Hi, I’m Erin
I’m Erin Kerber, your LCA International Mission Cambodia Program Officer. I’m here to help you and encourage you to join God’s mission in Cambodia.
The Cambodians are beautiful people, emerging like budding flowers after the Khmer Rouge regime murdered a generation. Sadly, all these years later, many Cambodians are still oppressed – under the fear of evil spirits. I’m meeting people set free of all that, as they come to know Jesus and are baptised into the family of God. It’s an exciting time to be involved in God’s mission in Cambodia. I’d love to visit your congregation, school or group to discuss ways you can partner with our Lutheran friends in Cambodia.
Some background
A mostly flat and forested land, Cambodia is a small, compact country. For more than 500 years, Angkor (in north-western Cambodia) was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which controlled mainland Southeast Asia from the 9th to the 13th century. Thailand and Vietnam encroached upon the kingdom until 1863, when France made Cambodia a protectorate. Independence came in 1953. The Vietnam War spilled into Cambodia, igniting conflict, and in 1970 a pro-Western military government overthrew the longtime ruler. Five years later, Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge guerrillas began brutally enforcing radical communism, murdering around 2 million Cambodians. Vietnam invaded and occupied Cambodia from 1978 to 1989. In 1991 three rebel groups and the Phnom Penh government signed a UN-sponsored peace accord. Returned from exile in 1993, the ousted Prince Sihanouk became king, leading the new constitutional monarchy. Coming into the 21st century, Cambodia enjoys relative stability, but subsistence farming employs 75 per cent of the workforce and many people continue to live in poverty.
Cambodia program
In Cambodia, your prayers and offerings support the work of the Lutheran Church in Cambodia. Its mission work takes place primarily from three hubs: in Phnom Penh, at the City Church and the Rainbow hostel for students; in the village Phum Krus and surrounding villages, where there is a church and outreach centre; and the new ministry centre in Tang Krang in the Kampong Cham province. Nine people were baptised at the church’s first service in 2010, and today there are 225 (City Church 67; Krus 158) baptised brothers and sisters in this church. Your partnership with the Lutheran Church in Cambodia enables pastors and evangelists to bring the good news of Jesus to people who have never heard about him before. Please pray for your partners in mission, who are themselves new Christians.
Read more about the country program
Ministries and Programs you can support
- Ministry training rooms and preschool
- Lutheran Association of Cambodia – Administration costs
- Warren Schirmer – Volunteer Program Assistant
You may donate to these specific Cambodian ministries, or give a gift to be applied wherever it is most needed, from our online donation page (or visit our donation information page for other options).
Volunteering opportunities
- Teaching English at the Rainbow Student Hostel (Phnom Penh)
- Teaching English and computing at the Life Centre (Phum Krus)
- Teaching piano or guitar at City Church (Phnom Penh) or at the Life Centre (Phum Krus)
- Training, encouraging and monitoring farming progress at Phum Krus
- Join the annual medical mission team (no medical experience needed)
Partnerships
You already support mission work in Cambodia through your prayers and weekly offerings. But if you would like to work more closely with the Lutheran Church in Cambodia, you could talk to any of these congregations or schools about the blessings of a partnership:
- LifeWay Lutheran Church, Epping and Newcastle NSW
- Immanuel Lutheran Church Woden, ACT
- St John’s Lutheran Church, Dernancourt SA
- Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Ringwood Vic
- Tatachilla Lutheran College, SA
- Unity College, Murray Bridge SA
- Pacific Lutheran College, Qld
Our volunteer program assistants
LCA International Mission Program Assistants (volunteers), Warren and Marianne Schirmer and David Pietsch, are very willing to share the inspiring stories of God’s ministry and mission in Cambodia. If you would like to invite them to speak in your congregation, school or fellowship group to learn how you can partner in God’s mission, call or email the office of LCA International Mission.
More about mission in Cambodia
Stories to inspire you
- You will find Cambodia videos on our YouTube playlist and you can download them from our video page.
- View all the Cambodia stories on this website, or start with these latest three below.
