Dear Friends,
Greetings from the land of Mangoes! March not only marks the onset of the hot season (an average temperature is in the mid or high 90’s), it also brings forth abundantly many varieties of sweet, juicy, and delicious tropical fruits. And, mangoes are at the best right now! So, if you are a fruit lover and if you don’t mind a little heat, now is the perfect time for a visit!
With so many things that have been taking place lately, it seemed like ancient ago since our last newsletter was sent out to you. Here are some updates of what is going on around Poipet.
Some of you may or may not have already aware about the dreadful rabies incident that took place during that long unforgettable weekends of February 5 and 6, Chinese New Year, where 11 people including our Jonathan (1missionary, 3 MKs, and 7 Khmer youth)-- all were bitten by one rabid dog! In the whirlwind of fear and panic, we raced into different directions (to Aranyaprathet, Bangkok, Thailand, and to Phnom Penh, Cambodia) in a desperate search for places of treatments. Immediately, we rushed out urgent prayer requests. And in good timing, many thanks to our favorite Dr, Kent Copeland, each of the 11 people received a series of five shots of the verorab vaccines. And then, the long waiting began as that first month slowly passed by; it was almost unbearable. But you prayed. We all prayed. And God answered. Now, all 11 people still alive and kicking, and Lord willing, healed!

And just when we thought we could finally put a smile on our face again, three weeks later, another little girl, age 8, was wondering around onto the property of the new church building where she was brutally attacked by, yet, another dog! Immediately, we cleaned and cared for her many wounds, sent out the dog’s brain out to be tested in PHN, and then waited, once again, for the dreaded test result. Praise God, the result was negative!
The good things about these whole ordeals are that, this precious little girl, Sinoun, though very small, but very brave, and was often scolded at and forbidden by her family not to come to church, and yet somehow, she’d managed to show up at church and stayed throughout the entire service! Every Sunday! As for the other 7 youth, though they all went through a very frightful event, they had patiently endured many longs trips back and forth to and from PHN, missed out many school days, yet all of them had genuinely expressed a grateful attitude and a thankful heart for the fact that their lives were spared! As one youth had boldly declared that, “We are blessed because someone is paying for our treatment. There are some other people who are in the same situation as we, yet they could not afford for the medicine”.
I guess from his whole incident, it is a good remind for us to keep on counting our many blessing, daily, and to enjoy and appreciate the gift of life, be thankful for, and to live a life meaningful for His purpose. So, have you counted your blessings, lately?
There have been so many sad and hurtful things taking place among the church families, so constantly that it nearly breaks our heart.
- A few weeks ago, at Santepheap village, a little named “R”, age 10, was repeatedly raped by a 60 years old man! This little girl, whom we all thought had no family, all the sudden, an aunt showed up (after the incident) and removed her from the church community, and to this day, we still have no clue where this little is now. The authorities kept the man locked in a local prison.
- Three sisters whose first names all begin with “S” are being severely persecuted by their older brothers. Last week, one brother had brutally beaten up an older girl. The girls, ages 17-21, are being pressured by the family to quit church, quit school, and to find works in Thailand. But the girls are madly in love with the Lord are still coming to church every week! Not only that they continue to come to church, they also have been voluntary serving as Sunday school teachers. The two older girls are studying in TEE Book 1, and the younger one is in another discipleship class.
-Two other girls “S” and “L”, ages 16 and 18, are also being persecuted by their bongs (older siblings) and parents--- all because of their commitment and decision to follow Christ!
-These are just a few names of those who are being persecuted, some almost daily, because of their faith. The list of their names and their stories go on and on. Some other youth are having difficulties in life dealing with poverty, broken families, crimes, and violence. Some have boldly shared with us their many struggles against sexual sins, pornography, and other related sins. They all seemed to long for good role models at home but found none. Many of them have discovered and are sharing among their peer that only in Christ can they truly begin to find hope for their future. Despite of their difficulties, struggles, and hardship, however, they all keep on coming to church every week! The evidence of their zeal and passions for God is so real as many of them signed up for any kind of discipleship classes.

The quarterly regional youth rally was scheduled on Tuesday, March 8th, a National holiday. All the youth from four provinces of the northwest region came for a full day of fun and fellowship among their peer. The unexpected rains were pouring down hard that morning! This was very unusual for this time of the year, and the rains made traveling very difficult. Those who rode on the back of the trucks or on trailers or bicycles or motor-- all were soaked. And because of the heavy rains, a number of groups from far away villages did not show up for the meeting. But, in spite of the rains, those that came were many- over 250 of them came! It was full house and every space in the building was occupied!

Soeuth spoke a message from the book of Judges challenging all the “Gideons” (youth) to get rid of their many “idols” in preparing themselves for the mighty works of God. After the message, there was a great time for testimonies and sharing. The respond was phenomenal! We’d never seen anything like that before. More than 20 young people, guys and girls, courageously went up to the front, and openly shared their personal stories of struggles and challenges. As they’d shared, (some feeling nervous) began with a laugh and tried to make small jokes, but most of them cried as they poured out their hearts and souls to their peer and to God. The sharing time last more than an hour! We had to call it a stop as some younger youth were getting restless and hungry. Though rains had stopped much early on, the damage was already done as the newly filled dirt at the outside fields was too muddy and sticky for any planned outdoor activities. It was a good thing that we had brought along many cards and board games, and other supplies for indoor entertainments.
Looking back, we can now see some of the reasons why so many youth are being persecuted these few weeks. It is because these guys were and are actually getting rid of their “idols” as they’d made a public stand for Jesus, thus making themselves a target for Satan’s attack. Won’t you please lift these young people in prayers? Pray that they may remain steadfast, no matter what, in their walks with the Lord Jesus.

Our family is EXCITED and looking forward to March 26- that’s when Justin will come home for a week of spring break! His dorm parents have been thoughtfully and lovingly sending us some exciting pictures of him playing a goalie position in the last week tournament where his whole team won goal metals for being in first place! Home school wise, with all the emotional turbulences (related to the rabies situations and others) and lots of traveling that followed during these past few weeks and months, Jonathan is making a slow progress at catching with his school works.
Please pray also for the following requests:

-Sunday, March 27, the Poipet church will set a time child dedication- this will be the first one in Poipet!

-May 22- three churches from Popet (Poipet, Santepheap, and Andongthmormeas) will become official organized churches. We’ll have a day dedication and celebration.

-April 6-9, National Youth conference at Thmar Koul. Every year about 600 or more youth attended, and this year, the same amount is expected, if not more. Pray for the good out come with guest speakers, teachers preparing for seminars, protection from injuries and other sickness during sports and activities, and along with safe traveling for all.

-All churches in Poipet are beginning to teach baptismal classes (4-6 weeks) for new believers in preparation for a joined baptismal service in May.

-Our prayer request is boosting up from poisonous snakes to rabid dogs! Pray for safety and protection for all. Lately, we’ve been feeling petrified every time a strayed dog is wondering nearby. It’s a dog mating season, and our houses are without fences.

-Pray for wisdom and strength as we’d begin transitions, packing, storing, getting medical check-ups, and juggling around with other added stresses.

-Pray for unity among church leaders, and that God would raise more leaders.

Obviously, God is the One who sent us here for the purpose of building his kingdom in this part of the world. But your faithful and continual supports: both, finance to the GCF and prayers, enable us to touch and make a difference in the lives the Khmer people.

In Him,



Soeuth, Syna, Justin and Jonathan Lao