Wow, it is so hard to believe that Friday we depart for Cambodia!!! There are so many mixed emotions...excitement ..anticipation...nervousness...stress of getting last minute things done to name a few.

Am I prepared spiritually? I have been trying to be more focused in this area, praying and reading, and just talking things out with God. I am certain however, that he will be with me and my teammates.

There are so many aspects of service that this trip will entail; so many ways God wants to use us. I know from experience on my last trip, that he will reveal to us deeper glimpses of his perspective of His World and its people. It is sometimes overwhelming when you begin to capture this. He will work in each of our hearts individually. Stretching and challenging each one of us. Alot 0f the concerns and questions expressed to us over the past several months have been ones of being prepared physically, various safety concerns,what will you eat(most popular) etc.. all legit......but I know that this experience is so much more! The spiritual stretching and the emotional ride is indescribable ( I truly could not think of a good word to describe it!!)
We hope to...no, no, no, we have FAITH that we will bring back many testimonies of what God taught us. We also trust that God will use us in some way not only to impact Joel's ministry and the Cambodians but also to our church family, friends and family.

Thank YOU, for your support and encouragement. It is a privilege and an honor to go as ambassadors from WFC. We will try to update our blog, maybe even pictures, while we are there. It will depend on alot of different factors, but we will attempt this.

We still need your help while we are there!

Prayer is vital! I have listed a few ways below, in which you can be strategic in prayer. (my good friend Judy S. put this together so nicely...so I m plagiarizing her words!) I also listed a condensed list of our itinerary, so you can see where are what we are doing throughout the day as you think of and pray for us. (keep in mind, this may, or may not be subject to change!)

~Patti

Specific Prayer:

Our trip begins Jan.9th at 8am as we fly out of Phila. to Atlanta then onto S Korea then Pnohm Penh Cambodia...approx 23hours travel time! Phew !
There is a 12hr time difference. Cambodia is 12hrs ahead of us in EST US time.
We return Sunday Jan 25th
-Pray for Travel Logistics!

-Health and Energy.....We do have a few members going with chronic illnesses that are
managed but need people covering in prayer. Also we will all be destined for Pol Pots
revenge,he is a cousin to Montezuma's revenge!!!


-We will be keeping journals. (There will be time for this carved into each day.) The men
on our team, (with Tony leading), have been asked to teach on leadership.Please pray
as they prepare.The women will possibly have opportunity to meet with the women
and share /teach please also pray for them as they prep.

-Spiritual readiness
-Ministry to Cambodians and Missionaries
-Good reception and ministry in Preah Viheah province
-The families left at home of each team member
-Remaining financial need
-Joel and colleagues who will be receiving the team

SCHEDULE :

WE land in Cambodia at almost midnight Saturday night Cambodia time, and after going
through Visa application and other airport lines we will finally be greeted by Joel and
go to a hotel in the city and to BED!

-Day 1:
Orientation,trip to the market, Tuol Sleng (was a toture prison camp during
Pol Pots reign.)
Visit to Royal Palace and visit the Riverfront with possible opportunity
ministry opportunity with street children and others in evening. (These experiences
will help us see and learn alot about the culture ,the past history and introduce us to
the people and the needs in Cambodia....this day will be one of those emotional rides!)

-Day 2:
Travel Day north to Preah Viheah in a "mini bus"! Leave at 9am. This journey will take most of
day. Preah Viheah is the Province where Joel lives. We will be staying in a guest house in the
town where he lives. Cathy will be staying with Susan Kana a single women serving with
the team there.

-Day 3:
More orientation. Then a Khmer traditional lunch, a side trip to the fields, and evening praise and prayer time at CCH (Church of Changed Hearts...this the Cambodian Church that World
Team planted in this area, and also the group Joel works with and whom we will be serving
and spending alot of time with. We plan to spend time in the evening planning and learning
from Joel.

-Day 4:
Will meet with the Gabriels,(a family with 3 children sent from Davisville church),
Susan Kana, and Joel for an overview of their work. Another time of meeting with CCH
and 2 of us will be giving our testimonies through translation.

-Day 5:
WORK DAY.....CCH building, grounds, cow barn and a goat pen..moooo!
We will then have an opportunity to go with Joel as he teaches a class in afternoon. At 4pm we will meet with YWAM staff,(Youth with a Mission), at their youth center. Then in the evening we will be spending time with the missionary team at one of their homes.

-Day 6:
Free time . We will also probably get to do some preparations on some teaching that has
been requested of us, most especially the men in our group. We will then have an Evening Worship Service, which we will be involved in in several ways.

-Day 7:
We will be working with youth/teens and younger children today. We will be going to the
Youth's meeting in eve.

Day 8:
Another WORK Day. This time we will be doing work at the missionaries homes; ranging anywhere from electric to plumbing and computers, etc.

Day 9:
This day is the Pastors half day workshop from 8am -12 noon. All leaders and Pastors from the area are invited.This is the BIG teaching Day for our men. They will be giving 4 lessons on biblical and spiritual leadership from the books of Timothy and Titus. Joel will be translating.
In the afternoon, we will be again working with the Youth of the church in various projects. We will have dinner at the church and a campfire and send off party for our group.

Day 10:
We will be going on a road trip to Siem Reap. We will see and learn some more as we
travel and spend some fun quality time with Joel.

Day 11:
We will be visiting the temples of Angkor Wat! One of the Wonders of the World
We will learn alot, especially from Joel, as he has a degree in anthropology.

Day12:
We will head back to Phnom Penh, and possibly have one more trip to the city's water front
area.

Day 13:
Our last day! We will possibly be visiting the killing fields, the market and whatever else God may have planned for us to squeeze in!

PHEW!! Intermingled in this I am certain there will be... crazy moped rides,good and of course interesting food, exhaustion, group dynamics, learning some simple language, being appropriate culturally (oh boy!), laughing, and crying.

We can't wait to tell you all about it !!!

December 31,what a crazy year its been for me,waiting and preparing to go to Cambodia. I still can't believe I'm actually doing this! Sometimes I say to myself what was I thinking!!!But my God has been good and faithful .Soon I'll be traveling to Cambodia, no doubt an adventure for me, but with Him in charge. Something I struggle with daily, allowing God to be in charge. Easy to say,but hard for me to do. I want to let Him control our time as we serve. People ask what will you be doing over there,and I say all kinds of stuff. Correct and simplified answer would be serving Him. An answer I don't always give. Taking me out of my comfort zone. Too many questions for me, just let me serve, but I don't think that is all he has planned for me! He has many things to teach me. He gives me the oppurtunities to talk about Him, but I feel my words don't always impact people the way I feel. But I try anyway, because I should know He will do my talking for me. I do know my life will be changed,but how it will impact others as I try and talk about it,thats going to be tuff, just let me trust in Him. It would be great if you could remember us as we travel abroad and be praying for the folks (teamseven) I'll be serving with.They are a great group of friends. Thanks Hey I finally wrote a blog,how exciting. Michael