News and Views and Life from Cambodia…

Graham Geisler, reporter

News...
Pchum Ben Day is upon us… Pchum Ben (pronounced P-choom Ben), is an important Buddhist holiday in Cambodia. We do not have school the rest of this week because of it. Most of the people in Phnom Penh have left the city and have traveled back to their family’s province of origin. It essentially is a holiday/celebration for ancestors who have died. Each family is responsible to take food to a nearby pagoda as a gift to their dead ancestors. The food is somehow supposed to make their time in the afterlife better. When the ancestors are released into the world on Thursday, they will travel to different pagodas looking for the food, as well as the presence of their living relatives. If after visiting seven different pagodas, they do not find the food, the living family is cursed by the dead ancestors for the next year.

Views...
This is a very difficult celebration for young Christians. Please pray for them. There is a tremendous amount of guilt placed upon people that will not travel to the pagoda to worship the false gods and to offer sacrifices and prayers to their ancestors. If a Christian family member does not go to the pagoda, the rest of the family is convinced that evil things will fall upon them in the coming year. Please pray for the young Christians in all Buddhist nations that are trying to faithfully worship the true God. Help them to know that nothing in God’s world happens by mistake, and that by no means are they the source of bad things that happen to their families. Pray that they will take the opportunities they have to help serve the needy people in their communities and to share about the guilt-free love of Jesus.

Life...
Last Tuesday (October 2), I was in a moto accident that was not my fault, but did cause me to have to wear a sling on my arm for the next 3-6 weeks. After one week, there is not much improvement… there is a full account of the when’s, how’s and x-rays on my blog.

Because of the accident, I have taken a turn for the left handed. My handwriting on paper is atrocious, but I have been able to write okay on the whiteboards at school. However, it has really made life a lot more expensive. Because I cannot drive the moto, I have had to resort to moto taxi’s (called moto dopes)… this is costing me upwards of $5 per day, as opposed to the price of gas before. Also, food preparation has become almost impossible. We do have some people here at the house right now that are helping me from time to time, but I find myself having to eat out more. And jeesh, I won’t even go into the problems with typing, shaving, showers and toilets… enough said. All of that to say, I would appreciate your prayers for a speedy healing.

But hey, the Tribe beat the Yankees and the Bucks are 6-0 and ranked third in the country… that makes the pain a little easier to take…little blessings can be important...

On the Asia's Hope front, we currently have 9 other people here doing various things. We do have exciting news that God has provided a new facility for our orphans in Phnom Penh to live. It is a property that is about four times bigger and about half as expensive. The kids will now have a great place to run and play freely! Also, God has provided transportation for all of the orphans to and from school through the generous donation of a sponsor in the States... these answers to prayer are huge!

Thanks for all of your prayers and support. I hope that you are all well. May God bless you in every way. G