Stunned and feeling slightly ill, I sat in front of an old air conditioner, barely able to move. I had just returned to my hotel room in Phnom Penh, Cambodia after experiencing one of the most excruciating afternoons of my entire life. My head was reeling as I attempted to sort out my thoughts and compose myself.
Three hours earlier Pastor Mike Hudgins, Tom Ravensberg, Kent and Keitha Russell and myself walked right through the heart of Tonlee Bassac, the most destitute slum in all the city. What greeted our eyes was almost unbearable for someone like me who was used to the clean, comfortable and tidy atmosphere of Southern California.
The poor, dirty beyond belief and clothed mostly in rags, lined the main street. Baskets of fish heads and fried insects, covered with flies, produced a nauseous stench. Naked children stared blankly at us and some tagged along, begging for an handout. The heat and humidity, mixed with the foul odors and grime, made me feel almost faint.
Baskets of fried insects filled the streets in the slums of Tonlee Bassac
We walked deeper into this morass of human suffering, trudging through narrow walkways and saw people in worse conditions, sick, lame, even demon possessed. As we walk past one rusty shack, I saw a man slither up the wall, moving like a snake. We sidestepped human feces and standing water, teeming with mosquitos. I felt like I had plunged into the Twilight Zone or a living nightmare.
We carefully scooted over a rickety bridge, spanning a tributary of the Mekong River, and found ourselves in another hovel of broken down shacks. Then we suddenly arrived at an unusually clean home of an elderly Cambodian who was now famous in the slum. A year earlier he became a modern day Lazarus when after pronounced dead, he came back to life following 12 hours of intense prayer by his Christian wife. Lining the walls of his living room were shelves made from the wood of his unneeded casket. (to be continued)…
Tonlee Bassac burned to the ground a few years ago. Many assert that the Cambodian government torched the slum to rid it of the health problems.
First Trip: This was my introduction to the poor in Asia. The needs there grabbed my heart and for the past 20 plus years since, I have been going to the poorer sections of Thailand and Myanmar to see what might be done to give tham any kind of helping hand. I appreciate all of you in Little Church and elsewhere who carry the same burden I do. I leave in a few days with the Ungerlands and the entire Casalori family (5) on another mercy trip.
Prayer Need: Pray we are fruitful and stay healthy, that God would protect us from the coronavirus or anything else. Pray the team will minister in unity and we all would be full of the joy of the Lord. Also pray the teaching to adults and the children’s outreach will be anointed. Thank you.
“This is pure and undefiled religion before God the Father, that you visit orphans and widows in their distress and keep oneself unstained from the world.” James 1:27
A Word on Your Cell Phone: It may bring you closer to those who are far away, but it will also take you far away from those sitting next to you.
One Final Thought: Don’t believe everything you think.
Love you all. Sending the next letter after I return from Asia.
Pastor Jay