Sis Tabitha Heah

                  I would like to thank God for this experience He has given me to serve Him. Although it was my second mission trip to Cambodia, I still learnt much from the trip. To be given the opportunity to go to Cambodia once again was something I always wanted. Since the last trip in 2003, I was unable to go due to school and other commitments. When I heard there was a trip to Cambodia being organized by Hope BP Church, I was all hands up to go. To me, it was an answered prayer.

                  As weeks passed and the days drew nearer for my departure to Cambodia, I started getting anxious and afraid. Were my intentions going there for the right reasons? Being away for two weeks and not spending time with my family in Singapore -- was it worth it, since I was on vacation? I started to feel unprepared and uncertain about my decision. However, I committed it to prayer and that eased many of my uncertainties and apprehension. And when it came to the day to fly to Cambodia, I didn’t feel uneasy anymore and I was going to leave everything in God’s hands.

In Cambodia, I was assigned to teach English, Bible classes and lead songs in Chapel for the primary school at Life University. It was my first time teaching and I had my anxieties. I was thankful for the encouragement from the team members. They showed me how it was done and the different ways of leading songs and gave me some pointers on teaching. The teaching experience had showed me how hard it was to be a teacher. The amount of dedication required for the job and the love for the children is truly great, and this made me admire many of the teachers at Life University.

Through my interaction with the Bible students as well as the children, I could see their hospitality towards us and their willingness to learn. Above all, they manifested their love for God. I will always remember the students in one of the villages in Sihanoukville. I was able to mingle with the students, getting to know them and learning a few Khmer words and phrases from them. Even though the time we spent was not long, they invited me to their homes, even asking me to stay with them and to teach them English. I was truly touched by their act of kindness and love for the Lord. And to be able to see their desire to learn and their selfless acts of kindness, they have showed me how ungrateful and selfish I can be.

There were times when we did have difficulties, such as, long journeys on the mini-vans to the various places and experiencing tummy upsets. I think it was worth it all. I could see the concern between the team members for each other, helping each other find the nearest toilet, getting the medicine to relieve us from our distresses and the support and encouragement throughout the whole trip in Cambodia. Working with the other members from the different churches allowed me to get to know more people with likeminded beliefs and to better cultivate Christian fellowship. I’ve also learnt much from them, learning how to teach the young children as well as growing spiritually in Christ. It made this trip a more fulfilling one for me, having fellow Christian brothers and sisters around.

I enjoyed the daily devotions both in the morning and at night, where we were able to come together to share our experiences in the day. It enabled me to reflect on myself each day and to see how magnificent our God is with His constant protection over us.

I would definitely encourage people to go there or any mission trip, to experience for themselves as there are many things that are difficult to express in words. It was wonderful to see God’s work in the mission field and especially to see how much it had grown from the last time I was there. The trip showed me God’s grace and almighty power in leading and guiding the missionaries in Cambodia and that their labour was not in vain. It is through faith and dedication in and to Christ that has enabled such wonderful works to be done. This has definitely been one of the experiences in my life that will always be close to my heart. I thank God for giving me this opportunity to go to Cambodia once again.

Sis Michelle Lee

After the last Cambodia trip in 2005, I was persuaded by many people including my dad and my sisters that it was a good experience and that I should go. After some consideration I made a decision that when the next mission trip arrived I would go, and hence in January 2008 I went off and joined the 6th Cambodia mission trip. Due to a lot of stories told by my sisters and dad, in terms of hygiene I expected worse than I saw, but the natives were pretty much what I had expected from what I was told - friendly and fun loving people. I had expected the mission itself to be tiring while overwhelming and that was true, it was tiring, but overwhelming; - physically and spiritually.

Before we left for the Cambodia trip, it was all a kind of a rush. I think most of us after the BOOT Camp and Christmas didn’t realise how little time we had before it was time for us to leave, but mostly I was preparing material for teaching English and Sunday school. A group of us re-learnt grammar from Daniel, and learnt some Khmer songs with Kim so the Cambodians could sort of understand us without a translator. Before the Medical mission began, some of us who were already in Phnom Pehn would help Glory church with English conversation classes in the evening. When the Medical mission began I thought I’d be useless, but it turned out the pharmacists needed quite a bit of help in dispensing the medicine so I wasn’t useless anymore!

My favourite part of the missions was probably helping out with the Preschoolers in Life University at Sihanoukville. The funny thing is the teachers don’t even speak Khmer; they are from the Philippines, and only have one Khmer translator shared amongst the 6 classes. However, the kids are so enjoyable. They respond, they listen and are really enthusiastic, and of course they are so cute!

I enjoyed most of the trip, but the worst part of the trip was the bus rides and the days that I was sick which were spread out during the trip. I think it’s a good idea to continue sending a team there, including medical and dental. I wouldn’t mind going back next time, but I think I’d be going for a much shorter period of time. I think it was great how the other churches within Australia and Singapore got involved rather than just our church. It gave us a chance to learn new songs, and teaching methods, and also just in general to get to know other Christians and people.

Sis Suzane Lim

The first thought that came to my mind in Cambodia was how ill prepared I was. I wished I had prayed and committed the matter to the Lord more earnestly and not ‘rushed’ into doing any of the Lord’s work without proper spiritual preparation. It is easy to do the Lord’s work with good intentions but with the wrong attitude. The purpose of this sharing is not because I have ‘perfected’ my service, far from it, for I am still a babe in Christ. However, I do hope that this short sharing can be used for our edification and self-examination. The question is, what kind of preparation is necessary for the Lord’s work and how does it affect our stewardship?

In terms of spiritual preparation, a servant’s heart, one that is lowly just as the Lord’s, is vital for spiritual service. It is to come prepared with a heart that is ready to serve and not to be served. It is a ready heart with a childlike faith and trust. When the LORD called young Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:10, he responded quickly and promptly with ‘Speak; for thy servant heareth’, he did not say, ‘wait’.

Next, a servant’s heart is not only ready to serve but is lowly and meek. In a parable taken from Luke 18:9-14, Jesus compared the hearts of two men - a Pharisee and a tax collector. The Pharisee, in verse 11 & 12, confidently claimed that unlike other sinners, he had fasted twice a week and gave tithes of all that he possessed. On the other hand, we read of a tax collector in verse 13. He stood afar off and would not even raise his eyes to heaven, for he acknowledged that his sins were great and burdensome. He beat his breast, an outward expression of his remorse, and cried out ‘God be merciful to me a sinner.’ The Lord said ‘ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted’ (verse 14).

Lastly, to be prepared spiritually for the Lord’s work is to be totally dependent upon God who cares, on Him who is able to provide. He knows our limitations, our worries and cares. ‘Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them;’ (Luke 12:24) or in Matthew 10:30-31, ‘But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.’ Words in the scriptures point us heaven ward where we could draw our strength and courage to work faithfully even when the work has become laborious or when we are overcome with discouragement.

But how does having a servant’s heart, humble and lowly, and the attitude of complete reliance on Christ’s goodness impact our stewardship? It teaches us that God’s work requires total commitment, no matter how small, insignificant or trivial it may seem. In Cambodia, it may be to prepare worksheets for class lessons or art and craft materials for Sunday School, to teach bible songs in the kindergarten, to organise chapel before lunch time, to attend to the sick and needy in the villages, to paint church building when it needed a new coat of paint, to write Sunday sermons for the first time etc. It’s a total commitment that whatever the task may be, we are to do it well and to do it for God’s glory. At the end of the day, when the lessons had been delivered, when Sunday School was over, when the children were dismissed from chapel, when the sickly had been attended to, it was so easy to give ourselves a pat on the shoulder and congratulate ourselves for the good job we have done. But, pause and consider these words in Luke 17:10, hear what Jesus said in regards to faith and duty.

“So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do”.

  Please give us a servant’s heart that we may reflect Christ in our lives.

Sis Clara Sim

There was a great air of excitement, restlessness in my bones and a spring in my step. I was going to Cambodia!

Pardon me if I start gushing halfway through, but remembering Cambodia fills me with great joy and awe. For me personally, a lot of prayer went into preparing for and in Cambodia, with the knowledge of how sinful and unworthy I am in mind, I knew I had to rely fully on God. The Lord showed His mighty hand at work every inch of the way. From right at the beginning, the list of people joining the team kept growing and growing and growing, to an enormous 45 members! There were so many people willing to serve the Lord! Indeed, how blessed it is to be part of a team that is so enthusiastic about the Great Commission. Of course, with a large team there were greater logistical problems, but as each setback occurred, the Lord taught me patience and perseverance; and eventually, all the accommodation and transport planned, ran smoothly by God\'s grace.

There was also this issue about teaching in Life School in Sihanoukville. I had the task of teaching English and Bible Classes to the Year 10, 11, 12 students, alone. Gulp. Well, really, I wasn\'t alone, God was with me, and besides, I thought it'd be awesome fun! When God says have faith and go, there'll be no more walls of Jericho, quoth I. So marching along to my first class bright and early on a Thursday morning, I found myself spending the next one and a half weeks learning, forming friendships, and teaching, seemingly without end, but it was wholly rewarding blessing from God.

I mention learning first because from my class students, the Bible College students, teachers, Church people and the experiences themselves, in Phnom Penh (albeit briefly), Sihanoukville and Siem Reap, I have truly taken away more lessons than I have imparted. The graciousness, kindness and love shown by the people I met, gave me a glimpse at what being a true servant of God would be like. Everyone from the Mission team contributed selflessly, I was also greatly encouraged by the effort put in by the organisers, leaders and every team member. The trip made me realise how little my service is compared to those who work so hard for the Lord in Cambodia full-time, yet they do it with such joy for the ministry and with such love for the Lord. It truly puts me to shame.

Although my sharing may be somewhat light-hearted in nature, there is no lack of gratitude nor reverence for our Lord God. God was with me all the way, from granting me journey mercies, to teaching and sharing the Gospel to my students, to teaching Sunday School, to having fellowship with my brethren from Cambodia and Australia, I thank God for it all. The memory of sharing the Gospel to the Cambodians, has left an indelible mark in my mind, it was with such earnestness that the Word of God was pouring out of my mouth, that I was sure I could not have done it on my own strength, but only with the Holy Spirit lending me the voice. The whole trip was an incredibly humbling experience, it was a time when God's presence was so close to us, leading us, guiding us, as we worked together to serve Him. I can only pray that my feeble efforts were able to bring glory and honour to Him.

May the Lord use a simple servant like me as He sees fit and may I always be tuned-in to His calling.

“As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:10

God bless!

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