About the People
About 230,000 Great River People border the Mekong River and live near Southeastern Asia’s major cities, such as Phnom Penh. Extremely poor, they survive by farming, fishing, building boats, metalwork and light commerce. Their bamboo homes are elevated to protect against flooding, and their diet consists of fish, rice and vegetables. Because so many men were killed in the 1970s, the Great River People’s line of descent is now traced through the women. The rural Great River People practice folk Islam, mixing veneration of the dead with magic and Muslim tradition (a blend of Animism and Islam). Outside efforts to promote Islam have stepped up recently, and the Great River People define themselves more by their religion than their historical origins. There are no known churches or scriptures among this people group.
The Great River People are an unreached Muslim people group in Southeast Asia, numbering around half a million. The opportunity for them to hear about the Savior and His truth for these last days is now! Muslim missionaries from overseas are seeking to make them more orthodox.
About the Project
Since the first millennium A.D., when advanced civilizations of the present-day country in Southeast Asia populated the area, this Asian country has had a checkered history. A protectorate of France for nearly 100 years and a monarchy on and off since 1953, this Southeast Asia region has been decimated by decades of civil war and corruption. An estimated 1.5 to 3 million were killed during Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge reign when money, medicine, religion and education all but disappeared.
Bordered by Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and the Gulf of Thailand, the nearly 70,000 square-mile country is 95 percent Buddhist (mostly Khmer people), three percent Islam (mostly Great River People), and only two percent are Christian. Textiles and tourism provide most of the hard currency. This region’s temperatures range from 50-100 degrees Fahrenheit. The wet season (May-October) and dry season (November-March) are both ushered in by tropical monsoons.
As our missionaries convey that we are people of faith—through simple prayer ministry, spiritual conversations and kindness—they gain people’s confidence and, by God’s grace, win their hearts for Jesus. The goal is to plant groups of believers who can spread this message throughout the entire people group.
One of the keys to reaching the Great River people is health ministry. By using simple health remedies, assisting the sick to find organizations able to help, and through the work of short-term medical teams, AFM missionaries have won many people’s confidence and hope to begin a small health clinic to meet the overwhelming need better. The Great River people have a tremendous desire to learn English, and teaching English to elementary-age students is an avenue to reach these people. Plans include expanding classes for older learners in the future.
People-Group Facts
- Population: 230,000
- Trade Language: Khmer
- Religion: 88% Islam, 10% Hindu.
A pig’s head stares up at us from a table as we thread our way down the muddy market path.
By:
Ruby Clay
July 01 2013, 12:36 pm | Comments 0
One evening, it hit me. I was sitting on the couch, appreciating my family and pondering God’s amazing love expressed in Jesus.
By:
Bo & Kristin Hutchison
June 01 2013, 8:26 am | Comments 0
Tears welled up in my eyes and choked my singing.
By:
Ruby Clay
June 01 2013, 8:11 am | Comments 0
“It seems like it’s time for our pledges to come in so we can launch.” Adam and I were discussing what steps to take next in order to complete our financial goals.
By:
Ruby Clay
May 01 2013, 10:40 am | Comments 0
“Daddy, look at the windmill!” Alex exclaimed. “See, it makes the wind blow.”
By:
Adam Clay
April 01 2013, 1:50 pm | Comments 0
“Are you anxious to leave for Cambodia?” a good friend asked me recently.
By:
Ruby Clay
March 01 2013, 4:33 am | Comments 0
Here are the pseudonyms we have chosen and the traits we want them to represent.
By:
Adam and Ruby Clay
February 01 2013, 6:33 am | Comments 0
God really was good to us because we were supposed be gone the day before, but if we had left, no one would have been there to help us.
By:
Adam Clay
December 31 2012, 8:31 pm | Comments 0
“Before learning about Christ, I just tried to be a good person and avoid evil. I had heard that Jesus died and rose again, but I was confused until I met Philip Hope.
By:
Joshua Hooker
December 01 2012, 8:56 am | Comments 0
The term student missionary implies taking time off from your own education and goals to spend a year serving God before you finish college. But that doesnt begin to describe what actually takes place.
By:
Joshua Lewis
April 01 2012, 6:37 am | Comments 1