Recently I became aware of a remarkable and miraculous event that is taking place in the country of Cambodia that I felt needed to be shared with our friends around the world.

Missionaries Ted and Sou Olbrich began their ministry in Cambodia in 1999 when the Christian population was at about 1/2 of 1% of the entire population. Soon after they arrived, orphan children were brought to them and they began to ask the Lord how best to provide, and for the direction they should follow. As they presented the Gospel message and did their best to care for the orphans basic needs, the children as well as many adults came to embrace Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. They soon partnered with other ministry associations and it wasn't long before some group homes for the orphans had begun to be built. Because of their ministry efforts, today, nearly eight years later, approximately 30% of Cambodia now professes Jesus Christ as Lord! Now that's what I call fruitful ministry as well as a quick work.

Ted & Sou have also planted 2,600 churches there and personally oversee 27 orphan group homes. There are over 52,000 kids in Cambodia that have lost both parents due to past civil unrest, landmines and the devastation of aids within the nation. At present, the average age of a person in Cambodia is now only 17 years. Needless to say, with so many young people in this nation, these children of promise are the answer for turning their county around.

As I became familiar with this ministry, my heart was moved by the Lord to begin to invest financially into this profitable work that is taking place in Cambodia. Just think about it, these young people are the next generation that will lead Cambodia in the not too distant future, and lead and influence they will because of His power and might. The Lord spoke to my heart and impressed upon me that the rebirth of a nation is underway. Immediately, I wanted to plant some financial seed into this very fertile soil and partner with the work of God in the harvest of souls that is taking place in Cambodia.

The reports that are coming in to us are nothing short of the miraculous events that took place in the Book of Acts.

In his latest missions report Ted wrote about their April baptism service: "We took 1759 kids, plus staff, to the beach for a baptism trip. Typically Cambodian, we’d planned for 1200. Some of the kids came from as far as the Lao border and had never seen the ocean. About 1350 orphan children were baptized and, what proved to be a very successful experiment, three homes were allowed to invite their friends from the church, who had not been baptized, so about 300 village children were also baptized." I spoke with a friend who has been in Cambodia with Ted many times, and she said that these numbers are typical, that baptisms always number way up in the hundreds.

April 2006 Baptism
(Please Be Patient While All The Pictures Load)

Arrival at the beach	Kids lining up by home group. Each home group has a different color shirt on.
Kids being prayed over before being baptized.	Some last minute instructions

Not only is the Gospel being preached, but some very useful training in everyday needs are being taught and brought into fruition to help offset the cost of the orphan homes. Ted relates: "The rice mill, swine enterprises, vegetable production, fish farming and micro-enterprise income have saved our necks in supporting the orphans this year. But the simple truth is without the faithful help from giving partners, even though the church may survive, the orphans wouldn’t. This month we are planting 35,000 eucalyptus trees, and 5000 dragon fruit plants to further support the Church and the ministry to orphans and widows."

In each of the orphan homes, the local church congregation meets downstairs for worship, and the orphan kids sleep on the second floor. Each church home has a family atmosphere based on love and compassion that is touched by the Word of God. Widows are the principal caregivers in each orphan care facility. They understand the pain each orphan faces, having experienced loss as well. They maintain a staff ratio of one caregiver for every five children, so you can be assured that a frightened child will be held and comforted by someone who cares. Each home has the capacity to house 40-50 children.

Chomka Chek Home

Thit Pou Home

As you can see, the children are very serious about their worship!

The dots on the map below represent Church Orphan Home Sites that cover every province of Cambodia. Areas with few church home locations are not very populated. 46 of the sites below have a basic church/ orphan care building already constructed. The other sites are in various stages of development. Not pictured are the 2600+ active congregations planted around these church homes.

While we will not ever ask for donations for our ministry, I wanted to make you aware of this situation. This is more than just a need, this is a rich opportunity to invest, and to partner with the Lord in Kingdom business. If your heart is moved by the Lord to be a blessing in this area, please know that your help would be greatly appreciated in funding the completion of construction projects, starting new ones, and sponsoring church homes so more kids can be rescued. Last month a few of the financial donors were unable to continue in their giving, so support was lost for 7 of the orphan homes. That means that the already meager food portions will have to be rationed further so that they can be supplied to all the children.

Won't you please pray about possibly partnering with us in this area?

You can send a check, money order or cash. Please write on the check the word "Cambodia" in the memo line.
Please make your check or money order out to: Warm Blankets Children's Foundation
(Which is approved by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability)

Send donations to:

If you are sending cash, please state that the funds are for Cambodia. As we also receive donations to cover the expense of postage and printed material that we send out, we want to make sure that the money goes to where it is designated. Please know that we pride ourselves in running a ministry of excellence and integrity before the Lord.

Read about the wonderful miracles that are taking place!

Dan Downey
All Rights Reserved (c)
Dan Downey 2006
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