A Farm and A Church Combined
In 2013, we had a chance to meet Pastor Hai when we traveled to Kampong Chhnang with Pastor Vannarith. Pastor Hai is a Christian pastor who supports himself by farming, so he is not located in a town, but out in the country, down a dirt road. His farm is not even on the road itself, but to get to it, you must walk through the fields to reach his house. This time the fields were growing rice, so they they were still filled with water and the green grass like rice plants. In 2013, the fields were filled with watermelons, and we arrived right after the melons had been harvested. This year, there was not enough rainfall until about the last week, so Pastor Hai is not going to have the amount of rice that he would like because he uses the sale of his crops to support his church. In 2013, there was too much rain and the watermelons were rotting before they could be sent to market.
But, Pastor Hai grows more than rice and watermelons. When you walk in the main gate, there is a very large building straight ahead of you. The building has only two walls and a roof over a large cement and tile slab. This is Pastor Hai’s church, right in the middle of his farm. He invites all of his neighbors to come to his farm to hear about Jesus Christ. As you walk towards the church from the gate, on your right side will be the farrowing house for the pigs that was built by Samaritan’s purse. You can just make out the words in the blue sign on the side of the farrowing pen. It was empty on this last visit, but has helped support the church in the past. Pastor Hai’s house is between the church and the farrowing pen and the covered area outside the house is used for entertaining guests and visitors such as ourselves.
On the left, coming in the gate is the poultry pen. On this visit, there were about a half dozen big turkeys which will be butchered between now now end of November. These are bought by American expatriates (expats) who want to celebrate the American Thanksgiving. Each of these turkeys will sell for about $30 a bird. There were a few chickens running loose in the ben, but the largest population were the ducks. While the ducks will not sell for as much as the turkeys, they will also contribute significantly to the farm’s income because the Khmer view them as a special dish just like the expats love turkey.
Beyond the poultry pen, is the fish farm and reservoir. Pastor uses the water from this reservoir to water his orchard and garden underneath the trees. The garden and the reservoir are both carefully fenced off from everything else to protect the young plants, especially during the dry season coming up.
After the baptism we attended in the church, I looked out the only window in the church (actually, it is just a hole in the wall that can be closed) and saw Pastor’s papaya tree. It was loaded with fruit and should begin to ripen shortly. Then it will be served by local restaurants as an end to a meal similar to the one we just came from. If you have never seen a papaya tree and how it bears fruit, here is a photo of one. It is a strange tree that has no branches and the fruit grows along the trunk, but so closely that it looks like a bunch of fruit rather than individual fruits.
Thanks for taking a tour of Pastor Hai’s farm with me, and please pray that God will bless him with bountiful harvests to support him, his family, and his church.
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