We're Back Home!

How blessed we are to be back home here in Phnom Penh! After two and a half months in Bangkok, it was an amazing feeling to walk inside our front door with a new addition to the family. We arrived on Friday, August 26, and spent Saturday getting settled back into the house. Sunday, we were thrilled to see the church family again, and God truly blessed us with some marvelous services. Five people followed Christ in baptism, two of whom were led to Christ by members of the church. In the children's club on Sunday afternoon, I was so thankful to see two children whom I invited a few months ago and came one time, only to have their mother forbid them from coming again. Apparently she had a change of heart while we were in Bangkok, because those two children- a brother and sister, 10 and 8 years old respectively- were back and having the time of their lives singing, playing the games, and listening to the Gospel.



Yesterday, I started back with language study, and I thank God for the progress He has allowed me to make. I actually feel a lot more comfortable with the language than I did before we left for Bangkok, which is puzzling, but I am certainly thrilled about it. It has been a blessing to spend time with Hawn, my friend and language teacher, and see how he has grown spiritually over the last couple of months. It looks like he and I will be sharing teaching responsibilities, along with one more member of the church, for the children's Bible clubs every weekend after the Benefields leave for furlough in three weeks. How thrilling it is to see this 24 year old college student who has been saved for about two years take a step of faith and be willing to teach the next generation of Cambodians about Christ.

When we landed back in Phnom Penh, Linda and I looked at each other and said, "We're home." We thank God for the opportunity and privilege we have to live and labor for Christ in Cambodia. It seems unlikely that a Georgia boy like me would ever feel at home in a place like Cambodia. It frankly makes no sense from a human standpoint. But we don't live our lives from merely a human standpoint. As Christians, we live according to God's purposes, which are usually beyond our own comprehension.