Highlights from October 2017 to October 2018!

 We've only been here 12 months, but it feels like we've had at least three years of experiences already!  It's hard not to think about what I have missed in America, but we've had a wonderfully blessed and exciting adventure and ministry here in Phnom Penh!

Since we've been here 365+ days, it means that we have now passed every Cambodian holiday, American holiday, and family birthday while living in Cambodia.
- On our 6th anniversary, we took company shopping at Russian Market and had friends over for cake.
- We attended Cambodia's water festival with friends and enjoyed street food.
- On Thanksgiving, we had street chicken and went swimming.
- On Christmas, we had 8 friends over and the day felt very special.
- On New Years, we attended our landlord's party on the roof and I learned that I'm quite allergic to shrimp; an anaphylactic reaction ended our celebrations.
- On Sophear's 4th birthday, we went to a waterpark (and she's still talking about it).
- On Khmer New Year, we took Mom, Aunt Holly, and Titus' dad to Angkor Wat, Cambodia's treasured cultural and historical landmark.

- On July 4th, my Khmer teacher visited for a traditional American cookout and we went to a new shopping mall, Aeon 2.
- Jessie and her family were here on Chamnab's 2nd birthday and we went swimming and had a pizza party with 22 friends!
- On Titus' birthday, we went out for dinner with friends.
- On my 30th birthday, we played Scrabble at a coffee shop and went to a friend's for pizza and cake.
- During Pchum Ben, we spent three days in Kampong Cham province with friends.
- Our 7th wedding anniversary is coming up in two weeks, and we'll be separated while I'm at a women's missionary conference in the Philippines.
- And this Thanksgiving, we'll be on a missions trip with our church in Ratanakiri province.

We started with a 6-month contract, then extended to a 12-month contract, and then decided to stay in our same apartment for the duration of our term.  We wish that we had a little more space for hosting company, we're in a very good location and we have made some very good connections in this building and in this area, including our house-helper (Douer) and her family (Rady and Nis), other building staff (Tino, SreyNat, and Hak), and Jewel's tuktuk driver (Ravuth).  Haktrana Apartment is our home!  We are thankful for a nice home, but especially for so many people to share our home with!

Lunch at our home after church

We have had many friends into our little home - 1, 2, 5 or 20 at a time! - friends from Cambodia and from America!  We have been visited by Pastor Michele and Emma Henry, Ned and Marlene McGrady, Joy Phillips, Kevin and Linda Jones, the Swan family, Harry and Helen Hall, Dan and Pam Schafer, Tim Rickel, Mom and Aunt Holly, Jeffrey and Paige Bennett, Jessie, Aldean, Eleazar, and Gabe, and a team from Ohio Christian University!

A fun outing with friends from church!

I started Khmer language school in January and I'm in Level 5 now!  I am able to read and write the Khmer script, and I'm able to speak really well!  (Titus confirms this).  This has been very good for our ministry and for my life here in Cambodia!  To understand and to be understood is a powerful tool for building true relationships!  I am so thankful for God's help in developing this skill!

Titus and Aldean (our brother-in-law) with Titus' Cafe Discipleship group

Titus meets regularly with a group of university students from our church + their friends.  He calls it "Cafe Discipleship" because they meet in a coffee shop.  Through this ministry, two young men have accepted Christ.   He also meets weekly with another group for pastoral counseling, discipleship, accountability, and teaching, and three have accepted Christ.  During a Christmas outreach, seven others accepted Christ through Titus' preaching!  It's been so exciting to see the fruit of my husband's heart for seeing his people believe in and follow God!

A few weeks ago, I was told by a missionary counselor that most new missionaries report struggles or declines in their spiritual walk.  Praise God that I have experienced the opposite!  Of course there are days where I can gravitate towards loneliness and discouragement, but I consistently have meaningful   and Spirit-filled times of personal Bible study, meditation, and prayer times.  In January, I started reading through the Bible in one year.  To date, I'm two weeks behind, but it's been a wonderful experience and practice.  When we're back in the States next July, I look forward to finding my new Chronological Bible in storage and starting over again!

Pastor Poleax, Aunt Holly, Mom, Titus and Chamnab, Sophear and I - on the Cambodia-Vietnam border in Takeo Province

In April, my mom and aunt Holly came to visit!  They were here during Cambodia's biggest holiday - Khmer New Year - and we enjoyed touring them around Cambodia, including to Angkor Wat and Takeo Province, where they helped us to distribute rice, fish sauce, soy sauce, and cooking oil to 40 families.  At Angkor Wat, Sophear rode and elephant with Grandma and Ta, and Chamnab rode and elephant with me and Aunt Holly.

In July, my twin sister and her family visited.  It was so, so, so wonderful to see the cousins reunited and spend an exciting 10 days together traveling, touring, and playing.  When we brought Sophear to Cambodia for the first time, I thought we were crazy to take a 1-year-old to such a massive place.  Then, we were nine adults and two babies, but this summer, we conquered multiple temples at Angkor Wat with four kids ages 4-years and under and only four adults!

Ravuth is a tuktuk driver friend that takes me to/from language school everyday, takes our family and those with us to church on Sunday mornings, and to other errands and family outings throughout the week.  We've been consistently using him since the beginning of January!  Praise God for helping Titus to find a reliable, safe, and trustworthy driver who has become a friend to our family!

And those are just the highlights!  Thank you again to everyone who has supported our family with financial support, encouragement, and prayer!

To see Christ glorified in Cambodia,

Titus, Jewel, Sophear, & Chamnab

Khmer New Year with Cambodians in Ohio!

Two weeks ago, we learned that there is a large Cambodian population in Columbus, Ohio - less than three hours from us!  While I wish we had known this four years ago (if you knew and didn't tell us, shame on you! haha), we're grateful that God has finally brought these people into our lives this month and we're anxious to see how these relationships develop.

Pastors Chenda and Phal preaching

We spent the last two Sundays worshiping, sharing, and fellowshiping with two Cambodian congregations in Columbus, Ohio.  Titus has this testimony to share about the experience:

               What a blessing for the past two Sundays to attend the worship services with my fellow Cambodian Christians in Columbus, Ohio. The tears of joy and emotions of happiness were overflowed inside my heart when I saw my own people worshiping and serving the Lord God Almighty wholeheartedly in this foreign country. I got to share my heart for our ministries in Cambodia.
             My heart was filled with emotion because of their lives during the Khmer Rouge and in the refugee camps and in United States. Each one of them had lost most of their family members and relatives during the civil war in Cambodia.
But they also confessed that God has a bigger plan for Cambodia. I thought I have been through a lot of things (good and bad) for the past 4.5 years in the soil of America but after hearing their stories, I was humbled! Not just humbled, very humbled!

On April 10 and 17, we attended services at both congregations and enjoyed meals and fellowship with the pastors, their families, and other church members.  We were asked to share about our story (how we met and how Titus came to the States) and our ministry in Cambodia.  We were asked to pray over the sick.  We were prayed over.

Titus praying for healing

As we shared in our last post, Khmer New Year (Cambodia's biggest holiday) was April 14-16.  On April 17, Cambodian American Christian Fellowship (where we attend the morning service) had a Khmer New Year picnic following the service.

The picnic was a great opportunity to have fellowship with the church congregation and many others who attended.  There was a large buffet of Cambodian food as well as hamburgers and hot dogs.  Children and adults played traditional Khmer New Year games, including: tug of war, sack races, various relay races, and a watermelon eating contest.

Sophear was among the youngest to participate in an Easter egg hunt.  She found 17 eggs and while everyone else had quit, she was determined to cover every inch of the neighboring field to ensure no eggs were left behind!

Some of the traditional Cambodian food, including homemade donuts

The Egg Hunt and The Most Determined Hunter

The Children's Sack Race

Men vs. Women in Tug of War

Following the first service and Khmer New Year's picnic at Cambodian American Christian Fellowship, we visited Cambodian United Methodist Mission Fellowship only a few minutes away.  After the 3:00 service there, we had a time of fellowship and more Cambodian food at Pastor Phal's home with his family.

• Thank you for praying for Pastor Chenda and Pastor Phal and the congregations at Cambodian American Christian Fellowship and Cambodian United Methodist Mission Fellowship.
• Pray that both churches can develop a culture that is welcoming and desirable to all generations.
• Pray that God will bless the ministry of Pastors Chenda and Phal and that more Cambodian-Americans in Ohio will discover the Good News that is the life and message of Jesus Christ!

To see Christ glorified in Cambodia (and Ohio!),

Titus, Jewel, Sophear, & Little Man

Khmer New Year and DOUBLED GIFTS!!

In recognition of a very special Cambodian holiday, a donor has promised to match all new financial gifts that we receive from April 14-30.  Would you consider giving to support our ministry in Cambodia?  Click on the give button below or visit wgm.org/romdenh to make a monthly commitment or give a one-time gift.  Every dollar up to $2,500 will be matched!!!!

Khmer New Year or "Choul chnam thmey" in the Khmer language (literally "Enter New Year") is the name of the Cambodian holiday that celebrates the new year. The holiday lasts for three days and usually begins on April 13th or 14th, which is the end of the harvesting season, when farmers enjoy the fruits of their labor before the rainy season begins.

Traditional Khmer dancers performing for the monks

Khmer New Year is a special family holiday and everyone typically travels to their home town to celebrate with family.  Schools and business are closed.  Khmer New Year is also a celebration of Buddha's birthday and many people, even those who are not devout Buddhists, visit the pagodas (Buddhist temples or "wats").  At the pagodas, people present food offerings to the monks, who in turn give a blessing (luck and fortune for the coming year) to the people.  People participate in sharing food with each other and playing cultural games.  In anticipation of the holiday, people always thoroughly clean their homes and wear their nicest clothes.  Children give money to their parents and grandparents.  Even though it is a Buddhist holiday, Christians still travel home to spend the extended holiday with family.


Traditional Cambodian games on Khmer New Year

Khmer New Year is a significant holiday for many Cambodians, not only because of it's strong traditional, cultural, and religious ties, but for the same reason that most Americans appreciate our New Year.  Khmer New Year is the start of a new year!  "Some people have believed that for a period of one year the people always face the problems like diseases or serious obstacles to make them unhappy," one blogger writes.  "Choul chnam thmey" in the Khmer language (literally "Enter New Year") comes with new an exciting opportunities for a better year, for a better life, and for a better self.

Would you consider supporting our ministry to bring Hope, Life, and Good News to the Cambodian people?  Every new dollar (up to $2,500) that we receive from April 14-30 will be matched by a generous supporter!

Pledging is a commitment that a supporter makes to give a certain amount of money to our ministry on a regular basis. Some of you are already giving -- thank you for being obedient to the call God has laid on your hearts to be a part of our ministry!!  If you are interested in becoming a financial partner, here are the easiest ways to join our team:

1. Go to wgm.org/romdenh and fill out the form for a recurring donation. 
2. Request a prayer card from us, fill out the detachable post card, and mail it back to World Gospel Mission.

You can start your donations today, or you can indicate when you would like to begin your contributions. Since our goal is to be back in Cambodia by March 2017, you could pledge today to begin your regular support at the beginning of the New Year.  Regardless of when you can begin your financial support, or how large or small your pledge is, the pledge is a blessing! We cannot return to Cambodia until 100% of our monthly support is pledged.

If you have any questions, call us, text us, Facebook us, or e-mail us at titus.romdenh@wgm.org. 

To see Christ glorified in Cambodia,

Titus, Jewel, Sophear, & Little Man