programsthat really help me?'That's also a way of claiming my belovedness.'

Am I going to be a garbage can of the world,into which I allow any television program and bookto be thrown?''Do I have a big garbage can in my head?'Do I choose to say,'I am the beloved.I am not going to listen to that stuff,not going to watch it?'

Then there's the discipline of relationship.'Who do I choose to be my friends?'Life offers constant choices,choices for the tools of my belovedness. Can I do it all by myself?One of the disciplines is that which comes from community.Can I hold onto my belovednesswhen the whole world is trying to tell meI am not belovedand therefore have to pay moneyso that I can feel beloved?'I need other people who say,'You don't have to do these things,you are loved.

'You need friends who physically touch you.There is a lot of need of physical embrace -kissing, hugging, holding, very normal physical contact -enormous need for that among the the elderly,among men, among women, among children.There's an enormous need for affirmation,for people to say,'What you said was really good and it really helped me.'There is an enormous need for phonecalls that say,'I have been thinking of youand been praying for you.'There is an enormous need for having people around.The Christian communityis a community of people who remind each other who they truly are -the beloved of God.

'Taken from 'BELOVED' by Henri Nouwen

The Red Hair Boy in Svay Pak

It's been a while since I last wrote on my blog. But tonight I am prompted to do so after I read a prayer request below from one of our Ratanak reps who has been in Cambodia over the last couple of months. Here is her prayer request below:

We were at Rahab House, a converted brothel in Svay Pak. We went to visit the Bible/worship program they have there for the community children 2 afternoons a week. When I think of "pimps" I think of hard, swaggering young or mid-age men. I was appalled to meet one such 'man' a skinny, little, 13 year old boy with bleached red hair. Yes, he has that hard look in his eyes - young-old eyes - and he swaggers and thinks he's cool until the frisbees came out and the stickers, then he ran around and laughed with the others. But there is such a haunting, lost look in him even with play. He is a leader. Please pray that God will get into his heart and change him - old things pass away, new things come.

This young boy that she refers to is called 'How' --- one who I and those on the team that went in July 2008 know quite well. He was one of the cheeriest kids we know but I am compelled now to pray for him. He is not just a boy in a photo that I took, but one who God allowed my team members and myself to interact with and to connect with. In reading this prayer request something in my heart sank. I was saying 'no Lord, not one of our boys, not one that we know.' It is as if in a strange way he is our son. He is as much a victim of this insidious evil darkness as the little girls he is offering to sell. Satan has bound both the boys and girls of this community in such chains that one can't help but wonder whether anything good can come out of this community but I know in my heart that He did not allow us to meet these kids for nothing. Each one of them---both boys and girls are precious treasures in His sight and He has a plan and purpose for their life which they cannot see at this point but I am trusting that the presence of Rahab house and our Ratanak partners in Svay Pak will indeed shine God's light in the hearts of these young souls so that they will be transformed and be set free from the grip of the devil.

Dear Jesus, rend the heavens and come down. See your children, the ones you created with such potential being deceived and blinded by the stronghold of satan. Intervene and show yourself strong. Lord your word says that you are mighty to save and deliver. Will you O God, grab hold of 'How's heart' and open it up to your ways and your truth. Set this captive free.Break down those ancient gates that bind him to the darkness for there is no pit too dark that you cannot reach down and pull your children out of. Rescue him for your namesake, so that your kingdom can come in his heart, so that He will know the One who loves him with an unfailing and everlasting love. Thank you Lord that you are the God of the Impossible and you will build your kingdom and the gates of hell will not prevail. Give us the strength and perserverance to intercede for these who are lost, who are in such darkness that they don't even realize that there is a way out, that the Light can shine and give them hope and put a new song in their hearts. Thank you Jesus for the privilege you give to us to stand in the gap for these, to not lose hope, to not be discourage but to persevere on their behalf for your Renown.

An Early Christmas Present - Sung has been found!

Last night as I sit at my computer I was in shock and disbelief at what I read. My eyes filled with tears but not tears of sadness but tears of joy knowing what a great God we serve. He indeed is the God of the Impossible who can find a needle in a haystack. He is a God who hears the prayers of a man, my fellow ministry partner and the founder of the Ratanak Foundation Brian McConaghy who for years has been relentless in trying to track down a little girl named Sung who was brutally raped by a Canadian pedophile Donald Bakker who is the only Canadian ever charged under our country's sex tourism law. The email was telling me that 'Sung' had been found.


A rehabilitation centre that we fund in Cambodia called "New Song" is named after two girls 'Nhu' who is now working with another Christian agency and 'Sung' who for years has been missing and presumed to have either been trafficked into another country or dead. Yesterday, Brian found out that Sung has been found. In the future, we hope to be able to share more about this story.

For now, Sung's 'discovery' brings out many emotions in me. She is another child that represents hope to me. Hope in a God who does not forget those whom He has engraved on the palm of His hands. The world may forget her, the people who use and abuse her may see her as disposable, but He who died for her will never forget her, for her walls are ever before Him. These are the words from Isaiah 49:15-16 that I am reminded of at this time. For it was these very verses that the Lord impresed upon my heart some 4 years ago when I saw the plight of the Vietnamese children who lived along the riverbanks of the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers in Cambodia. I remember wondering how they could ever have hope when they were so displaced and marginalized with no identity papers, ailens in a country that didn't want them and ignored by the country in which their ancestors were born. Yet God spoke to me very clearly that time saying He had not forgotten them. When I think of Sung, it is as if He is saying 'see, I have not forgotten them---now don't you forget them. Keep praying, keep persevering, keep speaking up, keep seeking justice on their behalf, keep moving forward, keep enduring, keep believing Me, keep trusting Me especially when the visible reality says otherwise, keep hoping, keep pressing on for your labors are not in vain, keep fighting the good fight, keep shining My light and you will see Me fulfill My promises in Isaiah 61:1-4.'

Sung's discovery has lit a fire under my heart in a way that I never could have anticipated. Thank You Jesus for these unexpected gifts. You are the ultimate Gift that keeps on giving.

Reflecting God's Beauty In A Broken World

Child Sex Slaves--- 3 words that do not belong in the same sentence and yet this unthinkable and horrible travesty not only exists but it is thriving and growing. Today, there are over 1 million children who enter the sex trade each year. In Cambodia, girls may be sold into sex slavery as young as five! The "old" girls are 11-13 years old! Torture and violence are a girl’s daily companions. She will be raped 8 to 10 times a day by adult males who come from all over the world to humiliate her. They will take photos and videos of her terror so they can "re-live" the moment and impress their friends.

But her story remains untold. Her voice is silenced by the fear, shame and guilt that she is forced to endure. Her body is desecrated by the multitude of sexually transmitted diseases it is forced to host. She is hopeless, helpless, has no passport or papers, no identity. She has become what they want her to be – a product- a sexual commodity!

Yet it is into this darkness that God is calling His people through the words from Isaiah 61:1-4 to be His light by entering into the battle against oppression, to bind up the broken hearted, to release these prisoners from the dungeons of sex trafficking, to set these captives free; to bestow on them His crown of beauty instead of ashes, to replace their spirit of despair with His garments of praise, to pour His oil of joy upon their crushed hearts so that they can become oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.

Will you be part of God's Isaiah 61 team by reflecting His beauty in a broken world as you speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, restore hope and dignity to those who are viewed as disposable and invest in their lives in order for them to fulfill their God given destinies?

The Ratanak Foundation is having its 3rd Seek Justice Conference entitled: Reflecting God's Beauty in a Broken World on January 16 & 17, 2009, in Toronto.

Click on link to read more abou the conference details: Conference Info and how to register for this upcoming event.

I Will Rise

These past few weeks there has been so much going on in my mind. When I think of all the planning and logistics of the upcoming conference in January, when I think of my spiritual daughters in Cambodia and the pain and trauma they are dealing with, when I think of a good friend who was ministering to these little ones and now she herself is going through physical suffering that has resulted in her temporary leaving the field---all of these things weigh on my spirit and I am so easily tempted to run in the other direction. But there is a song that has been my anthem these past few weeks, a song that has played in my mind, a song that enables me to run this race that God has called me to pursue, a song that gives rise to hope. It is called 'I will Rise' by Chris Tomlin.

There's a peace I've come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There's an anchor for my soul
I can say "It is well"

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And riseI will rise

There's a day that's drawing near
When this darkness breaks to light
And the shadows disappear
And my faith shall be my eyes

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

And I hear the voice of many angels sing,
"Worthy is the Lamb"
And I hear the cry of every longing heart,
"Worthy is the Lamb"
And I hear the voice of many angels sing,
"Worthy is the Lamb"
And I hear the cry of every longing heart,
"Worthy is the Lamb"

And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

As I think of the lyrics, I think of the journey that my little sisters in Cambodia have experienced and my good friend who is facing physical challenges, I think of the loneliness that leadership involves and yet through all of this Jesus is the anchor to each of our souls. He is the Peace that we have each come to know in our trials, He is the One who has overcome and gives us His power to overcome. Thank you Lord that you have won the victory for us and there is a day when the darkness around us will break into light and we will rise on eagles wings. And we like the angels will sing 'Worthy is The Lamb'---You indeed are worthy O'Lord to receive all glory and honor. Give to each of us the courage, perserverance, endurance and resolve to move forward, knowing that with each step we take, You are right beside us to guide and direct our paths. And just like Gideon, Samson, David, Samuel, Jephthah and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies (Hebrews 11:32-25) Quicken our faith that we too will live with the same kind of spiritual tenacity that these saints of old demonstrated so that we can testify how great is our God who is indeed worthy to receive all praise, honor and glory!

Dateline NBC: Update on Children for Sale

In 2003 Dateline NBC went undercover with International Justice Mission (IJM) and did a raid on a brothel in Svay Pak. Today that brothel has ben converted to a community outreach centre called Rahab house. The place where our team did our VBS this past July. Four of the girls who were rescued from that raid back in 2003 are featured in an update on that documentary called 'Children For Sale.'



This is an 8 minute video: Dateline NBC Update on Children for Sale


It is both fascinating and encouraging to note that the Ratanak Foundation has been instrumental in developing and/or is currently funding ALL of the projects featured. God is good in giving us these glimpses of the impact that is possible as we seek to invest in the lives of girls who society deems disposable. Seeing the faces of these 'my little sisters' encourages me to keep pressing on knowing that He is the God of the Impossible, redeeming lives for His glory, restoring dignity and giving hope to the hopeless. Indeed nothing is too hard for the One who came to give us life and give it to us in abundance.

Update on Cambodia Trip 2008

A typical scene outside Rahab House after the daily VBS

It has been a few weeks since we have returned from our trip to Cambodia and on behalf of the team thank you for all your prayer support and the many ways you have encouraged us. When I reflect upon our experiences and think of all the prayers that were offered up on our behalf the words from 1 Thessalonians 5:24 come to mind: The One who calls you is faithful and he will do it. Our team indeed experienced God’s faithfulness and His provision for every need and request that was asked of Him ---whether it was peace for a nation during an election campaign, to unity within the team and between our Cambodian partners, to resolving ministry challenges in Svay Pak, to helping us to connect with the kids, to keeping us healthy and sustaining us as we endured the heat, to providing electricity for the VBS when we needed it the most, to protecting us from any unseen dangers ---God was gracious and good to us---all the time!

Kids sharing a meal at the VBS

The boys leading the worship

Lunch time at Rahab House during the VBS

BEAUTY IN BROKENNESS
These past few weeks as I have been thinking about our time in Cambodia, the theme that has been emerging is seeing beauty in brokenness. Before entering into the Svay Pak community—I could only see the darkness, the brokenness, and the depravity of this community. It was and is very easy to judge those who reside here and all that it represents. After all, Svay Pak is renown for the sex trafficking of underage girls. Its external appearances provide an eerie reflection of the hidden darkness that under girds this community. The streets are lined with filth, garbage is a common sight where ever you turn, the buildings are in disrepair and the smells are intoxicating as you walk through the alley ways. Yet the words of Mother Theresa remind me that if we judge people, we have no time to love them. It is in these very places, God longs to pour His holy love and to bring forth luminous light so that even the dark is illuminated into a community that is often viewed with scorn and disgust. In many ways, the outreach ministry that AIM4Asia begun at Rahab house last October reflects the first strands of beauty that God has been weaving in this place. The two week VBS that our team did as we partnered with AIM workers Joseph and Ratanak, CEF workers and the girls from the Newsong centre, enabled us to see a different side of Svay Pak---the beauty of His precious little ones and the potential that lies in them, amidst the brokenness in this community. Each day when our van would enter into the main street and head towards Rahab house, we would be escorted by a small but boisterous entourage of kids smiling, waving and chasing along side our van. When we arrived at our destination and stepped out into the morning heat, we were like local celebrities, as the kids gathered around to touch us, call us by name or hug us. For all the challenges these young lives have known –whether it be verbal, physical or sexual abuse, feeling marginalized, forsaken and mistreated, their actions towards us were welcoming as they sought to express their joy, love and excitement to us. What started our as a VBS for 55 kids grew to 165 kids by the end of our two weeks-- so many faces, so many smiles, so many longing to be acknowledged, so many to feed, so many desiring to be held or touched, so many names to remember. Where does one begin without feeling overwhelmed? When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36) To be like Jesus in this environment meant to sow His seeds of love and compassion and to see the one child in the midst of the multitude as we interacted with them through the bible lessons, the songs, the games, the crafts and the lunches we provided. Other times it was walking hand in hand with our little tour guides leading the way, singing in Khmer ‘Thank you, thank you Jesus’ as we meandered our way through the alley ways to the surrounding wooden shacks in the neighbourhood that represent home for so many. The kids would stop and proudly introduce us to their families or advise us who to give the food packets to. In the visible reality, it is hard to see what kind of impact these small gestures have on a community that is suspicious of outsiders and yet the words of Mother Teresa has serve to encourage me: Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired. It is the intensity of love we put into our gestures that makes them something beautiful for God. Intense love does not measure, it just gives.

Kingdom Kids Celebration

Christ’s intense love continues to be poured out as our partners at AIM4 Asia are in the midst of preparing to open a school for the kids at Rahab house within the next month. In the meantime, a weekly church service that begun over the past month has seen a steady flow of participation from the local residents and just last week 150 adults attended the service. Through all these ministry efforts in Svay Pak, we have heard that some families are no longer willing to send their daughters when a pimp comes to get them. This is a small ray of light that is shinning in the midst of the darkness. This is the invisible reality in which God is building His kingdom in the most unusual place and the gates of hell will not prevail. Only He can take a former brothel and transform it into a place of worship where His name is exalted! Only He can take a place that was once a place of death and destruction and transform it into a place of life and hope. Only He can chip away and breakdown the ancient walls and gates that have imprisoned this community, so that the King of Glory can enter in, in all His fullness.

After our time in Svay Pak, we had the opportunity to spend a day at Daughters Cambodia which ministers in Stung Meanchey---a slum that is a brothel area for local Cambodians. Daughters now supports 100 former prostitutes by providing them employment opportunities and a variety of services to empower them to make life style changes. Someone once said that people may not remember exactly what you did, or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel. This statement could not be more true when I think of the children of these former prostitutes. We had the opportunity to play some games and teach them some crafts yet the greatest pleasure came in presenting each of them with a t-shirt that had the Canadian logo and a teddy bear made by the Evergreens from our church. I have never seen so much joy and delight in the faces of kids as I saw in these, when they squealed with excitement as they discovered they were each going to get these gifts. For children who have nothing and are treated as nothing, their laughter and joy reminds me that as humans we long to be valued, to know that someone cares, to feel loved, to feel special and to be treated with dignity and worth. It is through these opportunities as mundane and simple as they seem that God revealed His beauty to us in these broken communities.

Beauty in Restoration – a wounded healer!

But God’s beauty is also being restored and emerging in those whose lives have endured suffering beyond comprehension. I had the opportunity to reconnect with Srey Neth, my spiritual daughter who lived through months of hell being raped daily by 10 to 20 men and being beaten and tortured. As I listen to her talk about the horrors she endured, I felt so blessed and privileged that she would share her pain with me. She is still on a journey of restoration and while she is not yet a believer, her wounds are no longer a source of shame. They have become a source of healing and a source of hope for other young women who have gone through a similar ordeal as our Lord (who gives strength to the weak) is the one who ultimately is giving her the courage and the voice to speak up and tell her story. Indeed, we have a God who is mighty to deliver us from the darkest pits of our lives and make something beautiful out of our pain that we in turn can become wounded healers.

At the End of the VBS

Returning Home---what next?
As we returned home, the real challenge is to keep moving forward and asking God to integrate into our lives what we have each learned and the practical ways He desires us to respond. It is a called to live intentionally and to wait on Him for the next steps. To wait open-endedly as Henry Nouwen once said is to be actively present to the moment, trusting that something will happen to us that is far beyond our imaginings. It is giving up control over our future and letting God define our life, trusting that He moulds us according to His love and not according to our fear. It is my prayer that each of us will look to the Lover of our souls as the One who ultimately will give us courage and faith to live out the dreams He has placed in our hearts and to walk fearlessly with Him as we seek first His kingdom. Thank you again for being a part of our journey.