Do you have any idea what this boy was doing?

I was on a trip down to Phnom Penh recently and we made a stop at Svay, a town that is about an hour away from Poipet where I lived. As we were waiting for the passengers to board the bus, I saw this boy. This boy is probably about 15 years old. He was bare footed and wore only a pair of long pant and a jacket to keep himself warm from the cold weather (It’s winter now at Cambodia). Instead of being in school he was begging on the street.

It was very heart breaking to see the ways he begged. I saw him kneeling for at least 10 minutes in front of a man hoping that the man will give him something but he was being ignored. Another time, he followed and hanged on to a person, but was being ridiculed and later being pushed away. The last time I saw him, he was knocking on the window of a taxi hoping that the passengers in the taxi would show him some kindness, but the taxi just droved away.

This is just one example of kids begging on the street. At where I lived (Poipet) you can see little children begging on the streets everyday. Some of them are really poor therefore begging is one of the ways to survive. Some of them are being exploited and made a beggar.

When I see them, honestly, I just want to take them home and also wished for someone to take them home or help them in some ways. There are just so much needs around, so many children and families to help but always there is a lack of laborers.

Matthew 9: 35-38 said:
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

I don’t know how you feel after seeing those pictures and read Matthew 9:35-38. But I pray that you will be the worker in wherever you are to touch and changed lives.