Praise be to God!

1 Peter 1:3-9
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

My Khmer Family

Meet my beloved Cambodian family, the bloodline of my pdai (husband):

Pa and Ma. Chamnan and Sokly. A beautiful couple who have raised six, strong young men.  Pa is an engineer and currently works as a "project manager" in the rice fields in the province. Ma stays at home and raises our nephews. One mealtime it was mentioned that I want a Khmer name (that my family can pronounce and remember!) Pa chose Leakena, which means "girl with an almost perfect attitude."  They are beautiful people and I think about them all the time, always praying that they will recognzie their need for Jesus Christ- Savior and Redeemer.  I'm anxious to see how our relationships grow and develop in the years ahead. :)

My nephews! On the left is Chamroat, age 7, and on the right is Reaksmey, age 5. (Both much smaller than your average 7- or 5-year-old child in America.) They are adorable... Seriously, so cute!  We visited them at home twice before going on vacation together. At the beach, Chamroat warmed up to me, but Reaksmey never really overcame his shyness. I really enjoyed watching the boys play and interact with their uncles!  The boys LOVED the beach! While we were in the sand or water, they were all smiles, all the time!  In the days ahead, Chamroat and Reaksmey will be starting school for the very first time! We are excited to help provide this opportunity and to see what the future holds for them!

My brothers! When I married my husband, I gained five more bong-tlay (brothers-in-law) - Chamraun (28), Chamnieng (26,), Chamrong (24), Chamnong (20), and Chamnob (16). Pictured with me above are Chamrong, Chamnob, and Chamrong.  While we were in Cambodia and on family vacation, I especially enjoyed getting to know these guys! I miss them today!

They were all very welcoming. They seem very close. They are all funny like their oldest brother, my husband. I could hardly understand any conversation that took place during our time together (HATE THAT LANGUAGE BARRIER!) but I can see that they all love their motherly deeply, have great respect for their oldest, and are curious about their new sister-in-law. I often find myself thinking about them and wondering what they really think, how they really feel, always praying that they will come to know the Lord. I'm anxious to see how our relationships develop and grow in the future... and I'm anxious to see this family grow more!

At home, the Romdenh family minus Pa and Chamraun


Chamnieng and wife, Bopha, with sons Chamroat and Reaksmey


Sad good-byes at the airport

Missing them,
Jewel

I want to tell you about my friends, Daniel and Mae. Daniel was my Sunday School teacher for a number of years, and Mae is an inspirational sister in Christ (in an especially obedient and creative way!)  The Lord has called Daniel and Mae to “set the lonely in families” (Psalm 68:6) in a very specific way. Daniel and Mae are in the process of adopting a minority infant through domestic adoption. Just a few months after Daniel and Mae said 'yes' to God's call to adopt, they discovered they are pregnant and are expecting a baby girl this summer! They are currently almost almost almost 1/3 of the way to the $30,000 necessary for this adoption!  Can you give even a little to help them reach their goal?

Click HERE to visit

and learn how you can become the proud owner of these and more!!

Love love love,
Jewel