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Population• Population:15.1million•Density:83persqkm•Almost90%ofthepeopleareKhmer

• 33%areunder15yearsold•Morethan75%ofthepopulationliveinruralareas

Cambodia’s population was reducedby between 2-3 million in the 1975-79 holocaust and accompanying wars,faminesandflightofrefugees.

Religions•Buddhist83.3%•Chinesereligions2.9%•Animist4.8%•Muslim2.3%•Non-religious3.0%•Christian3.1%(*Only1%evangelical)

•Other0.6%Buddhism has been the national religionsince the 15th century. The Khmer Rougesoughttoeradicateallreligion;90percentof Christians and most Buddhist monksperished. Since 1979 there have beenperiods of greater tolerance. Christianshavebeenallowedtoworshipopenlyonlysince1990.

LanguageThe official national language is Khmer,orCambodian,whichisrelatedtoancientIndian languages. French, formerly animportant second language, is beingdiscouragedandEnglishisingreatdemand.

GeographyCambodia is on the Mekong River insouthwestIndochina,coveringatotalareaof113,470squaremiles.Itisanextremelyfertile, alluvial plain. Massive logging

has reduced the rain forests which oncecoveredmuchofthecountry.

ClimateCambodiahasatropicalmonsoonclimate.Average temperatures are 71-81°F [22-28°C].ArainyseasonextendsfromMaytoNovember.

HistoryFromthe7thto15thcenturies,theAngkorpriest-kingsbuiltupthecountry,builtgreattemplesandcontrolledmuchofSoutheastAsia. Cambodians today are nostalgicfor this golden age when they were anindependentandpowerfulpeople.There followed500yearsof regionalandglobal conflicts with Thai, Vietnamese,French, Japanese and U.S. invasions oroccupations, before the Vietnam WarspilledovertoCambodiain1970-75.Thisopened theway for the extremeMarxistKhmerRougetakeoverin1975.TheKhmerRouge tried to isolate Cambodia fromall foreign influence. In bloody raids onneighboring Thailand and Vietnam, theyalsotriedtorestoretoitthegloryandsizeoftheAngkorPeriod.The Vietnamese army ousted the KhmerRougein1979,butcivilwarbetweenfourcontendingarmiesragedwithsuperpowersupport until 1991. UN-supervisedelections in 1993 were held despiteoppositionbytheKhmerRouge.Since the election of July 1998, a formof democratic government has beenestablished, though its work is severelyhamperedbycorruption,civilserviceover-managing, little income and lawlessness.Millionsof landminesremain,killingandmaimingeveryday.AlthoughCambodia’s

economy is growing , the country is stillamongtheworld’spoorest.In2004KingSihamonitookoverfromhisfather,KingSihanouk.

ChristianityThe gospel came late to Cambodia. ThefirstProtestantmissionaryarrivedin1923,translated the New Testament in 1933and published the whole Bible in 1953.Its message was not welcome and fewbelievedorobeyedit.In 1965 the government’s anti-Americancrusade forcedmissionaries towithdraw.After40yearsoffaithfulwork,theKhmerevangelicalchurchhadlessthanathousandmemberswhentheyhadtoleave.In 1970,with the rise of a pro-Americanregime,thereturnofthemissionaries,andthebeginningofthewarwiththeKhmerRouge,therewasfreedomandgrowthforthe church. Many turned to God. Therewere large evangelistic crusades andChristianslaboredwithasenseofurgency.When war broke out, there were threecongregationsinPhnomPenh;by1975thishadincreasedto30.In response to urgent requests, OMFInternationalsentfivememberstoPhnomPenhin1974toworkalongsidethechurch.But a year later, all missionaries wereforcedtomakeareluctantexodus,leavingachurchofaround10,000members.TheKhmer Rouge assumed control of thecountry in 1975. The persecution wassavage; 90 percent of the Christians and

CambodiaFormerlyKampuchea,emergedfromtheintensesufferingofthe1970swithashatteredeconomyandavulnerablechurch.Overthepast20years,GodhasbeenbuildinghisChurchinremarkableways,althoughtheneedforurgentevangelizationanddiscipleshipamongthepeoplesofCambodiaremains.

almostallChristianleadersweremartyredorfledthecountry.From 1975, hundreds of thousands ofCambodiansfled toThailand,where theywere housed in refugee camps. OMFInternational and workers from otherorganizations previously expelled fromthe countrywent to the campswith themessageofhope, andover the followingyearsseveral thousandCambodianswerebaptized.By 1991 OMF International and othermissionsonceagainhadmembersresidentin Cambodia, learning the language. In1994 the Cambodian government gavepermissiontoOMFInternationaltoengagein religious and humanitarian work. Theteam has grown rapidly over the last 10

years,but theopportunities forlong and short-termwork growevenfaster.Despite Pol Pot’s attemptto crush the church and thepressures on it during the nextdecades, the small remnanthas grown froma fewhundredChristians to approximately

150,000 today. There are nowaround2,500churches.

Despitethisremarkableadvanceofthegospel,99percentofCambodiansarestilllivingwithoutChrist.Mostchurchgrowthis takingplace in larger cities and towns,while thevastmajorityof thepopulationlives in rural locations. Many of theseprovincial areas remain unreached withthe gospel. Recent research has shownthat12,000ofCambodia’s14,000villagesarestillwithoutachurch.

VisionBy God’s grace we see communities ofdiscipleswhoarefollowingChristineveryaspect of life andmultiplying throughoutCambodiaandbeyond.

MissionToglorifyGodbytheurgentevangelizationand discipleship of the peoples ofCambodia.

Strategic Priorities• ToestablishcommunitiesofdisicplesamongtheunreachedpeoplesofCambodia.

• Tomakedisciplesinstrategicareasofsocietysuchashealthcare,educationandamonggovernmentofficials.

• Toestablishanindigenousstudentmovement.

• ToworkwiththeCambodianchurchinleadershiptrainingandtheproductionofChristianresources.

Opportunitiesavailable• Churchplanters,ITtrainers,librariansandotherswithapassionforevangelization,discipleshipandtrainingothers,andawillingnesstoliveintheunreachedruralareas.

• Englishteacherswithavisionformakingdisciplesamonggovernmentcivilservants.

•Universitylecturerswithavisionformakingdisciplesamongstudentsandacademicstaff.

•Medicalprofessionals,counselorsandsocialworkerswithaheartfordiscipleship.

•OMFInternationalTeamCenterManagerandFinanceManager.

• Short-termopenings.UpdatedJuly2012

How to prayTheterriblegenocideperpetratedbytheKhmerRougeandsubsequentcivilwarcontinuestoaffectthepeople.Therearemanywidowsandorphans,andmanyfamiliesweredecimated.Thelandisstrewnwithminesandmanypeoplearemaimedphysicallyandemotionally.Prayforlastingpeace,politicalstabilityandcontinuedfreedomofreligion.

PraythatGodmayraiseuphonorableleadersforthenationwhowillalleviatethesufferingsofthepeople.ForcenturiesCambodiahasbeeninspiritualdarkness.Thereisstrongoppositiontowardsanyideologicalrivalto

Buddhism,manyspiritshrinesandhatredgeneratedby20yearsofwar.

Thechurchneedsprayer:• Forwisdominknowinghowto

relatetotheauthorities.• Forgodlyleaders,whowillbe

faithfultotheWordofGodandleadwithservanthearts.

• ForeffectiveChristianfamiliesinanationwherefamilycohesion,trustandlovehavebeenseverelyimpaired.

• Foravisionformission–localchurchesreachingoutincross-

culturalmissionwithinCambodiaandtoneighboringcountries.

• FortheproductionofculturallyrelevantChristianresourcesandtheemergenceofgiftedCambodianwriters.

• Forgreaterunityandrespectamongchurches,denominationsandmissionorganizations.

Thelessreached:• TheBuddhistmajority.• TheChamMuslims:several

believersbutnoknownchurches.• Tribalpeoples:prayforthe

emergingchurchesamongtheBrao,Krungandotherpeoplegroups.