Well, a new experience that few would have the privilege of witnessing. Mary and I and Kim from our team and Rina our dear daughter friend from Cambodia attended the funeral of the Pastor's mother-in-law.
The Pastor is not really our pastor while here but he is the one whose home the team stays in and did as well last year. We shared a common bond from last year so we asked if it would be appropriate for us to attend the funeral. The pastor insisted that it would be an honor so we went. It started at 8:30 in the morning and 4 of us rode the tuk tuk to the home of one of the grandsons where the body laid for the normal 3 days. There must have been several hundred people there and it was nearly a normal service that we would experience in the US except that there were people talking and socializing while 2 separate pastors were preaching. Rina tried to interpret for us and did a wonderful job, to explain often what was said and explaining some of the traditions of the Khmer people.
It was a Christian funeral, such a blessing to witness a Christian Khmer funeral, so there was a burial at a cemetery which was probably 10 kilometers away from the home. The procession was led by a tuk tuk carrying very large boom boxes playing music. there were hundreds of motos with 2 or 3 passengers on each. We were in someone's air conditioned van with more people in it than it should hold and at the end of the procession was a heavily decorated truck with the casket.
At the cemetery, several pastors spoke including pastor that invited us to attend. Another interesting moment was that someone led the singing with a as I would call it a "recorder" (like we used to play in fourth grade) and it led the singing beautifully. It so reminded us of the hymns we would sing, but they seemed sad to us today. The pastor's wife was quite upset and came to Mary for consolation. It was an awkward moment because we weren't family but that is where she placed herself for most of the committal service. Someone brought her a chair and then another for the pastor next to her and so we used the fans given to us to cool them while they sat. It was a God moment that really is hard to describe. We are 3 foreigners who just happened to be where we were needed at that time. More evidence yet that "nothing happens by chance". God is in control and places us in one another's paths in His time.
There is much more that could be said about the funeral and we will remember that experience for a long time. After we got back from that, we checked at the base and found no one around so since today was the day for the free afternoon, we went with Kim to the bank since she had not been and then went for lunch at Cafe Eden, did a little shopping for groceries and then went to SBS house to see a few students who had requested medical check-ups.
We went uptown again to buy a fruit basket for the family who so graciously helped us following Ed's bike accident last evening but to our disappointment they were not home, we pray we get to thank and bless them.
At 5:30 we attended the presentation by Garth, YWAM director, as he explained the program here in Battambang to just the Iowa team. We promised that we would stay awake this time because last year we struggled to do that. He generously said that he didn't remember that. YWAM is an exiting ministry that is far reaching. There is YWAM ministry in 192 countries making it the largest para church evangelical ministry in the world.
6:15 was the Weekly community praise service. We were honored to have Marty, our Bridge pastor teach the message. It was a great message as usual and really enjoyed both him and Yuka, a Cambodian Staff person, interpret for him.
After the service it was to the City Cafe for dinner. Olivia wanted to spend some time with us so we invited Yuka along as well. Yuka certainly knows first hand what it means to be rejected by father, mother, brother and sister because he had to leave his family when he made the choice to follow God's ways rather than his family's Buddhist tradition. What a testimony he has.
We bought a light for the bikes this afternoon so after another busy day in Battambang we rode a little more safely back to the hotel for the night. Devotions with the group at 6:30 in the morning and away we go on another day.
Good night,
Ed & Mary
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