Autumn is quickly coming upon us!  Our family had a full, productive, and FUN summer. After a brief, two-week summer holiday in June, the boys started their next school year. We are hoping to leave for our deputation a little earlier than usual next year and thus miss some of the hot season here .  Z. has started 7th grade, and S. is in 4^th grade. S. has had many teaching responsibilities and some traveling teaching roles as well. A few weeks ago, one of my sisters and her oldest daughter came to visit us for a week.  That was definitely the highlight of the summer and such a refresher as we gear up for this next season!!

A few months ago, I shared with you in pictures what it looks like when we say that “S. was going to the village”. Many of the expressions we use to describe our ministry assume that you can imagine what we are referring to. When we have visitors, I am reminded that pictures are worth a thousand words – they create a much stronger link between your imagination and our words. Scott usually devotes more time during rainy season to preparing lessons. What does this mean? Well, come along, and I’ll show you!

During the week, S. tries to wake up early for personal study and prayer. By 7:30, he is in his office, ready to work. (A few days of the week, he has YWAM staff meetings, or breakfast meetings, or travels to some village or another – but on the days he is home, this is what his day looks like J)

Where it all begins – the coffee pot at our kitchen window and a brilliant sunrise over our landlord’s garden.

S.’s small, crowded office (I stay out of it, or I would go crazy ), where all the writing happens! Behind him are two floor-to-ceiling bookcases of books, and stacked all around the office floor are more piles of books!

One of the ministries that S. has poured himself into is developing resources in the Khmer language. As a teacher, he has utilized this gift by developing materials in the Khmer language that he can make available to other Christians for free. (There are more and more existing books being translated from English into Khmer, but very often, these don’t address some of the key cultural views that shape a person’s heart). In the past number of years, he has written Lord of Heaven and Earth (25 evangelization/discipleship lessons), Wisdom is the Best Medicine (health lessons), Rooted in God’s Word (52 lessons for house-church leaders), and

Preparing for Marriage in Jesus Christ (pre-marital lessons). He is currently working on a book for Christians regarding finances and another on Bible study methods. These books are available on a Christian resource website, where people can access and download them for free. It is encouraging to hear of people around the country using these books and seeing fruit from the lessons in people’s lives.

Four completed books on the Cambodian Christian Resources website

 In addition to writing materials, S. does a lot of in-person teaching, for which he spends many hours preparing – in the above-mentioned office! He is currently teaching a group of elders once a month on topics related to church leadership and discipline, once a month in our provincial short-course Bible school, and in various other weekly Bible studies in different villages. On the days Scott works in his office, we all have lunch together at noon and take a short break after lunch. Then I go back to finish school with the boys, and S. continues to work – either in the office or out at an afternoon Bible study.

A Bible study about an hour away from our house, a Kavet Bible study, and a Stung Treng Bible School Saturday session

Thank you for joining us in another ‘day-in-the-life’! Thank you for your encouragement, your prayers, and for standing with us as we serve our King here in his kingdom of wonder.

Blessings,

S. and A. S.

The post The Sward Family | August 2024 Newsletter first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

In March, the sun starts raining down its heavy, humid gold showers on our heads. We look for places to retreat out of the heat (in vain hopes that the shade will offer relief from humidity!) And in the heat, and in the shade, we do as the Cambodians do. We watch, and we wait. We notice that while the air may be heavy with golden heat, our river road has begun to boast golden showers of a different kind.

Cassia Fistula is a terribly unromantic name for such a stunning tree, and so I prefer the street name of “Golden Shower Flower”. It is not very creative, but it is much more apropos to its beauty. I savor the abundance and delicacy of these trees, cascading their wealth onto the street below. They are so lovely and so generous with their blossoms. God has blessed us abundantly in these days, and so we want to share our blessings with you, our witnesses to God’s beauty being worked out in our lives.

Province – Blessing Blossom #1:

God is continuing to open doors among the Kavet people, who S. visits each month. They are responsive to the Gospel and desiring of the transformation that God’s presence brings. Men stop drinking, husbands stop beating their wives, children have more food to eat when the peace of God is sown in hearts. We praise God for the many young people (both Kavet and Cambodian) who have been taught and trained through the Discipleship Training Schools, and are now back in their Kavet villages, leading house churches. S. taught one week on our identity in Christ for the current two-month Discipleship Training School (DTS).

City- Blessing Blossom #2:

Five years ago, S. began meeting with a small group of a few younger men in our church. They continue to meet weekly and have grown to around 15 men. Once or twice a year, the husbands get together with their wives and children. A few weeks ago, we had one such afternoon get-together at a nearby resort – totally planned by them. They ordered the food, planned games, and even brought babysitters for the kids after our lunch, so the adults could meet without interruption. S. shared briefly with the group. He closed by asking the husbands to pray blessings over their wives. There were not many dry eyes in the room after this time together. This growing community of Cambodian Christians has been hands-down, one of the greatest blessings we have reaped in our years in Stung Treng.

Blessing Blossom #3:

Last summer I helped to restart a Sunday School program at our church. It had been long neglected, and, frankly, I had felt a bit too overwhelmed to add a full-on ministry to my plate. What finally drew me through my reluctance to start was the knowledge that all of the other moms at church felt the same way. We all had kids at home, husbands who needed to eat dinner, and we were all working in various capacities. No one person had enough bandwidth to take on Sunday School by themselves. So, in a desperate attempt to recruit more help, I pitched the idea of “the more the merrier”: the more teachers we had, the fewer times we would have to teach!!

By coercion and convincing, we managed to gather a group of 12 women. We sub-divided into groups of three. Each group was responsible to lead Sunday School only once a month. That sounded doable to us all, and so it was that we began. In a completely unforeseen turn of events, this group of initially reluctant teachers has transformed into an enthusiastic group of women. We have essentially started our own ‘mom’s group’ under the pretext of teaching Sunday School. I found the opportunity I was looking for to engage women on a regular basis. The ladies have become motivated participants on their own, and we now have women asking to join us as teachers because they see the fellowship we share with each other. It has become so much more than “just” teaching Sunday School. I cannot thank God enough for these young moms, and for the influence they are having on our church (as an additional bonus, many of them are the wives of the men in S.’s small group!)

Home – Blessing Blossom #4:

I am so proud of my husband and his gift of bringing people together. We have a tight-knit, small group of expat friends here in Stung Treng. S. got the dads of sons together for a camping trip on an island in the Mekong River. (Did you know the Mekong River is so big that it has islands? And the islands have beautiful sand and creeks and incredible mangrove trees? It does, and they do!! You should come see them!!) The boys will be talking about this trip for the rest of their lives. I am thankful for an intentional husband and for the blessing of friendship with families who share our goals and dreams.

Blessing Blossom #5:

The boys are growing so big (Z.’s feet are bigger than mine now!!) and independent. We are looking for more tasks to give them in the attempt to train their wings for flight in a few years (gulp). Among other things, they are currently working on some different foods in the kitchen. They are braiding challah bread here, and it is fun to see their personalities at play in the way they approach food. One is v.e.r.y slow and methodical, and one is ready to jump in there and get things done. Can you tell which is which from the picture? They are our biggest blessing always!!

Blessing Blossom #6: YOU!

We thank God for you and your prayers for us. Thank you, for your generosity that allows us to serve in Cambodia. Thank you to our families, for their sacrifice in sending us. Thank you all for your regular encouragement. You are a blessing to us, and we do not take you for granted!! May God bless you each today, to reflect his light and grace to those around you, as you walk into the world and relationships that surround you. May you be HIS golden showers of blessing to others!

Much love,

S. and A. S.

The post S. and A. S. March 2024 Newsletter first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

S. and A. S. | Serving in Cambodia

The Lausanne Movement was founded by Billy Graham in the 1970s and is a collaborative effort of evangelical Christians worldwide. As a movement, they have a fourfold vision: 1) the gospel for every person, 2) disciple-making churches for every people, 3) Christ-like leaders for every church, and 4) kingdom-impact for every sphere of society.

With this third goal in mind (“Christ-like leaders for every church”), ten Cambodian and foreign Christian leaders met last year to discuss how we could work together to form and equip Christ-like leaders in the province of Stung Treng. The result of this meeting was what we’ve begun referring to as Monthly Bible School (MBS).

Like the rest of Cambodia, most people in our province live in rural areas.  The majority are poor farmers. And while most church leaders do their very best to serve their flock and fulfill their calling, many have had little education and/or almost no pastoral training.

When we launched MBS in January, our hopes were modest. Given the time and money required for most church leaders to travel to the provincial capital, we knew it wouldn’t be easy for them to attend. Maybe we’ll get 15 people, we thought. Instead, we got 50. Since then, the number has only increased. We closed enrollment in March with 62 students.

Students come from churches of various denominations, spread all over our province. They meet for one full day every month. Classes are taught by Cambodian leaders and foreign missionaries. There’s a Bible overview class; a lunch-time elective on miscellaneous topics (currently on how to conduct Christian weddings and funerals), another class on how to study, teach, and preach the Bible (which I’m responsible for); a literacy class that runs parallel with mine; and a class on Christian doctrine. It’s a very full day!

To me, the unity among teachers and enthusiasm among students is evidence that the Lord is in this.  There’s been no attempt to plant organizational or denominational flags. Instead, teachers and students alike are motivated by one thing—to see the Kingdom of God come in greater fullness in our lives, churches, and province.

In the future, if the Lord directs, we’d like to start a new MBS cohort every year; and, perhaps, even offer night classes for working professionals. However, as is so often the case in missions, we don’t lack for students, but for teachers.

“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Mt. 9:37-38).

S. and A. S.

Download this month’s prayer letter here.

The post June 2023 Prayer Letter first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.