“Hey Dorothy, would you like to come with me to see the neighbors?” Josh asked. “They just came back from the local clinic with their six-year-old son Mannan who has been very sick for quite some time.” We decided to drop by to meet them and see if they would like a ride to the Sabbath services.

Approaching the back of the house, we entered the open-air “bedroom” of this little boy who lay on a traditional Cambodian bed made of wooden slats and a blanket. His mom was holding an IV pole with his medicine as she attempted to rearrange things to accommodate her company.

Friendly conversation followed as I took in the surroundings and listened to the strange sounds of the local dialect as Josh chatted with them about the week’s happenings. Soon he explained to me that things were not looking good for little Mannan who still had a fever.

The family expressed their appreciation of the Lewises as their neighbors. I remembered the days previous when several of those same young faces had appeared in Josh and Stephanie’s living room to join in games of Jenga and dominos. Mannan commented that he really liked to play dominos.

Just then I remembered that there were several boxes of miniature domino games in the Christmas box we had brought from America. Quickly I retrieved a set of dominos and gave them to Mannan’s family. We spent the next hour teaching game rules and playing together. I sensed the Holy Spirit very close as we shared together.

Later, the entire family came to the Sabbath services, including little Mannan.

Since that visit, we were saddened to learn that Mannan has been diagnosed with blood cancer. Only God knows what lies ahead for him. I will be praying as our missionary team continues to build this friendship for Jesus.

Reflecting on this visit I recalled an evangelism seminar I attended several years ago. The presenter shared the concept of “friendship evangelism.” This truly is what our missionaries are doing in this community. God is at work!

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