Fieldworkers
who come to Cambodia do not need to be ‘speakers’ in the generally accepted
sense. They do not need to be formally
trained teachers either. Numerous
teaching materials are available, both to teach the Bible and to teach the
English language. You need to be
familiar with your Bible, to be able to read and speak English, be willing to
use a modern English version of the Bible, and know how to use either a
concordance or Bible software, and research materials. But perhaps the most important skill you need
is to be able to listen to people reading, and explain, the Bible verses that
the teaching material leads them to! The
word of God does its own work in hearts and minds – fieldworkers are the
facilitators on the ground.
You
do not need to recall or relearn the rules of English grammar (not many people
seem to want to remember those once they leave school!). The students appear to enjoy learning new
vocabulary, and hearing information and facts regarding cultures outside of
Cambodia.
You
need lots of patience, to be friendly, and willing to learn to speak slowly and
clearly, communicating God’s wonderful message of salvation in understandable
words, without ‘dumbing down’ its meaning and richness.
And
you do need to be ready to answer questions about almost anything! Here are a few that have been asked here
recently:
.
when did Jesus live on earth?
.
why didn’t God start again after Adam
and Eve were disobedient?
.
when will Jesus come?
.
why will Jesus destroy death again?
.
Is there corruption in your country?
.
is a broken engagement equivalent to divorce Jesus talks about in Matthew 5?
(Cambodian engagements are a binding contract, shameful to have broken)
.
was the Bible written in English?
.
how old is the Bible?
.
what country do you come from?
.
how old are you?
The
students who come to the BEC are all people below 40 years of age, mostly aged
between 19 and 25. Their English skill
ranges from fluent to very little (in some classes a local brother or sister,
or sometimes one of the students, will translate). Their Bible knowledge ranges from zero to
good – many are already Christians.
Their general knowledge is usually not very great. However, their thirst for knowledge and
education is impressive!
Cambodians
are friendly people, and in their culture teachers are respected, and parents
and older people honoured and cherished, ensuring that teachers at the Bible
Education Centre are welcome visitors to Cambodia.
father’s
name with, or as, a swear word, he looked horrified; then he understood the
commandment. Another couldn’t grasp
‘holy’ or ‘sacred’; when asked would he walk on his grandmother’s grave, he was
very shocked. So then he understood the
concepts of ‘sacred’, ‘holy’, and ‘holy ground’.
Our
Lord’s work delivers satisfaction. Your
own commitment to our Father will leap ahead if you visit Cambodia and help
with the work that is happening here.
Bible School
I
guess there are not many six-day Bible Schools in the world where all these
things happen during the School:
.
two study series of five and four talks
.
two memorial services
.
a full day outing
.
a wedding service and reception
.
baptism of six new brothers and sisters
.
a cultural presentation by province Sunday School students
.
reports of preaching activities in a country and a continent
.
a seminar to discuss preaching ideas
.
a ‘cultural’ evening (nine countries were represented), and
.
two soccer matches
That
was Cambodia Bible School, 2014!
Aunty Jackie
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