Open Arms Cambodia

March News

Hi folks I hope you are all going well.

Life is in full swing here in Cambodia the Khmer family group continues to grow in all areas, they are doing such an amazing job and carrying the torch more and more the team also continues to grow and step out with more confidence.

We are finding that our morning devotions are becoming a very important part of the staffs development we teach the bible and also life skills which is causing a greater level of self-esteem. Open Arms now has nineteen employees who would have thought this would happen, Grahame and I continue seek God and our accountability team for wisdom and direction as we lead these young people what an honor it is to do this.

The businesses are doing well, the training in both places is running smoothly and many people are still graduating and obtaining good quality employment.

Alabaster is going along at a steady pace as it is with any new project there are teething problems there has been so much stealing but we are retraining the team, as the report says we hope to be concentrating more on the children Jenna and Chiva will be teaching computer and English. The flow of women is constant with over 200 women coming through each month the team say they are more peaceful and there health is better.

There is an area near Alabaster where the Tuk Tuk goes twice a week to collect the women to bring to Alabaster it is a park that is really very tragic and so sad, the women there are reluctant to come to Alabaster they don’t trust anybody and really why would they, our team made the decision to cook food and take it out and just build relationships with the women so on Wednesday afternoons we take off to do what I call church in the park.

It’s a lovely time we just sit under a tree and chat we sing some songs and I tell them they are loved by our heavenly Father and us, yesterday they were telling me all sorts of stories of what they need and the need of course is great so I taught them a little pray they were so beautiful, there are also some families that live in the park so we are slowly building relationships and being very wise with how we assist.

So folk it’s a busy rewarding life thank you all so much for your continued love, prayers and support.

Grahame, Sandra and Open Arms Team.

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Open Arms Christmas

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Alabaster News

Hi folks an update on Alabaster.

The flow of women using Alabaster daily is increasing so much that we are fast running out of room.

It is a beautiful place ,the women come at around nine thirty they do their washing have a shower something to eat then they either sleep or a do a craft , they are so loved they staff are amazing ,they listen to Christian Music and tapes they are counseled  and offered a way out to a better life .

Open Arms now have a social worker on board who can do follow ups also will  be going into the village to see how we can help the community, a weekly medical clinic will be set up as soon as we can find the right people.

Two woman have come out and are now living in Open Arms Housing which is about thirty minutes away from street 51 the red light district or as pop has called it from the beginning Green Light district this saying has been adopted and it being used by many good isn’t it, one has been with us three weeks and is doing wonderfully, she is training and working in the salon her head is up and just yesterday she rededicated her life to Jesus. The other woman came yesterday and is due to have a baby at any time (we think), you just can’t imagine but she has been sleeping in  tuk tuks when she wasn’t working, she is a little frightened and confused but the little one who came three weeks ago is mothering and looking after her isn’t that beautiful.

With the influx of women we have had to look at another building for the children, Open Arms wants to teach the children skills what will help prevent them going the wrong way into adult life. By teaching Life Skills from a loving Biblical prospective, English, Computer and Hygiene it should help them.

Open Arms wants to have a safe place for the children to come study and play we would like to open from 9.00am until 9.00 pm we can’t do any more than that at their stage.

We were looking into a building just around the corner from Alabaster but it turned out it was much better for a men’s ministry that’s needed a place so we went on the hunt again. We have looked at one again near Alabaster and are starting to negotiate, again it’s a bizarre building filthy and run down but we love a challenge.

This is how the building will look:

Street Level and Footpath / Bread of Life Cafe

The Café will be a Christian café with worship music and heartfelt people ready to listen and love. We will use some of the plates and such from The Side Walk Café so really we will just have to buy tables and chairs and a good paint job should see it sparkle.

Two nights a week we will do a soup kitchen situation, after being in the area for

Nine months now we see there is much poverty and with that comes wrong spending so education and nutritious food is much needed.  We have kept all the huge pots and woks that we had when the kids were little so the costs won’t be high.  The pots have brought back so many memories to us, like when we had the 26 children we used to cook 50 kilos of rice in six days and the soup pots wow so huge.

So a folk that’s the plan the need is just huge in all areas of the world today but if we all do the job assigned to us and not shrink back by the enormity of it the job will get done.

Of course it goes without saying that Open Arms staff courageously comes in every day with huge smiles and ready to take on the challenges put to them they are our heroes.

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New project

Newsletter October

Ephesians 3 : 19-20

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that lives in us. To Him be Glory.

Hi folks exciting family times in Cambodia Jenna came third out of all the grade twelve students and has won a university scholarship, which means her university education will be half price. Beautiful Jesus He took a tiny wee little orphan girl with no future and put her in a Godly home and just look what happened we are so very very thankful to God and very proud to be her parents.

Lita has passed her entrance exam for university and will start in January 2015 this is another huge miracle ,we have often prayed through the night with this young woman she was so very sick and wow look at her now.

They young ones were totally blessed having Darcy and Annetta who are the leaders of YWAM Gold Coast staying with them for who weeks while we are home, they had a great time the pictures tell all.

Alabaster is going so well last month 241 Women came thought the house who would have thought, they are saying that they feel so much more calm and hopeful now, the team are now doing bible studies with them and very slowly introducing them to the Jesus and the Christian life. The cafe team are doing weekly cooking classes and the girls are leaning flower making this is all a part of the healing process. Recently all Open Arms team did a four day course on Trauma and how to deal with it their own lives and in the ones they serve , well again you know how I can brag they have taken to it like duck to water and comforting the women beautifully.

The children in Village 10 are proving to be a much bigger part of this ministry than we thought the need us great at then moment we are just doing the shampooing, the kids club and Sunday school, in the near future we will be teaching English and computer if you would be interested in donating to this a computer would cost $450 and we are aiming at buying six, Jenna and Lita will teach the children computer and English.  As you can imagine these kids have little or no discipline in their lives and they can prove to be very difficult, we laugh at our kids when they tell us and say we remember when you first came to live with us you were the same but look at you now. I received the email below from Sreynait this morning and I thought it was very cute I haven’t changed any of the grammar thought you might like to reading.

morning mate mom n pa did u had a good sleep; yes the kid behave yesterday now we separate them into two group big kid group n little kid group that way it very easy n now we wrote rule for them yesterday like Listen to the teacher no swearing love each other no fighting no saying unnice word and more that way it easy for us to teach them. yep mom i will freeze the chicken; well you two have a lovely days today ok i love you so very much muchxxxxxxxxxxxxxxoooooooooooooooooo

The beauty school training is just as good as ever five girls and ready to finish and we have girls waiting. We have changed the course we now offer four different three months courses we feel it will be far more effective this way, we are currently trying 28 girls.

The Cafe and Team Room team are playing a very active role at Alabaster two of the girls go every day and business has been slow so it’s all worked out well, the girls continue to train and daily improve their hospitality and catering skills. The birthday cake was an experiment and it turned out so good.

While we have been home two of the senior girls with the help of a young woman from Chab Dai have just fought and won a huge victory over corruption, it’s too long a story but they were called into the taxation department and demands were made on Open Arms that we knew were wrong so these little tiny powerhouses went to work sought the right people and corruption didn’t win I would have loved to be a fly on the wall they are so little but they are strong.

As most of you would know we have been held up in Australia  longer than we planned due to sickness in Grahame but we are booked to go back on the 6 the of October we will stay until Christmas.

Many blessings folks, please pray for great wisdom for .Grahame and I as we make daily decision that affect many lives, and please pray for the team as they step out in faith and minister to the people in village ten

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