Dreams Realised!
As we look back on the final quarter of 2024, we continue to be amazed by a God who can make His dreams become a reality. We saw the completion of the first Iris Harvest School of Missions Phnom Penh and other special moments that have continued to astound us.
The school was full of life-changing moments as students from Cambodia and all over the world came together to seek God’s face and learn together. We were blessed to host visiting speakers and leaders from around the world and we received some incredible teaching and encouragement. On outreaches to our communities, to hospitals, on the streets and in the province, we saw countless lives impacted, with multiple testimonies of healing and many people choosing to receive Jesus as their Lord and Saviour! We are so thankful for all that the Lord has done in this time.
The Harvest School included a 3-day church planting conference with a team from Kingdom Family Movement which was open to other believers in the city. Many of the attendees told us how they were blessed and inspired by this event. We hope we can use what we learned to see even more churches planted throughout Cambodia!
At graduation day the Harvest School students shared testimonies about all that God had done in their lives. Most had truly encountered Jesus’ love for them, and loved Him more than before, and it was thrilling to hear how much they have been transformed. Many had experienced breakthrough, deliverance and reconciliation, and one result of this is increased unity in our own team.
In October we saw another long-time dream realised! For over ten years we have dreamt of having a café, vocational training space and meeting place in the Riverside Area. We found a space for rent on the riverside with a balcony overlooking the river that we felt was perfect. As we were looking around it, we felt peace. It was a step of faith financially, but we trusted God. A couple of days later we heard from a good friend of our team who messaged us about the space and offered to give a very substantial financial gift towards the renovation and renting of the property! The space is a former strip club and when we moved in it had red walls, a bar and a pole dancing stage. Renovations are underway and soon it will be available for very different uses, including vocational training to equip young girls (and boys) with skills and improve their career options. It will also be a meeting space for our community programs and discipleship groups. The redemption of this place is a wonderful reminder of God’s redemption in us! Stay tuned for the opening of the new Café in the first quarter of 2025. You can follow updates on the renovation on @irisphnompenh Instagram or Facebook page or @chomnocoffeeco (also on Instagram).
In December we celebrated Jesus’ birth with Christmas parties in all the communities we serve. Our team put on their usual nativity drama - which seems to be getting more and more hilarious every year - in each location. In some locations groups of children planned and performed their own dance, and every attendee was given a meal and a special gift. In addition to the Christmas parties for children we also celebrated with the adults who have been attending our adult Christian discipleship groups in the same communities.
For the first time our outreach team hosted a Christmas party in a red light area bar location due to favour and a good relationship with the bar manager. Twenty-three girls heard the gospel (along with one male customer who was also present in the bar), as we shared a meal with them and gave them Christmas gifts. It was a joy-filled and unique time. One girl with whom the team has been building a relationship has recently agreed to leave the bars and start a work placement with a partner organisation. Please pray for her health and breakthrough with treatment for her lungs so she can start the placement as soon as possible!
Our team of Social Workers was very busy in the last months of the year working with families and local authorities to protect children. We saw three preventive trafficking rescues in this time. Please pray for the continued safety and protection of children and families in the communities we serve. In December we also had the honour and privilege of baptising some of the adults who have been faithfully attending our discipleship groups – another first! Please pray for the twenty-six adult disciples who chose to be baptized and fully follow Jesus, and all the other new believers being discipled in these communities.
We look back on 2024 with thankfulness and awe of Jesus for all that he has done - much more than we can fit into this update! You can find more in-depth information on the last year in the annual report which was issued in December. This includes financial information, more testimonies, and more reports about the work of Iris Phnom Penh. You can access it here.
Thank you all for your ongoing love, support, and prayers. God truly is a God who can make the dreams He puts into our hearts a reality. We are praying the same for you as we all head into 2025. Happy New Year!
From the Iris Phnom Penh Team
Impact Report from October, November and December