“We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;” 2 Corinthians 4:8
This is the same verse that I posted last month when we were merely perplexed but now, we really are hard-pressed by police barricades on all sides of our neighborhood. After a year of being blessed in Cambodia with low numbers of COVID cases, the COVID numbers continue to rise and it has not been contained yet. So, the capital city of Phnom Penh is now in lockdown. We are not allowed to leave our neighborhood and only two of us are allowed to leave our apartment three times a week for groceries and supplies. There are steep fines, prison terms, and deportations with no re-entry being handed out to people who violate various orders. So, we need to be really wise and careful in our daily lives.
Please pray for: 1. That COVID would be contained ASAP so that Cambodia can return to normal. 2. That God would meet the needs of the Cambodian poor because they cannot work and most charitable organizations and churches are not able to operate due to the lockdown. 3. That God would give us wisdom and grace to guide us during this confusing time.
Yet, we are not crushed. Darryl’s apologetics/evangelistic social media video ministry continues and should be able to continue despite the lockdown. Since the last update, Darryl produced and released two more videos in the Cambodian language: 1 Jonah and the Great Fish 2. How to Recognize False Christs. The second video was made because there is a new cult operating in Cambodia that teaches the Jesus Christ has already returned and is living in the form of a Chinese woman. There was a long Khmer New Year holiday this month so it was only possible to produce two videos instead of three. Darryl also has been editing the English subtitles for Light Times Magazines new video project. Please pray for Soksan the founder of Light Times and his family. They went camping on some land that they own on the outskirts of the city and got caught out there when the lockdown happened now they can’t return to their home so they may not be able to work until the lockdown is lifted. Please pray for wisdom, creativity, and inspiration for Darryl to write more video scripts that will best meet the needs of the Cambodians during this season.
The Chinese language apologetics/evangelistic video and other projects are on hold because Darryl cannot meet with Pastor Samuel during this time. One good thing is that Pastor Samuel has purchased some audio recording equipment and is taking online classes to learn how to make high quality audio recordings on his own. Please pray for wisdom about how to move forward with translation and recordings for videos even though we may have to wait until after the lockdown to do the video production part.
Even though Kayo can’t meet with the Cambodian women’s organization, she has been busy ministering to other missionaries and foreigners living in Cambodia in addition to taking care of the family. A few nights ago, she got a call at 2am from a young female Japanese missionary who lives in our apartment building that a man had somehow gotten into her apartment. We don’t know the motive. By God’s grace, the missionary woke up and screamed before the man had a chance to steal anything and he ran away without harming her. After receiving the call, Kayo and I rushed upstairs to help the missionary. She was too scared to stay in her apartment that night so she spent the rest of the night in our living room. In the morning we helped her communicate the situation to the landlord’s family. They had another apartment available that is bigger and more secure for the same price so we moved her that morning.
Now, Kayo also organizes and arranges for different members of the worship team to record their own worship videos at their homes, since the worship team can no longer meet. Darryl combines the videos and sends them to another missionary who adds lyrics and then sends the video to be combined with the sermon etc. for the local international church’s weekly Facebook service video. This ministers to a lot of missionaries and other foreigners living in Cambodia.
Despite the lockdown, Benjamin’s online school continues, by God’s grace. We weren’t sure that the teachers would be able to teach because they might not have been able to retrieve their teaching materials from school now that they have to teach from home but so far things are going smoothly. For one of Benjamin’s PE assignments he had to demonstrate proper baseball batting, pitching, and catching technique on a video. The challenge was that he didn’t have a bat, baseball, glove, and we are no longer allowed to play sports outside. So, Benjamin had to use a badminton racket, a handball, and make the video in the hallway and living room of our apartment! Benjamin’s video turned out fine and there was no damage to the apartment. He even edited the video himself.
Also please pray for our Cambodian driver’s license renewal in May. Please pray the the lockdown will end before our licenses expire so we can renew them on time.
Thanks for your faithful prayers, encouragement, and support. You all mean more to us than we can express, especially in times like these.
In Christ’s Hands,
Darryl, Kayo, and Benjamin
Phnom Penh, Cambodia