The year was 1975. Cambodia just ended a bloody civil war that claimed 2 million lives, including hundreds who were killed for their faith. Only 700 Christians remained in a country of 8 million people.
Fifty years later, churches around Cambodia are thriving, and believers in Jesus Christ now account for 4 to 5% of the population. According to a recent government estimate, 8,000 gatherings of Christians happen around the country every week.
But the aftershocks of the civil war still rumble. A recent border crisis with Thailand, their neighbor to the north, returned thousands of Cambodians to their home nation and sent tremors of uncertainty through the economy.
“They lost hope, they lost their loved ones, they are living in suffering and pain,” said Rachel Chin, chairwoman for the upcoming Festival’s prayer team. “What Cambodians need is Jesus. He is the true Prince of peace.”
The Love Siem Reap Festival with Franklin Graham on Jan. 24–25 couldn’t come at a better time. Chin said people have realized that political power or military might can’t save them, and they are searching for help.
At Love in Action events in June and December, churches across Siem Reap—in partnership with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA)—distributed 1,600 packages filled with blankets, mosquito nets, food, and cooking supplies to refugees who had only the clothes on their backs.
More importantly, the Gospel is meeting their spiritual needs.
“Only the love of God can mend and heal the heart of the people to receive God,” Chin said. “They really need Jesus in this time of crisis.”
Before the recent border conflict, Franklin Graham preached in the nation’s capital of Phnom Penh in 2019, and 23,700 people heard the Good News. This event was a catalyst for the country’s leaders to work together for the proclamation of Jesus Christ.
“It was a Gospel presentation to the government to say, ‘This is who we really are,’” said Wayne Hester, director of the upcoming Festival. “There were all of these negative ideas about who and what Christianity was and who Jesus was. But what happened out of that Festival was a positive. [They realized] Jesus is here to change lives for the good.”
From the unity they fostered in 2019, Cambodian churches hosted a centennial celebration of Christianity in 2023 where 30,000 Christians came together to celebrate a history of God’s faithfulness.
Out of this fertile soil, the Love Siem Reap Festival grew—in the nation’s second largest city, located 195 miles north of Phnom Penh.
Along the way, thousands have taken BGEA’s Christian Life and Witness Course (CLWC) where they’ve learned how to share their faith in day-to-day life. BGEA’s “Steps to Peace with God” booklet has given them a practical tool—with simple illustrations—to help explain the Gospel. Already, the Cambodian church is using these resources to share their faith with others.
One woman turned an inconvenient situation into a convenient audience to share the Gospel. Her car broke down on the side of the road, and a group of young men from a nearby mechanic’s shop came to help. She began to share the Gospel using the tools she learned in CLWC, and three of them came to know Christ that day.
“Sometimes I’m so scared [to share the Good News], but when we have joined this class, we have the confidence, we know the tools, and we understand what steps we need to share the Gospel effectively,” Chin said.
In this country where 90% of the population is Buddhist, people are searching for relief from suffering. Local believers hope that this Festival will show Cambodians the real path to peace—through the cross of Christ.
“In the midst of a lot of turmoil, [I hope] that the event … will be this huge display of light and life, and who Christ is, and that the churches will go away encouraged and emboldened in their faith,” Hester said.
Please pray for Cambodian Christians in the next few weeks. Ask God to strengthen them as they invite their friends and family to the upcoming Festival, and that He will prepare their hearts to hear about the hope of Jesus.
