Matt Carter shares his Asia thoughts . . .

Matt Carter- I have been on staff at Wooster Grace for the last 3.5 years as Director of Contemporary Worship and as four14’s worship leader. I’ve been married to Sarah for 3 years. We love being a part of this church – worshipping, fellowshipping, and serving in this amazing community. We’ve been a part of an amazing small group for the last 3 years as well. We love all of the amazing opportunities this church holds for those who want to experience and worship God in powerful ways. I’m so excited to see His work in SE Asia first hand. I can’t wait to see the love of Christ expressed through the least of these – orphans, poor, and hungry alike. It’s so exciting to be a part of this church!


"Life and Death and bittersweet departure

It’s a bittersweet morning as we sit in the Phnom Penh airport. We have said goodbye to friends we will miss very much, but we are embarking on the next leg of our adventure in Thailand where we will meet new friends.

I wanted to reflect on the emotional contrasts that our team has experienced in the last 2 days… a stark contrast between life and death… good and evil. The grace place kids are full of life! The people who are doing God’s work here are spreading the GOODness of God all over this country. It is such an emotional high to just be around them. The smiles… the laughter… the hugs… even healthy tears.

Then, we experienced the horrors of the Tuol Sleng prison museum and the Killing Fields genocide memorial. The EVIL of the Khmer Rouge brought nothing but death… and it came to many. It’s hard to believe what the sin nature is capable of apart from God. Listening to stories of a real survivor of the prison touched our hearts deeply. Our team was silent as we walked through the killing fields and learned of more evil and death.

The same country, but yet 2 completely different stories. Both are testament to the absolute necessity for the presence of God’s love. The missionaries, Asia’s hope staff, and kids are shining beacons of life and goodness in a country that is still recovering from a past of evil and death. Praise the Lord that God has positioned these people here. His

light is shining through the darkness of the past! It is humbling to see and I’m so glad I stood witness to it! Thank you for your prayers! God is at work in Cambodia! Now on to Thailand!

-Matt Carter "

It's a new season of blogging!

We have finally rolled into some consistent wifi, for tonight at least, and one of the things I've wanted to do since leaving Ohio is give you a chance to hear the hearts and impressions of some of the team members. All that to say, I'm going to try and feature a few of the blog entries that have been written, not all necessarily apply to the day they are being posted, but are touching and insightful, none the less.

Each entry is introduced with a picture and a short bio of the person doing the blogging, so here's hoping you enjoy the chance to see Asia from many different eyes.

Thankful to be representing Jesus and our church in the lives of His precious ones,
RAD

Steven Starkey- I have been attending Grace Brethren Church for about five years now. Just last year I was baptized and became a member of the church. I am involved in the young adult group four 14, as well as an active member of the worship band. I greatly enjoy being a part of this church and all the opportunities through it to grow spiritually and opportunities to connect with people and help others around the world and in the community. I recently graduated from the Ohio State University ATI campus with an Associate’s degree in Environmental Resource Management. My ideal career is to work in a water treatment facility as a lab technician. In my free time I enjoy restoring vehicles, singing, playing guitar, camping, sports, paintballing, and being around the ones I love. I’m thankful to be a part of this team and excited to see what God has planned for us and those we meet in Asia. - Steven

Lindsay Doerr¬- I am 18 years old and have just recently graduated Wooster High School. This is my first time traveling over seas and out of the country. Throughout my life, I have been on many missions’ trips to different parts of the United States. I have traveled to New York, Texas, New Orleans, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. I have worked with homeless people and inner city children but never with orphans. I live with my mom Deb, my dad, Bob, and my older brother, Austin. I enjoy singing, playing tennis, and spending time with my friends. I plan on attending Indiana Wesleyan University next fall to major in elementary education. I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to travel to Asia to help the least of these. Some of my fears concerning this trip are the long plane ride and travel time, the heat and fatigue, and the health of our team. I hope that through this trip and even after I will learn to trust God, and grow in my relationship with him. - Lindsay


"Today is Sundsy, June 27th, and all of the orphan homes gathered together for church under the pavilion built by team Hope. Different groups of children from the orphanage preformed their songs and dances for everyone, John McCollun gave the message, and our very own four14 band preformed. After church we made a quick stop at the hotel and then enjoyed lunch sitting on the ground with the children. After lunch we had the whole day to spend with the children. We learned to count to 100 in Khmer twice, we played some old fashion futbol, we taught them songs and dances with Matt and Steve on the guitar, and we loved and hugged on them until the sun went down. After another dinner at the Cold Night restaurant, with the family style meal, and the delicious chicken skewers, we headed back to spend the night at Grace Place. When we arrived at Grace Place, each of our three pastors had a part in leading us in communion with the children. We had a love feast, washed every child’s feet in the orphanage, and took the bread and the cup. Finally, the fun began when we brought out all of the boxes of blessing that had been carefully handled all the way from America to each child. We each read their names and took a picture of their happy moment. After everyone had received their gift, we counted to three and it was Christmas morning. The children were overjoyed to receive their box and gifts from their beloved family in America. Until it was time to turn in for bed, the children were playing and examining every gift they had received in their box. After the chaos had subsided, it was time to turn in for bed. Some of us even chose to stay at the orphanage sleeping right with the children. We didn’t get much sleep, but it was an experience of a lifetime. Now we are preparing an American breakfast from the children and are preparing ourselves to say goodbye to these children we have come to love so dearly. Well it’s breakfast time, thank you for your prayers, and we can’t wait to see you back in Wooster.

Steve Starkey and Lindsay Doerr"

In Bangkok

We are sitting at the gate at Bangkok International Airport, waiting on our flight to Chiang Mai. The flight from Phhom Penh here was only 45 minutes long and they served us a full meal. It was so fast, I couldn't even finish it.

Heidi is under the weather. She feels like she has the flu. Please pray for her. Everyone else is in good shape, though I have to admit that the team is really tired and for good reason because we have been running a tough schedue. Please pray that everyone will be able to recuperate their energy in the next 24 hours.

We got some wonderful reports from the outreach in Battambang. More later. They are calling our flight right now.

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
itrindade@woostergrace.org

Good-bye Cambodia

Hey everyone,

I am turning in. Got get up at 6 a.m. tomorrow. Melissa arrived safely and joined us in all the proceedings today. We had a great opportunity to share Christ with some university students last night. It was outstanding. I know of at least one person who came to Christ at the outreach. More later. I am falling asleep. We fly to Chiang Mai tomorrow morning.

Everybody is well. Very tired but well. Thanks for your prayers!

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
itrindade@woostergrace.org

A Dream is Born

Hey everyone:

I am at the PP airport now. Melissa's flight was delayed leaving LA so she did not make her connection. However, I have confirmed that she is on a flight with a different airline that arrives at 11:35 a.m. local time, so all is well. Praise God that she was able to get on a different flight being at an international airport overseas...

                                                                          
I just spoke with RAD and the team is about half an hour away from PP. They did manage to rise early and according to RAD all is well. They will have a treat this morning, as they will have lunch at a shopping center that has Kentucky Fried Chicken as well as "Lucky Burger," the McDonald's of Kampuchea.

                                                                          
I don't know when I will have a chance to say this again but I have been very impressed with how well this Four 14 team has worked together. Everyone, without exception, has been so cooperative, so willing to help, so intent on being a blessing to each other and especially to the people we meet and have the chance to serve in the Name of Jesus.

                                                                            
I must also say that Kevin and Jill Kane have been a HUGE blessing to our team. I don't know what we would have done without their logistical and cultural expertise, as well as their "get it done" attitude. During dinner on Sunday, the leader of the Grace Brethren team here in Cambodia ask to speak to thank our team for coming to Cambodia and loving the Cambodian people. Kent Good then made a point of thanking us for sending the Kanes to Cambodia. He said that they are outstanding missionaries for their ability to relate and love the people and their expertise of the culture.

In fact, when Jill was delayed coming to dinner yesterday, I overheard Kent's wife, Becky, say, "Oh, don't worry, she is probably leading someone to the Lord." In fact, I was so happy last night at the outreach to see all the students from Jill's English class show up. Jill was standing outside, as some of her students were too shy to come in without seeing her, and she was counting how many were coming. She stopped counting at 28 because they kept coming. Jill has more than 70 students, which she teaches for free, and she filled an entire side of the auditorium and some on the other side with them. What a beautiful example of passion for those who are outside of Christ that is. I was blessed to witness it!

Pastor Dave and I were standing on the back as we took in with delight what was going on during the outreach. We both remember the early days when he used to do outreaches in restaurants, similar to the ones we did yesterday. Back then, we were the show. Last night we realized that our kids from the homes ARE the show. They presented music and skits, their own band led worship and we played a supporting role. Seeing this filled our hearts with joy. It is as if the dream of seeing outstanding Cambodian people leading their own country to Christ is within grasp. I have no doubt whatsoever that many of the very children who were presenting last night and their friends who were sitting all across the auditorium, will one day become missionaries, evangelists, business leaders and outstanding leaders in their country. And it all started because God first planted a seed in Pastor Dave's heart, then a few other people dared to join in to make this dream come to.

And it is a good dream, one that we wish not to wake up from. All glory to Jesus!

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
itrindade@woostergrace.org

A Night to Remember

It's 4:30 a.m. here in Cambodia. I am writing this from my hotel room in Phnom Penh. I took a taxi after the outreach in Battambang tonight because I need to pick up Melissa Lemon, the last member of our team, at the airport in a few hours. The outreach in BB was a tremendous success. The team did a terrific job with the music and the skit and Pastor RAD delivered a good message about Esther and how we need to be decisive in our lives. He gave the gospel clearly. It was a wonderful evening. I left right as the food and fellowship part was starting but I heard that it was great. At the end our team took all of our children and staff to get ice cream in BB. There everyone said their good-byes and I am sure it was hard. How can we ever forget these children?

So I got in the taxi and we drove through rain. I was completely at peace, though, and I know the reason was that people were praying. I arrived about four and a half hours later, had a little trouble finding our hotel through the dark streets of Phnom Penh, ran to the lobby and asked the question: "Why are you not watching the World Cup?" Turns out Brazil was playing Chile and since I still have my watch set to Ohio time, I thought the game was starting at that time. Well, the answer made my heart sink, "The cable is broken?" I asked if there was another hotel where I could watch it. He said that it was the same all over the city. I didn't believe it. I took a motorbike taxi and rode to a place where there was a big screen. Sure enough, they were showing the game and I got to watch Brazil beat Chile 3 X 0 with literally everyone in the outside area of a huge restaurant rooting for Brazil. When I told them I was from Brazil, everyone wanted to come and talked to me. It was unbelievable.

Please pray for the team, they will get on the road in about an hour and a half to return to PP.

Thanks for your prayers! 

V.I.P's

I wanted to post some pictures from our first day in Battambang. Three or our children had Birthdays on June, so we celebrated with them. Also, they served dinner for us that night, fried noodle, or fried "ivanoodle" as someone said. I have heard more than one team member say that they will have to exercise after they get back to Wooster. Not because we are eating any unhealthy foods, but because we are well fed and frequently. I am ashamed to say but we feel like the most V.I.P. of all V.I.P.s anywhere because of the amount of love that is constantly poured on us. After dinner, we had fun dancing with the children. The sound system was there and the kmai music was blaring. Andy got the prize for staying at the "dance floor" the longest and Jill by far had the best moves. We laughed and perspired together a lot but it was all for a good cause. The children were so happy and it made us happy too.  It's now mid-Monday here, everyone who stayed at "Grace Place" last night fared well and this morning we had a fabulous time cooking breakfast to over 70 people -- eggs, pancakes and bread with butter and jam. We all sat on the floor and had some wonderful fellowship. Pictures will follow. Everyone is feeling better today, but please keep praying for our health and effectiveness. Our team is working well together. By the time you will up we will probably be done with the outreach for students here in Battambang. Please pray for effective follow up. They are expecting at least 300 people. More later. Much love from all of us and please keep the comments coming... they are a great refreshment to all of us.

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
itrindade@woostergrace.org

"I Love to Praise Him"

This Sunday we had the joy of worshipping with all the children from the five different homes here in Battambang. The service started at 8 a.m. and we arrived there early to the great delight of all our children who came to the bus with jubilant smiles and "good mornings" followed by many hugs and more beautiful smiles. The children love to tell us "I love you" and we can't have enough of that.

During the service Matt, Steven, Renee and Lindsay sang a song but the main attraction of the morning were all the children who performed beautiful songs, with choreography and dance. We, of course, are biased because we think our children did the best... A group of girls from "Grace Place" presented a number in which they showed the reality of the resurrection of Christ. When they lifted one of the girls up in a cross-like position, the audience cheered. I had goosebumps when I saw that and some of our team members were crying as they saw it.

After the service we hang out with the children and the music crew took over. There was much fun and singing, the children learned the songs in English so fast and sang so enthusiastically, it was hard to stop praising. We all wanted to make that moment last but the day moved on as we had to come back to the hotel, finish packing and got ready for the events in the afternoon.

We were fed by the children and the wonderful staff at "Grace Place," and enjoyed a delicious lunch while sitting on the floor of the home... that is, some of the more nimble among us were able to sit for the meal. The hospitality was so wonderful, the fellowship so sweet and we didn't mind that it was hot and sticky(though we noticed it... and others around us did too. We ate with great thankfulness in our hearts.

                                                                               

What happened on Sunday was that we repacked all our suitcases and hauled them to only two rooms that we kept in our hotel and then went to "Grace Place"after dinner to present the gifts our sponsors had sent with us and spend the night at the home. As it turns out, some of the team members, after the gift presentations, came back to the hotel. There are some who are not feeling well but the majority is at the home now (it's pass 3:00 a.m. here!).

                                                                               
Now get this: we also had the privilege to lead a three fold communion with all our children and staff at the home. It was completely different than a typical communion at Wooster Grace, but it was beautiful to see how our children participated. Many of us drank juice from the same cups because they had so few cups available. We wiped the cup every time someone drank it and kept passing it around. The children were so good!

                                                   

We also had only four basins with water to wash the feet of 50+ people but it didn't matter. The expression on the faces of some of our children when we turned to wash their feet or allowed them to wash someone else's feet was absolutely delightful. We truly believe that many of them understood the meaning behind such beautiful symbols and we hope to do that again every time we come back.

Finally, the team will cook breakfast and serve our children later this morning. Those who came back to the hotel are going to ride the bus back to "Grace Place" and assist in the cooking. Jill Kane has been so wonderful helping us get several of the ingredients we needed for communion and the breakfast this morning and she and Kevin will be heading up the cooking efforts. We can't wait to see how the kids will react. Oh yes, Jill also spent a long time translating the notes that many of the sponsors wrote to their children (they love to receive those notes!) and she is also spending the night at the home!

All in all this was a fabulous Sunday and we are so humbled to have had the privilege to be here. Please continue to pray for Lindsay who is still not 100% and for Heidi who is also feeling weak right now.

We appreciate your prayers!

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade

No Shortage of Hugs -- first day at Grace Place, Battambang

Prayer Bulletin

This is not anything to be alarmed about, but, as expected, several of our team members have been feeling ill. Renee felt sick part of the day but is better now. Stephanie got sick to the stomach Saturday night but recovered quickly. She was quite pale on the bus trip from Grace Place, but I knew she was better the moment she did not refuse the chocolate I was passing around to the team! Todd was very tired yesterday but is feeling better. Matt Yoder got sick a little before lunch so he didn't eat anyting. He is feeling much better too. Finally, Lindsay is battling some stomack issues as well, so she needs to get some rest to be ready for tomorrow. Please pray that we will all experience healing and be able to accomplish what the Lord has for us here.

We spent most of the day with the children. Three of them celebrated Birthdays today. Being with them is like being in paradise. Their expressions of love, which we don't deserve, are way beyond our ability to comprehend... We are certainly most blessed for just being able to be here. I will post pictures later.

I better close before I fall over my computer from sheer exhaustion.

Pastor Ivanildo C.Trindade

Walking the Streets of Battambang

nice pig roast that was offered to the spirits right at our hotel lobby in Battambang

I took a long walk through Battambang early this morning. What I saw was people opening their places of businesses, dusting off their shelves and stands (there is dust everywhere here, even on the shinny cell phone covers that line the front of some electronics display that are clearly visible from a distance). I saw a mother with two little children, all very skinny. The girl had her pants down, she had apparently just relieved herself and was trying to catch up with her mom who was going on ahead. It was apparent that this family lives on the street. 

our team being welcomed by AH staff in Phnom Penh

I walked through the street close to our hotel where a young man lost his life just days ago. He was friends with Kevin and Jill Kane. Last January, the day after we left Battambang, another 18 year old lost his life in a collision with another motorcycle right in front of our hotel. Kevin and Jill tell us that during their time here they have been to too many funerals of young people who have lost their lives in senseless motorbike accidents. More than 25 people they knew or knew about in all. It is a tragedy of enormous proportions. Walking the streets of Battambang remind you that life is indeed transitory. You have to look in all directions at all times and never lose your concentration. Life hangs on the balance and every moment is precious. 

I saw teenage kids riding their bicycles to school. Some wore full masks on their faces... you just wonder how much they can see because there is so much cloth impeding their vision. Some looked trendy in their tight jeans made to conform to the standards of western fashion. This is something new in Battambang. Now all the stores seem to be displaying jeans that insist on hanging on one's hip by a small, almost invisible line that keeps getting lower and lower. They are also made to look old or torn. I looked at some of the men's shorts on display and felt a small feeling of satisfaction as I realized that what I was wearing, believe it or not, looked like the stuff I saw in the stores. I felt "cool" until I remembered how sad it is that we make the world believe that we got the corner on what fashionable is. Girls here dread the idea that their skin may get darker because of the sun, so they cover their arms and faces, trying desperately to look like the Caucasian models they see on the tube. Those who can afford even have plastic surgery to get rid of their typical Asian eyes... imagine that.

On my way back I heard the sounds of chanting and realized that was coming from the Wat (temple). I went inside the courtyard and saw that they were having some kind of a religious meeting going on. They people were sitting on the floor, bowing in unison, while the monks came from the backdoor, sat and began to be served by the people. I came quickly to the hotel and grabbed my camera so I could register this unique moment. I was struck with the picture of the humble spirit with which the people served the monks, who are have made a vow of poverty and thus have to rely on the local population to provide for them. It was somehow the opposite of the idea of "servant leadership" which we cherish so much within the evangelical circles.

All around, though, it was obvious that the people were bowing to idols and repeating chants that didn't appear to communicate to them in a personal level. While I admire their devotion, my heart is so sad that they haven't learned to be free. Jesus awaits the turns of their hearts. He yearns for them to be free and has paid the ultimate sacrifice so they no longer have to be enslaved by the fear of the spirits or of death. Walking through Battambang early this morning gave me a fresh perspective on the kind of challenge that Kevin and Jill face every day as they try to witness to people who have grown up in a society that is totally dominated by Buddhist concepts and practices. The spiritual battle is intense and we must remember to lift our missionaries up to the Lord with fervent prayers.

This country can only be totally free when the people turn to the Messiah. Oh that God would open the hearts of the Cambodian people to hear the Gospel. Oh that some of our children from Grace Place will one day rise to become the spiritual leaders in an arid land that needs the spiritual refreshment that only comes from God and His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade