The building in the picture below does not look like much, but this 100 square meter building is a church and home to three adults, their 5 children and twelve orphaned children. Sleeping in whatever dry spaces they can find on the floor during rainy season, this is home.
This wooden building is a church to approximately 100 people in a village in Kampong Thom province in Cambodia. Due to financial constraints, this building has no front doors. Hence, we named this the “No Door” church. Since establishing this church in the village, the pastor and his family have been sheltering children left behind by their parents, so this church has also become an orphanage.
During the day, the children learn church songs and play games. Only a few attend school. At night, boys sleep one side, while girls sleep on the other side of the building on the few mats that they have available. Most of the children have only 2 sets of clothes, including the one they have on.
With so little material possession in their lives, the pastor and his wife hope that the children will get to know God and have Him in their lives.
Knowing God has made all the difference for Pastor Pov:
“I was saved in 2002 while I was living in another village. Pastor Sok shared the Gospel to me. I was a fisherman then. My coming to Kampong Thom was God’s doing. A big problem came to us when my wife’s relative accused me of a crime and had me arrested. I could not pay so I was jailed.
During my stay in prison, I was praying. My family was suffering and I did not do wrong. I had nothing to do but pray. One day, the Lord spoke to me that I will be a fisher of men. I made a commitment that I will serve him with my whole life if He release me from prison. Without any condition, I was released after 45 days in prison. To avoid further problems with our relatives, we moved to Kampong Thom”.
By 2004, Pastor Pov was able to gather around 10 converts that worshiped where they could find shade from the hot sun. After gathering some converts, Pastor Pov was mentored by Pastor Sarady, who served as a source of constant encouragement for the new pastor. It was through his daily encouragement that gave Pastor Pov the motivation to build a church.
By selling his property for $1000 and taking out a loan, Pastor Pov was able to start the church. He describes the church as the community’s “all in one”. It is a place of worship as well as a place for living godly lives. Recently, the pastor sold his motorbike to finance the construction of a water-well for the children, so that they would not have to run far off to neighbors’ wells when they needed clean water.
The inhabitants of the church act as a family. The pastor works in neighboring farms, while the older children do odd jobs in the village to help support the rest. Han, the pastor’s wife treats the children as her own:
“With other children coming to stay with us, I have more mouths to feed. But I treat them like my own children. So my children are growing like they are their own brothers and sisters. What I am thinking more about is that these children will be able to know God. That is most important”.
In March 2008, our Ministry led a missions project team to visit this church/orphanage and undertake a project which involves some construction work … installing a front door for the church, do some partitioning, install toilets and painting work. We will also help out in the orphanage by providing the orphans with 13 bicycles so they do not have to walk 12 km to and from school.
Will you partner with us, so together we can make a difference in the lives of our fellow believers in Cambodia … especially the children.
esther @ March 31, 2008
Last summer, our missions team visited the Karen Mae La Camp on the Thai-Burma border. They spent 3 days in the camp and brought basic supplies like rice and clothing for the Karen refugees. Our worship team ministered to the youth through Christian music and encouraged them through their personal testimonies. They also visited the orphanage and brought gifts for the orphans.
webmaster @ March 20, 2008