The only Cambodian-language church in the state of South Carolina – United Baptist Church, in the Spartanburg County Baptist Network – recently took part in a mission trip to – Cambodia.
The United Baptist Church mission team started a church in the Pong Tuk community. Mission team members, from left, wearing hats and holding coconuts: Docnga Sap, Vanny Sap, Chenda Mroek, Sam Duong and Mary Hensley.United Church member Docnga Sap, who has lived in the United States for 30 years, had a vision to go back to Cambodia to take the gospel to his home village. United’s pastor, Sam Duong, organized a mission trip to carry out Sap’s vision.
In addition to Duong, mission team members consisted of Docnga and Vanny Sap, Chenda Mroek of Greensboro, N.C., and myself. The team was on mission to Cambodia July 8-24.
God is indeed at work in Cambodia. Three weeks before our team left the U.S., Docnga’s son accepted Christ through the ministry of New Hope in Christ Church in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Our team worked with that church to find existing churches in poor communities that needed assistance.
Docnga’s son organized efforts for our team to share Christ in remote Pong Tuk, near the Thai border, where we reached over 100 persons for Christ. After a drunk named Phal received salvation, a change was evident in his life and appearance. The light of Christ shined through many by the end of our mission.
Pastor Sam, with assistance from seven pastors in the Siem Reap association of Christian churches, baptized 103, but many others had no transportation to the baptismal site at Baray Lake. Some of these pastors will follow up by training leaders for the Pong Tuk church.
Property was donated for a church site, and we paid for a pond to be dug on the property to provide water to the church and community. Bibles and hymnals were purchased for the new church plant, and pigs and chickens were bought for the Pong Tuk community.
We assisted a house church in a poor community by providing three large bags of rice to feed hungry families and bought blocks to raise the foundation of the shed where the church holds services. Gate City Baptist in Greensboro purchased a farm tractor for that church.
The WMU of United Baptist collected over-the-counter medicines and vitamins for the team to give to those who have difficulty obtaining such medicines. Packets of vitamins and medicines were given to approximately 300 people.
The baptism of 100-plus new believers.There are so many needs in churches and communities across Cambodia. Tuola Sala Church near Phnom Penh was started by Pastor Sam in 2002. This church is growing but needs financial assistance. A church in Prey Veng has no money to pay off the $20,000 loan on its building and may lose the building. An association of churches in Siem Reap has formed to encourage each other and assist each other in training. They hope to purchase five acres of land at a cost of $27,000 to start a cemetery for Christian burials.
Pray for needs in Cambodia, and pray about how you might be used by God to meet these needs. The team plans to return to Cambodia in November 2011 with additional team members to reach more people for Christ.
– Hensley is coordinator of Cambodian ministry at United Baptist Church, a ministry of the Spartanburg County Baptist Network.