The Cambodian people have had quite a sad history…just in the 20th Century alone. After living under French colonialism for some 90 years, the Cambodians struggled to finally regain their nation's independence in 1953-54. But then, some years later, the long, grueling war being waged in neighboring Vietnam spilled over into their land as well, resulting in the loss of many lives and the 
weakening of the nation’s infrastructure. In 1975, the vicious Khmer Rouge were able to seize power in Cambodia, instituting an inhuman policy of genocide against their fellow countrymen. In their warped thinking, this was an effort to “purge” the land and create an “ideal” Communist state. Those dark years (1975-79) were later chronicled in a best-selling book entitled “The Killing Fields” and adapted into a major motion picture by the same name.During our time in Cambodia, we visited a somber memorial known as Tuol Sleng. What
once had been a school was transformed, in the late 1970's, into a horrific prison camp where torture and execution became a part of daily life. We walked the halls and entered rooms where, 30 years ago, hundreds and hundreds of innocent people had suffered unimaginable horrors. Saddest of all was a series of Walls of Remembrance containing the individual images of countless men, women and children who had been 
registered, photographed, and then put to death by the evil regime. I chose not to take the time to look into the frightened faces of all those that were slain. I just couldn’t bear the thought of all of those precious lives so violently and needlessly cut short. At one point, David Vernon, J Landrum and I paused, joined hands, and prayed. I felt like Isaiah in the valley of dry bones, as we prayed for God to reach down and breathe new life and hope into this 
land with such a tragic past. After 45 minutes on the grounds, all of us were more than ready to leave Tuol Sleng. All in all, I’m glad we stopped. For this one brief stopover gave us more insight into what had shaped modern-day Cambodia than anything else we did on our trip. But I would never want to visit there again.
Another important factor that has contributed to modern-day Cambodia’s identity is its deep religious heritage. Cambodia is 95% Buddhist, a fact that becomes quite evident when one sees the vast number of highly-visible wats (temples), spirit houses, shrines and idols found throughout the land, not to mention the large number of Buddhist priests that always seem to be roaming about.
Buddhism is the belief system of those who follow the Buddha (i.e., “the Enlightened One”), which was the title given to the religion’s founder. Buddhism is an impersonal religion of self-perfection, the end goal of which is not eternal life, but extinction. Buddhism teaches that the chief problem in life is suffering and that the only way to 
eliminate suffering is to rid oneself of all desire. Salvation is defined as reaching a state of “Nirvana”, which finally frees one from a cycle of continual rebirths (reincarnation). (Hmm, doesn’t sound very hopeful—or appealing—to me.)Obviously, there are not many Christians in Cambodia. But we were blessed by each one that we met. We were especially grateful to have the opportunity to worship
with Russey Keo Baptist Church in Phnom Penh, a vibrant and active congregation of some 150 believers. I was the guest preacher the Sunday morning we were there, sharing a Biblical message on Repentance drawn from Psalm 51. I was told that Dr. Jerry Rankin, President of IMB, had once preached at the church, using the same translator I used. We had a great experience worshiping there. Even though the service (except for my part) was in Khmer, the native language of the Cambodian people, we could feel the presence of the Lord in the midst of His children.
In spite of their dark history, Cambodians in general are a very gracious people. They typically are very polite and respectful of Westerners. Cambodians traditionally greet other people with palms together, in the manner of prayer. They lift their hands to chest level and bow slightly. It has been said that the higher the hands and lower the bow, the more respect is being shown. When someone extends this greeting to you, it is very impolite not to return it. Failure to return the greeting is basically the equivalent of rejecting an offered handshake in our culture.Other important cultural taboos have to do with the head and the feet. In Cambodia, it is very insulting to touch an individual's head. The head is considered the most sacred part of the body. Conversely, feet are considered the least valued part of the human body, and thus it is insulting to point your feet at someone.
Winning Cambodians to Christ generally takes a good deal of time. It’s all about relationship-building. Bridges of trust have to be built in order to share the Gospel. Cambodians are very anxious to please. They do not wish to offend. This often can make it somewhat difficult to read their true feelings.During our time in Phnom Penh, there were two waitresses who served us breakfast each morning at our hotel restaurant. They were very kind and respectful. Every day, we greeted them warmly and spoke with them as much as we could (with their limited English). Day after day, meal after meal, a friendly connection was being forged. After a few days, we shared with each of them a Gospel tract and then a copy of the Word of God in Khmer. The next day, I asked one of the girls if she had read the tract we had given her. “Yes,” she said, “but I did not understand it.” I asked if we might meet together one day so I could explain it to her more fully. “When?” she responded eagerly. We set up a meeting a couple of days later. On a slow afternoon
near the end of her shift, she and the other waitress sat down with me and a translator. I had a burden for these two girls and I believed that they might receive Christ. I proceeded to share with them God’s plan of salvation. One of the girls said she knew very little about Christianity and that she had only recently heard anything about it. The other girl said that she had attended a Christian church once. When I asked them if they wanted to receive Christ, my heart was touched when one of the girls responded, “Will you be angry at me if I do not believe?” She so much did not want to offend me—a person she had met only days before, and one that she might never see again—that she felt compelled to express her concern. I assured her that I would not be angry with her, but I told her and her co-worker that I would be praying for both of them, and that when I come back again next year, I hoped to see them again. 
The one thing that encourages me about this encounter is that some of our Christian friends from Russey Keo are now going to follow up with them and continue to build relationships with them, and the girls seem very open to that. And I believe that when/if I do see those two girls again—either next year in Cambodia or eventually in eternity—that they will be Christians. That is my hope and my prayer.Pastor Danny
