Marketplace Evangelism through LifeTotes

I have experienced so many new things over the past 10 days, my longest flight ever--Atlanta to Seoul Korea, almost 14 hours in the air on one flight, riding in a tuk tuk, and visiting the largest religious monument in the world, Angkor Wat, just to name a few.

These experiences are very common to those of you that have been on mission trips in all parts of the world. You experience a new culture, have jet lag, visit places that are new and travel in unconventional ways.

One thing that you might not encounter on a mission trip is one that was unique to our LifeTotes Mission Trip.  Not only did we visit the LifeTotes school that was completed less than a year ago on a dumpsite outside Phnom Penh, and visit an orphanage where a young boy grew up to go back to his home on Widow's Island to pastor a church and meet a pastor that was ministering to his own congregation as well as those at the dumpsite, we were able to step into the marketplace of Cambodia.

Sothea, an entrepreneur in Cambodia, has a business where she employs local people to make products out of recycled material, cement bags, fish bags, rice bags and tires.  These products have been discarded in the streets of Cambodia, in much the same way this country has been discarded by the rest of the world.  I was surprised by how few people in America even knew where Cambodia was located, even though they lived during the time of the Vietnam War. After the war, this country was invaded by the Khmer Rouge and a genecide took place that took 25% of the people of Cambodia during the years of 1975-79.  This regimen was not completely exonerated from this country until the late 1990's.

On Monday afternoon of our trip, we visited the Choeung Ek, the site of a former orchard and mass grave of victims of the Khmer Rouge - killed between 1975 and 1979 - about 17 kilometres (11 mi) south of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and the best-known of the sites known as The Killing Fields, where the Khmer Rouge regime executed over one million people between 1975 and 1979. 

Mass graves containing 8,895 bodies were discovered at Choeung Ek after the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime. Many of the dead were former political prisoners who were kept by the Khmer Rouge in their  Tuol Sleng detention center.

Today, Choeung Ek is a memorial, marked by a Buddhist stupa. The stupa has acrylic glass sides and is filled with more than 5,000 human skulls. Some of the lower levels are opened during the day so that the skulls can be seen directly. Many have been shattered or smashed in.

Tourists are encouraged by the Cambodian government to visit Choeung Ek. Apart from the stupa, there are pits from which the bodies were exhumed. Human bones still litter the site.

The materials LifeTotes products are made from symbolize recovery and growth in Cambodia. Every time I saw a cement bag, I was encouraged that this country was rebuilding and moving forward.

These discarded bags  are collected, cleaned and used to make products ranging from totes, to handbags, wallets, journals, duffel bags, just to name a few.  We saw bags of cement like these all over Cambodia.

Here these bags are being sanitized and then hung up to dry

I'm including a lot of pictures in this post because it is hard to describe. 

Many of you may work out of your house.  The people that make these bags do the same.  They are mothers and fathers just like us who are trying to do the best they can for their children.  Making the bags out of their home helps them to be able to stay at home with their children. 

 This is one of my favorite pics.  

The bag maker at her sewing machine
with her television on in the background.

Sothea showing us a small warehouse
near where the bag makers live that stores their materials.

This bag maker is working on 1,000 backpacks
that will be given out 

as part of the Tuscaloosa Backpack Coalition. 

This picture is of Sothea and her friend, who was the first bag maker.  Sothea shared the idea with her friend and her friend was able to make a bag.  From there, she invited more of her friends and neighbors to join this cottage industry.

This story is similar to the story of LifeTotes.  Jen shared the bag she bought at a mission fair at a church in Atlanta with her friends, Erin and Rachel, and they begin praying about how this bag could be used for a social good company that would benefit others.

On Wednesday night, we took the bag makers and their families

out to dinner at their favorite restaurant, Shabu, Shabu.

After dinner we made a group photo!!

During dinner, I sat with Sothea and talked with her about her business.  I encouraged her by telling her that she was making a difference in the lives of her bag makers. She could have had the bags made in a sweat shop but she chose to employ women who could stay at home to work.  She and the bag makers are Buddist.  I was able to share with her about my Christian faith and that in the Bible it says 'it is more blessed to give than to receive.' She is giving such opportunity to these bag makers and you can see the smiles on their faces.  She is pouring into them.  She is also pouring into the women who run her store.  We were able to visit her store.

We are praying that God will use LifeTotes as a means to continue building relationships with Sothea and her employees and their families. She has met Pastor Sihok and our prayer is that God would provide a way for their relationship to grow.  We are already planning another dinner that we would pay for and Pastor Sihok and his wife would host.  Please pray that our Light will shine bright in the lives of Sothea and her employees and they would be drawn to the Light of Life, Jesus. 

I'm excited to be bringing back a Tiger handbag to my sister who lives in Auburn!!

This is just one of the new products that will be available on our website. Give us a few days to get up the pictures of the new products and then shop at www.lifetotes.org/shop These bags are handmade and life giving.

Seeing Through Jesus' Eyes

It is Wednesday morning in Phnom Penh and I'm waking up for the first time since being in Cambodia with a minute to catch my breath.  The last few days have been spent in ministry and meeting many new people and encountering many new environments.  I want to thank those of you that have been praying for us.  We have been walking step by step into each new opportunity praying for direction and discernment.

It has been one year this week that the founder of LifeTotes, Jen Barnes, first step foot in Cambodia.  She had made a few email contacts but did not know anyone in this country.  It is hard to believe all that has happened in the past year.

My prayer has been to see Cambodia through Jesus' eyes. Bill shared a devotion with our group that describes the process that we at LifeTotes have been going through since our beginning. We have been shocked by the world's reality,  overwhelmed by the world's need, burdened by the world's hurt and now sent to the world's aid.

To describe as accurately as possible what we have seen, I want to describe in words and pictures three different areas of need we have seen in Cambodia.

The first was at Haley's House of Hope, an orphanage started by Filipino missionaries who were mentored for years by a pastor from Atlanta, Georgia.  We visited this orphanage on Sunday night and worshipped with them.  Yesterday, we visited Widow's Island, where one of the young men who grew up in the orphanage is now pastoring a church.  His mother still lives on the island.  When we arrived, I found the island to be much larger than I expected.  It is very hard to put into words what this island is like.  It was originally a place for widow's whose husbands had been killed during the Khmer Rouge to have a safe place to live with their children.  The government ran out of money to support it and many volunteer relief organizations have stepped in over the years to empower these people to learn to care for themselves.  I'm going to post some pictures so you can have some idea  of what I am trying to describe.

Riding over to Widow's Island with 2 of my favorites!!

Bill on the boat to Widow's Island with Makara, the young man who

grew up at the orphanage and is now pastoring a church on the island

where his mother and sister still live.

Several women singing for us during worship

Makara's mother is third from the left.

Our team with Makara and Pastor Sihok, the Cambodian pastor

who first reached out to Jen and told us of the needs at the dumpsite. 

We are praying that Pastor Sihok will walk alongside Makara as he begins his ministry.  

Pastor Sihok is so gifted in pastoring as well as business.  

He is an unbelievable steward of God's resources.  

Bill was able to share a Bible story message about the frustration 

of the disciples in trying to feed the 5000 from the book of Mark. 

Pastor Sihok interpreted in Khmer for him.

They were definitely a 'dynamic duo' sharing God's word.

Our team is praying about how to contribute to the work that is going on here.  One way is through a church building.  They also have several agricultural projects that could use funding that would meet the needs of the people and generate revenue to carry on the work of the church on Widow's Island.

Not only did we visit Haley's House of Hope and Widow's Island but we were able to visit on Monday, the first LifeTotes school on the dumpsite in Phnom Penh.  I have saved this part for last
because it is the ministry we have already invested in.  Pastor Sihok has been ministering at this dumpsite for several years.  He had been praying about building a school there and when Jen met him last year he told her about this.  We had been praying about something LifeTotes could help with that would be within our means at the time.  The cost of the school was $1600.  This amount was raised almost immediately. To walk on this dumpsite Monday morning and see this school at the center of this place was overwhelming.  It has become the hub for this community.  Not only is it a school, it also serves as a church, community center and monthly health clinic. The teacher at the school is married to a doctor who comes once a month to see patients at the site and dispense medication.  I want to take this opportunity to thank those of you that gave money to bring vitamins to be dispensed as well.  We brought enough multi-vitamins for 60 children and 40 adults for six months.

Walking into the dumpsite for the first time with our LifeTotes

team and the team from Sanctuary Church in Marietta, Georgia.

The children are lining up to come into the school

for a morning of singing, crafts, games, and learning more about Jesus.

I still cannot believe I'm in Cambodia with these 2.

Erin has created a hashtag for me #alla_abroad

Jen hanging out with the kids inside the LifeTotes School.

Pastor Sihok sharing with the adults before the

doctor begins see patients and dispensing medicine and vitamins.

Sarah, helping the children make their crosses.

We were able to meet with the Cambodian representatives

from Neverthirst to talk about what it would cost 

to provide a water source on the dumpsite.

This morning begins the second leg of our journey.  We are meeting with Sothea, our bag supplier from Siem Reap.  We are ordering new products and going on a 'field trip' to meet the bag makers at their homes and take them to lunch.  Pray for us as we continue forging our relationship with Sothea and 'letting our Light shine' so she can see Jesus through us. 

Going Forward--Taking the Next Step

I have been in Cambodia a little over 24 hours.  In some ways, I have lost track of time.  In a short time, I have been transported halfway around the world and invaded a culture I know very little about.  I have met many new people, who share my passion to share Jesus and pour into the lives of those I consider less fortunate, as Jesus would say, the least of these.

I am on sensory overload as I am trying to adapt to a country and culture that is attempting to recover from years of communist rule and mass killing of its people.  I find the Cambodian people to be extremely humble and hard working.

Yesterday morning was Sunday and our team had the opportunity of meeting with another mission team from Georgia.  They are part of an non-profit called Saving Susan.  You can read their story here - http://savingsusanministry.org/about-us

We worshipped with Lifegate Baptist Church yesterday afternoon.  The church meets on the 4th floor of an orphanage called Hailey's House of Hope run by Dr. & Mrs. Tago, a dentist and his wife from the Philippines who have dedicated their lives to being missionaries in Cambodia. Here are some pictures of our time with them.

This morning we are meeting with a local Cambodian pastor, Pastor Sihok, and will be visiting a ministry he has begun on a dumpsite in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.   Jen Barnes, founder of LifeTotes, met him last summer when she visited Cambodia.  She was here to meet a bag maker and begin a business that would provide resources to pour back into the Cambodian people.  The story of LifeTotes can be found at www.lifetotes.org/blog  LifeTote products are made out of recycled cement bags, that are discarded all over the streets of Cambodia.  These bags are collected, cleaned and made into useful products by women who work out of their homes to provide a living for them and their children.

Before coming to Cambodia, the LifeTotes team, which consisted of Jen, my daughter, Erin, their friend, Rachel and me begin praying about what we could do to help with people of Cambodia.  On her first trip to Cambodia last June, Jen met a local pastor who shared with her that he wanted to build a school on the dumpsite.  The cost was $1600.  That amount was raised in a matter of days and the school was built.  Since that time, in addition to a school, it has become a weekly place of worship, a community center, and a monthly health clinic.

We will spend today helping with a VBS on the dumpsite.  We have brought a 6-month supply of vitamins for 60 children and 40 adults.  This was the only thing that Pastor Sihok asked for and I am thankful to those who donated the money for these vitamins.  

I am trying to not be overwhelmed with the extreme need here.  This afternoon we will be visiting what is known as the killing fields. For those of you that grew up int he 60's and 70's, you are familiar with southeast Asia through the eyes of the Vietnam war.  Many of you may not be aware of the ethnic cleansing that took place in Cambodia in the late 70's.

The Killing Fields are a number of sites in Cambodia where collectively more than a million people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge regime, during its rule of the country from 1975 to 1979, immediately after the end of the Cambodian Civil War (1970–1975). The mass killings are widely regarded as part of a broad state-sponsored genocide (the Cambodian genocide).

Estimates of the total number of deaths resulting from Khmer Rouge policies, including disease and starvation, range from 1.7 to 2.5 million out of a 1975 population of roughly 8 million. In 1979, Vietnam invaded Democratic Kampuchea and toppled the Khmer Rouge regime.

Because of this mass killing, the population of Cambodia has very few older people.  They were either killed or fled the country.  When you drive through the city, you see a country that is still recovering from the effects of war.  

My question to God this morning is 'Why am I here? What is it you are wanting me to do.'  Please join me in prayer today for our team and the many others that God is calling to this part of the world.  I am so encouraged by those that are doing kingdom work in this country.  God is not calling us to do everything but He is calling us to do something.  Here's a picture, I made of our team yesterday morning at a market in the city.  Along with myself, the team consists of Jen Barnes, my daughter Erin Parker, her pastor's daughter, Sarah Bush, and my husband, Bill, who has encouraged me to become involved with LifeTotes and the work it is doing in Cambodia.

In preparation for this trip, I spent 28 days studying a devotional book called Go Forward--it had to do with spiritual, mental, physical and emotional well being.  On the last day, I was reading in Exodus 14 about Moses and the people of Israel.    Exodus 14:14-16 says  the Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.  The Lord said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me?  Tell the people of Israel to go forward.  Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground.' 

Today we are going forward and doing what we can do; and to repeat a prayer I have heard my favorite pastor pray over and over 'we are praying for God to make up the difference.'

Stepping into the Winter Season

Today, I am stepping out into an area with which I am unfamiliar.  Not because I have never done it before but because I have never shared it with others.  I am wanting to begin blogging about my journey into what I call the 'Winter Season' of my life--life after 60.  When I turned 40, I wrote a letter to God about being 40.

Here is a copy of that letter:

 July 24, 1996

Dear Lord,

Today is my 40^th birthday.  I wanted to take some time and write down my thoughts. Not that they will be profound but in years to come will give me perspective.

As I look at this milestone, I’ve divided my life into four seasons 0-20, spring; 20-40, summer; 40-60, fall; 60-80, winter.  I don’t know if that is accurate but it helps me get a perspective of where I am.  I am possibly in the middle of my life if I live a normal span.  However, living along life is nothing I expect of take for granted.  My summer season, 20-40, saw as much inward change as my 0-20 saw outward change.  I am not anywhere near the person I was at 20.  My perspective on life, on You, on marriage, on children, etc. has change dramatically.  As I think about the summer season as being a season of growing, I wonder what the all season will bring.  It is usually a time of harvesting. Reaping what has been sown in the summer and even spring.

But it can also be a time of planting—not the same things as summer but things that can grow even when the weather is not ideal as in summer.  Many farmers do not plant in the fall but I want to continue planting new things (different things in my life).  I pray that I will be more discerning about what I plant.  Because everything that is planted must be tended weeded, and watered.  Too many things spread me too thin.

I have so many things that I desire to do in this fall season and if I’m not careful, it will pass as quickly as summer. Lord, I need your perspective on what needs to be cultivated and what needs to go.

I want my garden (life) to reflect you and glorify you.  I don’t want to waste anything but use every opportunity you give me to bring glory to you and your kingdom.

I love you Lord,

Allyson

Little did I know that at age 42, my life would include a new baby born to my husband and me during our 20th year of marriage.  We already had 2 children who were in high school.  That baby is now in high school himself and I am still parenting something I never dreamed would be happening when I turned 40.

Next Friday, June 10, I will be doing something I have never done.  I'll be traveling halfway around the world to Cambodia to be a part of a mission team that will be ministering alongside of Cambodian pastor who is making a difference in the lives of children and their parents who live on a dumpsite in Phnom Penh.

Since I had my first child in 1981who will be 35 in August, I have been praying about what God would have been do when my children were grown and on their own.  I didn't realize it would be almost 40 years before I was able to begin this journey.  I'm still praying about that and am moving forward day by day, step by step, with what I sense Him calling me to do.

I'm journaling my thoughts at this time so I an remember what they are.  Since I am a typing teacher by profession (if that even a profession now), it is easier for me to type than to write.  I pray that sharing my story and journey will help others with theirs.