Christmas visit, 2011

Hi Folks:

Leakhena and I have been blessed with the opportunity to come home this Christmas and for her to meet my family and friends. We will be in vancouver for the service on the 1st of january and for a couple of days after. There is a possibilty we might have an opportunity to share about our new ministry on January 6th at Tenth avenue and I will inform you if this is a definite. I pray that you enjoy our November update and look forward to seeing many of you in person soon

God bless and Merry Christmas


Kevin and Leakhena

November update - Someone's waiting (or taking the 8:30 bus)

I have recently been in Bangkok this month for Pre-marital counselling at a Christian Counselling centre. It was definitely worth the investment for Leakhena and I to prepare for our upcoming marriage on January 28th.
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Leakhena and I will be in Canada for Christmas and New Years and hope to meet up with as many people as possible while we are there.We will be at Tenth for the service on the 1st of jan and for a couple of days after.

I would like to talk about a moment we had on the way back from Bangkok this month.

We just got over the border from Thailand and had entered Cambodia at Poipet . The bus station was a km down the road and when we got to the bus station Leakhena booked us seats on the 830 p.m. bus. This bus was a few hours away and we had to spend time waiting ..it got closer to the time and then Leakhena realized that there was actually an earlier bus that we could have had at 730. We didn’t realize at the time that it was God’s plan for us to be on the 830 bus.

The bus was just 15 minutes from leaving and as we took our seat a commotion happened outside and as I looked out a man was beating another with a chair. I had just spoke with the guy being beaten just moments earlier as he was collecting bottles and was living on the street and had addiction issues. I bolted off the bus and got in between the man beating him as others just gathered around and watched what was happening. I knew what had happened and the man who was beaten had tried to steal luggage from the other man. They then called the police and it seemed like tensions had settled down so I proceeded to get back on the bus. I no sooner got to my set when the man again attacked the other and was kicking him as others watched and laughed.

Obviously I bolted again from the bus and Leakhena was quickly behind me more I think to try to save me than anything else because I was “interfering."

I stood in between the two of them again and calmed the abuser down and told him he had done the right thing and called the police but that no one deserved to be beaten. This is where the story gets interesting…I felt a great urge and prompting from the Holy Spirit to share about God’s Grace….I leaned down and as I started to talk to the “thief” I knew my limited language skills couldn’t properly share with him so I called Leakhena over. She was explaining to everyone why I had jumped in between and she told the whole crowd that I was Christian and I couldn’t let the violence happen. That statement alone I will try to share more on in a future note.

Leakhena was translating for me as I shared that many people around here would not forgive him for what he had done in trying to steal the luggage but that there was someone who had already forgiven him and that was Jesus Christ….I went on to share with him about unmerited favour how we don’t deserve that forgiveness but that He loves us so much that He died for our sins. I wish I could tell you a great story of him becoming overwhelmed and coming to Christ at that moment but in some moments when I was sharing he was actually looking around and wondering if someone else would hit him..I could see in Leakhena’s face that she wanted to stop translating but I urged her to continue to translate for me because I told her God’s Word does not come back empty. You see there were thirty people gathered around at the bus station all listening to the Word of God and of His Grace not just the “thief."

The police then came and as we got back on the bus all the people on the bus had crammed themselves to the windows watching all that was transpiring. Two of the ladies on the bus said that I would have many blessings coming my way because of what I did….in the Buddhist culture doing good things in this life will give you blessings in the next…..I was then able to share with them that I have been blessed already and paid in advance by the Agape love of our Lord Jesus….from a simple missing the bus for 730 to doing the right thing and actively pursue non-violence and opportunity opened itself to share about our Lord Jesus with many who have not heard.

I titled this “Someone waiting” and the meaning of this came from a Pastor in Thailand when he said “someone is waiting on the other side of our obedience” as we go forth in obedience which is what I have done in coming to Cambodia there are fragile people waiting for us to engage with them and share the love of Christ.

What is God asking you to do? ….it just might have eternal implications in anothers life.

God bless you all as we celebrate the Lord’s birth this month . As you know Leakhena and I are trying to raise funds for the community and to build more homes for those that were unlawfully evicted . Please consider helping those in need as a gift to our Lord and those He holds dear.

Please follow this link if you feel led to give...

Pouv & Samean

Pouv and Samean (see picture here) met each other nearly 16 years ago while both were living in the Dey Krahorm subdivision of Cambodia’s capitol city of Phnom Penh. Pouv grew up in a suburb of Phnom Penh called Steung Meanchey. Though Samean was born in the province of Kampong Chnang, about 80 miles north of Phnom Penh, shortly after her birth, her family moved to Phnom Penh in hopes of finding work and a better life. This was shortly after the genocidal Pol Pot regime (Khmer Rouge) was defeated by the Vietnamese army, and all who were evacuated from cities such as Phnom Penh were permitted to re-enter and begin to rebuild. Pouv had been doing odd jobs as a child, and eventually worked in construction during the rebuilding (which is still going on today).

Pouv and Samean were married 15 years ago in the Dey Krahorm subdivision. They have six children total. All but one of their children were born to them during their time living at Dey Krahorm. When he wasn’t working on a construction project (for around $2.00 per day), Pouv enjoyed playing volleyball with his friends. Before the children arrived, Samean enjoyed playing badminton with her friends and cooking all kinds of Khmer dishes. In Dey Krahorm, she sold fruit, and cooked a popular dessert to supplement their income. Though always at poverty level, the Pouv family never went without, thanks in part to construction projects such as luxury hotels, universities, and embassies, which were being built close to their home. Unfortunately, the development of their area caused their land value to rise rapidly and become attractive to developers. Eventually a certain developer, with the backing of the Cambodian government, was given permission to acquire the entire subdivision of Dey Krahorm, with the promise of fair compensation to those who owned property there. What the families were offered, was about 5% of what the property was worth, and by that time, would not be enough for them to by another home in any of Phnom Penh’s worst slums. After a trial eviction in 2007, stopped by human rights organizations, the people were promised they would not be evicted while negotiations for fair compensation continued.

At 2am Saturday morning, January 24, 2009, unilaterally breaking their promise, the development company arrived with municipality police in riot gear, and an army of hired workers with hammers and axes, using tear gas and rubber bullets, forced over 400 families to flee their homes, which were then flattened by bulldozers and back hoes. The Pouv family managed to take some clothes and their children out of the house, while inhaling and choking on the tear gas, but lost everything else they owned. Samean recalled trying to get to coolers in their house which had food and safe drinking water in them, but those too were destroyed by the violent workers and their tools. They ended up being taken to a relocation area owned by the developer, about 12 miles outside Phnom Penh. No schools for the kids, no markets for the families, and no jobs for those without transportation. At their new home, they had no clean water, no electricity, and no shelter. Just a pile of scraps from Dey Krahorm to build what they could. Eventually, their makeshift homes were destroyed again, so the developer could finish building condos on the relocation area land, which led them to this community less than a year ago, where Manna4Life is working to helpbuild a viable community which will one day be able to sustain itself through agricultural enterprises.

When asked what she missed most about Phnom Penh, Samean says it was much easier to make a living there. In her new community, now 23 miles from Phnom Penh, the only customers she would have if she attempted to sell fruit or dessert, would be the community’s other residents who are just as poor as the Pouv family, having little money for luxuries. Pouv himself goes to Phnom Penh for construction work by ‘taxi’, which means an overcrowded minivan, but the cost of such transportation and food while he’s at the site, make the small wage he receives; practically not worth the trip. The children not pictured were staying with relatives who live closer to a school, and their daughter Socheata who is pictured is mentally disabled, and is currently being cared for by an organization called; ‘Friends International’.

The Pouv family has received a new home by the generosity of people like yourself who are willing to share their blessings in life with those less fortunate .

If you feel led to help another family like the Pouv’s please go to this link at Canadahelps to make this a reality.
http://www.canadahelps.org/GivingPages/GivingPage.aspx?gpID=14993

Each new home costs $ 570 we have built 31 homes so far and a total of 100 homes are needed. Every dollar received from Canadahelps will go directly to building a new home .

This Christmas season a time of giving what better way to use your resources than being a part of building HOPE in this community.

God bless
Kevin and Leakhena

Donations

Friends - Kevin has moved his donation info to a new spot on the blog.

Kevin Knight's Mission in Cambodia- How You Can Help

Thanks so much for supporting Kevin's mission in Cambodia. You can help Kevin continue his work in Cambodia by using the donate buttons found below right. Kevin uses PayPal, the well known and trusted business transaction service provider. With PalPal, you can use your own PP account, or a standard credit card. May God shower you with His richest blessings for your support of this mission.

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Reflections of a Fool for Christ - October update

This month has been such a meaningful month for me here in Cambodia. You see it was my Christian birthday this month on Oct 26th and I am simply amazed by our God. Four years ago I invited Jesus into my life and recognized Him as my Saviour.

The transformation He has done in my life is definitely not of this world but supernatural. There is so much more work to do in this sinner but knowing I can go to Him and cry out like David create in me a pure heart and that He will respond and point out my flaws and areas to work on. He does it with not an accusatory tone but one of love that He understands that I want a closer relationship with Him and is excited that my wants are to be more Christ-like and less Kevin-like.

He sends many brothers and sisters my way to help me in this process whom I love deeply for their sacrifices in helping me to understand God's desire to be closer to me. The fact that He loves me just the way I am but loves me enough that He wants me to experience a deeper bond with Him.

It has been a blessing to be forever reminded of my inadequacies to help so many people in need here in Cambodia. The limitations in my earthly strength to not go very far. But when I reach out to Him for His strength, for His wisdom, for His guidance and most importantly...for His will to be done amazing things happen .

I witnessed this month a little girl....precious and sweet..she always says hi kevin with a big huge smile everyday that I am at the village...she just received a house this month and while we were talking with her she told us..." I have been praying every night for two years that God will provide a home for her and her mother....with great joy she informed us that God answers prayer....she then asked us can I pray for you ...as she prayed this heartfelt prayer....my Khmer is so limited but I didn't need to know them...you see these were prayers from a righteous child, a faithful child of God...I started crying as she continued to pray out loud with more fervour and passion and knowledge that she was reaching out to our Almighty God on our behalf....and she knew without a doubt with deep Faith .....God answers prayer.

A couple of days ago I put out a blog post with the needs of the community for housing and a farm and the financial needs they entail but today I have a different request.......pray for the community, pray for their needs, please pray without a doubt and with deep Faith in the knowledge that God answers prayer.

God bless

Kevin and Leakhena

Reflections on bringing the Gospel- October newsletter

I am writing a couple of days before the end of the month as I have been doing a lot of reflecting on being a missionary and sharing the Gospel.

The Gospel ...the Good News...what does that mean to the poor.? What is good news? Rice being offered today? I have enough to feed my family today? It didn't rain on our home last night? The doctor is coming today? Only one child is sick? I had work today?

Do the basic necessities of Life need to be met before anyone will listen to the Gospel of Christ?

MLK said

Any religion which professes to be concerned with the souls of men and is not concerned with the slums that damn them, the economic conditions that strangle them, and the social conditions that cripple them, is a dry-as-dust religion.

Other than using the word religion I would put in the word Gospel.

The lack of direct involvement by many in ministry to justice issues astounds me. Did not Jesus speak into the powers and governments of the day and preach something about a Kingdom that was the exact opposite of what was happening? Did he not speak into the injustices of the day? What about restorative justice when our friends have had their lives and land stolen from them?

There is a bit of a rally on right now around an NGO law that will severely restrict the NGOs and there ability to speak up. Freedom of congregation and assembly etc.

It has brought all the NGOs together in signing documents against this unjust law. Most of the Christian organizations are signing it which is great but confuses me somewhat.

Seeing the Kingdom of God....on earth as it is in heaven ...is what I am trying to share and talk about and live out to the best of my ability and seeking God's wisdom and guidance and transforming powers and Grace everyday. Sharing that the poor are first in His upside down Kingdom that it is my honour to be able to stand alongside those suffering alongside their evictions alongside their sufferings. But where are all the Christians?

They have all come together to sign this document but that is when there is a threat to their own little Kingdom. Where are they when all the other petitions need signed the other atrocities to the poor that restrict their ability to speak out and congregate or unionize etc.

We can not put justice aside until it affects us directly. I am not speaking out of anger or without humility...I am not out on the front lines as much as I should be too when I have to prioritize what needs to be done this week this month that day. Jesus never had a problem speaking into the unjust. God will you give me the strength to be able to stand up and be counted when it affects not just myself but my neighbours, my friends, the people that I love, the poor, the voiceless.

Some of my friends in Indonesia are under direct threat of eviction at this time so please pray for their community. Some have lived there 20 to 30 years and are being offered 50 dollars to move quietly ..if they move now.

I pray that I am seeing the holistic needs of my community and the Gospel that I share of salvation and forgiveness and Grace and Agape love is received with the same excitement I share it.

Please pray for the community I am engaging life with and sharing loves and sorrows and pray for us all to prioritize our lives the way Jesus wants us too and not in our will.

If your reading this on my blog my post before shared some of the material needs of the community but this blog post is specifically asking for the richest gift of all ..prayer to our mighty God.

God bless

Kevin and Leakhena

p.s. check out our new facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Manna4Life

Make a difference this Christmas !

As most of you are now inundated with advertisements and suggestions to purchase on this upcoming Christmas season I would just like to put out an alternative Christmas scenario for you. A way for you to make a huge impact on a family in need this year. Please just spend a few moments reading about how you can make a huge difference.

As most of you know I have been engaging with a community in Cambodia that was forcibly evicted from their land by a corrupt government in partnership with a development company. The link to their eviction is HERE.

After their eviction in January 2009 they were unceremoniously dumped 20 kms west of Phnom Penh with nothing as everything was destroyed by the bulldozers you witnessed in the video. Since then they were evicted again and dumped 38kms north of Phnom Penh where they are currently located. I was onsite the day of their first eviction and it forever changed me as it was the most emotional day of my life witnessing this tragedy.

Leakhena my fiancée and myself have been working with this community the last year and have plans on moving there in February this year.

The lack of proper housing as you can see here or on our facebook page—Manna4Life--is one of their greatest needs . Proper housing will improve not only their situation but will keep them protected from more health issues by being out of the elements and able to stay dry. Most homes now are just a few sticks put together with any type of tarp material they can find whether it be a rug ,plastic sheeting,a bed sheet or anything to defend against the torrential rain here in Cambodia. We have been able to raise enough funding to provide 31 new homes in the community by the generosity of people like yourself but there are 70 more families in dire need also. Each home costs $570 U.S. dollars to build, this includes the hiring of the workers from the community and food and refreshments during the building. This provides much needed financial assistance to the families also as they are in need of work also and barely get by each day.

We are grateful to have joined with Norval Presbyterian church in Georgetown, Ontario in setting up a Canadahelps page in order for people to donate this Christmas season. Every dollar received through Canadahelps will go directly towards the building of homes for this community. I have also set-up a Causes page on Facebook called Manna4Life where you can follow along on the progress of this community and our work there. One of the things I always say is that we are building not homes but HOPE in this community. Just the small amount we have done so far has built a spirit of hope and a real sense of community. We all work together on the homes as a community with the whole community coming out in force to shave the bamboo for the flooring and building the palm leaf walls for all the homes. Here are a couple of the finished homes.

If you feel led to prayer for this community we know God answers each and every prayer and trust me it gives us and the community great comfort knowing our brothers and sisters are reaching out to Him on our behalf.

For the price of a new ipad or iphone you can substantially change a families life and health this Christmas season and beyond.If you feel led to help in a financial way by organizing a fundraising drive ,getting this message to your friends and co-workers, getting your sports group together etc or having your family donate this Christmas please click here and VISIT THIS GIVING PAGE on Canadahelps. A canadian tax e-receipt will be sent to you automatically. Make sure you print off a copy for your files. Or you can donate through Paypal (no tax receipts) through my blog page HERE.

My blog page which you are probably on now includes stories from this community that I am sure will touch your heart and you will get a better understanding of the people you are helping and learn to love them like I do.

The other project we need funding for is to purchase land for a farm that is connected to the community. We are looking for 50 groups or individuals to donate $100 a month for a one year commitment or the equivalent...this comes to $60,000 which is enough to purchase 5 hectares of land where we will start with chicken coops, then pig raising, fish farming and then agriculture...this will provide jobs for the community and a much needed food source. The community itself will be raising $ 5000 dollars towards the cost of the first chicken coop and 2000 chickens by the homeowners putting in $2 a month for 2 years in order to purchase a share in the farm. They are investing a lot when you consider how poor they are in monetary funds. The farm will be run as a co-op with a committee selected from the community to run it. All the proceeds from the farm will be re-directed to the community to different job producing projects voted on by the community. These can include water filtration for better health, bathroom facilities in each home, garbage collection, job training programs, schooling etc.

Thank you so much for considering helping and God bless you and your family this Christmas season.

Kevin and Leakhena

P.S. If you need anymore information please feel free to contact me at kknight45@hotmail.com and feel free to share this link with anyone you feel might be moved to help this community.

September 2011 - Many reasons for thanksgiving

Hi folks - I need to start off this month thanking everyone who makes it possible for me to be here and share God's love with the poor. The joy I get to see in the faces and attitudes of the poor as hope invades their misery is a blessing from God and He has made that possible through all your prayers and support.

Months go by quickly here as there is seemingly endless tasks before me and visions that go beyond my own imagination and surely must be His.

The month started with a crash...another motorcycle crash for me and severe burns from the motor to my right leg. There were some third degree burns from the motor and it resulted in another trip to Bumrungrad hospital for surgery to my leg. I am healing fine but it will be a couple of more weeks at least partly because of my stubbornness to do what the doctor ordered (feet up and bed rest). You will see in the rest of the newsletter why I didn't heed his orders.

Before flying to Bangkok I received a call from ICC another missions group and they wanted to know if they could build a home at the village as the village they wanted to build a home for was flooded. This was unexpected but welcomed as we have a close relationship with ICC and work together with similar visions. It was hard to get around and build the home as I was in extreme pain but it was worth it see another home for another family completed.

After flying back from Thailand and the operation it was a blessing to be able to facilitate a young girl named Srey Mouv who had a hairlip to receive surgery at a local childrens hospital to repair her mouth. As I went to visit the family in the hospital with Leakhena I was overwhelmed with emotion for this little girl. You see her family had the opportunity three other times for this operation but because of foreigners coming to the village in missions groups etc and after seeing the young girl would often dig into there pockets and give money to the girl's parents. The parents actually didnt want the girl to have the operation because she was providing food for the family table. In our generosity and with good intentions we can actually hurt the people we are trying to help. I think I have mentioned it before but please if possible read the book "When helping hurts" - it has been a real blessing to me to follow most of its guidelines in engaging with this community I love so dearly. I walked out of the hospital and started weeping because I knew the difference that the operation would have on her future and was able to be here and help facilitate but more importantly witness God's love for this precious girl. Knowing how precious not just this one little girl but the whole community is in God's eyes was just overwhelming to me of the abundance of God's love and Grace for us all. Leakhena and I prayed with the family in the hospital room and I was able to pray of God's love for this beautiful girl before the surgeon's hands had made her beautiful in the eyes of the world.The family was beeming and couldn't take their eyes of their beautiful daughter and she was also a big hit at the village upon her return.

That's the first half of the month....the second half saw my good brother Dennis from Australia return with two friends Greg and Grant to build more homes in the community. It was Grant's first trip to southeast asia and he grew to love the village also and I believe is looking forward to his next trip back. Through the generosity of these men and some folks back in Australia we were able to build first 15 then more funding came in and we were able to build a total of 18 more homes bringing the total this month to 19 homes for the community. I have enclosed a couple of before and after pics of the housing.

I can't tell you how much this affects this community which has been abused for the last two years without any sign of hope. There is excitement today for the future of the community and they are well aware and thank Preah En ...God...for the blessings being bestowed upon the community. We take every opportunity to deflect any thanks to us and direct it to the ONE who is providing it all. Leakhena is engaging with the women of the village and is loved deeply already and is able to share her testimony and that the love we share for the community is God's love and heart for them.

I will be sending out another blog this week and will be providing people an opportunity to help this community. With the Christmas season approaching I can't think of a better gift this year than giving to Christ by helping those He puts first in His upside down Kingdom.

God bless and thank you again for joining me in sharing God's love in Cambodia.

Kevin

August 2011 - Our Lord at work

Hello again from Cambo

It has been a blessed month of answered prayer, healing,direction, building,relationship strengthening and an overwhelming presence of our Lord at work. (For photos from this month, click here to see an online album.)

Just a few bullet points before I share a story about this month.

...God has been providing us with whatever we need..He has blessed us with timely answers to our prayers for numerous needs

...Our relationship with the community is growing everyday and we were all brought to tears when I shared about Leakhena and mine's love for the community and I shared about everything I saw in this community and what they have...love for each other, community,bonding from going through the same hardships,the skills,the strengths and God on their side. At the end of the meeting one of the committee members came up to me and said Som Preah En Pro Te An Poh...May God bless You

..We built two more homes for the community this month...one from a short term team from Calvin Presbyterian an ESC partner with Tenth church who were so moved by the testimonies given by the community members that they supplied the funding before they left to build this home and are looking at raising further funding for more homes.

..We have a list for the community in order of greatest need and the woman who moved them was next on the list and God provided through the same team

..We have a commitment for 15 homes with a possible 20 which we will be building starting the 17th of sept for approx 3 weeks

..Tenth church will be supporting Leakhena and I to go for cross cultural and pre marriage counselling in Chiang Mai probably in Oct. such a huge blessing and a great grounding for our forthcoming marriage in January

...the process of starting our own NGO called Manna4Life is almost completed and ready to send to the government..just working on the final board members before sending for approval.

..Just finalizing the MOU with Dove and will be partnering with them as the advisor to their sustainable community development section .This is a great ministry that tenth supports and our ministries will be a great blessing to the Oudong community and the Kingdom of God

..Working on a 4 phase plan for the community and our ministry at the village .

..working on a proposal for this 4 phase plan

..have joined forces with my brother Tony Tom with World Helps Ministries as their Cambodian partner and will be doing projects together in education and building in the community


This is just a short recap of the month....as you can see a lot is happening here and God is really moving forward so pray that I hang on tight to Him.

Now for a story of healing prayer.


The pictures attached are our friend Rhum.

We had been on a medical missions trip with Tenth church and when we got back at the start of the month and visited the village we were informed that Rhum a friend from the community had suffered a stroke the night before. Rhum is a great guy and usually carries water for the village in a big blue drum to all the homes especially the dry season. This is how he supports his family and his son is now doing it in his place. I think he gets 2000riel for every drum which is approx 50 cents and wheels this heavy load around to the homes.

We immediately went to the hospital to see how he was praying for him along the way.

We couldn't find him at the hospital because he had been released already because he had no money. Not exactly a rare situation in Cambodia as most people cannot afford the medical care however inadequate it is.

We called around and it wasn't until the next day that we were able to get his number where he was staying and went to visit him. His whole left side was paralyzed ,his face frozen and his arm and leg numb and useless.He was staying at his daughters place which overseas the old Dey Krahorm eviction site where he used to live.It is a building next in line for eviction and one with a horrible reputation and is a den of prostitution , drugs and gangs.

When we were leaving we asked him if we could pray for him and reminded him that we were Christians and would like to pray to Jesus for Him. He is a Buddhist but both himself and his wife said they would be very grateful if we prayed to God for them. Leakhena and I both prayed out loud in Khmer and English asking for God's healing powers to reach our friend and for him to then be a light for the rest of the community and to share about who healed him.

We then went home and a few days later took Tara Dawn a medical student from Tenth who was on the medical team and visited him again he had improved slightly and his face was now no longer frozen but had to use his other hand to move his arm or leg. Tara gave him advice on not doing that or his movement would never come back. We then asked him again if we could pray for him and he welcomed our prayer again. Leakhena,Tara and I all prayed for him similar prayers as we prayed before telling God of our uselessness in this situation and that we needed Him and Him only to help our friend.

On friday night I said to Leakhena we should go see how Rhum is doing but we were unable to and said we would go after our normal saturday meeting at the village.

When we got to the village there was Rhum walking around the village with the help of a stick and we were prasing God at the amazing healing. He was walking with a stick because the only boots he had were big heavy army boot styke and it was hard for him to walk in those as his healing was continuing. Leakhena wanted to get him some sneakers so we went to the local market and after putting these on he was able to walk around the village without much problem.

Please pray that Rhum recognizes where his healing came from and is a light to the community of the powers of our loving God

God bless you

Kevin and Leakhena

Khav Win ( Ka Win) - On earth as in heaven ....

My friend Khav Win in the village (almost sounds like Kevin) is a real inspiration to me. I never used to see him in the village much . Generally when I was pulling into the village I would pass him on the road in the morning most of the time about a kilometre from the village . He would be hand pedaling his wheelchair down the muddy road towards the Buddhist temple. He always stopped pedaling and greeted me with a wave and a big smile everytime I went by.

You see the Buddhist temple is a major training centre and also a huge tourist attraction as Oudong mountain has many temples on it dating back centuries.

Khav Win would park himself in front of the gates and proceed to beg all day each and everyday in order to provide money for his family the only way he feels he can being so far out of any job opportunities after being evicted to this site 38km from Phnom Penh.

Some days I just take my Khmer language books and sit down with a family in the village and try to communicate the best I can . His family consists of his wife Meas Chea and kids Chork,Channy and Vannak they are great kids and always have the same smile their father has and have been very welcoming to me in the community and very helpful around the village. Khav Win shared with me his daily schedule and how tough it was to be able to get enough money for food for his family. I imagined how brutal it must be to beg everyday and the negative impact that must have on you when people walk by or ignore you or even begrudgingly give.

I was really happy when the community chose Khav Win and his family to receive one of the first 8 houses we were building. You see I have taken myself out of all the decision making tasks at the community and the people have selected 10 people from the community to form a board and the decisions are made by these elected community people. In order to have gender equality they chose to have 5 men and 5 women on the committee.



When we started on his home just like all the others the homeowners are diligently working alongside the local workmen hired from the community to build the houses. No one worked harder than Khav Win ,under the hot sun he never faltered and pushed on not with just a desire to complete his home but with complete joy oh his face.

God provided this joy to him by relieving him from his daily grind of begging to joyfully provide for his family in building them a home. I really can't describe how this impacted me as I saw such a pureness to his joy that it could only come from God. Then a dejected look came over him as he was working and it was around lunchtime. I knew something was wrong and I couldn't understand in my still limited Khmer. I had Leakhena ask him what was wrong and he said he needed to go to the Pagoda and beg because if he didn't his family didn't have anything to eat. We always provided meals for the paid workers but not the families helping on their own homes as we were trying to keep to a tight budget. we always had a couple of meals extra for the workers who were extra hungry but this wasn't enough for his whole family for lunch and dinner. Needless to say some of us were quite happy to go without to allow him to continue in his joy providing a new home for his family.

God tells us that we are to store our riches in heaven but sometimes he gives us a taste of them here....and the look of that joy re-ignited as Khav Win proceeded on with his task was rich indeed.

We built a total of 8 houses a few weeks ago and will be building 3 more next week and another 10 or more sept 17th when Dennis the original donater from Australia returns to continue on. There are a total of 100 homes that need built in this eviction community we will have about 20 finished by the end of sept. If you feel led to contribute to this endeavour each home is approx 570 dollars. Every dollar that is raised for this will go directly towards homes in this community. Dennis has also provided all the necessary tools such as pry bars,hammers ,tapes,shovels,picks, compressor and hoses and brad nailers but we still need two air powered framing guns.

Please feel free to contact me if you want anymore information kknight45@hotmail.com and +855 12981960 outside Cambodia or 012981960 inside Cambodia to leave a text message on my cell or the same number to call me direct. Would be happy to share more about the community their situation and how you can help.

Please pray for this community as other missionaries warned me that I am going into a stronghold but I believe that God wants to build a Christian community built on the foundation of Christ here at the bottom of this mountain. Have no fear but fear of the Lord.

HOPE ALIVE FRONT ROW SEAT - June Newsletter

It has been an amazing month for me here in Cambodia.

It is such a blessing that God has taken this broken vessel and allowed me to witness for Him and be a witness to His amazing powers.

God broke my heart in january 2009 for the people of Dey Krahorm and continues to do so daily. At first a broken heart seems just to painful to be thought of as having any benefit or purpose other than bringing pain. This is so far from the truth.

God has used this broken heart to share with me the things that break His own. He has allowed me to enter into an intimacy with Him that goes beyond calling out to Him with my wants and needs and troubles. He has let me see a small fraction of the world through His eyes. The atrocities in this world do not just pass God's eyes like a CNN newflash but enter into His heart to be consumed by Love.

I am in no way pompous enough to say I see the world through His eyes but what I have witnessed here in Cambodia has entered into my heart and what I can't handle has flowed out of me as tears. These tears are the fuel which drive me forward regardless of the consequences to self. I step out daily not knowing what God has in store for me here how He is going to use me and how my heart will be in pain yet again. You can get numb to the pain as I have noticed with my various ailments since my motorcycle accident but pain that comes from your deep love for those society has cast away does not.

The pain was lessened this month a reprieve from our loving God.

I was able to witness hope come alive in a community that has been beaten,robbed,abused ,displaced,hurt,ransacked,dispersed and all but forgotten.

Our Heavenly Father has not forgotten.

The story of Leakhena's mother and fathers love for her and her siblings in the pouring rain has reached beyond the few emails I send out. It reached the ears and heart of a brother named Dennis in Australia who came here to witness himself the slum relocation site.

Hope invaded this village .

Leakhena and I have been praying and God has led us to commit to this community with all the love that God has can fill us with. After we are married we will move to this community at the bottom of Oudong to share God's love for the poor and their high place in His upside down Kingdom.

Hope came from God when we had a visioning meeting with the community and listened to the needs of the community from them. When you barely survive each and everyday it is hard to think of a future beyond survival. We gave them a chance to stand up and be heard and did they speak !They spoke of a community not unlike the community that God wants us to live in...one where they work together for the common good, respect each other, share there resources and give of themselves instead of taking. We so often forget when we give to the poor that we can do it in a way that gives them no self esteem...that steals their dignity...that leaves them more deflated than before we tried to help.

There are basic needs in this community that are not being met ....housing ,food,clean water, lack of employment etc.

But the community has a plan that they need help in getting started.....I will share more about this in the next few weeks as I spend more time listening to the community and seeing how we can come alongside them to help them become self-sustainable.

We built a few houses this week ..actually 8 of them but what was really built was the start of the vision and more importantly hope for the future. (For those who have Facebook, click here to see an online album of photos from this project.) There have been many questions of why I am there and they are all answered by me saying...the love of Christ.

God bless

Kevin

Still small voice - June 13, 2011

I am awake and I am here listening to the sounds of the city waking up...I am an early riser and its about 5 am ...the motorbikes sound louder early in the morning ..the steel gates are being opened to the guest houses....it is very quiet though ...the odd sound seems to be that much more noticeable in the silence...the dog barking ....the cat meowing.....maybe this is why we need to find that quiet place like Jesus does to go and pray to our Father......to hear that still small voice......His voice is heard loudest in the silence.

Where do the people find that quiet spot in this city....How can they hear God above the noises of there stomachs rumbling from hunger?How can they hear his voice above the cacophony of sounds, motorbikes,vendors hawking there wares,whistles,trucks blasting there horns,the beep beep of the scooters ,kids laughing and playing,construction and the population.

Maybe the quiet of the pre-dawn????.....or is that the only time that sheer exhaustion of barely surviving another day takes it toll and a few moments of sleep happen....Does God only have dreams to speak to His children in poverty.

Is it our gift from God to help His children realize their dreams...their potential ....their plan and purpose?

Are we supposed to come alongside those He puts in our path and help them take those dreams and turn them into reality?Are we supposed to help them see the gifts God has provided them.

I know in the DTES most people have lost their dreams,their hope ,for some they might never have had it.What does a life growing up barely surviving whether here in Cambodia or the DTES offer for hope?



How can you lose hope when you might not have even had it?


God help me see the visions you have planted in their heads .

God help me see your plan for their lives.God help me come alongside them in encouragement.

God help me see beyond their poverty.

God help me have the same perseverence of the poverty stricken.

God help me break through cultural and language barriers

,God help me share your love.

God help me share You.


God help me


God help us


God .......thank-you for realizing my vision ,my dreams.

Thank-you for giving me hope in a hopeless situation.

Thank-you for letting me see my potential in You.

Thank-you for giving me this heart.

God help me


Amen

May Newsletter

Labour march - Phnom Pehn, May 1, 2011

Hi Folks

Well another month has quickly passed but it was filled with with experiences and opportunities to in engaging with the people God has called me to serve.

The first of the month was International Labour Day and having heard one of the union leaders speak at our Christian Justice Group of the hardships of the garment workers and the conditions and miserable wages they endure it was my honour to stand alongside them as they marched in Phnom Penh. Click here to see photos.

I have been in many labour day marches as I was a union member in Canada as a member of the pipe and steamfitters union in Toronto but standing alongside these workers as I knew the risks they were taking in speaking up against the injustices in their workplace was definitely moving. Over 5000 workers turned out and they marched down the waterfront to the ministers building seeking an end to an ngo law coming into affect to stifle the voice of the people and for fair wages in the workplace.

The response to last months newsletter was awesome….it is titled “Shelter in the rain” on my blog at kevinincambodia.blogspot.com….what started out as a request for 70 tarps for the eviction community at Oudong village turned out to be 110 tarps that were installed before the heavy rain the weekend after.

God provided many people for this outreach approx 60 people as you can see by the pictures attached and it was a moving day for all involved. Many of the youth were Cambodian about 90% of them with the rest being a multi-cultural crew from Logos a local Christian school. The majority of the people involved were unaware of the plight of their fellow countrymen and the atrocities that had been perpetrated to them. The education of the workers turned into sympathy then empathy and then to love for the the community as they worked together with the community side by side to alleviate a small amount of the suffering in this community.

We were also able to share about God’s upside down Kingdom and that they were first in the eyes of God and that he loved there community and this was just a small way to show that love by the relationships being built by these students with the community.

I would be remiss if I didn’t thank all of you who supported this endeavour in prayer and by financial commitment. Rest assured you have helped many families this rainy season and I pray that that will help them in less illness also this season.

Leakena and I are praying about moving out to this community after we are married jan 28th 2012 so if you could keep this in your prayers it would be appreciated.

Some of you who supported this outreach were wondering what more we could do or if tin roofs were an option. Some of the structures could not support tin roofs and would need more structural work before that is possible and some of the huts would have to be totally ripped down and rebuilt. I am in a process this month of doing a proper survey of the community and rating the needs and priorities of this community. There is a major amount of work involved in housing needed and I am working with other NGO’s in determining who is doing what out there and when and trying to co-ordinate our efforts.I am in a group of approx 13 other groups administering help to this community in different aspects such as health,education,gender training,sewage, water etc.

At the end of July with the help of my friend Dennis a builder from Australia we will be building 6 homes for the most needy with the labour being supplied by the community. These homes are approximately $400 dollars per home. Dennis will be supplying the funds for the first 6 homes and will then go home and raise funds for more homes. I will keep you updated on opportunities to help in future updates.

I am now in Thailand again for another operation and appreciate all your prayers and well wishes. I had my surgery yesterday and am feeling fine. I should be back home in Cambodia next Thursday or Friday.

It has been a busy month and I look forward to our continued journey together in sharing Christ with the poor here in Cambodia.
God bless

Kevin Knight
P.s. Looking forward to meeting up with Tenth Avenue team when they are her e in July

May 28 - neck update, prayers appreciated

Another mri today on my neck...see the surgeon monday ....under the knife next week...prayers are appreciated

Personal prayer request - for God's healing

In Bangkok again undergoing nerve tests on my arm and probably another operation later in the week...please pray for God's healing.

Photos from Blue Tent 2011

Blue Tent Community - May 20, 2011

Pics of our outreach to the oudong community..many of the volunteer youth were moved by the story of this communities eviction and then the reality of how they are living today...the community were gracious hosts to us and a lot of great connections were made and we were able to share how God loves them and has a special place for them...the last shall be first in the Kingdom of God

What a blessed day serving with 60 youth today and engaging with the beautiful people of Oudong village.

It was my best birthday ever being able to serve the Lord in Cambodia.

God bless

Kevin

God hears the cries of the poor

Praise the Lord for providing the necessary funds and people to provide the blue tent community from Dey Krahorm with tarps for the rainy season.

I just want to thank everyone who was moved to provide this community with Prayer and funding for their tarps. I look forward to sharing more about our time out there this saturday with the community and our continued relationship with them.

I do have a few prayer requests and they are that our time out there will not be focused on just the task at hand but in showing God's love to the community by our interactions while we are there.

I pray for good weather ..so we can install as many tarps as needed before the rainy season really begins.

Leakhena and I are in discerning prayer about how God is leading us to serve particularly this community..we will be married on january 28th and are praying about moving in to this community and sharing a Godly relationship with those there. So please pray for our discernment time that God makes it very clear how this is to be.

I want to thank everyone again for their support in expanding the Kingdom of God here in Cambodia

Som Preah En Pro Tean Poh( May God bless you)

Urgent request - May 14, 2011 - Blue Tent Community Project

Dear friends

An urgent matter has come up. In January of 2009 I was onsite in Cambodia when government forces and 400 hired workers descended on Dey Krahorm a community in Phnom Penh Cambodia. They forcibly evicted all the families from their own land claiming they had no title to this land and sold the rights to a development company called 7NG.

It was the most devastating experience of my life and paled in comparison to the people that were affected . God really used this moment to confirm my calling to Cambodia and the people of Dey Krahorm.

The development company moved the residents 20km west of the city and 400 of the families were immediately told they were not even welcome on that site either.So a year later they were moved again 38km north of the city to an empty field . I have visited this site many times and have been getting to know the community.A flood in my own place from a strong rain turned my attention to the people of this village and put a request out to my supporters for help in financing for blue tarps for this communities roofs before the rainy season descends .

In my request the information I gave was not complete ...I was told their was 70 homes in this community but after taking a count and seeing the condition of the roofs(pictures attached) there are actually 97 homes and the tarps are 13.50 not 12 dollars. I have mobilised a small force of 50 people consisting of youth groups ,Christian youth leaders a Cambodian English class(non-Christian) and another class from a local Christian school to come help this community put the tarps on. There is a cost involved in transporting some of these groups and providing water and some food for the long hot day of work.

I have had a great response from my supporters and am now only short the extended costs which amount to appox 450 dollars.I pray there will be enough funding so I do not not have to decide which families receive a tarp and which families will go without.

This is an urgent request as the outreach is next saturday and the people are mobilised to help.

For those who would like to contribute from afar their is a paypal link on my blog at

http://kevinincambodia.blogspot.com/

Here’s a link to photos, some taken as recently as within the last week:

https://cid-bbb3a7a480701a84.photos.live.com/play.aspx/mission%20talk%20photos?Bsrc=Photomail&Bpub=SDX.Photos

Click on the link below to make an online donation to this effort thru PayPal:

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=YBL2NDVJH5NEJ

Many thanks in advance for considering this urgent request.

God bless.

Kevin

Phnom Braset Rock Quarry

It was extremely hot travelling 30km from Phnom Penh to the Phnom Braset rock quarry. I was travelling with another ministry group called rock foundation ( rockfoundationcambodia.webs.com ) a small ministry reaching out to this community of squatters living and working in the quarry.

This community barely eeks out an existence by working tirelessly day in and day out breaking rocks apart with primitive tools . The community works as a team some members breaking apart the large boulders by setting fires with rubber tires under them and then heating them to a point that they can break by sledgehammering them....someone else takes these rocks and smashes them into pieces bigger than your fist....the women in the community strap a bare wooden pole over there shoulders with two baskets filled with these rocks and brings them to another area...they then take a small sledge and ..place a piece of rubber around the rock and pound it into gravel size pieces...for a full truckload they get 12 dollars...a full truckload of gravel beat from the side of the mountain by hand. This would be barely enough to feed themselves and on they go the next day and the next and the next with no end in site but survival.

This is a community without electricity,no fresh water or well.

Brett Hedlin and his Cambodian wife Sokeun have been travelling out here once a week on fridays to spend time with the community and share God's love with them.They have hooked up with some other ministries and now provide some bible studies with the kids and worship.They have fellowship together sharing soup and rice..breaking bread together...the ministry has bought some land nearby to build a team centre and are trying to get some funding together for a cart you put behind a moto which acts as sort of taxi to bring the children to the local church.

Today Bret with his ingenuity installed a water filter that uses sand rock and then a blacklight to kill impurities it can clean 60 gallons a minute ...without electricity he installed a car battery that they will recharge when necessary.

Bret and his team will also help them with building a proper well and provides some health care when funds are available.

It was great to witness the love that this community had for the people God sent to serve them..it wasn't just witnessing with my eyes but by being there and sharing in their life and community I was instantly a part of their community ..a community open and warm to the love that we share with them.

It was a blessing to be there today and I look forward to many other opportunities as they are very close to another community God has put on my heart.

Click here for a web album of photos from the quarry visit.

April 2011 Update - Shelter from the Rain

Hello to my mission partners

As you know I was in Bangkok for most of April receiving treatment for my shoulder and didn't return until the 22nd. I am healing slowly but still in major pain as there was two issues with my arm and I have to go back to see the doctors in Bangkok on the 20th of May (my birthday) for probably another surgery on the nerves in my arm.Pray I receive healing for my birthday this year.

This month I would like to share a moment I experienced with my fiancee Leakhena (with her permission of course) and also an opportunity for you to help in a tangible way a slum re-location site this month.


I returned on the friday night from Bangkok and was actually moving into a new place. Leakhena's family moved me well I was away for treatment into a smaller one room place which is located inside a complex of buildings which live most of her extended family from her Grandmother to numerous uncles ,aunts and an immeasurable amount of young cousins.Only one Aunt speaks a little bit of English and so this place will be helpful for my language study .

On saturday night although we are a month away from the rainy season it rained extremely hard. This was my second night there and the sound of the rain on the tin roof was deafening it sounded like hail the size of golf balls falling on the roof. at first I was upset at the sound as I just wanted to sleep and it was keeping me awake. Then I noticed there was water coming into my room from two different corners it created two puddles which didnt quite join but took up almost half of my room. I was frustrated and thinking oh no it isn't even rainy season yet and I will be mopping this up for the next 4 months.Then I felt awful as I realized that I had a tin roof unlike most of the people I encounter in the re-location sites. I had a floor that was tile and easy to clean and not a mud floor. I had a mop a tool to make this job extremely easy. I felt extremely blessed and prayed for my friends that do not have that luxury.

As I shared with Leakhena the next day she shared this with me.......

" when I was a young child we lived in a small place and the roof was made of coconut palm leaves ...there were holes in the roof and the water would come through when it rained and we would have to move around in the night to find the driest spot." Then the tears started flowing down her face as they did mine and she shared this.." I always remember one night it was raining so hard and the water was coming in everywhere..(Leakhena has three younger sisters and a brother) my mother and father only had one raincoat and they huddled all us kids together and all night they stood in the mud and the rain pouring through our small hut and held the raincoat over us to try to keep us dry.

As we waited until our tears stopped I was happy I was sharing this moment with Leakhena......you see Leakhena was not crying about the situation or the poverty she lived in . She was crying because she realized the sacrificial love her parents had for her and her siblings. It was this act of love that was being recognized for what it was. Her father passed away about 8 years ago and this is a memory of His love to her and her brothers and sisters.

This moment will never be forgotten because it was based in Love and was Love.

I was home for Easter Sunday and couldn't help but be moved by the sacrificial Love that our King died for us.

This is why I am here to share with people the sacrificial love that God has for them. That He would give up His only begotten son while we were still sinners. Please pray for me that I will be able to share His love sacrificially with the people of Cambodia and that I act in Love in all my encounters and when asked why I do it I can explain that it was already done for me.

There are still many people in Cambodia especially in the re-location sites that do not have adequate roofing for the rainy season which starts within the month.One site in particular at the bottom of Audong mountain is in dire need....these people have been evicted twice in the last two years and their huts are similar to the worst ones at Andong village(picture attached)before Pastor Abraham along with some churches have been putting tin roofs on. The people here were evicted from Dey Krahorm and then evicted from that re-location site as they were deemed to have no claim to property..these people are extremely poor and cannot fix their huts in time for this season.

Their are 70 huts which all house families that need a blue tarp for this next rainy season....the large tarps are $12 each and comes to a total of $ 840 dollars. I have never requested money in my newsletter and don't even know if it's appropriate but I do know God let the flooding of my place to steer my focus to where it should be ..on those with less.

I will be going out to the village on Monday and will be taking video and talking with my Cambodian friends who are committed to helping this community. I will post the video after I have edited it but the people here need your help today before the rainy season begins. A youth leader from Georgetown,Ontario LD McKenzie has helped me start a blog where I will be posting my future newsletters and thoughts..it is located at

http://kevinincambodia.blogspot.com/

Their is a link to a paypal account for donations if you feel moved in that direction. Please contact me at
kknight45@hotmail.com if you would like another way to donate.

God bless

Kevin

About Kevin - Kevin's Testimony

from Epic Magazine a publication from Tenth Avenue Alliance Church, 2011


You don't need to spend much time with Kevin before you discover that his heart has been softened by the impact of God's grace upon his life. In fact, many of his homeless and addicted neighbors in the Downtown Eastside affectionately refer to him as "the weeping preacher".

The first time Kevin attended Tenth Oct 7th 2007, he sat timidly like most newcomers in the back row of the pews . That Sunday a missionary Craig Greenfield with Servants To Asia's Urban Poor (SERVANTS) was the guest speaker. He shared about the need for more missionaries amongst Cambodia's urban poor living in slums. Tears streamed from Kevin's eyes as he sensed Jesus say, "I'm calling you to this."

Soon after this, Kevin became actively involved in both the mission life here at Tenth and with SERVANTS. He gained missiological and theological training through courses offered at Tenth and through an eight-month internship with SERVANTS.

In July of 2010, Kevin will be moving to Cambodia as a missionary with SERVANTS living amongst the urban poor. Already, Kevin has become a wonderful link between Tenth and our ministry partners in Cambodia. We look forward to seeing how this partnership continues to deepen over the coming years. Kevin recently returned from his second trip to Cambodia in which he co-led the latest Tenth missions trip and spent more time with the SERVANTS Cambodia team. During his first trip he spent three months living with a Cambodian host family in a Phnom Penh shantytown and ministering alongside the SERVANTS Cambodia team.

Even though Kevin has ultimately felt God calling him to Cambodia, he's learned to see everywhere as a mission field. So for the past year Kevin has been serving as a full-time missionary with the SERVANTS Vancouver team, living and ministering in the Downtown Eastside (DTES). Due to the poverty of loneliness that is rampant throughout the DTES, their main form of ministry has been offering hospitality to those neighbors that are not normally the recipients of welcome. The community tries to see through God's eyes and scripture that is held dear amongst them is Ezekiel 37 Dry Bones " So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet-a vast army. "

Every evening neighbors join Kevin and the SERVANTS Vancouver team at the dinner table. They gather together as family. Many miracles have occurred at the table as they watch the armour of the street melt in the presence of God's love. Another crucial ministry of hospitality is what Kevin calls Prehab. Prehab involves offering a bed and the 24/7 support of a Christian community to those attempting to remain clean and sober while they wait to be granted entry into rehabilitation programs. By God's grace numerous neighbors going through Prehab have come to accept Christ and live out God's purpose and plan for their lives.

As Tenth church let us encourage Kevin as he prepares with cultural and language study and continues his ministry in the DTES until his departure to Cambodia in July 2010.



Prayer Points:

For God to continue nurturing amongst our church family at Tenth a zeal for missions locally, with our ministry partners in Cambodia, and around the world.
Hudson Taylor once said, "God's work, done in God's way, never lacks God's supply." Pray for the Lord to provide for all of Kevin's financial and prayer support needs as he seeks to carry out God's work for him here in Vancouver and in Cambodia.