The one great transformation happened in the Bible was when Saul-the former persecutor of Christians-encountered God on the road of Damascus in Acts 9. We all know that he was changed and began preaching the good news.
The morning of April 7, Thursday, at Battambang Cambodia, I again went with the Outreach Team to a school and an orphanage in Preydach Village. The orphaned kids wearing their uniform of white shirts. The Team did some singing with the orphans and rendered two skits. Ruth Shih shared her testimony with an interpreter. She also taught the children origami and Trillium Chang shared the gospel through straw and the cube cards with Pastor Lim as the interpreter. After lunch, the team went to Asia's Hope orphanage in Battambang. The orphaned kids were so nice and lovely with their yellow shirts. They welcomed us with hugs and smiles and held our hands even when we had not got off yet from the van. I started to feel different like wanting to cry by the immensity of presence of love in the place. The Outreach Team had visited them the day of April 6, when I was with the Construction Team and they were so love stricken that they wanted to see, play, hug and talk with them again. Honestly I was also smitten by these orphaned children. They started to teach us some hand-games and had put stickers on our faces. These children were so adorable that our "goodbyes" were so hard.
After Asia's Hope Orphanage, we went to the site of the new orphanage of New Hope for Orphans, where the Construction team helped build a fence. We had our dinner and a small farewell party for our last day in Battambang. The Construction team did some shopping for the orphaned kids in this place early in the morning. They bought slippers and clothes. The night was so lovely, the Mission Team playing with the orphans, singing and hugging them for the last time. I was singing, Jesus loves me yes I know, on our dinner table and the orphans with us on the table started crying while singing. I started to hug and tell them that even though we were leaving, we would not forget them, and would be praying for them, and promised that we would be back to see them. Everyone was so emotional and we had a prayer led by Pastor Sinai. We prayed for the new place and for the children and for the coordinator of the place. After prayer we lit some firecrackers to our enjoyment. What we had experienced this day and the past days was life-transforming. It was a supernatural transformation. I believe that each member of the team has been changed to a better person with a new better perspective in life. Like Saul who became the apostle Paul, the Lord has put a fire in our hearts, a fire of love, a fire of hope, a fire to share His word, and a fire to be an instrument to change a child's life from darkness to light. This fire cannot be quenched and it all began with a small step of just deciding to join a mission trip.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws -Ezekiel 36:26-27
