it's hard to believe that it's been 4 months since my feet were walking these streets.. and my life was forever changed. just a little refresher- this tiny alley is tucked away in the small village of Svay Pak just outside of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. in this village, terrible horrible people come from all over the world or just down the street to buy little girls and abuse them.
truly there is not one day that goes by that i don't think about this place. driving to school, drying my hair, walking around target.. i wonder about those little ones whose eyes held mine and whose hands i touched. i wonder if anyone has come to rescue them. i wonder if they have heard about Jesus yet.. if they ever will.
this weekend i found a video online of a recent American man who was in this very village, looking for a 10 year old girl to buy. they don't have enough evidence to find him and arrest him.. so he is still out there, abusing little girls. if you are willing to risk your heart being truly opened to this very REAL issue that is going on in Cambodia and all over this world, you can (should) watch the video here:
i've been reading Compassion by Henri Nouwen, which is blowing away all definitions i ever had of caring for others.. i'll leave you with a quote from his book and pray that it challenges you to consider how you can become a part of something that requires us move into action.. to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. (proverbs 31:8)
"compassion asks us to go where it hurts,
to enter into places of pain,
to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish.
compassion challenges us to cry out with those in misery,
to mourn with those who are lonely,
to weep with those in tears.
compassion requires us to be weak with the weak,
vulnerable with the vulnerable,
and powerless with the powerless..
when we look at compassion this way, it becomes clear that
something more is involved
than a general kindness or tenderheartedness."
-Henri Nouwen
..Lord, teach me compassion.
