Changing Lives - my life

as I walk calmly down the stairs to olympic stadium, I can't help but think I've changed, after all the last time I came down those stairs was 7 months ago bounding down them 4 at a time with Brother Andy Errington beside me chasing after the thief who had just stolen our bike. I think I know Cambodia now, after all I am Khmer with white skin. A Khmer who is currently standing, bent over in a free internet kiosk, in the airconditioned prison of Taiwan International Airport, missing Cambodia......



this week memories have been flooding my mind, Everything I see, touch, smell, do, reminds me of the last 7 and a half months. I came to Cambodia in November last year for 6 weeks, and that 6 weeks has stretched into 7 and a half months because I didn't want to go home, because Cambodia has done somthing nothing else ever has, it has caught me in a way that that I've never have experienced. What an amazing place. what an amazing people.



I've been in Cambodia, emmersed with the people for so long I feel like I've forgotten some english words that I haven't really been using. But what words can I really use to describe the last 2 weeks? amazing? extraordinary? Explosive? thriving? here are a few things that have happened:

• Boren has become a new son of God's world wide family


• Steve and Lynne have arrived, pumped, primed and prepared


• Sarah Vogel has announced her arrival for 4 days away.


• Ecclesial study weekend


• I've finished up all my lessons


• I've left Cambodia


• Sarah and Josh are leaving on Friday


• Don and Una are leaving next Tuesday

Borens baptism was amazing, such a beautiful experience. The first time I met Boren was 7 and a half months ago, in the first class I ever taught. Steve and Lynne had just left, The Bible school was rushing up, and there wasn't enough time for people to be doing a load of teaching. So I went over to the boys dorm to do my first lesson. I had no idea what I was in for at that stage.......7 months later..... anyways I started on the Promises to David, and in the introduction I mentioned that David would be ressurrected. Boren thought that was ridiculous. so we talked about the immortality of the soul. I had Boren and Channa (Meng Him's little Brother) battleing me about it for 3 hours until they were finally convinced that the soul was mortal. since then I've inconsistently been teaching Channa indiviually, and he has come a very long way. And Boren. One thing I really admire about Boren is he never believed me about anything. He did a lot of self study. and now he has the most wonderful knowledge of the scriptures. when I'm teaching and he's translating, I'd be leading up to a verse and by the time I tell them what verse it is all the students have their bibles open because Boren has already gone ahead of me. He's great. so last Tuesday and Thursday I did some drilling sessions with him for about 7 or 8 hours all up and then Friday me, Uncle Don, and Brother Veasna questioned him and heard his confession. I was very honoured and privileged to not only baptise him alongside Brother K, but also to welcome him into his new family in the faith. a brother of the world wide family we have, and a co-heir alongside us to the promises of Abraham. a son of God and a brother of the Lord Jesus Christ. It really pays off to stop and think about the amazing hope that we have, and just how lucky we are to have it. So now we have a new Brother, a wonderful Brother. a wonderful brother I"m going to miss alot.

last Friday Steve and Lynne arrived, and have been preparing themselves with many plans and a whole lot of energy. "the bong thom is back" in the words of Brother Steve. So the Cambodian mission feilds are still going strong, even with the soon departure of Josh (who has promised a blog in the future), Sarah, Uncle Don and Aunty Una. Cambodia has been really blessed with Don and Una. they have a lot of wisdom, experience and guidance in their maturity. I hope that when I'm Uncle Don's age I can still be racing around on moto's, in a third world country giving people the best gift in the world. They are living the dream, actually they are living the reality, because that will be life in the Kingdom (minus the moto's I guess). they are a wonderful, wonderful couple and God has blessed Cambodia and me with having them, because it's been such a learning curve for all of us. And Josh and Sarah, I have never seen anyone work like them, Sarah always so comforting, always willing to help no matter what, and Josh, leading the work there the way he has. They both have done amazing jobs. really amazing jobs. they've not thought about themselves at all really, they've put God first in every situation, giving him the glory, even against very difficult circumstances. They've been pulling scripturally based decisions and thinking the whole way. By their fruit you shall know them, and these guys have produced a delicious crop, and plenty of it, God gets the glory. I really couldn't have found a better team to work with in Cambodia.

last weekend we had an ecclesial study weekend. It was great. Steve did some studies on Love while Don did his on Truth. The truth is that it was as lovely weekend. Most of the Brothers and Sisters came, and on the Sunday we did workshops, and Saturday afternoon we had Boren's baptism for which all the dormers came as well. What a beautiful finish to my time in Cambodia. Saturday night I did my last presentation, and really got stuck into the dormers, we zoomed out of the dorm, out of Phom Penh, out of Cambodia, out of the world, out of our galaxy way way out into outer space where the earth is completely invisible and our sun just about is too, and we continued to zoom feeling how small we all are right into God's love. and we hit it hard with a picture of his beloved, first born son, hanging there on the cross so we can have life. and if we want life than choose it, otherwise your choice is death. and I went through their next steps with them. I really hope that they have made the choice for life, because I love them all so much, and I want all of them to be in the Kingdom.

After the class we had a party to farewell me and Josh and Sarah, Don and Una. and to welcome Steve and Lynne. all the dormers signed a shirt that I had, and wrote their messages on it for me. and it was really good. so today we went to the airport, we had a tuk tuk full, and 4 full moto's came as well. and some of the dormers cried. some cried a lot. They are all really wonderful.I really want all of them in the Kingdom so much.

Thankyou Kampuchea, I went to Cambodia 7 and a half months ago to teach, to change people, to change Cambodia. I hope I've done some of that. But really I got taught, I got changed, Kampuchea has changed me. It has been the most amazing experience, God has really blessed me in allowing me to do this. and I can only pray that I have this sort of oppotunity again in the future. that I can spend time in God's service, spreading his glorious name, love. giving people a gift better than they could ever hope for. Thankyou Kampuchea for changing me. Changing lives was a good theme for our bible school, I don't know how many other people it has changed, Khmer, Australian, Vietnamese, American, Thai, Malaysian, Indian, Kiwi. But it has done a great job, thankyou so much my Khmer Family. may God Bless you all always, may he give strength to your weary, and increase the power of your weak (Isaiah 40: 29)

And here I am, crunching roughly back to reality. I'm a hop and a skip from western life. my legs are sore from standing so long, my back is sore from carrying my backpack, my eyes are sore from staring at the computer, but most of all my heart is sore from already missing Kampuchea. missing my family there. I'm looking forward to seeing the other half of my family. It will be so wonderful to finally be able to see them all again. But I'll never forget Cambodia, it has given me so much more than an experience, the word experience can be used for riding on an elephant or patting a tiger, it can be used for something as useless as jumping out of a plane. Cambodia has given me so much more than that. maybe I've forgotten the word. I don't know. But I know I'll be leaving the ground of the Republic of China in less than an hour, and flying back to the Western life of Australia. Thankyou so so much cambodia. you'll be in my prayers, and I hope all you will pray for those beautiful people as well. and pray that God's glory is spread there, that God's children are fruitful and multiply to save more and more lives. Kampuchea Preah Botene Po. neak kanong bey dong robot kinwome samrap.....forever.

signing off

Brother Jonno Nutter

The world and it's desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:17