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A Day in Cambodian Villages with Tearfund: Thoughts on Poverty, Shalom and Self-Sufficiency

By Anita Mathias

The spiritual value which runs though Scripture is not prosperity (though, in the Old Testament, those blessed by God are generally prosperous).

It is shalom. Strong’s Concordance translates it as “wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord.” What a lovely concept.

It is not right in a world of obscene and extravagant wealth for anyone to go hungry, to be deprived of access to the world’s mental, intellectual and spiritual and cultural riches through lack of education,

William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, said this in his last and most famous speech, “While Women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight; while children go hungry, as they do now I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight, I’ll fight to the very end!”

That remarkable passion is not my calling—or else, I would never get a word written.

On the other hand, if we know millions of our fellow humans lack food, or clothing or shelter OR an education which opens their soul to the resources of thought and spirit through the centuries as well as the resources to climb out of poverty—and do nothing about it, how can the love of God dwell in us?

In Jesus’ striking parable of the sheep and the goats, the righteous are welcomed into the heaven, on the basis of what they did, not what they did not do. They saw the King hungry in the disguise of the poor, and fed him; they saw him naked and clothed him. The unrighteous did no such thing, though they may have cried “Lord, Lord,” and through their charismatic personalities and gifts of influence may even have worked miracles in his name.

And so, though development is not everyone’s calling, all Christians should help the poor, as need crosses our paths, as our hearts respond to need, as the Spirit moves. (And I would suggest that if we do not sense the Spirit move, start with 10%, the Biblically recommended figure, and keep moving it around ministries, until you are giving to ministries you are happy with, and causes that bring joy to your heart.)

* * *

I  visited a couple of Cambodian villages today which use Umoja (Swahili for togetherness) Tearfund’s development model.

Lunch with Tearfund staff, Cambodia.

Lunch with Tearfund staff, Cambodia.

Tearfund trains a facilitator, who recruits rural pastors to the program. They ask the community what they would like to see in their community. They dream. And then they dream about how to raise the money to accomplish that dream. More dreams. Part of the Umoja process is dreaming, a word dear to me (check out my  blog title!).

Tearfund provides training in agricultural and micro-business techniques. The community establishes savings and loans programs, which enable them to buy sewing machines, to raise chickens and ducks and geese etc.

* * *

 

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We visited an interesting compound today, behind locked corrugated steel gates! There was a Hope Centre donated by Joyce Meyer, which is used as a church. There was a pre-school run by Potters Field ministries, which provides the regulation blue tee shirts. Many Christian ministries coming together in that compound.

Tearfund kickstarted the Umoja process in that church—a sewing shop with fancy pre-ordered Kymer clothes for their new year, a chicken and duck raising project, and wormeries in cow manure to feed the chickens inexpensively, and fertilize crops. They had been taught “foreign” agricultural techniques such as growing beans on the fences surrounding the vegetable garden, saving space and producing food simultaneously.

He showed us their  books, letters in Kymer, numbers in English, thumb prints over amounts donated, and as far as I could make out, several people put a pound into the projects weekly, and presumably reaping the rewards.

* * *

 In the afternoon, we visited some results of the Umoja vision of self-sufficiency. Ror Kar Khpross, an elderly lady in Tasu village who was chased away by her family because she is HIV positive grows chilis and basil in a little plastic rice bags, and makes paste from the moringa tree, one of nature’s miracle trees, which she sells.

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We visited a little school which children who go to the local “free” schools (where they learn very little) go to after hours to learn the alphabet, and do some fairly complex math. It’s on a raised platform on stilts, in the volunteer teacher’s house, two classes in a room about 3 by 3 meters, progressing concurrently disciplined but raucous. Whoa, they are going to learn focus!

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* * *

 Perhaps, man’s greatest need is spiritual, because from it all else comes. And then, perhaps, education, which gives us the tools to learn, grow, change and create prosperity. Even a little literacy will help people read labels on medicine bottles, store receipts, bank statements, and not be cheated.

According to the Pastor, implementing Umoja can be a challenge, because ministries like World Vision provide the chickens and the coop, and the seeds for crops. However, the villagers would sell it in the market for quick cash and be poor again. In fact, before Umoja, he said, the villagers would pray for “a foreigner to come and help us.”

Umoja requires them to set aside a small amount of money a week into the pooled savings and loan project,  which is invested in community projects of their choice. They are encouraged to look at their resources—a moringa tree in the case of widowed  Ror Kar Khporss; land in the case of the pastor’s family and ask what they could do with it. And land in abundance there is, lots of still unutilized land even in the compound which was part of the Umoja process.

Stuffed frogs at a roadside stall, Cambodia.

Stuffed frogs at a roadside stall, Cambodia.

Because they are developing their human resources of imagination, assiduity, persistence, following up on goals, and developing multiple income streams, this should, in the long run, be more effective than relying on hand-outs.

Poverty is partly a mind-set. If you define yourself as poor, you feel defeated and crushed at the outset and won’t have the energy or vision to climb out of poverty. Apparently, the Umoja process trains people to see what they do have and gradually to optimize it, and begin the climb out of poverty, increasing their self-confidence and self-reliance in the process.

I have just captured a fraction of today’s impressions; I am still rather jet-lagged.

Please Would you consider supporting Tearfund’s work in Cambodia, essentially paying for the facilitator to be trained to help train the community in the Umoja process in opening their eyes to notice they resources they already have in place—time, strength, land– and how they can optimize these?

To support Tearfund’s work in Cambodia by donating £3 a month here (about $5 for Americans).

Alternatively, text HOPE TODAY to 70444 to subscribe to give £3 a month to See For Yourself, Tearfund.  It will be added to your mobile phone bill. Tearfund receives 100% of the money. This subscription service will cost £3.00 per month until you send STOP to 70080.

More from my site

  • Images and Magic Moments  from my trip to Cambodia with TearfundImages and Magic Moments  from my trip to Cambodia with Tearfund
  • “Prosperity Theology” as a Hook for the Gospel: Hanging out with Christians in Cambodia   “Prosperity Theology” as a Hook for the Gospel: Hanging out with Christians in Cambodia
  •   On The Falsity of Scarcity Thinking and the Fact of Abundance Everywhere On The Falsity of Scarcity Thinking and the Fact of Abundance Everywhere
  • On Pol Pot, Cambodia’s Killing Fields, and the Power of an Idea to Transform–or Destroy. (In Cambodia with Tearfund)On Pol Pot, Cambodia’s Killing Fields, and the Power of an Idea to Transform–or Destroy. (In Cambodia with Tearfund)
  • Growth Happens Outside the Comfort Zone.  (And hello from Pnomh-Penh, CambodiaGrowth Happens Outside the Comfort Zone. (And hello from Pnomh-Penh, Cambodia
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Anita Mathias: About Me

Anita Mathias

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My Books

Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

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Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

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The Story of Dirk Willems

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Premier Digital Awards 2015 - Finalist - Blogger of the year
Runner Up Christian Media Awards 2014 - Tweeter of the year

Recent Posts

  •  On Not Wasting a Desert Experience
  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
  • Trust: A Message of Christmas
  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner
  • On Loving That Which Love You Back
  • “An Autobiography in Five Chapters” and Avoiding Habitual Holes  
  • Shining Faith in Action: Dirk Willems on the Ice
  • The Story of Dirk Willems: The Man who Died to Save His Enemy

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Childhood, Youth, Dependency: The Copenhagen Trilogy
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Amazing Faith: The Authorized Biography of Bill Bright
Michael Richardson

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On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
Stephen King

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Acedia & me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer's Life
Kathleen Norris

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Andrew Marr


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Opened Ground: Poems, 1966-96
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anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
Today, of course, there’s a lockdown, and the country’s leader is in intensive care.
When the world is too much with us, and the news stresses us, moving one’s body, as in yoga or walking, calms the mind. I am doing some Yoga with Adriene, and again seeing the similarities between the practice of Yoga and the practice of following Christ.
https://anitamathias.com/2020/04/06/on-yoga-and-following-jesus/
#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
He was born among animals in a barn, animals enjoying the sweetness of life, animals he created, animals precious to him.
For he created all things, and in him all things hold together
Including stars in the sky, of which a new one heralded his birth
Drawing astronomers to him.
And drawing him to the attention of an angry King
As angelic song drew shepherds to him.
An Emperor, a King, scholars, shepherds, angels, animals, stars, an unwed mother
All things in heaven and earth connected
By a homeless baby
The still point on which the world still turns. The powerful centre. The only true power.
The One who makes connections. * * *
And there is no end to the wisdom, the crystal glints of the Message that birth brings.
To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
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