July 11 - Our Favorite Cambodian - Part One

I would like to introduce you to someone who is easily & by far our (Dave & myself) favorite Cambodian. His nickname is Jame (pronounced "Jam" with a Cambo accent). We were unofficially adopted by him while I was here with the group in May. The adoption is unofficial because it's virtually impossible to legally adopt a Cambodian & absolutely impossible to legally adopt a 38 year old man. Nevertheless, Jame is our real son. I could not love him more if I had nursed him myself.

God has given Jame a wonderful vision to open an orphanage for the poorest street children. With this vision constantly at the front of his mind, Jame prays & works hard toward realizing a loving home where abandoned children may know God, be well loved, obtain an education, eat every day, & have a safe place to sleep. The plan he has prayerfully made to raise funds for this endeavor is smartly simple. He is putting himself thru computer school so he can eventually have a (relatively speaking) well-paying job in the near future. In the meantime, he has obligated himself to a rent-to-own agreement for the purchase of the tuk-tuk he drives for a living. Once he graduates & pays off the tuk-tuk, he can work at the well-paying job & rent the tuk-tuk to another driver. Necessary staff for the orphanage can be made up of homeless adults. In return for their work they will be fed, have a safe place to sleep indoors & receive a small salary. Not only will this take a few beggars off the streets, but it will give them a valuable occupation.
Jame was an orphan most of his life, so he knows exactly what the children he dreams of helping think & feel & desire....& fear constantly even into their adult years (if they make it to adulthood). I believe his soul will be healed of the terrible orphan-wound as he helps the souls of other orphans heal by God's tender & relentless love.

During his first formative years, the ongoing conflict between the Kingdom of Cambodia & Vietnam was at a peak, the U.S. & Vietnam were violently warring inside Cambodian borders, & the Khmer Rouge was at the height of its viciously diabolical government takeover. Jame was 3 years old when his "first mom" abandoned the family to seek safety in Vietnam. When Jame reached 11 years old, he lost the rest of his family, his "first dad" & sister, to death because, as he puts it, "I could not protect my house." He was forcefully taken to an orphanage (read: labor camp for children) where he scraped by until his early teens. From then on, he has been on his own & by himself.

Miraculously, & I do mean miraculously, Jame has remained trustingly tenderhearted toward God & generously compassionate toward others. Jame is a member of a real church congregation here (meaning it's not a government run "church") & "tithes" 50% of his income there to help the needy. He spends most of what's left of his meager means on helping others as well. He understands that "Love thy neighbor as thyself" is a command to be taken literally, not a suggestion to be considered lightly & refuses to live at a higher standard than others....although he easily could. He's spent the last couple of months sleeping on a cot in his boss's driveway to save money rather than spend it on renting a room of his own. (Thank God I was able to convince him that he must have a real bed indoors. I'm not sure if it was my presentation of the idea of being healthy to help others, my teasing, "How can I visit you on a cot!?" or just the fact that Cambodia culture demands sons obey their moms even after they're grown men. Frankly, I don't care, I just want him indoors.)

In addition to gifts of money, Jame lovingly ministers to his fellow citizens thru practical action. For examples: When Jame sees an old person sitting on the sidewalk begging, he stops to massage them while he prays for them. He told me, ""Mom, dey have work hard & dey bodies are old now. Dey are hurt now & cannot move good, so I rub dem & dey can feel bettuh & move bettuh." Jame has set routes for trash picker children (trash pickers are people who push carts around the city rummaging thru garbage to find food, recyclables & anything they might use or sell) so that he can check on them periodically thru'out the day making sure they are safe & fed. He's also talked with parents who have kicked their young children out of the house (a common threat for anyone over 4 years old) trying to restore the family. He believes the parents must know God so they can love their children & have them home to go to school, so he speaks the Good News to them & prays for them. Praise the Lord, he has had some success in this evangelistic effort!

His method of helping people is simple. He explained it to me saying, "Mom, when I see someone who needs, I close my eyes behind my sunglasses so no one sees & pray in my heart so no one hears, 'Fadda, pleeeeease, can I help?" An idea comes to him, be it giving the cash in his pocket, getting someone indoors, finding someone a job, buying a meal, giving a ride, or some other practical charity. Then he happily does exactly that idea.

In addition to his charity work & tuk-tuk business, Jame has just been hired at a modest salary as my ministry partner (Shhhhh, he doesn't know I've rearranged my budget to pay him. He'd never allow Mom to do such a thing.). His official duties include taking me to & from the children's homes twice a day, obtaining necessary supplies & doing handyman work for the children's homes & team house where Ruth & I live, & providing transportation for visiting teams & for the children as needed (eg. tomorrow we're taking 8 of the boys for haircuts).
We (Dave & I) are now accepting financial contributions to be saved toward Jame's children's home (I've determined, according to God's will, to call it a home instead of an orphanage because it is a more accurate description of the loving ministry that will take place there.) & contributions made toward buying the tuk-tuk. If you would like to participate in either project, please email me at beckyroehere@yahoo.com.

7/11/10
Praise God for...
• being Emanuel, God with us. I am in sweet fellowship with Him constantly.
• good health, food, clothing & safe shelter. These are God's gifts, not human rights.
• my beloved Cambodian son Jame (pronounced "Jam" with a Cambo accent).
• ties of fellowship that stretch halfway round the globe without losing strength.

Petition God for...
• the salvation of lost souls. God wants them more than anything else.
• clear direction in how best to love the LIA children.
• comfort for my husband Dave.
• support for the opening of a new children's home.

A big honkin' thank-you to:
• Mike & Shirley for keeping me at the top of the prayer list!!
• Jim Hatfield for his timely encouragement. You're tops, Jim-bro'!
• Mark & Jane Truax for sending along toys for the children.
• Nancy Rodenbeck for praying me a personal breeze. You're cool & now so am I.
• Rich Young for keeping far-away missionaries near to mind. You rock.

Personal Notes:
• Robert Wooden, I'm praying for you, brother.
• Grace & Mercy, please assign someone to email me all One Call's. [Note to Becky: I'll try to remember to do it and I'll ask Peggy, too. ~Kelly]
• Mark & Jane, once the fight was over, everyone had a great time with the toys. And, I was adamant about leaving them at the house.
• Mark, if you know what the purple skin thing is, please advise. I have one now too.
• Isaac Roe, I love you more than everything.