P.O. Box 1668, Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia   T:855.23.211143

5.31.10 Dear Friends, We praise the Lord that the Pepper Enterprise has kicked off. The loan of USD130,000.00 will prayerfully be repaid in 7 years time and thereafter will generate income for church planting in Phnom Penh city. May Crossroads practice good stewardship that each of us will be entrusted with a city in the future. Please pray for Karano as the plantation is mainly supervised by him for now. Last week, a group of well-driller was engaged. Before they commenced their work, they requested for some food sacrifice. Karano responded that he will buy them food for lunch but not to worry about the sacrifice. He also assured them of their safety. They group proceeded thus experienced the protection of our Lord. Karano also reminded the lady employed to watch over the plantation not to do any sacrifices in our land. Please pray that Karano will be light and salt of this land and the surrounding area. He will face countless opposition and we pray for His protection and deliverances. May His wisdom and strength be upon Karano. One and a half years ago, Moonjung mom was diagnosed with cancer. As it is now, she has been treated and has well recovered. Moonjung's mom is now visiting us again, thus give rise to an opportunity to testify of His goodness. Many prayed and placed their trust in the Lord for His mercy and healing. We went through difficult times and witnessed how the body of Christ was our strength and comfort. Her presence and testimony brought much encouragement to us at Crossroads, thus witnessed His mighty power to save for all who seek him. We praise the Lord. Please also pray for her stay here with us that the Lord will also use her to bless us all. Moonjung's mom used to serve amongst cancer patient. She testified that in the past, she would serve effectively and efficiently. But now, having been a cancer patient, she thanked God for empowering her with capacity to care and love the cancer patient in a more holistic manner. Rohaam turned 5 last week. It is amazing as we recounted our blessing. Once was lost... but was then alive. Rohaam means 'Comforting' and we thank God for he is living up to his calling. He is a true encouragement indeed in many ways to many people. I am enclosing herein his favorite - food!!! Please continue to pray for his growth in wisdom and stature, with favor from God and men. We are now developing the 5 church planting teams at the Crossroads. May His spirit lead us as we remain faithful to be in step with Him. Many things we will not know nor understand but we trust that the Lord will accomplish the good things that He has started. Above all, we pray that these students will continue to grow to be Christ centered disciples and that more university students will be saved. Many blessings, David Ooi. 5.27.10 Dear Friends, Dear friends, Earlier this year, after much discussion and encouragement, the leadership team set 3 House Churches. After this teamwork and capacity building retreat, the church set 5!!! Transformation indeed. The Lord is truly transforming people including me. At this milestone, I began to regard them as my teacher. They all have taught me how to be a teacher that model after Christ. Another Transformation!!! Many Blessings, David. 5.10.10 Dear Friends, Praise the Lord for another week, a week with His awesome & amazing work and a week full of His blessings and thanksgiving. He has indeed made known of Himself and we acknowledge Him to be our God(Isa.45:3). First of all, the Crossroads Church has secured a loan of US$130,000.00 to buy a pepper plantation. The loan will be repaid in full by the 7th year through Pepper Enterprise, and thereafter, the church will be able to generate income for church planting(estimated to be 5-7 house churches in Phnom Penh city). We want to take this opportunity to thank many of you who have shown concern about our future undertaking. Let's be in one accord as His work progresses in Cambodia. We thank God that the young Crossroads Church can learn stewardship. Pls pray that the church will be trustworthy in every small matter, that He will grant us to take charge of cities(Lk.19:11-27). Please also pray for wisdom and protection for the land transaction and legal matters as well. Church Planting Retreat 13th to 16th May 2010: In year 2012, there will be 180,000 high school graduates from provinces migrating to Phnom Penh city for higher education. The Crossroads is preparing itself for harvest. For year 2010, we are praying for 3 new church plants. We pray that the Lord will grant us His vision and a heart to build His church for His glory. Please pray for team and capacity building for church planting ministry. 40 people will attend this retreat and everyone has a role to play. Please pray that the Lord will empower these young people for His use. Kuy At Sukrun: We continue to pray for this village. We have a team of 4 going to this village on 16th May for follow up. Please pray for wisdom and relationship opportunity that gospel seeds may be sowed. Some inside story: Ever since their birth, we have been praying consistently for Joey and Rohaam that they will grow in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. We also pray that we will be given the wisdom needed to parent them thus to intervene in every circumstances before it is too late. We want to praise the Lord for Joey is beginning to not only face her life-storm, but also coming out victoriously. Recently, Joey was isolated in school. A girl asked if she has any gift for her but when Joey replied in negative, the girl took another girl away and left Joey alone ¡V 'You play by yourself!' When she came to us, we encouraged her to be a 'good friend'. She was still very much disturbed by her friend¡¦s attitudeƒ¼. Later the day, she wrote a long letter to the girlfriend that was pulled away from her. She wrote that a friend needs to pursue one another. When she gave her the letter, the girl just crumbled it without even reading. That broke Joey's heart. In encouraging her, we took her side. We 'talked bad' about the girl, her ignorant, etc. Joey interjected that our suggestion was not what the bible teaches ¡V We must forgive and not be angry with others. The next day, she went to a Korean church. There, some boys teased her, called her names. She was upset. We asked if they were truly calling her and she affirmed it. We asked, 'Why didn't you tell them to stop... calling name is not funny... . Joey responded, ¡K they are older, and we need to respect them'. We praise the Lord for Joey's ability and determination to apply God's word in her life. We pray that His grace and mercy will be upon her that she will grow in relationship with others thus being a blessing to others through personal relationship. We pray that her life-storm will be a foundation for what the Lord is calling her to be. Many blessings, David Ooi. 5.3.10 Dear Friends, We bring you good tidings - We have found and gathered some Men of Peace at Sukrun Village. We thank you for the much needed prayer. When our plan was falling apart by the second day, the Lord made known to us His promise - I will go before you and make the rough places smooth, I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars. I will give you... in order that you may know that it is I, The Lord, the God of Israel who calls you by your name(Isa.45:2-3). Yes, it is not about we doing the work of God, not about bringing the peace to Kuy people, neither about seeking the Men of Peace. For this instance, His intention and purpose is that we will know and acknowledge(though this trip) the amazing almighty God, our Father in heaven personally. I could imagine the shepherd who watched the sheep at night when angels appeared to them :). Sukrun is a new village not registered by the government yet. There are about 3 clans, about 30 families. This location was a battleground between the Vietnamese soldiers and Khmer Rouge back in the 70s. Upon our delayed arrival, we were welcomed and invited to stay with them. In a short 3 days 2 nights stay, we witnessed the following:- a. The Lord has gone there before us. The elder of the village welcomed us warmly and wanted us to stay with them despite knowing that we are there to share the gospel. b. We happened to know one of the elder's son from another village we visited before at a church meeting. c. We were asked:-   i. What will happen if a husband believed in Christ but not the wife?   ii. How will a believer live in a tradition of animism; can a believer partake in those festive occasions when there are some spiritual rites? At the end of the trip, we identified 4 persons, which will represent 2/3 of the villagers at Sukrun as the Men of Peace. They are the 2 elders and their son respectively, Heng and Phern. Please pray for their growth in faith. We left with them an audio bible each(Matthew till Acts). We trust that when the gospel comes, it comes with word, with power and with the Spirit(I Thes.1:5). We will schedule a return soon for follow up. Once again, thank you for remembering us and joining us in this ministry. We had a few knocks and bruises on the road, 2 escaped an obvious tragic traffic accident, one had a branch fell on him, no sleep at night due to rain and mosquito, living without bathroom in a globalized world, ... the list goes on. But it is all worth it!!! Christ is all and Christ is in all. Praise the Lord. Many blessings. David PS My family, as usual, encountered spiritual attacked several times. This time we came out victorious. I will testify in our next letter. I praise the Lord for Moonjung, Joey and Rohaam. They are spiritual warriors indeed. luke.bryant.smith@gmail.com 4.28.10 Dear Friends, 8 of us are setting out to a new Kuy village - Sukrun. We will be there until May 3. We have no connection, and noting was set up. It is hot and dry season right now. We are concerned with water source, and the tough 6 hours journey in the hot sun. As we go by faith, we believe that the harvest is plentiful. Pls pray that we will be enlightened to release the Kuy people for the oppression of the power of darkness. May He grant miracles that the Men of Peace be found. May He bless us to witness how Satan fall from the sky. In His name. 4.26.10 Dear Friends, Pepper Enterprise: The Lord has amazingly led us to a pepper plantation that is for sale - USD130,000.00. it is about 1.9 hectar with about 3000 pepper plants in it. We are seeking a loan of USD130,000.00 to be secured in 3 weeks' time to purchase the land. This will enable us to repay in 7 years and thereafter, will generate funds for church planting - estimating a support of 10 House Churches. Please pray for us, for wisdom in administrating His wealth, and the funds as well. The Lord has been gracious in leading us to several other enterprises that will be a better platform for discipleship and character building. The Crossroads' vision of Rebuilding and Restoring Cambodia is gaining momentum in reality. Please pray that the eyes of our hearts may be enlightened in order that we may know 1)the hope to which He has called us, 2)the riches of His glorious inheritance in us, and 3)His incomparably great power for us. Evangelizing to parents: 2 weeks ago, the Crossroads went out in groups to reach out to their parents. Besides thanking the parents for their love and sacrifice, students intentionally spoke to their parents about Jesus. We do understand that we cannot rush their salvation, but we see the necessity in sowing the gospel seeds in their lives. We hold on to the promise that salvation will come to the household and trust that the Spirit will work on it. We will appreciate your prayer. Many blessings, David Ooi. 4.19.10 Dear Friends, Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. Psalm 126:4-6. The weather is a bit 'gloomy' at the Crossroads. Many are weary and heavy laden and the excessive amount of work is overtaking us. In this month, many felt a sense of 'held back' spiritually. Many things are happening for us to witness the reality and ferociousness of spiritual attack. The fact is that we are now in the sowing season. Sowing is never fun or joyful. Farmers are uncertain on when to sow after the El Nino effect. When will the rain come? Sowing is also sacrificial. Farmers have not sufficient to eat from last year's harvest, yet they have to set aside enough seed for sowing this season. Further, sowing is fearful as no one can guarantee reaping and no one knows how the seed sprouts. Hence, the farmers sow in tears. I guess that is exactly the situation at the Crossroads now. It is a sowing season, and we are stretched to give beyond ourselves. Students went out to shared the gospel with their parents(an act against culture but in obedience to the Lord), and their friends. Some are preparing to plant another House Church soon, while some others are going to find the Men of Peace. We all are holding onto the hope that we will all return with songs of joy in due course. Please remember and intercede for our obedience to the Great Commission. Many blessings. 4.17.10 Urgent Prayer Request for Xroads Dear Friends, Several weeks ago, we shared about Nora's conversion(dated Mar 22, 2010). Last week, Nora went back home and was told by his parents that he can no longer stay at Xroads if he still continue with his faith. Apparently, his grandmother is an influential leader of a temple and is very dominant figure in his family. Please pray for comfort for Nora that this trial will be overcome by faith. We believe that he has been chosen and that he has been called to do good work in Christ. Pls pray that Nora will be able to witness the power of resurrection win over the power of darkness. Students will be coming back tomorrow. Please pray for journey mercy as they leave their love ones behind. May we all find strength in uniting our hearts and minds in Christ as we continue to journey at the Crossroads. We have much to do as we set up the mission team to Kuy; leadership retreat in mid-May, etc. At the Crossroads, we will also be confronting some spiritual issues that have arisen recently. Sin has to be dealt with for the church to grow. May the power and blood of the Cross protect us as we enter a process of purification. We trust that by glazing on His holiness will rejuvenate us for His purpose. Please pray for His forgiveness, healing, reconciliation, and the grace and mercy that His righteousness and glory may be manifested to the world. We pray that our mourning will be turned into joy and celebration by His grace. 3.29.10 Dear Friends, We are the Ekklesia, being the 'called out'. As we exist to glorify God, it is through the church that we shall glorify Him. We thank God for this vision that we hold close to our hearts knowing that this is also God's will. Please pray that we all will be faithful in going out to 'Call out' the others who are still in darkness. May the 'Calling Out' activity never cease at the Crossroads. The Vietnam trip last week went well. As I traveled, I was meditating on why David was able to defeat Goliath despite his 'nothingness'. The gracious Lord then reminded me if my heart/mind was a God-Dominated or Goliath-Dominated. Instantaneously, my fear and weary was taken off. Indeed, this day the Lord will hand over 'the lost' to us. I rejoice to share with you that our prayer and missions effort has been answered. The Lord has already paved a way for us to set up House Churches in Ho Chi Minh City. We ask for your support in prayer and finance as well. The Kuy team is ready to explore more villages nearby the vicinity where we are focusing. A part of the team will also do follow up at Snaur Village. Please pray for the Men of Peace's and some other brothers and sisters spiritual growth. We ask you to intercede on miracles and power encounter that will cause conversion amongst the Kuy people. Please pray for protection, grace and mercy for Karano as He leads the team. On a personal note, Rohaam was injured while I was away to Vietnam. He has a cut under his chin and had to be glued. It will certainly leave a scar :(. After years of service and ministry, it appears that the enemy continually to wreck havoc on my family to distract me. It often frustrated and disheartened me in my journey as I, as a husband and a father, feel helpless in protecting them. I seek your understanding in battling as we focus on the Kingdom work. Many blessings. 3.22.10 Dear Friends, A team from the Xroads will visit our friends in Ho Chi Minh(HCM) City from 17-19th Mar. The purpose is to explore and to seek the Lord's direction in reaching out to University students in HCM. Please pray for us - Wisdom and spirit of discernment that will lead us to His will. May the Lord commission His angel to go before us. Last week, we asked prayer for Nora whose faith was persecuted by his family. The Lord is good and yesterday, Nora testified of His truth and goodness, thus made a decision to accept Jesus as his personal Savior. We praise the Lord for another celebration in heaven :) Please do continue to pray for the new converts that their faith will continue to grow into His likeness. May they hunger for His truth as they enjoy their intimacy with the Lord. Life ahead will be tough and challenging. We anticipate hardship and discouragement rushing in the next few weeks. Please also pray for their future leadership in House Church planting. We trust that the Lord has amazing and wonderful plan for each of them for His own glory. The Xroads will send out an explorer team for Kuy ministry in early April. This is to search and determine location of Kuy villages nearby the one we went last year(Snaur Village). Karano will lead a team thereafter to find Men of Peace in 2nd week of May 2010. Many blessings, David Ooi. 3.15.10 Dear Friends, Peter was amongst the Twelve. He was a follower with hope and Jesus' teaching. His knowledge of Christ led him to profess that Jesus is the Son of the Living God. Unfortunately, his mere knowledge failed him and thereafter 3 times he disowned Christ. His hope died, and so was all his association with Christ. After Jesus' resurrection, Peter was restored. By the grace of the Lord, he began to accomplish what the Lord had proclaimed ¡V On this rock, I shall build the church(Mt.16:18). Peter wrote in his epistle on how we are all, like him, a royal priesthood. Peter wrote of the living hope(I Pet. 1:3), the living and enduring word(I Pet. 1:23), and ultimately, the living stones(I Pet. 2:5). Peter certainly testified the fact of us being alive in Him. Please watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYInG20O9eE. Many blessings, David Ooi. 3.9.10 2.15.10 Dear Friends, 'Dryness' is essential for root to grow deeper. A dry spell in life is, therefore, pivotal in our spiritual growth on the condition that we are spiritually guided and nurtured. As we desire for spiritual growth, let us not take short cut to avoid the path of 'dryness' or draught, but through them, let our hearts be filled with praise and thanksgivings. As David said in his psalm - My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees. Please pray that as the students is being rooted in Christ, their worldview also be transformed to be like Him thus to see and witness the power of gospel in their lives daily. May they be faithful in bearing their cross daily as they journey in the world that has rejected Christ our Master. It shall be painful, but it shall be worth it. May the Lord continue to create and put His praise in our hearts, always. Many blessings, David Ooi. 2.8.10 Dear Friends, We praise the Lord for hearts who desired for unity. The Apostle Paul discipled churches in Ephesus and Colossae to be more like Christ. He taught them the methods of to "Put on and Put off" that we may continuously be renewed by Him. How can we love one another? How can we live in unity despite our differences? The answer lies in the Cross - The Sacrificial Life. As the Crossroads "Managing Forward"(theme for 2010-11), it needs to be broken that the Lord can build a greater Crossroads for His use. Please PRAY for the leadership team, that we strive for His greatness, that we are all willing to desire for His growth for us, and thereby submission to one another. Please also pray for healing and restoration that we can allow His fragrance to flow out from each and every one of us. May students learn not only be desire for independent(being able individually) but to be interdependent in the process of submission to one another under His authority. Please pray for students reaching out to their families and friends. May they be granted with wisdom to impart His knowledge and wisdom to their families and friends, and more than that, may the Holy Spirit work to draw their families and friends to God. Many blessings, David Ooi. 2.1.10 Dear Friends, House Churches - From Occupation to Expansion: One of the warriors of old made this statement: "The purpose of war is victory, and the purpose of victory is occupation." In the Kingdom(House Church Planting), we add one more step to the process: The purpose of occupation is expansion. The Lord would not give the Promised Land to Israel all at once because they did not have the ability to occupy all of the territory. By only giving them the amount of land they could occupy, He positioned them for expansion. Expansion is vital to advancing the Kingdom of Heaven. The man who was given the one talent and buried it simply occupied and protected that accomplishment but suffered tremendously because he did not take what he had and position it for increase (Matthew 25:15-28). Please pray for hearts to occupy and to expand at the Xroads. It is not about 1, 2 or 5 more, but truly, it is about aheart to expand so that by the grace of the Lord and by the leading of the Holy Spirit, Xroads leadership will establish churches and expand His kingdom according to His will. May the Xroads desire excellent ¡V A godly passion, that will enable us to abide in the Spirit. Herein is a video clip of our worship on 31st Jan 2010. Jesus, Oh, Jesus, Come and fill your lamb! http://www.vimeo.com/9116862. Many blessings, David Ooi. 1.25.10 Dear Friends, Church in Globalization: We have heard about 'Globalization'. There is the characteristics of multi-cultural, multi-racial, multi-lingual, more knowledge, more skill required, more business opportunity, etc. in places we lived at. At Xroads, interestingly, 6-7 nations were represented in worship every Sunday. Globalization is not new but God has manifested to us human from almost the beginning. However, what is important for us, His church, is to distinguish world globalization and God Globalization(Col.3:9-17). In the former, there is increasing injustice, unequal wealth distribution, disparity of wealth and oppression, corruption, etc. But in God globalization, because of Christ is all and in all, there is peace and unity. Hence, let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts for God Globalization. Despite a generally more passive inclined personality, persecution from friends, the Xroads press on its students on relationship building with non-believing friends. Jesus said that there are sheep outside His sheep pen that He must bring them also. Please pray for faithful friendship building; demonstration of Christ love by students despite persecution, and that sheep outside will also listen to His voice. The girl students had a one night sleep over together. Moonjung led them in activities and lessons on relationship building and the necessity of inter-dependence in order to manifest the beauty as Christ bridesmaid. Please p ray that the Lord will continue to create in them a hunger on such godly beauty, that they will not conform to the world but be transformed by His truth. Kuy Ministry: This week, David and Rathana will explore another location where the Kuy people reside. We hope to seek His will for us thus to determine the exact location by end this month by the church as a body. Thereafter, we will proceed to seek Men of Peace and church planting. Please pray for guidance, journey protection, a heart of discernment to the leading of the Holy Spirit for decision making. Many blessings, David Ooi. 1.18.10 Dear Friends, Working is Worship... When God created Garden of Eden, He placed man to tend and watch over it. His work was to take care and watch over it. That stewardship, performed with due diligence, is pleasing in God's sight. As he was being fruitful and multiplied, the man was being obedient and faithful in the work. As such the work is an act of worship to God. The Crossroads is committed to 'Manage Forward', a purpose statement that will steer our hearts to graze on the word of God thus to apply them in missions - To Rebuild and restore Cambodia. This will also synchronize Enterprising Ministry that has been developed and being integrated into our vision. Above all, we desire to develop Christ centered disciples that will glorify the Lord in all they do every day. Please pray for wisdom for leadership, unity of minds, and sacrificial of hearts for His glory. Karanin's first harvest had just passed by. As the harvest was approaching, the crops we attacked by disease. A further blow was inflicted when the market price for Taro dropped due to market price manipulation. In certain ways, the enterprise suffered a slight loss though we have learned much. Two issues that are worth mentioning by the first harvest:- 1. Karanin's father(a strong animist) acknowledged that his god is not powerful enough, and came to seek refuge in our God. He came to church times for prayer to our God. Is the financial loss worth it? 2. Enterprise is a mean that God uses to be bless us, but its primary focus still remain - Man exist to worship and praise Him. In all circumstance, Karanin has consistently demonstrated his genuine and trusting faith in God, on why we all exist. We joined him to Praise the Lord. New students continue to learn and grow in faith. However, each time whenever they are bracing themselves to confess and proclaim His name, they would be spiritually attacked. Their family, friends, physical health, personal fear and worry have been some forms of restrain. Please pray for wisdom in knowing how to lead them to the Lord thus be free of all bondages and ungodly soul ties. Pray for courage that they will take the first step of faith in the Lord despite the restraints. House Churches We desire to plant three(3) house churches for year 2010, if not, more :). Please pray for us, for leaders to come forward and for opportunity(resources and location) in renting more premises in Phnom Penh. Our family is being stretched at the moment. Just for the month of January, David will be out for almost 2 weeks. We would appreciate if you could stand in the gap. The home-schooling may be tough, but it has been rewarding. Joey's increased in knowledge has enabled us(Mj and I) to engage more with her. We rejoice to witness her growth in knowledge, spiritually and physically. Please pray for Moonjung that she will continue to find strength and wisdom thus to experience God in home-schooling process. It has been a tough work(recently went through syllabus shock as Joey commences 3rd grade!!!). Rohaam continues to amaze us in character building. He is very good in UNO. Many blessings, David, Moonjung, Joey and Rohaam Ooi. 1.9.10 Dear Friends, I am bringing to a closure what had transpired to be an eventful week at the Crossroads. Year 2010 has began with a storm. And I love good endings. So, uncle Hun's daughter has been set free. They are both with us tonight before returning to their village. Thank you for prayer. The Lord protected us from the 'gangster', and has certainly revealed himself to uncle Hun on His grace and mercy and His sovereignty as well. Please pray that the Holy Spirit to work in uncle Hun's heart that he will not only accept Christ as his personal savior, but also renounce all the spirits and power of darkness he has been related to. Thank you. 1.7.10 Dear Friends, We thank you for your support and prayer. We also thank and praise the Lord for a precious experiential trip to check out Kuy villages in Chey Saen District, Preah Vihear. This is apparently a location where most Kuy people is congregating. There were many Kuy villages we saw on the road. We came to a village name Thmea. There are more than 300 families in this village alone. Interestingly, there is a school(more than 600 kids) but only till grade 5(bearing in mind that in Cambodia, literacy begins only at end of grade 3 averagely). There are ONLY 5 teachers but they do not consistently show up. The teacher-student ratio is challenging indeed. Pls watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIsziugv6Vo Unlike the usual Kuy villages, this village has sufficient land and paddy is mainly cultivated. They apparently have a good harvest this year. Another interesting characteristic of this village(around this location) is that the young people usually do not migrate to city or other larger town for job opportunity. One of the main reason is that the village is too remote and hard for traveling. The road is indeed hard and would be impossible if rain falls. In all, there are sufficient opportunity in favor of the gospel. The people appears to be receptive and the best is probably Buddhism influence has not been established there yet. The question now is how and who shall go for the Lord? Please continue to pray as we seek the Lord. We will make a decision in the next couple of weeks. Please pray for the church as a whole for wisdom, discernment in decision making. Lastly, thanks for your respond to my earlier request. I am still coughing and is recovering slowly. As for Uncle Hun's daughter, unfortunately we still have no news yet. Still, we know that the Lord sovereignty is evident, especially on how we can work with His Spirit to bring glory unto Him. In His Name and blessings, David Ooi. 1.4.10 Our men of peace is facing great trial. His daughter was enticed and 'sold'. Please pray for God's intervention. Pray for uncle Hun to encounter and experience God that his faith be increased. He said that he's been praying. We've proceeded to spy Chae Saen. The team is doing well. Please pray for wisdom, protection, discernment and His guidance on salvation to Kuy. Thanks. 1.3.10 Dear friends, We are setting out to spy Kuy Villages at Chay Saen District. Our purpose is merely to know the place and find opportunity to penetrate to be in relationship amongst them. This is the heart of Kuy people location as obviously the power of darkness has been fully alerted. Let's put on the armor of God(Eph 5:12). David has been down with fever since yesterday. It will be physically challenging to handle the 12 hours journey. We trust that He is leading and we have therefore gone not my our might, not by our name but by His Spirit. We will keep you inform. David 1.1.10 Dear friends, Year 2009, though uncertain when we embarked upon, has been filled with His amazing handiwork. Enterprise and Kuy people ministry, and the Crossroads' constant focus on His word and prayer, has opened up our eyes to exclaim praises to our LORD. We praise the Lord for His goodness to the Crossroads. How can I repay the LORD for all His goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of His people. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints(Ps.116:12-15). A new chapter for year 2010 - MANAGING FORWARD! What's next? In Year 2010, we need to be organized, yet not compromising His leadership and guidance, thus to constantly abiding with the Holy Spirit. Our theme for year 2010 - Managing Forward - will lead us to concentrate on His word and prayer, that the LORD will fill us all with wisdom and with full of His Spirit to administer all that He has given us and to multiply His blessing. Please pray for us. Kuy Ministry The Lord is leading us to check out the land where Kuy people is concentrating in Cambodia. This location in Chasaen District is about 12 hours motorbike ride from Phnom Penh. On 4th Jan 2010, the survey team(David, Karano, Bora and Borei) will spy the land. This survey will help the Crossroads to decide and administer Kuy ministry which the Lord has entrusted the Crossroads more efficiently. We desire and ask that more Kuy churches be planted in 2010. Please pray for journey mercy, for protection from the power of darkness, and wisdom and discernment in decision making. Our Christmas celebration has led us to more ministry opportunity. Please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij4i568Aj7Q We would appreciate your prayer that the Holy Spirit will keep working in their hearts thus enabling them the counter-culture boldness to profess their faith in Christ. Thank you, and have a blessed new year. Many blessings, David, Moonjung, Joey and Rohaam Ooi. 12.20.09 Dear friends, As I am preparing to write my last report for year 2009, I was asked - What was one of the accomplishments for year 2009? A church plant at Cana House, Kuy ministry, ministry at Mekong University, various Enterprises, continuing maturity of leaders and more leaders at Xroads, conversions of students, etc. God has indeed been so faithful, excessively good and kind to us. He has enabled us to grow in favor with Him and with men. I was led to scroll down my address book only to realized how many hundreds, thousands of people I need to thank. Without you, we couldn't have come this far. You have been faithful to us both in good and hard times, and you have been His strength for us to thrive on in Cambodia. You know, it is very close to a decade now. David Ooi. 12.14.09 Dear friends, It is Christmas season. Sothea and Sothea are leading and preparing evangelistic meetings at the Crossroads. We praise and thank the Lord for their leadership that will lead to sowing the gospel seeds to many students. Please pray for the coming Sunday meetings that we will not merely be accurate in gospel presentation but also relational in bridging the gospel to our friends. Coinciding with this season greetings, new students are making important decision of the life - Surrendering their lives to Jesus. Last week, Susdey(far right) confessed with her mouth that Jesus is Lord and believed in her heart that God has raised Jesus from the death. Please pray for her growing faith; and please also pray for the others with the courage to put their trust in God. The leadership team is also busy in wrapping up 2009 and planning for 2010. This year, the Crossroads has had many pleasant surprises. Enterprise and Kuy people ministry have shaped the Crossroads in rebuilding and restoring Cambodia. May our theme next year ¡V Managing Forward, be used by God to raise and propel more leaders to impact and be influential to this nation. Please pray for His righteousness to rise from within us and that His holiness will always reside in the church. Many blessings, David Ooi. 12.7.09 Dear friends, We got back at Crossroads on Monday midnight. We were all tired but His strength enabled us to press on. The physical weariness in nothing compared to His goodness and faithfulness to us ever since we embarked upon this two months journey. Thank you for all the support and prayer. To those whom we met while at US, may His blessing prosper and enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. At Crossroads, His seeds continue grow. Some are sprouting. Some are already bearing fruit while others are already multiplying. We praise the Lord for the leadership team, for individual commitment and above all, for His graciousness in protecting and delivering these young believers. We thank Him for all the blessing of miracles given for us to witness daily. Indeed, Jesus in alive in them all!!! Since October 2009, we have accepted a total of 17 new students, both Pillars and Crossroads combined. This is obviously the largest number of intake at and we anticipate for more to come. In 2011, there will be 180,000(govt. estimation) high school leavers coming to Phnom Penh for higher education. The Crossroads ministry is now more intensified to raise more leaders to plant for house churches in Phnom Penh. Now is the time ¡V For I am going to do something in your days that you will not believe, even if you were told Hab. 1:5. We thank God for He has entrusted us with all these precious lives. Please pray that we will be faithful to nurture and raise them to be future leaders of this suffering nation. Pls pray for Rathana as he walked them through Genesis to Revelation everyday. Pls pray for their salvation and salvation to their household. Pls pray that this heart will be like good soil and will bear fruit many folds for His glory(There have been many spiritual interventions to their faith). The Enterprise Ministry continues to testify to the Lord. Just as we have had anticipated, His blessing has bring forth many lessons, not mere pleasure for us(a recurring lesson from the Old Testament). The Crossroads has been so blessed to witness His work amongst us through the lives of Mesa, Bora, Karanin, and Sothea. These called ones have taken discipleship and leadership to another level by His grace. Many blessings, David Ooi. 11.3.09 Dear friends, Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. Pro 14:4. We often want strategic and effective planning. We don't want inconvenience. We certainly don't want to be threaten by authority(Go to Jail). In his heart, a man plans his course, but the Lord determine his steps. Thank you for your prayer and support. After the last request on immigration, we were alerted thus enjoyed His journey of grace. We witnessed His abundant blessing outpouring for us. Thank you for your care and concern. Your oneness with us and with Him is is tremendously precious beyond our description. The immigration issue was like the Macedonian Man. By His grace, things are now getting back slowly in His order as we have been directed to His path and His providence. God is good. David Ooi. 10.26.09 Project GO Kuy people is mostly illiterate and is without a bible in their own language. As we are praying for Abundant Gospel Sowing amongst Kuy people, we have been envisioned with Project Gospel Ox-cart(GO!). One of the main occupation for Kuy men is ox-carting, carrying the fruit of their labor(i.e pic left below). These people travel a lot and would need 'companionship' for travel. We have been led to buy a machine/speaker that we can insert memory cards that will be downloaded with the gospel of John in Khmer language. As we have been sending out teams every alternate week, we are planning for some team members to be traveling companion with the Ox-cart rider. He will be playing bible stories to sow gospel seeds in them and people around. Please pray that God will use Project GO to spread His words thus to build His church amongst Kuy people. A speaker and a memory card will cost about USD25.00. We are contemplating to purchase 50 units that eventually we will be giving to some Kuy people the machine with Khmer New Testament in Audio downloaded in the machine(unfortunately, there is no Khmer OT yet at the moment). The recipients will be people who have shown interest to know more about Him, and are potentially Man of Peace. We will then follow up that with pictorial Bible story-telling of the Old Testament that will eventually lead to a church plant. In essence, the strategy/plan is as follow:- PHASES GOAL AND PURPOSE STRATEGY/METHODS Phase I Abundant Gospel Sowing thus to identifying the Man of Peace Project GO Phase II Distribution of Machine to listen Gospel of John Listen to Gospel of John many times Phase III Bible story and telling Old Testament Pictorial Bible Story Phase IV Developing faith Listen to Acts Phase V Church Planting Multiplying Phase I The Lord has been leading to identify the 'Man of Peace' recently. In respond, we are working with Him towards evangelization of many more Kuy villages. We trust that by equipping the Man of Peace, they will multiply thus to channel His blessing to their own villages and tribe eventually. NEXT: Cow-banks and agri-cultural projects for poverty elevation. Keep a look out for our coming publication. 10.19.09 Dear friends, It has been 2 weekends in US. The meetings at Bayside, NY and Rockville, MD have been awesome. God has been presence to shower His blessing to all at the meeting. Please continue to uphold us as we move to Rutgers, NJ this week, and San Jose and Los Angeles, LA thereafter. May the Lord grant us wisdom to channel His blessing to His Church. While coming into US, David had some immigration trouble. The Lord had mercy and let us slide through the immigration but with condition to be complied. David would need to apply for Re-Entry Permit if he is to enter US again in the future. Please pray for the USCIS to call up for Finger-printing asap that we can continue our traveling ministry in US and to depart for Cambodia accordingly. As it is, David will have to travel to the West Coast for ministry without Moonjung, Joey and Rohaam. Above all, please pray for our understanding on why the 'inconvenience is caused'. The Crossroads is doing well. The number of new student intake has been the largest ever. We will send you their photos and names in the next publication. Please PRAY for Sothea as he will be teaching on 'Life-skill' and its importance for the university students. Sothea has just started his enterprise for missions. May the Lord grant him wisdom and strength to abide by the Spirit to minister to University through as Adam was in the Garden of Eden(Gen.2:15). Meanwhile, we pray for Kuy ministry. Crossroads has been sending teams of 4-5 people every alternate week to develop relationship with uncle Hun(the Man of Peace), especially in imparting His words to him. Please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRVXwdHIKsg to have a glimpse of the ministry. Many blessings, David Ooi. 10.5.09 Dear friends, When Typhoon Ketsana came recently, a team of us was caught by it on our visit to Snaur Villag( where the Kuy people lives). The Lord opened our hearts and eyes and realized the desperate need of uncle Hun, our Men of Peace. The roof was leaking and throughout the storm, his family has no shelter to sleep under. A few of us slept in a wet hammock under his house. In the cold, I prayed and pondered upon His cry and what He would want us to do for this village. Please pray for wisdom as we become a channel of blessing for uncle Hun and this village. Uncle Hun continued to learn His word, thus is increasing in faith. When I was going through some bible pictures in the New Testament, he would even remember which chapter in the gospel of John. We really regret that there is no Old Testament audio bible in Khmer language. Still, be praying as we will send team to be with uncle Hun every alternate week. Please pray for the Men of Peace to be equipped in His word. (He is now listening to the book of Acts). Please also pray that more Men of Peace be found and that a community of Christ be established at Snaur village. We are leaving for US tonight to minister there for 6 weeks ¡V New York, Washington DC, Baltimore, New Jersey, San Jose, and Los Angeles. We will also spend a week in South Korea. Please pray for journey mercy and wisdom and strength as we serve as a family. May we be a blessing to others, to impart a kingdom heart unto people we meet. We will update you all as we move from place to place. We will be back in Cambodia on Nov 18, 2009. Many blessings, David Ooi. 9.28.09 Dear friends, 'The highest love of all finds its fulfillment not in what it keeps but in what it gives.' There are many things to which we cannot see the answer, but we can learn from our Lord to go without an answer. Let us bring our questioning to the Cross, and we can see in the light of His passion the way of beauty leading onwards through the darkness, and we can trust that that way of beauty leads onwards and upwards to God. PRAISE THE LORD. Last week, the Crossroads re-consolidate its church planting strategy in Phnom Penh city. With the influx or student migration(estimated to be about 180,000 high school graduate coming into the city for their tertiary education), the Crossroads is equipping itself with a Master Plan that more Christ centered disciples be raised through house church planting. As we lay this Master Plan on the altar, may the Lord be pleased and use it for His glory. Kuy Missions: A question was posed for the children at the village - What is your ambition? Here is a list of answers we got:- a. A shepherd boy; b. A woodcutter; c. Farmer; d. An ox-cart rider; e. A laborer; f. A Hunter. Do we all remember our ambition at one point or another of our lives? I am pondering if the children's ambition would be the same if Jesus lives in them. Please PRAY that their lives to be used by Him for His kingdom at wherever they are. Many blessings, David Ooi. 9.14.09 Dear friends, In end year 2008, we came to contact with Kuy people, an unreached people group. In Feb 2009, a scout team from Crossroads was sent out to find and determine the location of Kuy people which we shall reach out. There was great commitment and intercession that the Lord would lead us to not only a Kuy village, but also for the 'Men of Peace'. The scout team came back with a location of 3 villages in triangle and needed aid in children education. In May 2008, another team was sent out to make way for Abundant Gospel Sowing scheduled in end Aug 2009. We consulted the chief village to teach the children and lived with in the village for 2 weeks. He gladly approved. On 29th Aug 2009, 16 people were commissioned to the Kuy village ¡V Mission: Finding Men of Peace. We want to praise the Lord, and we invite you to do the same, for our Faithful God, the everlasting God that we worship is ever so faithful ¡V Psalm 145:1-7 1    I will exalt you, my God and King, and praise your name forever and ever. 2    I will praise you every day; yes, I will praise you forever. 3    Great is the LORD! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness. 4    Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts; let them proclaim your power. 5    I will meditate* on your majestic, glorious splendor and your wonderful miracles. 6    Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue; I will proclaim your greatness. 7    Everyone will share the story of your wonderful goodness; they will sing with joy about your righteousness. Please continue to pray for Kuy people. We trust that the Lord will lead us to many more Men of Peace that will eventually led to more Kuy villages being saved. Please pray for wisdom, and faithfulness at the Crossroads that the Great Commission will be accomplished. Many blessings, David Ooi. 8.28.09 Dear friends, Attached is our strategy as we are sent out. Please pray that 'Satan will fall like lightning from heaven' (Lk.10:18). Please pray that all power from the enemy will be defeated by His authority, that nothing will harm us (Lk.10:19). May we rejoice that our names are written in heaven (Lk.10:20). May we praise our Father for all things (Lk.10:21) and may we be blessed for all that we see and hear (Lk.10:23). 8.24.09 Dear friends, If there is something you can support us - prayer! If there is something you can encourage us - prayer! If there is something we really need - prayer! If there is something we will trade in for now - prayer! The war has intensified!!! 8.17.09 Dear friends, We embarked upon Taro enterprise 5 months ago and are expecting harvest in over a month's time. God is good all the time. Then the 'unexpected' came ¡V An unknown disease struck the whole taro plantation. 'Everything is dead, no god can help us now', came the word from Karanin's father who has been a strong animist. 'Who will stand in the gap for me'? When we were reminded of why we approved and embarked on the enterprise ¡V Salvation to the Household ¡V Karanin witnessed to us that his faith didn't wavered at all. Instead, he told his father to ask our God to help. We now need your intercession for His intervention. We trust that our Father wants to make Karanin 'rich' but more abundantly, our Father wants Karanin's family to be saved. May our Father also empower the church that our focus in Him will transform us into His beautiful bride. The Crossroads is preparing a team to Kuy People end this month. May the hearts be girded by His word; may He commission His angels to go before us to prepare the place, especially the heart of the villagers. Please also pray that the team will also have a kingdom mind-set - not putting new wine in an old wineskin. With His authority, may they be empowered to go forth in faith to preach the gospel. Please pray for the Ooi's family. We are already reaping the reward of home-schooling. It is such a delight to see children growing in their faith in the Lord. Their simplicity and trust in the Lord has been our joy and praises and thanksgiving. David and Moonjung are faithfully discipling the students, especially the new tier leadership team at the Crossroads. The workload is overwhelming at the moment and we would need more strength, more grace and mercy for our inadequateness. Please do remember us often. Many blessings, David Ooi. 8.10.09 Dear friends, Dear friends, Last week, we enjoyed a time of purification and empowerment. All prayer requests were answered and we literally saw Satan fell like lightning from heaven. One's desire for holiness is like ripples on the water and we only regret that we didn't ask for 'waves'. So, may our faith be increased. Anyway, we all rejoiced for our names are written in heaven. Praise the Lord. Many blessings, David. 8.2.09 Dear friends, Marriage is more than a sacred covenant with another person. It is a spiritual discipline designed to help you know God better, trust Him more fully, and love Him more deeply - Gary Thomas, author of Sacred Marriage. As we commence workshop on MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, would you please pray that God has designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy. With so much brokenness in marriage and family, causing so many relationship to be so dysfunctional, may His word, through marriage and family building, be the foundation of REBUILDING AND RESTORING CAMBODIA. Many blessings, David Ooi. 7.26.09 Dear friends, "Your eye is a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light. But when it is bad, your body is filled with darkness. Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness. If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light." O Lord, open the eyes of our hearts to see the supreme greatness of your wisdom and power. Make our eyes good. Heal our blindness. Fill us with the all-pervading, all-exposing, all-purifying, all-pleasing light of your presence. 7.20.09 Dear friends, As the Crossroads continue to grow in His holiness, the conflict with Satan's forces also increased. Recently, a plan to purchase a plot of land for enterprise purpose was thwarted by the death of the landowner just as the decision to purchase was made. We were called to be alert and to consecrate ourselves again. God has been gracious and merciful in sheltering us from the wreckage by the power of darkness, as well as enabling us to have a pure heart for Him. Praise the Lord. Prayer Points:- 1. Students Spiritual Growth: a. We have been studying on the path into His kingdom(Matthew) that the road is narrow, full of hardship, persecution, even to the point of death. Please pray for strength and wisdom to comprehend His word, thus to persevere as a Christ-centered disciples. b. A trust and abide in with the Holy Spirit in every day, in every circumstance, to please God and to glorify Him. 2. Mission Teams at Crossroads: a. From 3rd ¡V 10th Aug, a mission team will lead a seminar on Dating, Marriage and Family life. Please pray that the Crossroads will continue to grow on the God-ordained marriage, relationships and community life. b. From 15th ¡V 23rd Aug, a mission team will conduct a seminar on Leadership at Mekong University. This will be our bridge to plant a church near the university - The House of Encouragement. 3. Kuy People: a. 29th Aug ¡V 12th Sept, Crossroads mission team will set out to seek the 'Men of Peace' amongst the Kuy People. There are 3 villages which we the team will live with them(Luke 10:5-7). b. Please pray for team preparation; journey to the villages(7-8 hours); His protection from opposition and wisdom to trust and abide by the Holy Spirit. 4. Crossroads ASEAN: Please continue to pray for our friends in Yangon, Ho Chi Minh City and Vientiane that the Holy Spirit will envision them and grant them the wisdom to disciple University student at its respective universities. We have confirmation that Yangon site will commence soon. Praise The Lord! Many blessings :) 7.13.09 Dear friends, The recent mission team has empowered the Crossroads on 'Fellowship', its biblical basis, purpose and how the Crossroads can grow through it. We thank God for insights on how to transform Cambodian community into His kingdom fellowship that will enable Crossroads to impact this nation. The mission team also shared from John Piper's book on Don't Waste Your Life. It was a great opportunity for the Crossroads to reflect on our lives and how to glorify God with it. We got to discuss a lot on our purpose, roles and priorities in life. Praise the Lord for the wonderful things that were accomplished during the team's 16 days stay at the Crossroads. Last week, friends from Yangon, Vientiane and Ho Chi Minh city came to study and discuss on possible development of Crossroads ministry in their city thus to develop more Christ-centered disciples amongst university students. We thank God for His vision, and we thank you for your prayer. We trust that He who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. We continue to uphold enterprise ministry at the Crossroads. There is more than that is needed right now in order for the business and micro-credit to bless the ministry. May His enduring love be the source of our strength. We will continue to learn on how to synchronize Leadership, discipleship and Enterprise to plant more house churches in this city. Many blessings, 7.8.09 Dear friends, ¡§But blessed are those who trust in the Lord    and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank,    with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat    or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green,    and they never stop producing fruit". 6.22.09 Dear friends, Conversion - The Holy Spirit is pledged to help us to see things from the point of Jesus. When in our life some bitter cup comes to us, we shall be able to see in that cup love's opportunity. If we yield ourselves in prayer to the Holy Spirit, things will begin to look quite different. As we see things from supernatural point of view, we shall begin to meet them by supernatural methods. That is what ¡§conversion¡¨ means. We are praying for Crossroads to be established in some South East Asian cities - Yangon, Vientiane, Ho Chi Minh city, and Kuala Lumpur. Please pray for supernatural methods that we may make disciples of these nations. May our prayer be on the basis of converted form :) 6.22.09 Dear friends, Just a thought about you. 5.25.09 Dear friends, We celebrate with Phanya and Veourn who both have earned a scholarship to pursue their tertiary education in Thailand. Phanya is a new student who has been baptized. Veoun has been at the Crossroads for more than a year. He is also in our Timothy group, a second tier leadership team. Though we cannot say that we are sending out 2 missionaries :), yet we know that Phanya and Veourn are faithful disciples who are partaking in the Great Commission. We await them to be back in 5 years, and will always uphold them in prayer. Putra, another Timothy, got an almost 2nd degree burn on his body. The church was in a state of shock and we ask for your prayer. The church is asking ¡V What good will the Lord bless us with in the midst of this suffering? Would you join us to seek His will? Many blessings, David Ooi. 5.18.09 Dear friends, With cultural, historical and social factors of Cambodian in mind, the Crossroads borrows 'Jo-Hari Windows' to develop and better the inter-personal relationship and communication of the body of Christ, thus to unleash the power of the church. Please pray for the church, for inter-personal relationship at the church. There has been hurts, misunderstanding and many kind of emotional baggage from both previous and present generations. May we all be restored and experience His wholeness to truly love one another, that they will know that we are His disciples. We praise the Lord to witness the natural growth at the Pillars. Last week, we talked about teamwork and the meaning of unity in Christ. We praise the Lord for: Maturing leadership team at the Pillars(Rathana, Mesa and Karanin); A desire for obedience to love one another; Restoration and transformation of individual lives; Opportunity to serve and to experience God daily. Please continue to pray for spiritual growth of Chanthi, Chanab and Panya. As young believers, they have great hunger for His words. Please pray for Mony and Vanthik who are seeking the Lord right now. We thank the Lord for opening their hearts thus enabling them with the truth to break free from evil deception by the power of darkness. In view of strong fear for tradition, please pray especially for courage in them to surrender their lives to Him. Many blessings, David Ooi. 5.12.09 Dear friends, Last week, we went to seek the 'Men Of Peace' at the Kuy villages we had determined to visit. We were welcomed by a chief village to his house. We expressed to him our intention to bless him and the villages(3 villages with a total of about 70 families). He has granted us permission to reside with him at his village to teach the children, educate them on health and hygiene, and agricultural techniques to increase family incomes. Please pray for the Crossroads team of 12-20 people for the purpose of Abundant Gospel Sowing. We will be at the village for 2 weeks end Aug 2009. Many blessings, David. 5.3.09 Dear friends, I thank God for His grace and mercy during Mj's time with her mom. Her mom(was diagnosed with cancer) is recovering well. Please continue to uphold her in your prayer. In 2 months time, she will go through blood test, which we will know in detail of her situation. Praise the Lord. The children survived without their mom. No bruise mark was found on their body We appreciate the wonderful opportunity and trial and are very thankful indeed. Thank you for remembering us too. At this moment, we have fallen in love with one another again. That's nice. Many blessings, David Ooi. 4.27.09 Dear friends, It has been the Lord's will to bless us. He has promised us an abundant life. Yet, we live in poverty. In the book of Judges, it demonstrates to us the cycle of sin that we need to breakaway in order to enjoy the blessing of the Lord to the fullest. Why can't we take full inheritance of our blessing? Can you imagine Gideon had to 'strife'(meaning for Midian) in a promised land? ¡¥Trust and obey, for there is no other way'. Let us, therefore, live a life worthy of His calling. We shared with you Nikra's graduation end last year. While she lived with us since her year 1 at the Law School, she ¡¥switched off' to the word of God(It is amazing how one she could deny the compelling calling of God throughout the 4 yrs). We were puzzled but would not give up. But here is the scoop of the truth:- Nikra's aunt was a sorcerer. Since her young age, the spirit her aunt served had wanted to pass the baton to Nikra. This explained how Nikra would not need to go to any doctor or medication whenever she was sick. Her simple remedy was to merely step into the building where the spirit was based and she would be healed immediately. But God would not be silenced. God was very faithful to prosper Nikra and has been very gracious and consistent in manifesting Himself to Nikra, which Nikra had secretly acknowledged. So, Nikra was imprisoned by the spirit and needed to be set free. The day of confrontation finally had come. Nikra was more prepared to plead with the sorcerer aunt to let her go. The truth is that we know, Nikra knows and that even her aunt would agree that Nikra needed salvation(spirit does know Jesus after all). She knew that she had no way out. One morning, Nikra came with much tremble. In her dream, she was punished by the spirit for being stubborn. They accused and tortured her. She begged for help in desperation(she asked us to fight the demonJ). We saw God intervened and worked alongside Him. At the end, her aunt died and Nikra accepted the Lord as her savior thus came under the Lord's protection. Nikra has been faithful and God's blessing upon her has been amazing. But recently, the spirit, who had lost Nikra, would not give up. It appeared in Nikra's younger brother's dream to demand his body for its use. He woke up with fear and shared with Nikra his encounter with the spirit. Nikra explained the power encounter to their parents and they understood. The Lord's work is obvious ¡V Salvation to the household. Please pray for this family, for the grace of God to continually bestow upon them. May His story be made known thus a witness for the neighbor, family and friends. We are planning a visit to the family in mid-May and would need your prayer for protection, wisdom and strength that they may be delivered. Aunty Vanny is a survivor from the mass genocide back in the 70s. She escaped and traveled with God alone from Khmer Rouge regime for survival. She testified to the Crosssroads about His goodness all her life. She now resides in Melbourne, Australia. When she heard of Crossroads the first time, she brought her nephew, Sothea(pic right) to Crossroads. Sothea was transformed by the grace of God and upon graduation, dedicated his life to God. He went on to gain social experience in the society for the last 3 yrs and by this July 2009, will join the Crossroads as a tentmaker. He has been faithful to the gospel and has been a encouraging witness for many at the Crossroads. Sothea help some ministry when he was away from the Crossroads and has recently brought her sister Socheta(pic left) to the Lord recently. Please pray for his future undertaking. Pray for his wrapping of business in Siem Riep now(what a blessing by God), and his new chapter of life at the Crossroads. Aunt Vanny and her church continued to partner the Crossroads to set up House Churches in Phnom Penh city. We are thankful for such an ordained partnership to bless and prosper this broken nation. Like Vanny, we want to thank many of you who have been giving us your ¡¥5 loaves and 2 fishes' that the Lord can bless and break it to bless the multitude. Many blessings, David. 4.20.09 Dear friends, If we really believe that the Man who was nailed to the Cross is our God, and hung there for the love of us, we cannot wish that our following of Him should not be a very costly thing. People often say, 'My mother was such a good woman; why should she have suffered?' or 'My boy was such a fine boy; why should he have died?' It is a very natural thing to say, but when we find ourselves saying it we must look at the Cross ¡V Jesus crowned with thorns, holiest of all, loveliest of all, and yet suffering more than all. His whole life, as He lived amongst the people of His time, was a beauty and a glory, a flame of love passing by, and yet He was crucified. I thank God for His timely rejuvenation. For the last couple months, I was struggling. 'What is ministry?' Ministry has gone beyond my comprehension. Yes, in Christ Jesus we are called to do good deeds. The change of times has called for a change of perception of the meaning of 'ministry'. While I remain faithful to my calling to preach the gospel, I am stretched to meet the demand of a wholistic ministry. My struggle to seek the equilibrium between missionary and ministry has caused me restlessness from within. Please pray for wisdom and strength, for willingness to be crucified if that is the cost I have to bear. Above all, may the measurement of ministry be made by His yardstick and not mine at all. Mj is now in the States, leaving me with the wonderful kids. In her absence, I got to count His blessing one by one; all the lovely little things that the good Lord has granted me through Mj which unfortunately I have failed to appreciate appropriately. While I miss her, I am filled with thanksgiving for her. The kids are also going through a wonderful experience of 'Only Daddy at home':). May this bonding time be a blessing to us all as we adventure with the Lord and await for all the great things he already has accomplished for us. We will cherish your constant prayer and support for us. Many blessings, David Ooi. 3.30.09 Dear friends, Dalis(sitting in the middle herein) has been sent out to lead a new house church. She will go to work in the day as any other working adult, but will also set aside time to nurture university students ¡V Turning Water into Wine. Please pray that this Crossroads small step will lead us to Restore and Rebuild Cambodia. Please PRAY for God's protection on her child going out to serve Him; pray for Dalis' heart of holiness and godliness, with wisdom and strength in her daily life. We pray for more House Churches to be planted trough the Crossroads that more university students will be transformed and be renewed in Christ. Please also pray for Abundant Gospel Sowing at and through the Crossroads. May each person at the Crossroads go out to make disciples of the nations thus experience the presence of the Lord. Beginning next week, students will leave for home for Khmer New Year. We pray for wisdom and courage as they be His witness for their family and friends around them too. David and family will leave for Singapore/Malaysia on 3rd April. Thereafter, Moonjung will leave for USA to care for her mom while David will be with children separately. May the Lord give them the strength thus being a good steward in this time of separation. Above all, please pray for journey mercy and that we will constantly be a blessing to people that we meet. The Lord is good. Many blessings, David Ooi. 3.25.09 Dear friends, As ministry is going through phases of change, we are overwhelmed by a thought this week - What if ministry is not about strategy, vision or mission statement, resources, partnership/networking; but simply on our willingness in dying for Jesus ... Please hold us all in your prayer. Many blessings, David. 3.23.09 Dear friends, Why another 'House Church'? When the wedding feast ran out of wine, they came to Jesus. Jesus instructed them to fill the jars nearby with water(John 2:1-11). For years, the university students have been depending on religious sacrifices and rituals, which they have not been able to resolve their root problem ¡V sin. This house church of the Crossroads will function to serve wine to the university students. They shall be filled with blessing and favor of God(OT meaning of wine). Please pray that this house church will always change water to wine. Please pray for its leader ¡V Dalis; pray for new student intake; wisdom and strength in this power-encountering discipleship. Please pray for protection, His grace and mercy for deliverance. Karanin, had graduated and was sent to be a high school teacher in Pursat. While there, he partnered with the Crossroads to plant a house church. He has now been transferred to Phnom Penh to teach, a profession in Cambodia where a Christian would be persecuted always. His refusal to accept bribe and perseverance of being faithfulness to God makes Karanin a cornerstone of the Crossroads. He is now also part of the Pillars leadership team, a church plant of the Crossroads. Like many others, Karanin embarked upon a teaching profession believing that the profession would be a 'never dried up well'. Such is a Christian struggle in reality. God has granted us wisdom, an enlightenment on how to fill the 'never dried up well' with living water thus always demonstrating His grace to people around. With a micro loan, and consultation from expert, Karanin is now planting Taro which will generate income for his livelihood. His desire is to be a witness to Him everywhere he goes, no matter what season it is. We pray that His handiwork will make Karanin's desire come true. We await to reap in Aug/Sept 2009. What a hope in Jesus :) Many blessings, David Ooi. 3.16.09 Dear friends, Crossroads Enterprise has started a Nursery & Landscaping business. In His time, the Lord has sent us expert in agriculture and horticulture to enable His Kingdom building for the purpose of rebuilding and restoring Cambodia. We desire that more churches are planted and more university students are set free from the power of darkness. Where will Crossroads Enterprise take us? "When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually? Does he keep on breaking up and harrowing the soil? When he has leveled the surface, does he not sow caraway and scatter cummin? Does he not plant wheat in its place ... His God instructs him and teaches him the right way. All this also comes form the Lord Almighty, wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom." Isa. 28:24-26, 29. This is our prayer. Many blessings, David. 3.9.09 Dear friends, The Crossroads has been blessed with Micro-enterprise ministry. The gospel and grace tracks has enabled Crossroads to demonstrate His saving love in Cambodia. He is good and faithful indeed. Please pray for 3 ongoing projects at the moment, for His grace and mercy, and for wisdom and courage in decision making. Please pray that the Crossroads will be faithful in worshiping the God who blesses, and not consuming only the blessing thus forget the goodness and kindness of God. Many blessings, David. 3.2.09 Dear friends, If we are going to overcome the world, we must abandon the world's standards for success. We must measure our lives by the things that God holds dear. We must ruthlessly cut away all that is excessive and that holds us back from doing God's will. "Let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1). Hence, they said that is is costly to follow Jesus. But at the Crossroads, we believe that it is much more costly if we don't follow Him. We praise the Lord for the harvest, and praise the Lord for your unity and faithfulness in intercession. Many blessings, David Ooi. 2.24.09 Dear friends, The Lord has been so gracious to us even though we reported to you 'Let go; and let God'; transition and more uncertainty; more faith in suffering; etc. He is indeed good and faithful. On 28th February, the Lord would lead the Crossroads to embark upon micro-enterprise ministry. We will dedicate a piece of land for our enterprise with the purpose of planting more churches in Cambodia. And to mark our dedication and celebration, we welcome 10 new Crossroads new converts and disciples into the kingdom of God. Let's break our alabaster jar of expensive perfume, made of pure nard, for the Lord(Mk.14:3). Many blessings, David Ooi. 2.16.09 Dear friends, Isaiah introduces to us the Creator who knows not weary. He who knows not weary can therefore give strength to the weary and increase the power to the weak. What a wonderful throne of grace that we can turn to Him with hope and to have our strength renewed. In Khmer everyday's life, the sight of a motor-biker pulling either another bike or bicycle on the road is common(they are certainly a cause to traffic congestion:) ). Still, for me, this can be a reminder to Christian on how good and faithful God is. It can be very difficult, or even painful to pull on a motorbike, or worst when the motor-biker doesn't know how to do it. But if it does go well, one can experience 'soar on wings like eagle'. There are times in ministry or life that our foolishness is confronted with the simple message - "Let go; and let God". It's a lesson that we all have known too well, but often neglected it. Indeed, when we are weak, He is strong. Last week, the Crossroads came together with white flag; asking God to remove the "mountain". Please continue to pray on the following mountains to be removed: We are developing students to grow in their relationship with God. Please pray for a heart to grow in intimacy with God(I Jn. 4:18); Transiting and developing Crossroads to grow House Churches. Please pray for availability of houses, leaders and resources for church planting; A church plant at Mekong University. Please pray for the direction that God will make available 'men of peace' to start a church; Discipleship of a group of non-believers. Rathana and David will meet up with a large group of non-believing students weekly on Sunday. Please pray for the gospel seed to be rooted thus bear fruit. Please pray that the Crossroads will sow the gospel seeds actively and abundantly; Please pray for planning on how we can serve Moonjung's mom who has been diagnosed with cancer. Many blessings. 2.9.09 Dear friends, The 'Joshua & Caleb' team came back with favorable report. By the grace of God, they were led to 3 Kuy villages which are adjacent together. There are a total of 68 families, with a school right in the middle. There is no teacher and the school is merely a shelter. Last Sunday, the team challenged the church to go in the summer(Aug/Sept 09) to scatter the seeds of the gospel. About 13 people expressed their commitment to go a place where there is no bathroom nor water. We praise the Lord for the congregation is willing to move along with the Spirit. The Kuy vision arise when the Crossroads church noticed that missionary in Cambodia, who are not fluent in Khmer language, have been story-telling the bible to the unreached people. When the missionary scheduled a 2 hours training for the Crossroads story team, each student took only 5 minutes to be equipped. The Lord has already blessed the church with such a gift, a very basic ability; and like the boy in the Feeding of 5000, we offered it back to the Lord. So, we are all looking forward to witness in Aug/Sept 2009 where the Lord will multiply to bless the Kuy people. Please remember us :) Miscellaneous matters: We praise the Lord that 6 new students are showing faith in their lives. We trust that in due time we will harvest and thanks to our faithful and good God. We also praise the Lord that last week, we have witnessed 3 house churches taking shape. This has been the Crossroads desire ¡V Lighthouses in Phnom Penh. We pray that the Lord will lead us to plant a church near Mekong university this year ¡V House of Encouragement. We have been led to develop effective relationship between Crossroads and the university. Please pray for direction and resources in the church plant. Please pray fo rour new intake. We are preparing to take in another 10 students in the next 2 weeks. May the Lord call upon those He has chosen, and may we be faithful in stewardship. Please pray for growth at the Pillars. May the Lord continue to build upon its foundation that this young church will grow to channel its blessing to more people in this city. Please pray for our family. Moonjung's mom has been diagnosed with Tyroid gland cancer. Not much information is avaiable right now as we hope for a surgery date to be determined as sson as possible. Please also pray for our decision making to meet the demand of circumstances. Our salvation, thank God! Depends much more on His love of us than on our love for Him. 2.1.09 Dear friends, Faith is a spiritual virtue of the soul. It is not a natural process of the reason. It is not, of course, contrary to reason; and many who have possessed the finest reason, the very finest mind that God has ever created, have had the most sure and simple faith. It is not contrary to reason, but transcends reason. It begins as an experiment; it becomes an experience. Science deals with physical facts but faith deals with spiritual facts. Our outer life relates to time and can be investigated by science; our inner life is related to eternity and it is the spiritual science of faith that must direct it. It is only when we can say from the depths of our own conviction and in the power of our own experience, "Lord, I believe," that we make our first step into the light of the everlasting dawn. How faith is applied at the Crossroads? We sent out a 'Joshua & Caleb' team again last week. We are still seeking where and how the Lord would lead us to sow the gospel amongst the unreached people - Kuy People. Please pray for the Crossroads as we have committed to send out teams to the Kuy people in summer 2009 to walk the pathway of the Great Commission in Cambodia. Many blessings, David Ooi 1.21.09 Dear friends, And Yahweh said, 'Come, anoint him. He is the one!' (I Samuel 16:11-12). How King David could be transformed from a forgotten son to become a remembered King? He was not appreciated, nor recognized. His up and down were aplenty, from battle won against Goliath to his sinned and struggled. Yet, God remembered David as a man after His own heart. King David did everything the Lord wanted him to do(Acts 13:22). God certainly think about us and love us more than we think. Let's embrace the truth. Many blessings, David. 1.12.09 Dear friends, When God called Moses to lead His people into Promised Land, He introduced himself as 'I am who I am'. But in order to learn from it, God has to assign Moses a specific task: to create freedom for people who don't want it very badly, and freedom from an oppressor who thinks he is totally in control. Moses, with his emotional baggage, hid his face from God(Ex.3:6) and rejected the task God had called him. God slowly has to convince Moses of His respect, which Moses calls 'favor', but not without some serious objections from Moses' side. It is a long fight, but God always wins in fight with humans. And Moses was healed and restored. Moses subsequently requested God to meet him face to face(Ex. 33:18). The Lord had known no one other than Moses face to face(Dt.34:10). Please PRAY: That Crossroads' students will meet the Lord 'face-to-face' daily; That salvation will come to new students; That more house churches would be planted by graduated students; That He would lead us for new church plant at Mekong University in 2009; That students' trip to Kuy People end January 2009 will bring much fruit; That Crossroads leadership and a pastoral team for Crossroads Church will take shape; That the Pillars Church will grow into maturity in Christ. David, Moonjung, Joey and Rohaam Ooi 1.5.09 Dear friends, We are doing well. We have been so blessed by you and are thankful for your friendship and faithfulness. Through you, we have given favor by God and by men. Praise the Lord. For 2009, we pray for more love, more power and more of Jesus in our lives. Would you please intercede on our behalf? Would you please pray that our suffering in Him will lead us to know more of Him? We look forward to His miracles in 2009. It gets more and more exciting indeed. Thank you, Oois. << newer posts