Cambodia Bible Education Centre

Location, location, location... River frontage---extensive water views! Exactly where you don't want your house to be when the monsoon hits. Following the Very Busy Weekend, we had a tiring but very enjoyable two days. Anna and I accompanied Loy on a flying (or should I say, wading) visit to her home and family, 350km away in Siem Reap province. With twelve hours out of our two days spent sitting on a bus, we had plenty of time to soak in the views, which were remarkably watery this time round, with every river twice it's normal width, every ditch filled with water (algal or otherwise), most fields well into submarine territory, and many houses standing in water (anywhere from ankle-deep to eaves-level-deep). Probably two-thirds of the journey was through land inundated by the over-full Tonle Sap Lake. Algae in the water, and as a consequence, itchy skin for everyone who has to wade through it. Understandably, living with annual inundation has its downside...

Bong So Veasna teaching about Abraham This weekend has been a busy and exciting one. We have had our monthly outreach programme here; this time the studies were on the promises, starting with the promise in Genesis 3:15 about the snake and the woman's seed, and what this meant, and how the snake would inflict a temporary wound but Christ would crush sin. Brother Dy did a great job. Some of my students that would normally have a lesson with me on Saturday morning joined in with the outreach group and really enjoyed it. Next up was Brother So Veasna, doing Part I on the promises to Abraham: where Abraham lived and how he travelled to the land of Israel, and the promises that God made to him. Part II followed in the afternoon, led by Brother Him. Discussion groups after the seminar On the Saturday evening we all went to the dorm and David continued his seminar series that he has been doing on God, this time on the nature of God. The normal crowd of 60 or ...

Slums underwater seen from the Bassac Bridge I thought we should give you an update on the flood situation over here. First some numbers (to the best of our knowledge - it's quite difficult to get reliable information): 17 (out of 24) provinces affected by the flooding;  the death toll stands at around 250, the majority of them children, having been drowned, lost, or bitten by fleeing snakes and the like; 300 schools closed; 2700km of roads damaged; 30,000 people displaced; around 400,000 hectares of rice paddies inundated; and $100 million set aside by the government to repair damage. This year's Water Festival has been cancelled so the money can instead be spent on relief efforts. A report from a week ago says that the water is still likely to rise further, and threaten Phnom Penh ... so watch this space. Here are a couple of links: Record Mekong Flooding Threatens Bangkok, Phnom Penh Flooding Claims 250 Lives, as Government Response Continues ... and t...

Emily, Dany, Vitou, and Vitou's nephew The day after the Oudong Mountain excursion, we did a day trip to the village that Vitou, Saory and Samrach come from; David and I on one moto, and Vitou, Dany, and Emily (an Aussie workmate of Dany's) crammed on another, for the 60km ride out to Kampong Speu Province. Vitou's house The day started off a bit drizzly and cloudy, but halfway out the clouds began to disperse and the sun put in an appearance.  It was an awesome drive, first passing Phnom Penh airport, then continuing west out into the countryside, (which actually isn't flooded here, so has brilliant green fields full of young rice), sugar palms dotting the landscape, and cows, either wandering aimlessly over the road or tethered at the roadside. Along the way we passed numberous wats (pagodas), where normally one would only encounter monks, but because the day was a Buddhist holiday everyone was there, dressed in their Tuesday(?) best, and the wats ...

Daniel was the topic chosen for Outreach this time, and we had lessons on chapters 1-6, taught in turn by So Veasna, Vitou, Jared, Dy, Chantry, and Sokhieng. For Chantry and Sokheing it was their first time to teach a Bible lesson (other than Sunday School), and they were a little apprehensive. But by the time they had finished their session, the jitters had been overcome, the smiles had re-appeared, and they were asking to teach again next month. The students are an inspiration also, in particular for their concentration spans, which I'm sure far exceed my own. They arrive Friday afternoon, after travelling for several hours to get here, then get stuck straight into the first lesson on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, there's a second and third lesson, followed by a fourth shortly after lunch. This weekend we all went to the Olympic Pool for a couple of hours relaxation on Saturday afternoon, after which we headed to the dorms for the seminar, which I taught th...

It has been holiday time for the past few weeks here. Even though the Pchum Ban Festival only officially lasts for 5 days, holiday mode seems to stretch on for a good number of days longer afterwards, not to mention several weeks beforehand. So Phnom Penh has been a good deal less hectic than normal, as most of the population has been off in the provinces. Oudong Mountain Puddlescape (not normally lake here, btw, and yes, those are treetops sticking out of the water) In the matter of comings and goings: Steve Armes left on the 20th of September and Sarah, James and Jared left on the 24th. A big thank to you all for all the work that you've done. A few days later, Dan Maluga and Gaye nearly-Maluga visited briefly, en route from Thailand to Australia, for their wedding (coming up this weekend).  Wat, complete with numerous what-nots While Dan & Gaye were in town, those of us left behind in Phnom Penh made a pilgrimage to Oudong Mountain (which, incidental...