Standing in the Gap
- ebeck531
- Mar 24, 2022
- 5 min read
A Reflection on “Ruins”
It was in 2014 that I visited Cambodia for the second time. During that trip, the missionary who later invited our family to come to live and serve in Cambodia, took me to the top of a mountain in one of the seaside villages. To my surprise, at the peak of the mountain sat an old abandoned church. It was just shy of 100 years old and appeared to be in ruins. Yet, the closer I came to the church, the more I realized how intact it was.
At that moment, it was as if I had eyes that could see what this church building had seen over the past 70 years... war, genocide, and the destruction of a growing and emerging church. It all hit me. I sat outside the church overlooking miles and miles of coastal cities and as I looked, I heard God speak. It wasn’t with words that I heard His voice, but rather with the heaviness of what God put in my heart in that moment.
The culture in combination with the leadership of this nation elevates those with power and influence, not for the good of the people, but rather for the rich to get richer at the expense of the poor.
The uneducated (who are most at risk for exploitation) make somewhere between $2-$4 a day, living in shacks and barely having enough to eat each day.
Many of these will choose to work 10 hours a day, 6 days a week in a factory because they can earn around $250 a month.
The starting salary for a college graduate is around $300-400 a month.
A new doctor can expect their starting salary to be around $500-600 a month.
This is drastically less than those who hold power in the country; they have excess to be able to afford multiple luxurious homes and cars. Not only does the gap between the poor and the powerful continue to grow, but corruption is experienced at almost every level of government. From a distance, it all seems in ruins.
And yet, just like the 100 year old church building, the closer you come to the people, the more hope and opportunities you see for radical and lasting positive change. The nation and the church in Cambodia is not in ruins, it is in need; there is a difference between the two. Despite all the pain, suffering, and opposition the church and the Cambodian people have sustained, there is hope IF knowledgeable, equipped, God-honoring people will rise up and stand in the gap.
Standing in the Gap
Cambodia is going through a generational change. The financial investment of foreign countries, the influence of world-wide social media, as well as the next generation that makes up 43% of the population (15-25 year olds) is about to come into power. All of these factors combined have created the opportunity for the perfect storm of positive change in Cambodia.
Truly there are so many needs, it is hard to know where to begin. But after 5 years of serving and getting to know the people, we believe God has given us a clear vision on how we can best invest in this next generation of leaders in order to see radical and God exalting change in Cambodia.
Building "the Bridge"
In this next stage of ministry, we believe God wants us to become a pillar in a community that is deeply in need. We will create a space and building that will serve to:
Provide housing to train and mentor university students. While students pursue their degrees, they will live with us and receive training that will support their future careers along with life skills, goal setting, leadership, and faith. The idea is to see students gain the skills and training needed to be a whole, balanced, and godly person so that they can lead in their churches, homes, and communities. Our goal will continue to be to equip Godly leaders who are able to lead in all areas of life while providing practical opportunities to gain these skills while they live with us.
Invest deeply into the at-risk community around the center. We want to be the hands and feet of Christ to the community. We hope to provide language classes, after school programs for at-risk children, worship services for the community, and health initiatives for families. The opportunities are endless in the ways we can love and build up the surrounding community.
To this end we have been working with a Christian engineering/design firm that does business as missions here in Phnom Penh (Click on the link here to check out what they do: Petram Design International). We are just finishing our first stage of design/blueprints and are about to enter the second stage of detailed planning. It has been a thrill to share the vision with another organization and to see them as excited about the project as we are. This is the concept design for the land so far.
Our aim is to unite with God in the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual growth of an individual. We strive to see those who are at a disadvantage in a society to have every opportunity to mature and impact their nation in positive and lasting ways.
Please understand that our aim is first and foremost to make disciples who love and obey Jesus with all their heart, but it cannot stop there. When God enters into a moment, a person, or a place things change. We want not only to see men and women equipped to share their faith with their nation, but also equipped to lead in all areas of life:
leading in their family
leading in their community
leading in their country.
The next generation is finding ways to serve, protect, and build up those who are in need! We are excited to foster that. This is our aim--to be the bridge that stands in the gap in order for God to work in peoples’ lives and create deep and lasting change.
In the next couple of weeks, we will be sending out a follow-up letter to this one. It will talk about the ways in which you can partner with us in this project. It is God who gave us this vision. He has made it clear to myself, my wife, and the board members of our organization that this is where He is leading the ministry. But to see it come to fruition it will take a community working together under God’s direction. We believe God has already given us that community and we are thrilled to see what God will do to provide for the vision He has given us.
Thank you for your continued prayers and partnership. Let us “be the bridge!”
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