"June 2006 Vision Trip" Newsletter, Vol. 3, No. 2

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

I pray that all is well with you and your family. It has been a very fast year so far for Laurie and me. Three trips to Asia, speaking engagements, ministry events, and – oh, yes – work.

Laurie and I have worked hard and are caught up and in the process of balancing our time with each other, Remember Nhu (R-Nhu), ministry, and work. We will both continue to be busily speaking on behalf of R-Nhu.

June 2006 Vision Trip

During my last trip to SE Asia, we had 24 participants from the Westside Christian High School community (Portland, OR) and 20 people from the 707 group (Cleveland, OH).

The purpose of the trip was to give a vision to people about the problem of the sx trade and what can be done about it. The advisory board of R-Nhu believes the best way to help is to start group homes for children who are at-risk of being sold to or forced into the sx trade.

The Westside group consisted of 13 high school seniors and 11 parents, teachers, and board members. The 707 group consisted of leaders Kasey and Danielle, four people that are interning at Grace Ministries this summer teaching English and computer skills, and 14 members of the 707 group. They were both great groups and a big blessing to many people in Thailand. The teams brought more than 40 suitcases of newer clothes to give to the children of the ministries and villages we visited. This is a blessing to the children, the people of Thailand, and those doing ministry.

Yoke Fong and Charles Harvey, Yaaw, Di, Ewe, Tutu and Luke Bee, and Daniel helped our team with translation. The teams visited Grace Ministry, Asia’s Hope, hill tribe villages, a Buddhist Temple, and an elephant show. We also experienced a great deal of the Thailand culture, got to see a lot of the country, and heard a presentation New Life Center.

The Westside group made a decision to help Grace Ministries build a home in Krasang, Thailand that will initially be used as a training center for R-Nhu house parents and then become a boys’ home for Grace Ministries. The cost will be about $65,000, of which Grace Ministries and Westside will share in the costs. Praise be to the Lord,because this is an example of the things God is putting together – no man could do things such as this!

The 707 group will be meeting here in the States to determine where they go from here. The Lord worked on many of the hearts while in Thailand. Many felt challenged to change in various ways from what they learned on the trip.

Cambodia

Our teams were split up in different directions, so as to not overwhelm any one ministry. During the first three days of the trip, I went to Cambodia to have some meetings and to try to find Nhu.

The Lord, I believe, did give me an idea that may be a better solution. The idea is to start for-profit businesses to pay the workers two to three times the going wage and then when the business is paid off, to give the company to the workers. This would allow us to hire widows, single parents, and children who could go no further educationally. In this way, the people could help themselves and we could help the families, the community, the economy, and the country, as well as keep children out of the sx trade. This can also be self-sustaining and long term without expatriates needing to be there. If you are interested in helping or investing,please let me know.


Meeting Nhu

Most of you know the story of Nhu. Many of you know that I have been back to Cambodia on five different occasions trying to find Nhu. On June 24, I met Nhu for the first time! She is working at a hair and nail salon in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The international Christian worker, Rick Drummond, from whom I had first learned about Nhu’s plight, introduced me to her at about 3 p.m. that day. His wife Beth was also there. It was the first time Nhu had seen Rick in more than two years, and she was excited to see him. So when they introduced me as their friend from the United States, Nhu was polite and said “hello” and then interested in continuing to speak with Rick and Beth. It surprised me that I was not very emotional when I met Nhu. But I knew that I would talk to her later that evening and get a chance to tell her what God had done in my heart in reference to her.

Nhu is now a 17-year old girl with nice clothes, a little bit of make up, and her hair and nails done. She is very skinny like everyone in Cambodia, so I do not have a way to know if she is sick. The time in between when I met her and until evening, I prayed that God would give me the right words to say to Nhu. When the time came at 9:30 p.m. in Rick and Beth’s living room, I felt God’s great peace and guidance.

I started out by telling her that at a conference in November of 2003, I had heard a international Christian worker to Cambodia share the story of a young woman named Chup Ly. When he showed the picture of her just before she died of AIDS, I was shocked at what I saw. The international Christian worker then shared about New Hope and the good things that were happening there. He spoke about a girl who has accepted Jesus as her Savior, gotten baptized, and started sharing her faith publicly. He told how the family did not like her Christianity and would not feed her when she went to church, and how her church family would step in and feed her and care for her. Then the international Christian worker told how while he was home, this young lady’s family sold her to a brothel. As soon as the international Christian worker said that, God spoke quietly to my heart, “Remember Nhu.” And as you know, I told her, that international Christian worker was Rick Drummond. I told Nhu how when God spoke that to my heart and later showed me what He wanted me to do with my life, that I committed to do everything within my power and use every talent and treasure God had given me to make sure that the use of children in the sx trade would stop. Also, I continued telling Nhu, that when God spoke “Remember Nhu” to my heart, that I believe God was telling me to do everything I could to help her.
Nhu was there with the lady who led her to Christ, whose husband is an elder in the church. They were only able to stay for about 45 minutes. So most of the time was spent with me telling Nhu the story of how God spoke “Remember Nhu” to my heart. But during the time I was telling Nhu the story, I saw her eyes well up several times, so I know it touched her heart.

Nhu currently works from 8 a.m. until 8 or 9 p.m. in a hair and nail salon 28 days a month.

One of the things that came out of my trip was the realization that possibly the best way to help keep children out of the sx trade is to start for-profit businesses. This would allow a girl like Nhu to earn to two or three times what she was earning and work less hours. It would also allow us to employ mothers who had children who were at-risk, and prevent them from selling their own children.

God also showed me during this time that I met Nhu that He used Nhu’s tragic story to make the problem real to me. God showed me that it was never about just trying to help Nhu, but it has always been about trying to help the one million children that are sold each year.

Future Trips

Laurie and I plan to go to Asia in late November or early December for three or four weeks. One purpose of the trip would be to take two or three groups that would be interested in learning more about helping us to keep children out of the sx trade. A second purpose would be to further develop relationships with our partners in Asia. We hope a third purpose would be to encourage and help the for-profit businesses as well. If you or your group may have an interest in joining us part of the time during our trip, please let me know as possible. You need to have a passport and Hepatitis A and B shots to go.

New Advances

We have officially signed our first MOU with the Thailand field. The goal is to set up a home for children at-risk in Northeast Thailand with the help of the C&MA. We are starting to take requests to sponsor specific children in this new home that we hope to start before the end of this year.

On our web site you can now give with a VISA or MasterCard. This can be a one-time gift or set up for a monthly deduction.

Thank You

Laurie and I would like to personally thank all of you who support R-Nhu through your prayers, labor, and giving. With your help, we – along with others’ organizations – will do our best to prevent the use of children in the sx trade.