Sunday, December 2, 2012

Plans

So we made it out to Kraviek village a couple of weeks ago. It was an adventure to get there, just like every other time. I was anxious to return as it had been longer than I had hoped since my last visit. Along with a team from Logos International School, I was accompanied by Alex, Abby and Carolyn. I was most excited to have Carolyn come along since it would be here first time in Kraviek. We were planning on spending time with the village kids while showing Christ's love through stories, games, songs and other activities. My real desire, however, was to share the Gospel with Lao, the village chief. He is a younger man (35 years old) and through consistency of visits, I have developed a relationship with him over the past couple of years. Because of that I really felt like we had come to the point where he would be receptive. I brought along Bora, a Cambodian friend of mine, to actually do the speaking. He is an Asian Hope student who just returned to Cambodia after graduating from Master's college in California. His heart for telling others about Christ is inspiring and made me certain that this would be the perfect opportunity to share the Gospel with Lao.

After much difficulty reaching the village, we set up camp, spent some time in praise and worship and then went to bed. The next morning, once we got our students going on their activities with the village kids, Bora, Carolyn and I set out to find the village chief. Through some inquiries, we found out that he was out in the jungle hunting and/or cutting down wood...and was supposed to be back the night before. I was disappointed but trusted that God had a plan. And He did. We took the extra time we now had to go and visit some other people that I knew from past trips. One of them was the lady who had severed an artery in her foot during one of our visits a year ago (you can read about that trip here). As we approached, she came out with her husband and invited us into their house. She was sooo grateful for the medical care I had given her and went on and on about her foot. She told us that many people had come by the evening that she cut her foot and told her "Your foot is bleeding too bad, you are going to die". I told her that it wasn't luck or anything from me but that God placed me there at that time and for that purpose. After that, Bora proceeded to share the Gospel with she and her husband.

As time passed, she continued to interject and talk more about her foot, until finally her husband told her "stop talking about your foot, they are trying to tell us about Jesus". Then she listened contently as her husband asked several questions like: "Do I still worship my ancestors and have Jesus?", "Do I continue my Buddhist practices and follow your God?"...etc. Our answer was simply: "No, Jesus is all you need". This was huge that he was really asking deep questions. But I still really wanted it to be Lao in the conversation. That was my plan. He was the reason I wanted to come. But once again God's plan was higher than mine. Through the conversation we realized that this old couple happened to be the grandparents of Lao. What makes this most impactful is that in this culture, it would present more of a challenge for a 35 year old man (Lao's age) to be the first to accept Christ and still be accepted by the older generation. Not impossible by any stretch, but it would be much easier and would carry more credibility if the older generation is the first to accept Christ.
We never got to see Lao on this trip but with this new revelation that this couple was Lao's grandparents, I can look back and see God's sovereign hand orchestrating the whole trip. It was well worth it and we look forward to our next visit to Kraviek to see what God has in store for the wonderful people who call that tiny village "home".

Carolyn and Me with Grandma and Grandpa Chief

On our way home

Village Kids learning about God the Creator

Alex and some other students making balloon animals.

Carolyn and Bora sit with a lady who has been laying here for the better part of 20 years. Bora shared the Gospel with her and we prayed with her as well.

Some of the team got a ride part of the way out of the village.

Starting the walking portion of our trip to Kraviek.

The clean look on our way to the village.