More than paint on the walls. There's LOVE!

I really enjoy our devotional time at The Sanctuary every morning. We gather and start with singing, followed by Scripture and then break into our prayer groups. Each group has a specific area of prayer and ours is God's provision. There is so much to praise God for providing and so much to continue to ask for on behalf of the children of and ministry in Svay Pak. Although this community is a dark corner of the world, much continues to happen in the name of Jesus Christ that is bringing in so much light. I love to hear the children singing in Kid’s Club as they gather each afternoon - singing and laughter.

Today was a magical day. After a hard day yesterday of scraping and breathing in too much lacquer thinner (I thought it was turpentine and used it on the door frames - no wonder my stomach was upset!), today started with a real lightness of spirit. Lorey, Brian and Peter stayed at The Sanctuary to caulk windows and the rest of us headed to Rahab’s House to work on the mural. The design team had it all sketched in yesterday - Jesus, the Shepherd, with children all around. We went to work painting and the children started coming. One beautiful little girl, about 4 years old, stood next to me, not smiling and not talking, but fascinated with the painting. After a few minutes I held up the brush and she put it in her little hand and we painted parts of the wall. She was so mesmerized by the brightness of the colour and the picture unfolding. After that she was my constant shadow, not moving even when the other children started pressuring her to give up her place! Later she crawled into my lap and watched me paint.

The children are why we are here. As that beautiful mural began to unfold, I thought of their lives - each child is a beautiful human being, created in the image of God. Satan tries so hard to turn that into something horrible, but praise God for the redeeming work of His Son and hearts and lives that are transformed. Like that dirty wall that is now a bright and beautiful picture. Throughout the day people continued to come by and crowd into the doorway to watch these crazy westerners - how they laughed and smiled. The children ran in and out and many helped to paint, something that some of them would never have had the opportunity to do before. Some of the older girls, when given the paint and brushes, did incredible work on the flowers - such detail and colours, it was amazing!

Thank you to everyone for your prayers, your encouragement and e-mails. I can't begin to tell you how loved and supported we feel! Thanks for partnering with us so that we could be in Cambodia and be part of this little miracle of change.

Sheri