Chak Mun is a Field Coordinator who supports projects and programs of the Lutheran Church in Cambodia. Your giving to LCA International Mission and funds through the Stamps for Mission program assist him in his role of initial planning, facilitating meetings, coordinating training, following up with locals on monitoring and evaluating existing projects, introducing assets […]

Chak Mun is a Field Coordinator who supports projects and programs of the Lutheran Church in Cambodia. Your giving to LCA International Mission and funds through the Stamps for Mission program assist him in his role of initial planning, facilitating meetings, coordinating training, following up with locals on monitoring and evaluating existing projects, introducing assets based community development approaches and sustainable development concepts.

My first trip to Cambodia was in 2002, tasked to lead a group of youth leaders from The Boys Brigade Singapore for a 14 days’ overseas community service at Takeo, Cambodia. It is the start of my journey in serving in Cambodia

Between 2005 to 2008, I was involved in the running of Boys Brigade Learning Center in Siem Reap, Cambodia as the overseas extension committee member and later in 2009 to 2010, I took two years of leave without pay to help to rebuild the center after all four missionaries had left. Without any form of cross culture training and language training like those missionaries before me, God provided me with both local and overseas partners to support the rebuilding of the ministry and the center. We partnered the YMCA Singapore to restart the program in teaching English as a second language with an off the shelf syllabus and by equipping local staff to run the center.

In 2009 and 2010, with the help of God, three local staff and a Singapore community service program, I managed to renovate the center, complete an 800m long community road, lead 20 youth community service teams overseas, equip 3 local staff to run programs and set up a scholarship program to help youth further their education. By God’s grace I have started to learn what Cambodians are capable of achieving, what are the do’s and don’ts in empowering Khmers and what practices to avoid that might disempower them. During this time we managed to ‘kick start’ the Boys Brigade work (youth ministry) in the Methodist school of Cambodia at Phnom Penh, travelling 12 hours from Siem Reap most weekends for the 2 years. This ministry continues to grow in two other sites.

My take away learning points while serving in Siem Reap were:

1. We need to empower Khmer to impact Khmer and have a focus on growing depth instead of counting numbers. Mentoring a core group of staff and volunteers that will eventually multiply themselves. We had students who went on to higher education with straight A results and one doing her PHD through a scholarship at the university of New York. When those successful Khmer students came back to share we could see the sparks in the student’s eyes, they were encouraged with hope and possibilities.
2. Khmers have grown accustomed to view corruption as the “social norm.” They are unsure how their country’s economy, government or social sphere might function without it. Without judging, we can encourage changes to create a fairer society.
3. Education will be a social leveler when we integrate values into the teaching. We introduced minimum attendance to instill commitment in study, class assessment to encourage excellence in learning, parent’s meeting sessions to help them understand how they can partner in their children’s education, career talk by former-students already working in town or university students who furthered their study at Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

In 2014 I joined the Lutheran Church in Singapore board.

I embarked on new journey in Aug 2015 to be the field coordinator stationed at Phnom Penh to support the work of Lutheran Church of Cambodia. This role had previously been held by Sally Kee. I had a year to observe and re-evaluate how things work at City Church and Krus and in 2016 we came up with ways to help the church move forward.

The focus for the first three years have been to:

1. Coach young staff for the church, mentoring youth leaders and community builder to cultivate a growing culture within the church
2. Help to implement policies that will help in proper governing and accountability at the leadership level.
3. Building human capacity through scholarship, sponsorship and internship that will help in the growth of the church
4. Imposing timeline with possible of extension, regular monitoring and periodically evolution for all social ministry projects to minimize toxic relationship with the community and preventing  savior complex being build up thru consistently reflection on our objectives of our social ministry
5. Forming and running of Lutheran Association in Cambodia that enable us to own assists as local association (local leadership) – land and vehicles and also building up staff to able to handle accounts, projects and managing of staff welfare and benefit

We have more consistent meet up with the scholarship students and also small group discipleship led by youth leaders, missionary and bible school students.

Many of our partner churches are working in new territory for the kingdom of God; therefore, spiritual attack is their everyday reality. As a member of a congregation, school, or family, or a couple or individual, you are invited to commit to praying for our partners in mission. For regular prayer point updates, go to www.lca.org.au/international-mission/act-now/pray

Read more stories about our partner church in Cambodia at www.lcamission.org.au/category/stories/international-partners/cambodia/

Read more stories about our partner church in Singapore at https://www.lcamission.org.au/category/stories/international-partners/singapore/