Dear Praying Friends,
The Poole family and Straight Road Baptist Church send our greetings from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. We are grateful for your prayers and financial support and have worked to bring souls to the Saviour on your behalf.
In 2013, God allowed us to meet 44 people who called upon the Lord. This total does not include another 60-plus souls reached through the ministry of Evangelist Clarence Moore, who was with us for some time. He preached, and I translated. In 2014, another 9 individuals have already received salvation.
CHANGED LIVES
In a country where people learn to bow to the monks from infancy, we find that old habits and beliefs are ingrained. In addition, the lives of so many are complicated by sin. A verbal profession of faith is one thing, but a changed life is another. Heaven took note of those who stood quietly for their faith in recent months, such as:
• Somphoa, forsaking a life of serial lovers and getting baptized.
• Vannara and her children, faithfully attending church in spite of scoffing relatives.
• Kunthia, a recent convert, who does not allow her blindness to dim her trust in God.
CHURCH MEMBERS INVOLVED
Straight Road Baptist Church has some very dedicated members. Del, a Filipino lady, consistently brings other Filipinos to our church. She also prepares some food every week for the evening crowd. Another member, Andrew from Pakistan, is a tireless seeker of souls. Because of this, Miriam (Pakistani) and Kan Kuch (Cambodian) were both saved and added to our church.
CHILDREN ARE SPECIAL
Our vital Children’s Club on Sunday mornings continues as always with precept upon precept, line upon line. These small students sing the songs and quote Bible verses and show that our investment is not in vain. But where there is progress, opposition will soon follow. Two of our most precious Sunday school girls asked me to drop them off a block away from their house after church, saying, “Our grandmother doesn’t like us to come.” In another family with four faithful sisters, the unsaved uncle threatened to beat me and told me to leave the house.
CHALLENGES
Both Suni (her father) and I (my mother) have aging parents who are in poor health and are most likely nearing the end of their lives. Suni’s father is saved, but my mother is not. Our siblings must bear the brunt of daily attention to our parents. Cambodia has a culture that reveres the parents to an extreme degree, leaving us to sometimes ponder whether we are fulfilling our obligations, even though serving God on the mission field.
Another challenge is a need for helpers. The opportunities are without limits. Our vision is for a team of workers to:
• Systematically take the Gospel to every alley and house in our area.
• Conduct Bible Clubs in different areas during the week, not just once on Sundays.
• Have a Sunday church program that is excellent in preaching, music, and teaching.
• Provide Christian-based fun and activities for our children during their free time.
• Start church plants in the many villages surrounding Phnom Penh.
Will you consider coming to help us?
Sincerely,
Walter and Suni Poole
