At some point in our lives almost all of us have asked the question, "What are we doing here?" Sometimes the reason we ask is because we've literally taken a wrong turn, and we end up in an area we weren't expecting to be.
I remember one particular trip a few of my friends and I took when we were still in college. We had decided to drive up to Kansas City from my hometown to go watch a KC Royals game. The game was great and we had a wonderful time, but it was our first time driving out of Kauffman Stadium at night and it didn't take long for us to realize we had taken some wrong turns trying to leave the stadium. We ended up in a part of the city that a few small town boys really shouldn't be driving through in the middle of the night. Thankfully a police officer saw us, pulled us over and asked if we knew where we were... our answer, "No sir, can you help us get to where we need to go?" I can still remember the stress and fear I had when we realized we were lost. It was in that moment that I turned to my friends and asked, "What are we doing here?"
There is a very real sense in which before we had given our lives to Christ, we too were lost. And yet, at some point in our journey something changed. Maybe it was a family member that kept dragging us to church. Maybe it was a co-worker that just lived and handled difficulties so much different than us. But something happened that caused us to begin to looking at our life and recognizing that something wasn't right. It was in that moment we realized we were lost and we said, "What am I doing here?"
The good news is that Jesus is very much like the officer my friends and I met when we were lost in KC. He saw us, realized we were lost, and came to lead us to the way we need to go. The Bible says in Luke 19:10 that Jesus came "to seek and save the lost." He seeks us when we are lost. He finds us in the mess we have made of our lives. And then He frees us so that we might live a new life in Him.
This is our story of ministry as well. In the past 6 years we have had 40 different students come in and out of our community. When they first came to us, they didn't know it, but they were lost. And yet at some point, through the Bible studies, mentoring, discipling, or serving the community they began to look around at their life and they too said, "what am I doing here?" "I'm lost and I need someone to show me the right way to go."
Almost all 40 students are now living a Christ-exalting life, with dreams, and a vision for their future that will transform the nation of Cambodia and be a light for others who are lost. Each of those lives represents more than the student themselves. They represent a future family that now knows The Way, a business leader who will guide his business in The Way, a doctor who will run their clinic in The Way. Each student represents an exponential number of Cambodians who will no longer be lost but will find The Way because of the investment in the students' lives that we are making right now.
This work could not be done without you. Thank you for your years of prayers and support. Truly the Kingdom of God will be fuller and the nation of Cambodia changed because of your partnership.
Current Needs and Prayer Requests:
Students to reach their full potential in Christ, to have boldness to share their faith to their families, and for them to transform their culture for Christ.
For the new students that will be joining the dormitories during the new year. Pray that we find the right students who need the guidance and spiritual training that we provide.
For our church planting partnership in Kampongcham district. We are partnering with a local to plant a church near his farm. This is an unreached area of Cambodia.
April and May, I (Eric) will be the missionary on campus at Ozark Christian College. Please pray for the seminar and pop-up classes I will teach and the time I have with the students. During that time our hope is to start a volunteer network that will funnel students and short-term missionaries towards the work being done in Cambodia, as well as raise $1000 in monthly support so we can hire a couple of local Cambodians to help us expand the ministry into new locations in Cambodia.
Pray for our children (Clara, Josh, Caleb). If our children are growing well, healthy, and taken care of then it frees us up to focus on the ministry.
Praise
God graciously provided enough one time donations to get a better more reliable car. Now we can drive to and from the countryside without having to worry that the car will break down every time.