Dear Friends,
I recently had the great honor and opportunity to travel to Cambodia and hold a 3-night Evangelistic Crusade, as well as a Leader’s Conference. By the end of our time in Cambodia, we had witnessed many local pastors ministered to and encouraged to lead their churches with new Holy Spirit empowerment, as well as a great number of people saved and healed. It truly was an experience that I will never forget, as it was my very first trip preaching at all the Crusade and Conference meetings. I learned so much about what it means to follow Jesus, as well as about the ministry that each and every one of us is called to do while we live on the earth.
By far, my favorite moment of the trip, however, did not take place on a stage preaching to thousands of lost sheep, or in a church teaching pastors and leaders how to better lead their congregations, but rather, it occurred on the dirty wooden floor boards of an elderly couple’s small home. We had the chance to do a bit of door-to-door ministry one morning, and it opened up my eyes and touched me in ways that I never thought it could.
For a few minutes, I had the chance to step into the world of an impoverished, Buddhist family in rural Cambodia, and lay out the simplicity of the Gospel to them. They were very happy to have me in their home and to share what they had, which was not much compared to Western standards. At the end of our time together, I was able to lay my hands on both of them and pray for their healing.
I’d love to tell you that they both gave their lives to Jesus and were healed of all the pain in their bodies right there on the spot, but that was not the case. But I trust the Lord that it will be one day soon! Still, though, this was my favorite aspect of my trip to Cambodia, because it reminded me of why we do what we do and why we go. We go because of people. Real people who are in need of a very real Jesus and His very real love. Sometimes it is easy to forget that when you’re only standing on a stage, preaching from a pulpit. But when you step into someone’s world and meet them where they’re at, it is hard not to feel the compassion and the love that Jesus has for them. This is why we go.
For the Lost,
Luke Wagner, age 18