Posts

And He is the head of the Body, the church…that in all things He may have preeminance. Colossians 1:18 This past month has been a very blessedly busy month for my family and I. I taught an intensive Christology class, organized a day retreat for the men of the international church, and (because of the central location of the Christology class) I had the opportunity to fellowship with other missionaries/tentmaker missionaries as well. I also helped Soksan, the founder of Light Times Magazine (where I have been serving since 2017) to film a testimony of Ps. Dara of Faith Family Church/Sonshine Kids School (who used to help translate my apologetics/evangelistic video scripts, and I’m a guest teacher at his church and school). ...

"…Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature…"(Mark 16:15 NKJV) In my last update, I shared that God has been opening new doors of ministry for us here in Cambodia. One of the open doors is increased partnership with Bethel Mission Organization https://www.bethelgraceministry.org. BMO/BGM evangelizes and educates children who live on top of the tombs in a graveyard (and their families/communites) and has expanded to minister to those living in the garbage dump, other urban poor communities, and prisons. ...

" I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name." Revelation 3:8 We are back in Cambodia after spending from June 6 to August 6 visiting and sharing at more than a dozen churches, a pastor’s meeting, a Bible school chapel, and visiting as many friends as possible in addition to Kayo’s parents in Hiroshima. ...

Also, I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” Even though I have done a lot of media-ministry over the years, I admit that I am terrible about taking pictures of myself or even our family in action. I usually get so caught up in the moment, that I forget to take pictures and I don’t want to invade anyone’s privacy etc.. So, I am thankful that our Fijian missionary friends shared these pictures with me. We have been partnering with and supporting this missionary family for several years now, but I haven’t been able to visit their projects in person until recently. I hope (Lord willing), to visit and participate in more outreaches and projects with them after we return from Japan. ...

“Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…” Hebrews 12:1-3 “…So You Will Not Grow Weary.” We are currently in the middle of Cambodia’s hot season until the monsoon rains come in June. Temperatures have risen as high as 104F with usual highs around 100F with high humidity. We are blessed that this year the electricity has been pretty stable, but even the Cambodians are struggling with the heat. In addition to the heat, the spiritual climate is challenging for all the believers here and can lead to a sense of spiritual/emotional/physical weariness. ...

“Jesus said to him, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37 The phrase “with all your mind” has been very important in guiding and inspiring my ministries in the areas of apologetics, evangelism, Bible teaching etc, for many years. Despite reading and thinking about this phrase many times over the decades my view is beginning to expand to expand beyond “intellect” to the “whole mind”. I will explain how this new mindset is leading to an expansion in ministry. ...

“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 Over the past few months, the importance of living all aspects of our lives for the glory of God has increasingly been on my heart and mind. This has impacted me personally and in the focus of my teaching. Since October 21, I have been keeping up with my diet and exercise and so far I have lost more than 60 pounds! I have really sensed God opening all doors for me to focus on improving my health and fitness in many ways. Please pray for me to continue all the way to the goal because the more weight that I lose, the harder it seems to become to lose more weight. This is not a crash diet but a lifestyle change for the long-haul. One major payoff for this lifestyle change is that now I have much more energy for family and ministries and things are greatly improving and expanding in those areas as well. ...

“In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:6 Our lives and ministries have been quite active since our last update in early December. We continued our regular ministries, work, and partnerships (Precious Women, churches, Light Times, and others). From the beginning of December to the end of January, I have been teaching Apologetics (and Evangelism) at the Cambodia Presbyterian Theological Institute (CPTI). The students were very engaged and kept up with the lectures, class discussions, and asked good questions. I have been teaching this class at this seminary (founded and run by Korean missionaries) for more than ten years and am blessed to have been used to equip hundreds of Cambodian Christian leaders. ...

“So I will restore the years the swarming locusts have eaten.” Joel 2:25 Restoring the Years Part 1 With the passing of Benjamin’s and my birthdays and the upcoming Christmas and New Year, we realize that God has blessed us a lot during this year. At the beginning of 2023, we went through our worst financial crises ever to the point that it looked like we might have to leave Cambodia permanently. God provided in mysterious and miraculous ways and we were able to have a most blessed visit to the USA for the first time since before Covid. ...

And the things that you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:2 Christian Apologetics/Evangelism Class I had a wonderful time with my Apologetics/Evangelism class students during our two week intensive class. The students studied hard, listened intently, asked good questions and worked hard to complete a reading log, two tests, a video script, and recorded their own video during the short class. We covered obstacles to faith like “I don’t need God.” “God doesn’t exist.” “The Bible isn’t true.” “Jesus didn’t really live, die, and rise from the dead.” “What about my unsaved ancestors?” and more. Two of my students said that before the class when someone would ask them a challenging question about the truth of Christianity that they would just walk away but now they both finally feel more confident to answer. These students serve in local churches and will be future Christian leaders so please pray that they will remember, apply, and teach others what they have learned in the class. ...