Lower Primary Camp Week Reflections 

It was a great pleasure to host a team of 10 from our church in Australia (Wollongong Baptist Church) last week. This great group of people, who are dear friends, led and organised the lower primary camp week. 

Fresh eyes on a community are always welcomed, and I think it’s great as a community to share these reflections with you from the team. Be encouraged that your children at the youngest ages are growing in Christ, and that as a community we are seen as unique. 

Tim Kime (Deputy Primary Principal)

Matt: 

It was such a joy to come to Cambodia with our church team and serve the children and families of HOPE school! I loved seeing the school community centered around Jesus Christ. It is clearly a community of love and support for God’s people as they serve Him in Cambodia.

I had so much fun working alongside our team to teach the children more about God’s amazing promises in the Bible. We had some sickness that caused us a bit of difficulty in running our program; but we were so thankful for the prayer support of the school community.

As a team we pray that the children of HOPE International School remember the amazing promise from God that “If you trust in Jesus you will live in a perfect world with God forever”.

Heidi:

I’ll admit a couple of years ago my knowledge of Cambodia was limited – I knew about the land mines and a genocide carried out in decades gone by. Since visiting HOPE School in January this year my knowledge of Cambodia couldn’t be more different! Angkor Wat was breathtaking, the Tuol Sleng Genocide museum heartbreaking, and seeing Phnom Penh by roof and river left me impressed. Beyond these superficial glimpses I was able to probe deeper into the heart of Cambodia by visiting a few mission/aid projects, experiencing traditional music/dance and trying my tongue at Khmer. All of this helped me understand why HOPE School exists – why so many foreigners choose to make Cambodia home.

I loved the week I spent as a part of HOPE School – I instantly felt welcomed, appreciated and met so many genuinely friendly staff and parents in such a short time. Then there were the kids – what a bright, energetic and caring group of small humans! I was blown away by their knowledge of God and the Bible, by their willingness to make new friends and jump into any and every activity. Even though we were all tired from preparing and delivering the camp program, every moment of it was fun because of how much the kids were enjoying themselves. Their sadness was my sadness when we finally had to say goodbye at the end of the week. 

If I had to choose a highlight, it would have to be the last half-hour of our time with the kids. As we led them in the memory verse they yelled it word-for-word from memory, recited the big promise with no prompting, then sang the songs with the most enthusiasm and the biggest actions I had ever seen. Seeing Cambodia was great, but seeing young lives speaking God’s truths is greater!