Ministry in Cambodia: Kampot

While in Cambodia Doris also traveled to Kampot and visited “Train Up Children’s Home” which is an Asia’s Little Ones project. It was wonderful to celebrate and minister to the kids and staff at the home. This is the second time that Doris has been to Kampot. It was so exciting this time to celebrate the new home that the Lord has provided for them! The last one was full of black mold and not a healthy place for the kids. This new home is beautiful. It not only has a boys house and a girls house, it also has a library and study/tutoring rooms for the kids, as well as space for them to hold church services as well as community outreach!

Knowing the violent devastation of the country at the hands of the Khmer Rouge in my own lifetime, it is so encouraging to see a new generation of young people growing up to know the love of Jesus with such a bright hope and future. Because of the Buddhist context of Cambodia, as orphans these children are culturally considered cursed. Praise God our Lord declares them blessed to be His own heirs to the Kingdom of God! They are sons and daughters of the Most High! And praise the Lord for missionaries that were willing to go and spend their lives loving them! While Doris was there, she preached at their youth service, taught some new games and crafts during their activity time, and they celebrated God’s goodness with their semi-annual ice-cream party!

Summer Ministry at Happy Horizons

Doris, Ariyanna, and Gracie spent time this Summer at Happy Horizons Children’s Ranch (HHCR) in the Philippines, with a small ministry team of women from Missouri. HHCR is a restorative home for girls age 3-20ish rescued out of sex-trafficking.

Ariyanna was a huge blessing to the girls teaching them various art skills, spending hours painting and drawing together in love and friendship. With Gracie’s infectious joy and outgoing personality she played games and helped with baking. Kristy Weyer, the Northern Missouri Womens Ministries Director that traveled with us, poured into and inspired the staff and caregivers. Doris painted a mural for the counselors office. We did a Freedom Challenge 5K with the girls. We also sponsored the end of Summer celebration with a special lunch and took everyone swimming at a local pool. On Sunday we worshiped together, Doris preached the Word, and the Ranch girls ministered to the community that attends Happy Church on their campus. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and ministry in the Philippines.

Thank you for sending us, and thank you for praying with us! If you ever would like to join Doris on a ministry trip for Asia’s Little Ones please email us at asiaslittleones.agwm@gmail.com.

From the Streets of Bangkok to Hope

There are children in Bangkok that are born in the dark corners of the red-light district. Asias Little Ones partners with brave missionaries called by God to share the love of Jesus in these streets. Offering help, prayer, and bringing the love of Jesus to those enslaved by evil in these places is no small feat and is foolish without the power of the Holy Spirit. While visiting this ministry, I walked these streets during the day with the team and we prayed fervently for the ministry that would take place later when the streets were dark and full of people. Please pray with me for the many innocent children born into this place. Pray for the cycle of violence and exploitation to stop. Bangkok is known world wide for it’s human trafficking districts. Sin is so tangible here, and the value of life so little that people are bought and sold for selfish gratification and treated as currency.

Praise God we know that ultimately faith, hope, and love will conquer because of the blessed hope we have in Jesus! We know that even in these dark places of the world God will win. He is the God of restoration, a conquering hero, the God of Justice, and one day Jesus will return and set all things right. So we pray boldly, we walk boldly, and we declare hope even here. Pray the Kingdom of God come to the streets of Bangkok with us!

The Gospel is Going to the Hard to Reach Places

Someone is waiting…

Growing up I lived in a little trailer, and nearly all the neighbor kids around me were refugees from a peninsular Asian country that embraced communism after the conflicts that took place there in the 70’s.  These children were my first exposure to the world of Asia Pacific, so it was very exciting to go to their home country this fall and visit the Asia’s Little Ones affiliated project there that over the years has transformed the lives of hundreds of children, and has been a creative access ministry platform for our kingdom workers to serve there, share the gospel, disciple new believers and plant the church! 

Because it is a sensitive country I will not name the place and will refer to the ministry by its initials LC, but it is a ministry that has grown from small beginnings, ministering to a handful of street children of the outcast ethnicity, to now serving a hot meal to roughly 100 children daily!  These children faithfully attend classes for English and Mandarin, and receive tutoring, and life skills training that has made all the difference in their lives, and empowers them to a better future.  For the students and families they also get to meet followers of Jesus and hear the Good News of the Gospel for the first time.  So many of them have watched the followers of Jesus carefully for many years and over time LC can boast that every single person affiliated and working with them is now also a follower of Jesus!  

Recently, LC opened a coffee shop next to its campus to continue outreach and serving in the community after school hours, provide greater opportunities in skills training, and maybe someday aid in the financial cost of the ministry of LC.  

I love all the projects I get to be part of because of Asia’s Little Ones. It’s exciting that this particular compassion project for children’s health and education has become the catalyst for planting the church and providing kingdom worker’s visas! I am especially excited for what the future holds in this “closed” country. 

No place is really “closed” to the gospel if you follow the creativity and leading of the Holy Spirit.  And you can see the church birthed anywhere, if you are willing to sacrifice, and willing to endure for as long as it takes by the power of the Holy Spirit.  

I believe someone who reads this ministry update will be called to a hard place that others feel is impossible or just too difficult. If that is you, I urge you to obey God’s leading immediately. Reach out to us so we can pray for you and help you in your journey however we can, and take steps of faith even if others think you are nuts. The best Christmas present you can possibly give, is to give Jesus your “yes”. The Never Reached have waited long enough for the Gospel.  Someone is waiting for you.