Let's celebrate: we have another new brother

Sometimes I wonder where the time goes. It seems like yesterday (but was in fact just over a week ago) that I was down in Sihanoukville taking advantage of yet another Cambodian public holiday (a 3 day holiday somehow amazingly converts to a one week break in Cambodia – maybe we need to implement this scheme back home???). The beauty of this trip was that we welcomed Chanthuon into the family of Christ Jesus while we were down there, as well as enjoying a few days at the beach - a much anticipated and appreciated trip I must say.

While it was nice to enjoy the beach (something I have missed exceedingly in the last year), it was really sad to see how hedonistic society can be. We were lucky to find a few places less cluttered by sun lounging chairs, half dressed tourists and touts offering everything from bracelets to hair removal. It was a blessing to sit and talk about God’s coming Kingdom while watching a sunset which turned everything some brilliant shades of orange. However the nicest part of the trip was seeing Chanthuon being baptised. We headed to a waterfall about half an hour from Sihanoukville where Chantuon had requested his baptism take place. After Steve had given a short talk on the symbolism of water throughout the Bible, Chanthuon, Him and Steve entered the crystal clear water and Chanthuon was baptised. It was especially nice for Steve and Lynne to witness this step before heading back home to Australia. Chanthuon has been living in the boys’ dorm since it first opened and is studying Information Technology at university. We pray that together with us he may hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering... stirring one another up to love and good works. May our Lord come quickly.