(bold music)
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- Hello and welcome
to Jesus for Asia Now.
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I'm Natalie Wood and I have
a very special guest with me
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in the studio today.
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It's Tim Maddocks and he
with his family have been
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in Cambodia working
incarnationally for 30 years.
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Hello Tim. So glad
you could be here today.
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- Hello Natalie. I'm
really blessed to be here.
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- When I introduced you,
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I said you've been working
incarnationally in Cambodia
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for 30 years. What does
that mean, incarnationally?
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- Incarnationally means
we are living like the people
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that live around us.
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That's changed
over the last 30 years.
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So when we originally
went out, actually in 1996,
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to live on the
campus where we live now,
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it was just rice fields
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and the people that lived
around us were extremely poor.
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They lived in
attached houses mostly,
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got around on
bicycles or old motorcycles.
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So that's the way
we lived back then.
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But our community
has changed over time.
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So now people, more
live in brick houses,
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many of them
have air conditioning.
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So we've upgraded housing
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as our
communities upgraded housing.
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- You still don't have
air conditioning though?
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- We have windows.
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- Yeah. So you mentioned
moving out to the campus
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where you live now.
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Can you explain what
happens on the campus?
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Just give us like an overview
of the ministry as a whole.
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- Yeah, sure.
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So it's a 40 acre
campus and to begin with,
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God called us to church
plant in our local community
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and to develop a training center
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where people could
learn to be church planners
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and share the
gospel with Cambodians
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who hadn't yet
heard about Christ,
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which is the majority
of the population. And.
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- What kind of percentage
Christian are we talking about?
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- It's about 3% Christian.
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- Really. Okay.
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- We started that work and
we got into medical work as well
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and then into school,
education of young people
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and then an orphanage
and then a media center
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and a butterfly garden and a
tropical plant garden center.
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And so that's
sort of the progression
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of our work over the years.
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- That's all on
that same campus?
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- On the same campus.
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- [Natalie] Wow.
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- And we have another
school on a smaller campus
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about 25 miles away.
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It's not an international school
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where you've got all
these rich kids coming
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and paying big fees.
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In fact, our fees
are very, very low.
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We are charging for a non-ad
Adventist, just $200 a year.
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For an
Adventist, $170 US a year.
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- Wow. That's not very much.
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- It certainly
doesn't make a profit.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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- Or even break even.
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- Wow. So how many students
do you have in this school?
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- So in our main
school we have 220 students
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from kindergarten to grade 12.
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- Okay.
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- And in the smaller
school we have 18 students
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from grade one to three.
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- Are they all like
local to the schools
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or is there a dorm
situation or how does that work?
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- So our student body
is made up of children
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from the local
community and they'll come in
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from about as far
as three miles away.
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And then we have
orphanage children.
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With children
from the orphanage,
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we currently have 38 in the
orphanage and staff children.
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But then we have another
group of children who come
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from our rural churches
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and most of them in
the same area province,
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but from other
provinces as well.
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And we have 62 in
the dormitory now.
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- Okay. So how
does it work financially
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for the dorm students?
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- Well, the dorm
students are almost all coming
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from really poor families.
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So we're charging them
$170 a year for tuition
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and we provide free
lodging and food in the dorm.
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So this is a part of
our faith-based ministry.
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The way I look
at these children is
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that they're God's children
and usually a father pays,
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so he's paying for their fees.
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And so we're just
trusting him to provide.
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As far as what does it cost?
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We spend $1.20 per day for food.
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Plus we have the
hire for the three cooks.
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And this year we don't
have deans that we hired
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because my wife, Wendy
and I, we are the deans.
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And the kids live in
large rooms with bunk beds and.
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- Okay.
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- So they get to
hang out together.
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The dormitory set up, so
we have girls dorm on one side
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of the building,
boys on the other side,
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a large cafeteria in the middle.
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And so we have
combined worships together
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in the mornings and evenings.
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- Okay.
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- And then they eat
together in the cafeteria.
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- Okay. So you said $1.20,
is that per child, per day?
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- Per child, per day.
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- Okay.
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- Three meals.
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- Wow. That's 40 cents a
meal. That's not very much.
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- It's not much.
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But a lot of kids,
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they don't want to
go home during holidays
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because they get more to eat
and better food at the school
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than they do if they go home.
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The reality is that
out in the countryside,
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poverty is a serious thing.
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- [Natalie] Yeah.
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- People are just
eking out in existence still.
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- Right. And even that little
amount that you're spending
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per day for each one of them
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is giving them such better food.
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- Yeah. It
changes the way they look.
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So they come in looking scrawny
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and their hair
doesn't look healthy,
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but by the time there's
been a year in the school,
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they're on a vegetarian diet
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and they look much
more rounded and healthy
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- And they're
getting good meals every day.
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- And yeah.
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- Wow.
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I get a lot of joy out of
being their dean this year,
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leading them in worships,
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helping them to
know Christ better,
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preparing them to be
missionaries themselves.
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- Okay. So
that's another question.
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Okay, so the purpose of the
school isn't just for education?
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- No, the
education is the excuse.
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So you know, my family
are there as missionaries,
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we want to take the
gospel to all Cambodia,
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but we can't do that alone.
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- [Natalie] Right.
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- And because there's
only around 4,600 Adventists
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in the country of a population
of six and a half million.
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So the best way to raise
missionaries is to educate them
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from kindergarten up,
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but educate them with the
mindset that God has called them
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to share the gospel.
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And their education is to
help them to better to do that.
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- You, in grades 11 and 12,
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it's not just
like regular school,
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you're teaching them
other things as well. So.
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- Throughout the school we
teach a lot of vocational things
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because we believe that
there's more to education
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than just reading,
writing, and arithmetic.
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- [Natalie] Uh huh.
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- So we have cooking and
sewing and computer classes,
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art classes, photography
classes, woodwork classes.
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But in year 11 and 12,
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we teach the young
people to be teachers
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and many of them will
take that up as a career.
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And in year 12 they actually
teach for five periods a week
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in the primary school.
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- Oh, okay.
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- So they get that experience
and that actually provides us
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with a pool of
teachers when they graduate.
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And of our 30 teachers
that we have in the main school,
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25 of them are former students.
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- Wow. That's awesome.
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And I know that
you've mentioned that some
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of them are recent graduates.
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- Yeah, we have
some that graduated just
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in July last year and
they're actually teaching
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in the high school this year.
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- Wow. So they're
teaching young people
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almost their same ages.
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- Yeah. Some of the
people they're teaching
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were fellow students
with them the year before.
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So that's quite a
challenge for them.
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- [Natalie] Yeah.
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- The reason for that is that
we have depended on volunteers
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and when COVID hit our
volunteer pool sort of dried up.
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- Yeah.
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- So we've had to
depend on our own young people.
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But if there
are people out there
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that would like to volunteer,
we'd like to hear from them.
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- Yeah. Volunteer teachers,
now, what kind of subjects?
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- Teaching English,
mathematics, science, geography.
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So they don't have to
be qualified teachers,
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they just have to be
willing to be qualified
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by the Holy Spirit.
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- Okay. So you said volunteer.
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What does that mean?
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When they come to work there,
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do they get a small stipend?
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What do they receive from you?
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- We are faith-based,
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so it's trusting in God
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and we like our
volunteers to do the same.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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- So we provide them
with housing and with work.
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- Okay.
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- And that's it.
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- So they need some other
place to get money for food and.
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- They need to cover the
airfares, their visa costs,
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their food
costs, et cetera. Yeah.
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- Okay. You
talked about faith-based
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and then you talked about how
much it costs for the school.
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Does it ever
come up short? I mean,
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what if the parents can't
afford the $170 or the $200,
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then what happens?
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- They usually come
crying to me, literally.
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- [Natalie] Oh.
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- Down on their knees begging.
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But there's no
actual need for that
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because we've
never sent a child home
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because they couldn't pay.
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And typically what
happens after one or two years,
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if debts are stacking up,
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we just wipe the debt
off figuring that, well,
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God got us
through the school year,
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so nevermind, we'll just
start afresh the next year.
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But sometimes parents
sort of out of embarrassment,
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they'll just pull the kid
out without even telling us.
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- [Natalie] Oh.
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- And we find out
after they've left
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because they feel
ashamed that they can't pay.
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- Oh, that's hard.
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- It is. And sometimes
it's because the families
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borrowed money to build a
new house or buy a motorbike
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and they can't repay.
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So they need a child in
order to have another income.
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- To work.
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- Which really
annoys me because you know,
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we'll sponsor a child and
they'll be doing really well
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in school and then
the parent pulls them out
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and it's like, this kid
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could have had a
really great future.
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- Yeah. And made a lot
more money in the long run.
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- [Tim] Yes.
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- And worked for God.
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- But short term thinking and.
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- Yeah, that seems to
be a trap that happens
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in a lot of ultra poor areas.
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- Yeah. So we look at the
school finance, for example,
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last year we took in
$17,000 in school fees
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and we spent
$88,000 running the school.
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So we're trusting
in God to provide.
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- He makes up the difference.
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- Yes.
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- So, okay, faith-based,
let's try to break this down.
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Like what does this
look like on a daily basis?
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Like okay, so faith-based,
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does this mean that you
write a letter to your donors
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and you say, "Hey, we're short
on school fees this month."
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Or what does this mean?
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- Well there are obviously
many faith-based models,
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but the model that God called
us to was to just trust him.
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And so we do write a
letter from time to time,
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like once or twice a year,
which we call prayer journal.
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And we talk about what God
has been doing in our lives.
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We don't go out
there soliciting funds,
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but if somebody asks
us how can they help,
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then we are happy
to give them a list.
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- Right.
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- Of ways that they
could choose to help us.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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- So we're just
taking our needs to God.
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Most of the time,
we're not talking to him much
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about the money we need.
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We're praising him
for what he's given us.
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- Okay. That was going
to be my next question.
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Like do you walk
around and you see, oh,
00:12:00.35\00:12:02.65
there's a broken
pipe over there, Lord,
00:12:02.65\00:12:04.72
can you give me the
money, fix the broken pipe? Or.
00:12:04.72\00:12:07.79
- I've tried to
develop the mentality
00:12:07.79\00:12:10.06
that this is God's work
00:12:10.06\00:12:11.69
and I'm working beside him
and so he knows what is needed
00:12:11.69\00:12:16.73
and he's just left
me there to fix it.
00:12:17.83\00:12:20.74
And so if I need to spend money,
00:12:20.74\00:12:23.34
I'll go out and spend it.
00:12:23.34\00:12:24.91
Sometimes I'll even
put it on the credit card
00:12:24.91\00:12:27.58
if I don't have it,
00:12:27.58\00:12:29.11
because making sure people are
comfortable is more important
00:12:29.11\00:12:32.48
than not using my
credit card, like.
00:12:32.48\00:12:36.42
But God has been good
and he pays things off.
00:12:36.42\00:12:40.09
But sometimes, often in
the last year particularly,
00:12:40.09\00:12:44.36
we've been going day by day.
00:12:44.36\00:12:46.23
And it's like I
might need, for example,
00:12:46.23\00:12:49.16
I might need $50
today to buy supplies
00:12:49.16\00:12:53.07
or to buy things to repair
something, something like that.
00:12:53.07\00:12:57.07
And God will
provide just enough.
00:12:57.07\00:12:59.84
But over a month we're spending
at least $16,000 a month
00:12:59.84\00:13:04.31
to keep the
orphanage and the school,
00:13:04.31\00:13:07.38
and the media center
and Butterfly Paradise
00:13:07.38\00:13:09.55
and Garden Center all running.
00:13:09.55\00:13:11.32
- Wow. Okay. So $50 a
day, a hundred dollars, 300,
00:13:11.32\00:13:16.16
whatever you need that day.
00:13:16.16\00:13:17.93
- It's coming in.
00:13:17.93\00:13:18.79
- God's providing.
00:13:18.79\00:13:19.73
- Little by little. Yeah.
00:13:19.73\00:13:20.76
It's a fun way to live.
00:13:21.53\00:13:22.66
- Yeah. Yeah.
00:13:22.66\00:13:24.50
So tell us the story of
the studio, the media center,
00:13:24.50\00:13:28.00
how did that come to be?
00:13:28.00\00:13:29.77
- So in 2009, a dream
that we'd had for a long time
00:13:29.77\00:13:34.84
that Jon Wood was involved
in planting in our minds,
00:13:36.24\00:13:40.02
we began to make that
happen by building a studio.
00:13:40.02\00:13:45.09
And now we did something
that most people would say
00:13:46.45\00:13:48.86
was very foolish.
00:13:48.86\00:13:50.33
We got a $200
donation for the studio.
00:13:50.33\00:13:54.60
So we started building.
00:13:54.60\00:13:56.70
- Whoa, okay.
00:13:56.70\00:13:57.87
- And 15 months
later, we had spent $70,000.
00:13:59.10\00:14:02.27
We finished the building
00:14:02.27\00:14:03.64
and we never
asked anybody for money.
00:14:03.64\00:14:05.97
God provided.
00:14:05.97\00:14:07.48
And he honored the faith
that we showed by starting
00:14:07.48\00:14:10.51
and he provided.
00:14:10.51\00:14:12.51
And there was a period of time
when the building was a shell
00:14:12.51\00:14:16.42
with no roof
and grass growing up
00:14:16.42\00:14:18.89
in the main recording area.
00:14:18.89\00:14:20.82
And I was there one
night talking to God about it.
00:14:20.82\00:14:24.23
But shortly after that
he provided all the money
00:14:25.56\00:14:27.46
to pour the concrete, put the
roof on, finish the building.
00:14:27.46\00:14:31.33
But he had a
purpose for delaying.
00:14:31.33\00:14:33.44
And it was only later
that I discovered the purpose.
00:14:33.44\00:14:36.10
- Is that something
you'd like to share,
00:14:36.10\00:14:37.71
his purpose for delaying?
00:14:37.71\00:14:39.81
- Yeah. So we had a
group of students coming
00:14:39.81\00:14:43.41
from Australia to
help out on the project.
00:14:43.41\00:14:46.85
And amongst those
students were kids
00:14:46.85\00:14:48.82
that weren't Seventh-day
Adventists, that weren't
00:14:48.82\00:14:51.79
Christian. And God wanted to
let them see miracles actually
00:14:51.79\00:14:55.22
happen. - Oh, okay.
00:14:55.22\00:14:56.06
- To convict them.
00:14:56.06\00:14:57.39
And so when those
miracles were happening
00:14:57.39\00:15:00.10
while the students were there,
00:15:00.10\00:15:01.26
like somebody came
and handed me $10,000
00:15:01.26\00:15:03.80
for the roof while
the students were there.
00:15:03.80\00:15:05.90
And so before
they left the steel
00:15:05.90\00:15:07.64
for constructing the roof
was on site, they saw that,
00:15:07.64\00:15:11.37
and working together
to pour the concrete slab
00:15:11.37\00:15:15.21
and God was just using it all.
00:15:15.21\00:15:17.18
So the studio was actually
being used for evangelism
00:15:17.18\00:15:21.92
before it even had a roof on it.
00:15:22.72\00:15:25.69
- So that illustrates
00:15:25.69\00:15:27.29
that God doesn't always
need the media recordings.
00:15:27.29\00:15:30.26
- That's right. Yeah.
00:15:30.26\00:15:31.86
- Well that's awesome.
So speaking of the media
00:15:31.86\00:15:34.73
recordings, what kind of
things do you record there?
00:15:34.73\00:15:36.50
- So we record
evangelistic videos
00:15:36.50\00:15:39.10
in the Khmer language
and we also do health videos
00:15:39.10\00:15:43.44
and cooking shows,
vegetarian cooking shows,
00:15:43.44\00:15:46.57
some children's stuff.
00:15:46.57\00:15:47.84
And also we are
just getting into music,
00:15:47.84\00:15:50.51
Christian music now.
00:15:50.51\00:15:52.08
- Okay. That's a lot.
00:15:52.08\00:15:53.72
- Yeah. We have eight
staff working full-time,
00:15:53.72\00:15:56.32
but they also teach
media in the school as well.
00:15:56.32\00:16:00.16
- So they have a couple of
jobs under the media banner.
00:16:00.16\00:16:04.19
- Yes. Yes.
00:16:04.19\00:16:05.43
- But it's not all
just in the studio.
00:16:05.43\00:16:07.13
- [Tim] Yes.
00:16:07.13\00:16:08.36
- So have you seen
any results of the shows,
00:16:08.36\00:16:10.37
of the programs
that you have recorded?
00:16:10.37\00:16:13.37
- That's the trouble with media.
00:16:13.37\00:16:14.94
(laughing)
00:16:14.94\00:16:15.94
You're putting it out there.
00:16:15.94\00:16:17.41
We have a 24/7 online television
station called SALTCAM TV,
00:16:17.41\00:16:22.38
and then we have a YouTube
channel. People are watching.
00:16:23.71\00:16:27.95
But is it having an impact's?
00:16:27.95\00:16:30.45
- That's hard to know.
- That's harder to say.
00:16:30.45\00:16:32.02
Although I had one
of our Khmer pastors
00:16:32.02\00:16:34.02
come up to me last year
00:16:34.02\00:16:36.29
and thank us for the series
on Revelation that we'd done.
00:16:36.29\00:16:39.86
And so he was watching
and he had been blessed by it.
00:16:39.86\00:16:42.60
So I'm sure that there are
people that are coming to Christ
00:16:42.60\00:16:45.27
through it.
00:16:45.27\00:16:46.67
We just don't have the
privilege of knowing that yet.
00:16:46.67\00:16:48.84
- Right. That seems
like what happens so much
00:16:48.84\00:16:52.37
with broadcasting, it's like,
00:16:52.37\00:16:54.61
it's literally when the
Bible says cast your bread
00:16:54.61\00:16:57.88
upon the waters and it'll
come back after many days.
00:16:57.88\00:17:00.75
It's like, many
days aren't here yet.
00:17:00.75\00:17:03.15
- I think a lot of it is like
our own members are watching.
00:17:03.15\00:17:07.26
- [Natalie] Mm.
00:17:07.26\00:17:08.09
- And so it's.
00:17:08.09\00:17:09.62
- Building up the church.
00:17:09.62\00:17:11.13
- Building up their faith
and building up their churches.
00:17:11.13\00:17:13.66
Yeah. And so then
they are able to take
00:17:13.66\00:17:16.67
what they are learning and
share it on a one-on-one basis.
00:17:16.67\00:17:21.14
So we used to do
the training programs
00:17:21.14\00:17:24.41
to prepare people
to be missionaries,
00:17:24.41\00:17:26.57
but you could say in a sense now
00:17:26.57\00:17:28.01
that we're still doing that,
00:17:28.01\00:17:29.44
but it's on video and
people all over the country
00:17:29.44\00:17:32.61
and even outside the
country can access that
00:17:32.61\00:17:35.28
and learn from it.
00:17:35.28\00:17:36.55
- Now let's move
to Butterfly Paradise.
00:17:36.55\00:17:39.42
What is Butterfly
Paradise first of all,
00:17:39.42\00:17:41.76
and how did it get started?
00:17:41.76\00:17:44.26
- So Butterfly Paradise is
a very large butterfly garden,
00:17:44.26\00:17:48.90
which is the den. So you could
call it a butterfly aviary.
00:17:48.90\00:17:52.67
And it grew out of a
idea that a friend of mine had
00:17:52.67\00:17:57.74
that because we
are so close to town,
00:17:59.81\00:18:01.88
because we have lots of
butterflies on our 40 acre
00:18:01.88\00:18:05.28
property, that we could set up
a butterfly garden for tourists.
00:18:05.28\00:18:08.35
'Cause tourists, they
come the same route to look
00:18:08.35\00:18:10.45
at the Angkor Wat Temple.
00:18:10.45\00:18:12.02
And many of them, once
they've done the temples,
00:18:12.02\00:18:13.82
it's like what else can I do?
00:18:13.82\00:18:15.79
And me, being a
biologist by training
00:18:15.79\00:18:19.93
and having visited
butterfly gardens in the past,
00:18:19.93\00:18:22.86
it's like, that's a nice idea,
00:18:22.86\00:18:25.10
but I'm busy running
a lot of other things.
00:18:25.10\00:18:29.70
And I took it to God
00:18:29.70\00:18:32.17
and I tried to
argue him out of the idea,
00:18:32.17\00:18:34.98
but he eventually won.
00:18:34.98\00:18:36.68
So it's like, well God, if
I'm going to do this for you,
00:18:36.68\00:18:39.58
it has to be first class.
00:18:39.58\00:18:41.62
We can't build a
little cage out of sticks
00:18:41.62\00:18:44.59
and invite foreign
visitors to come in.
00:18:44.59\00:18:48.06
And it has to be so that people
00:18:48.06\00:18:50.33
can learn that God is creator.
00:18:50.33\00:18:52.19
- Hmm.
00:18:52.19\00:18:53.13
- So we spent about $400,000,
00:18:53.13\00:18:55.00
which in American
terms, is maybe not very much,
00:18:55.00\00:18:57.50
but in Cambodia
that's quite a bit.
00:18:57.50\00:18:59.73
- [Natalie] Right.
00:18:59.73\00:19:01.27
- And we built one of the
largest cage butterfly gardens
00:19:01.27\00:19:03.97
in the world.
00:19:03.97\00:19:05.47
And I believe that it is
a first class attraction.
00:19:05.47\00:19:09.24
In fact on Google at the moment,
we have a 4.4 star rating.
00:19:09.24\00:19:12.51
- Awesome.
00:19:12.51\00:19:13.75
- So, we're very
thankful for that.
00:19:13.75\00:19:15.22
- Yeah. Yeah. Well
having been there, it's like,
00:19:15.22\00:19:18.69
it's so impressive.
00:19:18.69\00:19:20.52
You know, you see it and
it's like, wow, what can God do?
00:19:20.52\00:19:23.19
And, you know, we walk
in and we know the story,
00:19:23.19\00:19:26.73
but it's like to
just see it in fruition,
00:19:26.73\00:19:29.83
I mean in its full
built up, flowered out,
00:19:29.83\00:19:34.90
butterflies flying
around, it's just like, wow,
00:19:36.20\00:19:38.37
God did this.
00:19:38.37\00:19:39.61
You know, 'cause
how much did you have
00:19:39.61\00:19:40.84
when you started that?
00:19:40.84\00:19:42.38
- We didn't have anything.
00:19:42.38\00:19:44.18
- And you had calculated
00:19:44.18\00:19:46.11
and budgeted how much
was this going to cost?
00:19:46.11\00:19:47.78
- It was going to cost
400,000 and we spent 400,000.
00:19:47.78\00:19:51.52
- And you had
nothing when you started.
00:19:51.52\00:19:53.79
- Nothing. And so it
was another faith venture,
00:19:53.79\00:19:56.96
a little bit like the
building of the studio.
00:19:56.96\00:19:59.36
But it's like we were
sure God wanted us to do it
00:19:59.36\00:20:03.50
and if he wanted us to do it,
00:20:03.50\00:20:04.80
he was going to
provide the resources for it.
00:20:04.80\00:20:07.14
- [Natalie] Right.
00:20:07.14\00:20:08.54
- But we have to walk
forward in faith trusting him.
00:20:08.54\00:20:10.94
- [Natalie] Hmm.
00:20:10.94\00:20:12.17
- And after that was
last minute provision.
00:20:12.17\00:20:14.71
- Okay.
00:20:14.71\00:20:15.88
- So like the
workers were working
00:20:15.88\00:20:17.38
and you had to pay them
at the end of the day and.
00:20:17.38\00:20:19.05
- That's right Friday
afternoon have to pay them
00:20:19.05\00:20:21.75
for the week's work.
Wages are small there.
00:20:21.75\00:20:24.39
So the amounts
were pretty small,
00:20:24.39\00:20:25.99
like $500 a week for wages.
00:20:25.99\00:20:29.89
But Friday afternoon, three
o'clock, absolutely no money.
00:20:29.89\00:20:34.93
I said, I can't borrow money,
00:20:35.86\00:20:37.50
I can't do anything except pray.
00:20:37.50\00:20:40.74
And so I was having
a discussion with God
00:20:40.74\00:20:42.74
about what we're going to
do if the money doesn't come in
00:20:42.74\00:20:45.31
by five o'clock. We're going
to have to lay off the workers.
00:20:45.31\00:20:48.34
And an hour later
someone knocked on the door,
00:20:48.34\00:20:50.48
handed me $500 and they
didn't know about the need,
00:20:50.48\00:20:54.12
but God did and he provided.
00:20:54.12\00:20:56.15
- Wow.
00:20:56.15\00:20:57.69
- And a month later the
same thing happened again.
00:20:57.69\00:20:58.89
And it was at that
point I realized, okay,
00:20:58.89\00:21:00.56
God's got it under control.
Just don't worry about it.
00:21:00.56\00:21:03.49
Just go forward and finish it.
00:21:03.49\00:21:05.43
- So you stopped having those
Friday afternoon discussions
00:21:05.43\00:21:07.93
with him?
00:21:07.93\00:21:08.83
- Yeah, I just went forward
00:21:08.83\00:21:10.27
trusting it's going to be there
00:21:10.27\00:21:12.60
and we were always able to pay.
00:21:12.60\00:21:14.10
- Wow. Praise the Lord.
00:21:14.10\00:21:15.77
That's really neat
to see the progression
00:21:15.77\00:21:18.91
or the step-by-step walk
00:21:18.91\00:21:20.94
'cause so many times we
talk about having a faith walk
00:21:20.94\00:21:24.78
and it's some nebulous
thing with no definition.
00:21:24.78\00:21:27.42
It's like what does
that even look like?
00:21:27.42\00:21:29.32
- If you don't know
God, it's frightening.
00:21:29.32\00:21:31.42
- Yeah.
00:21:31.42\00:21:32.22
- Because for us,
00:21:32.22\00:21:33.72
like we're on basically the
edge of bankruptcy every month
00:21:33.72\00:21:38.23
and yet we know that God's
not going to let us go bankrupt.
00:21:40.93\00:21:44.77
This is his work.
00:21:44.77\00:21:46.43
- Right.
00:21:46.43\00:21:47.70
- And so we just
go forward in faith.
00:21:47.70\00:21:49.24
- So Butterfly Paradise,
when you first started it,
00:21:49.24\00:21:53.58
the whole process,
00:21:54.34\00:21:55.64
you thought it was
going to be a financial burden
00:21:55.64\00:21:59.78
or a blessing?
00:21:59.78\00:22:01.25
- Well, I looked at
the figures and said, okay,
00:22:01.25\00:22:02.92
we're having
about 4 million visitors
00:22:02.92\00:22:04.59
coming to Siem Reap a year.
00:22:04.59\00:22:06.22
If we can get 100 a day
to the butterfly garden,
00:22:06.22\00:22:09.82
we will generate enough income
00:22:09.82\00:22:11.53
to cover our
whole ministry needs
00:22:11.53\00:22:15.33
and also expand, we'll
help our other ministries.
00:22:15.33\00:22:20.40
Well God wanted
to teach me something
00:22:21.54\00:22:24.21
and that is that we
don't need to make money
00:22:24.21\00:22:28.54
to keep our ministry going.
00:22:28.54\00:22:29.81
He called us to be faith-based.
00:22:29.81\00:22:32.01
And so we've been
running Butterfly Paradise
00:22:32.01\00:22:35.02
for four years now.
00:22:35.02\00:22:36.52
And to my knowledge we
haven't yet broken even
00:22:36.52\00:22:40.42
on a single month.
00:22:40.42\00:22:42.26
But God has kept us running.
00:22:42.26\00:22:44.06
And through COVID
the country closed down.
00:22:44.06\00:22:48.36
There were no foreign visitors.
00:22:48.36\00:22:50.30
And so for nearly two years
we didn't have foreign visitors.
00:22:50.30\00:22:55.27
We lowered our entry price
00:22:55.27\00:22:57.84
so that the local
Cambodian people could come in.
00:22:57.84\00:23:00.78
And so we charged $2 a person.
00:23:00.78\00:23:02.68
If it's just one person now,
00:23:04.08\00:23:05.35
electricity costs
while they are there,
00:23:05.35\00:23:08.42
running the
waterfalls, et cetera,
00:23:08.42\00:23:09.98
are more than the
ticket price, but God provided.
00:23:09.98\00:23:15.06
So we just kept it
open all through COVID,
00:23:16.09\00:23:18.23
even when we were in a red zone.
00:23:18.23\00:23:20.40
(laughing)
00:23:20.40\00:23:21.83
And God has shown me that
Butterfly Paradise is there to
00:23:21.83\00:23:26.53
show that he is an almighty God
00:23:28.14\00:23:30.74
and that he is a creator God.
00:23:30.74\00:23:32.44
- Right. And it's a testimony
to his greatness as well.
00:23:32.44\00:23:36.08
- It's also providing employment
00:23:36.08\00:23:37.71
for some of our young people
00:23:37.71\00:23:38.68
so they can have employment
00:23:38.68\00:23:40.12
where they're not
required to work on Sabbath.
00:23:40.12\00:23:42.35
And there's a testimony as well
00:23:42.35\00:23:44.82
because they're all
young people out of our school
00:23:44.82\00:23:47.36
that are running
Butterfly Paradise.
00:23:47.36\00:23:49.16
- [Natalie] Mm.
00:23:49.16\00:23:50.63
- Like I've been away
for nearly five weeks now.
00:23:50.63\00:23:51.96
It's my staff that
are keeping it running.
00:23:51.96\00:23:54.20
And God is
equipping them as well
00:23:54.20\00:23:58.13
so that they can run
this tourist industry.
00:23:58.13\00:24:01.27
My manager and is
even 19 or 20 years of age,
00:24:01.27\00:24:05.31
only out of
school for two years now.
00:24:05.31\00:24:08.14
But God is giving her skills
00:24:08.14\00:24:10.71
and helping all the
other staff as well.
00:24:10.71\00:24:13.21
- Okay. So beyond financial,
00:24:13.21\00:24:15.88
what are some of the
lessons of faith you've learned
00:24:15.88\00:24:18.45
over the years in this
walk that you've been having?
00:24:18.45\00:24:21.29
- I think probably
the most valuable one is
00:24:23.16\00:24:26.66
that failure is
not an option for God.
00:24:26.66\00:24:29.70
- Hmm.
00:24:30.50\00:24:31.93
- His problem is not his
resources, his problem is me.
00:24:31.93\00:24:36.40
- Hmm.
00:24:36.81\00:24:37.84
- Because if I don't trust him,
00:24:37.84\00:24:41.48
there's no point in
providing the needs.
00:24:42.84\00:24:47.02
- Mm.
00:24:47.02\00:24:48.25
- So he wants me to
work side by side with him
00:24:48.25\00:24:52.12
and just to trust
him as the one in charge,
00:24:52.12\00:24:55.26
as the one with the
resources and to move forward.
00:24:55.26\00:24:58.83
And if I will go
forward in faith,
00:24:58.83\00:25:01.80
then he will provide
and he's always done that.
00:25:01.80\00:25:05.43
And that's been one of the
things that's been a real joy
00:25:05.43\00:25:08.40
for me, to be at a
partnership with God
00:25:08.40\00:25:11.64
and know that he's
got my back covered
00:25:11.64\00:25:14.68
because it's his work.
00:25:15.68\00:25:17.38
But it's not just
his work, it's our work
00:25:17.38\00:25:20.58
because I'm a child
of God and so I'm working
00:25:20.58\00:25:25.25
with him on his kingdom.
00:25:25.25\00:25:26.72
But it's because I'm his
child, it's my kingdom as well.
00:25:26.72\00:25:29.36
- Right.
00:25:29.36\00:25:30.56
- And that's been a
real joyful thing for me.
00:25:30.56\00:25:32.89
So my challenge has
been obviously not to worry.
00:25:32.89\00:25:37.17
If I worry then
I'm not honoring God
00:25:39.73\00:25:43.84
because it shows
I don't trust him.
00:25:43.84\00:25:45.51
- Hmm.
00:25:45.51\00:25:47.01
- And God has taught me,
don't stress, don't worry.
00:25:47.01\00:25:50.95
Years and years
of experience now
00:25:50.95\00:25:53.18
says that he'll come through
and it in different ways.
00:25:53.18\00:25:56.92
So it might be the weather.
00:25:56.92\00:25:58.49
Sometimes we are doing something
00:25:58.49\00:25:59.92
and we don't need it to rain.
00:25:59.92\00:26:02.29
- Mm hmm.
00:26:02.29\00:26:03.53
- Other times we
do need it to rain
00:26:03.53\00:26:04.76
and we can trust
God to provide for us
00:26:04.76\00:26:06.86
- [Natalie] It will
be the right weather.
00:26:06.86\00:26:08.23
- Yeah.
00:26:08.23\00:26:09.73
- So in all these lessons
that God's been teaching you
00:26:09.73\00:26:11.87
over the years, have
you ever thought about
00:26:11.87\00:26:14.30
what if you said no?
00:26:14.30\00:26:15.87
- Yeah.
00:26:15.87\00:26:17.44
That's one of the most
frightening things to think
00:26:17.44\00:26:19.04
about because I can look at what
God has done with our family
00:26:19.04\00:26:22.11
over the last 30
years in Cambodia.
00:26:22.11\00:26:25.38
And I realize that
through our personal witness,
00:26:25.38\00:26:29.55
through the school, through
our lead training programs,
00:26:29.55\00:26:34.32
God has impacted the
church across the whole country.
00:26:34.32\00:26:37.16
- [Natalie] Mm.
00:26:37.16\00:26:38.09
- And if we had said, no God,
00:26:38.09\00:26:42.06
we are not going
to do that for you,
00:26:42.06\00:26:44.00
then there would probably be
well over a thousand people not
00:26:44.00\00:26:49.07
in the church today.
00:26:49.74\00:26:51.44
And that's, that's
a horrifying thought.
00:26:51.44\00:26:53.61
- [Natalie] Yeah.
00:26:53.61\00:26:55.11
- So I'm so thankful that
God convicted me to say yes
00:26:55.11\00:26:59.41
and to get
involved in this ministry.
00:26:59.41\00:27:01.52
I do have one regret.
00:27:01.52\00:27:04.22
- And what's that?
00:27:04.22\00:27:05.69
- That has taken me so
long to really trust God.
00:27:05.69\00:27:07.46
Because if I had
trusted him back then,
00:27:07.46\00:27:10.83
like I trust him today, he could
have got so much more done.
00:27:10.83\00:27:14.63
- Well thank you
Tim for being here today
00:27:16.00\00:27:18.20
and for sharing the stories
of what God's doing in Cambodia
00:27:18.20\00:27:21.20
and we're
excited for the future.
00:27:21.20\00:27:22.97
- It's a privilege to be here,
00:27:23.77\00:27:25.31
to be able share and hope
the testimony is blessed people.
00:27:25.31\00:27:28.28
- Yeah.
00:27:28.28\00:27:29.21
(gentle music)
00:27:29.21\00:27:30.45
I would like to thank
you for joining us today
00:27:30.45\00:27:31.91
and if you would like to
be a part of this ministry,
00:27:31.91\00:27:34.15
please pray for Tim
and Wendy and his family
00:27:34.15\00:27:37.39
and the workers
there as they endeavor
00:27:37.39\00:27:40.02
with God to reach the
people of Cambodia for eternity.
00:27:40.02\00:27:44.56
If you would like to be
a part of this ministry,
00:27:44.56\00:27:46.43
you can contact us at
Jesus for Asia PO Box 1221,
00:27:46.43\00:27:51.20
Collegedale, Tennessee, 37315.
00:27:51.20\00:27:54.80
Call us at (423) 413-7321
00:27:54.80\00:27:59.21
or visit our
website at Jesus4asia.org.
00:27:59.21\00:28:02.88
May God richly bless you
until we see you next time
00:28:02.88\00:28:06.01
on Jesus for Asia Now.
00:28:06.01\00:28:07.88
(bold music)
00:28:07.88\00:28:10.35