Saturday and Sunday

Saturday morning we had free time before leaving for Kompong Thom. This province is north of Phnem Pengh and considered a rural area. The ride was approximately four hours long. Some of our young Cambodian sisters are with us to act as translators and assist us as needed.

We will attend church service in the rural community. There are three churches that will join together in the one service.

The city of Kompong Thom would probably be described as a one horse town. There are still vendors along the streets and the highway is busy, but it is not really for tourists. You are at Kompong Thom because you have business to be there.

The drive to church is about an hour, the reason being that the road is, well, to call this particular stretch a road is a stretch. The bus has to maneuver in such a way as to avoid huge potholes. It is dirt, the red gumbo clay that once you are swallowed you'll never see daylight again.

So we bounce and tilt along. The road is full. Between the oxen, motor scooters and bicycles it is almost as if we are characters in a video game earning points by avoiding others on the road.

The church is actually held at the home of the pastor. The congregation usually meets outside. This morning the three congregations are waiting for us. There is approximately fifty adults and loads of children.

This church is supported by First UMC of Baton Rouge so it is a special treat for the ladies from First. The offerings and gifts from Louisiana are tangible!! As can be imagined, they are very excited.

Service is brief with songs and prayers and Marissa doing another excellent job of delivering the message. As the ladies prepared to serve food, the men set up the tables and chairs. Games were played with children and cameras were going off everywhere.

Cambodians are very gracious hosts and we had our choice of beef, chicken and pork dishes. While we were eating, one of the ladies brought her child to the team asking for help as he was ill. Mae, a registered nurse, offered her assistance and, through an interpreter, said that the baby should be taken to the nearest hospital. We got Elaine and prayed over the baby and the family as they prepared to leave. It turns out that she had just lost another child having similar symptoms. The last the team heard (on Monday), the baby was still in the hospital. We ask for continued prayers for the baby and the family.

The team was taken after church to visit a couple of families that had been provided animals through the connectional gifts of UMW . There are pigs in Cambodia named after UMW circles!!! These pigs provide income to families as well as uplift the villages. As the pigs have piglets they are sold to other families . This income supplements what is earned from the rice that is planted. The same is true for the cows that are given. We also visited the watermelon patch of one of the women. They sell the watermelon and again, this supplements what they earn from the rice fields. The children are being educated, clothed and fed through these programs and families are becoming more self-sufficient.

It may not seem like a lot to us, but the women may earn an additional $50 - $75 US a year. When you consider that the annual income is only between $150-250 a year that is still quite a bit of money.