Dear Friends and Family,
“Suddenly!” How often do life changing events invade your tranquility? We’d like to choose the smooth path of peaceful and anticipated outcomes, but in my life? Anticipated outcomes never come out. If you really think about it, it is the jolts and jerks in life that produce the plans. Sept 11th, leads to the War on Terror; financial collapse leads to stimulus plan; glory on Sunday, death on Friday, resurrection three days later, leads to a plan for salvation. Now, that was a week that jolted the world for eternity! We had kind of a “Jerky-jolty” month, but jerks and jolts mature us. July-Aug 1969 was a time I got jerked around. I did a lot of growing. I was young and stupid, but the good thing about that is; you are young. There is a lot of time for you to grow and learn. The bad thing? Well, you’re stupid! Hope lies in the fact that when you come to realize it, you can find redemption by learning some painful lessons.
Forty years ago I was studying rice production in the Philippines, on leave from my 3-letter company in Laos, pining away for the love of my life, Soumountha, doing my “bit”, learning to grow rice for Uncle Sam’s doomed war effort. The “War” was not popular in the Philippines . On two occasions I was “Suddenly” pulled out of the way by an intervening friend an instant before a “San Miguel” beer bottle came crashing down where my head should have been. My offense? I was an American involved, whether I liked it or not, in the “War effort”. Then, “Suddenly”, July 20th 1969 happened. Neil Armstrong landed on the moon during mid-day in the Philippines , and as it happened, I was the only “American” handy. I was hoisted up on the shoulders of people from 16 different countries and paraded around for 20 minutes to more cheering and celebrating than I had ever heard in my life. My accomplishment? I was an American. Then, “Suddenly”, a week later, I was expelled from the International Rice Research Institute (the only one in history with that distinction) for leading a student insurrection against the martinet training director, a retired Air Force Colonel, who ran the “Institute” like a Marine boot-camp. This, just hours before the new training director, “Suddenly”, told me I had been reinstated and the old director fired. Then the next week, I was walking into the classroom when, “Suddenly”, a very somber ‘Institute Director’ handed me a ‘single sideband’ (kind of like a telegram used between embassies). I opened it to a few words that would numb me. “Mummert and Stillman killed in enemy action. Do nothing. More later.” Dennis Mummert, my best friend in Laos , and Art Stillman, my boss, along with three Lao agriculture agents, all friends, were ambushed and killed traveling to check on my vacated duty station. I felt anger, guilt, hate, shame, and shock, and, I couldn’t cry. Why? I was an emotional yo-yo. I still can’t explain it. Fast forward 40 years to 150 miles south of Laos . Cambodia .
Every year we plan a large medical outreach, this year was tough, the economy was down, we had no grant support other than our faithful partner Warm Blankets Orphan Care and the team from the Everett , WA Foursquare Church. The clinic was due to start on July 19th. Sou and I were on our 40th anniversary cruise late last month, when we got word from Josh Ferguson, on staff with us, that the Cambodian government in Khampong Thom Province had rescinded our permit, since the economy is slow, government officials are looking to every possible source for funds. NGO “permits” have become a prime resource. There was no way we could afford the demand. We were shut down.
Now, 32 foreign medical professionals and staff had purchased non-refundable tickets. Suddenly, we had a big problem! Sou, Pastor Peter, Dr. Chhaya, Dr. Lina, and I went to work, and within a week had an alternative site; Rattanakiri Province. Normally, it takes two months to prepare for such an outreach, we had two weeks. It was located in the most remote province, the rains were especially heavy, roads were bad, and money was short. But, “Faint of heart ain’t never kissed a pig”. We plowed into it, secured a provincial permit from the Department of Health, and put a small army to work. Sou had not really felt well since her amoeba attacks last month, suddenly, two days before the clinic was to open, she collapsed. I packed her in a plane to Bangkok and we both had complete physicals. Sou’s thyroid had clonked out. Last year she was normal and this year she showed no thyroid function. She’s on pills that will correct the condition over time, but fatigue and emotional swings are the norm for weeks. I was off to Rattanakiri without “The boss”.
We opened the clinic on time. Kris Warner did an exceptional job of working with translators that had to deal with eight tribal languages. One of his translators is a boy that one of our “Young Tigers” raised from the dead two years ago. I expected chaos but we’d put so much prayer into this, it went surprisingly well. For three days. The people we were to treat were from Animistic tribes. Most practice animal sacrifice and carry all kinds of spiritual baggage. http://www.missionreports.com/nlc_medical_team_rottankiri Sou managed to snag a Mission Aviation Fellowship flight on day three. It was Friday, suddenly, police showed up, and by Friday evening the new provincial governor had shut us down. It turned out that the provincial Director of Health had not sent him a copy of our permit.
Pastor Peter, Muth, our District Supervisor, were up all night, waking government officials, seeking an explanation. Finally they met face to face with the governor at 8:00am Saturday. He knew he was wrong, but smelled the money. Peter said, “He’s looking for an envelope under the table”, but continued, “We can’t do that, if it starts here, it will never end!” I was mad, “Let’s sue them, our permit is legal”! Then Peter told me the really bad news. “There’s a technicality that they are using to save face. All medications have to be inspected by government officials to prove they are not counterfeit or out of date. Pa, they’ve got us, no one will work until Monday and there is no way to get our permit restored before Tuesday”. I’m older now and not so stupid. It took me a while to calm down but I knew, “You can win a battle and lose a war”! I did that nine years earlier, in another province, when I went over the governor’s head to the Prime Minister. We completed that clinic, but have paid for it ever since with remaining resentments and continuing hassles at every level of government involvement in that province. We’d have been better off to have shut down. We won that battle but lost the war. So, this time, we lost this battle. But not until more than1600 people had been treated, about 1000 came to Christ and the others were already believers, dozens choose to go down to a stream and be baptized, at least five confirmed miracles happened during prayer. The tribal people are excited and have requested more teams. Hundreds showed up for the next two days only to be told that the government had shut us down. Their greed backfired on them. We have already scheduled our “Young Tigers” to show up to teach 60 Home Church leaders: http://www.missionreports.com/teaching_young_tigers Then more than 200 youth have already signed up for a rally next month, that number will grow exponentially as word gets out, just as it did on the island of Tumnup this month: http://www.missionreports.com/youth_revival_tn Kids clubs are being formed in many of the home churches as they are in one village that is home to disabled veterans and their families: http://www.missionreports.com/oukontrom_church_home We may have lost the battle but we will win that war!
One story needs to be told. The Everett Church is not afraid to include non-Christians on their team. There was a “New Age” adherent in attendance when a deaf-mute woman came through for treatment. She was 28 years old and had not heard or spoken since she was 10 years old. She was married and her children had never heard her voice or been able to speak with her. The doctors examined her and explained that there was nothing they could do. The “New Ager” listening in, rather cynically replied, “Maybe she needs a miracle”? The team started to pray and suddenly she started to speak and hear for the first time in 18 years. Her children were in tears. The “New Ager”? Dumbfounded!
Tractor sales season was over when the rains started. The economic downturn took a big toll. We’d only sold about 10 machines compared to last year’s 25. So, we decided to pray. Suddenly, in two weeks we sold 5 machines and more are in negotiation. I’ve no rational explanation. The tractor factory? Running overtime: http://www.missionreports.com/tractor_activities Then my “Mudder” arrived! (No! Not my mother, she went to be with the Lord three years ago) Take a look: http://www.missionreports.com/kubota
Bad news is often sudden. Five year old Seri Neang was like a rag doll; at best she could just flop around. When we first got her 3 years ago she could sit up. She gradually deteriorated; a victim of human trafficking. We don’t make much noise about what we do to prevent trafficking and care for trafficked victims because, if you are noisy you do you can’t do much. People advise us, “You need to publicize what you’re doing, you’d get more money”. No, if we did, we couldn’t do what we do, lives would be endangered. We’ll simply have to take our needs to a “ Higher Court ”. Seri Neang died three days ago, Now that her earthly story is finished, it can be told. Her care givers are true heroes! You need to read this story: http://www.missionreports.com/orphan_girl_funeral
Critics often like to complain about the fact that about 40% of our kids are not true orphans. Well, here is one example of why: http://www.missionreports.com/abandoned_baby_bakou
Despite the jerks and jolts some things do work out. Thanks to a Foursquare Foundation Grant or “Kids Clubs” keep growing: http://www.missionreports.com/bible_club_jul09 The Cambodian Foursquare women keep marching on from province to province: http://www.missionreports.com/women_ministry_basedth Faithful teams like the Youth Group form Hong Kong’s Union Church provide valuable service and support: http://www.missionreports.com/hong_kong_youth_team New friends, like Australia Warm Blankets explore ways to become involved in supporting Cambodia’s orphans and separated children: http://www.missionreports.com/warm_blankets_australia_team
Suddenly! I’m done. We’ll keep jolting and jerking along all the time knowing that Someone is straightening our paths!
Be blessed! We are!
Pa Thom (Me, Ted)
And those still do’in all the work,
The Cambodian FCOP Team,
Ma Sou,
Josh and Michelle Ferguson
Kris Warner
Bob and Christal Hollandsworth
Ryan Brown
