Happy 2009 to everyone!!!
The New Year is in full swing now and most people are still getting their New Year resolutions off the ground and here in Cambodia, it is no different.
One resolution of High Tower/Bykota House is that we are going to try to make contact via an update the first week of EACH month rather than our quarterly newsletters. Hopefully these shorter but more frequent updates will help our friends and family feel more connected to the ministry and happenings on our side of the globe.
True J-O-Y
For the last two years our theme at Bykota House has been learning “What is the name of our house?” BYKOTA— Be Ye Kind One To Another. It has been an important foundation for the Bykota Kids to learn. Having gone through very hard times before arriving in our home, most of the children behaved in many ways that were certainly not kind to one another. We have been learning how to walk in love and live in harmony with one another….how to deal with conflicts in love…how to go through good times and hard times in a more Christ-like manner. We certainly haven’t always been perfect but we have pressed on and the Lord has blessed us to see great improvement.
We have announced a new theme for the year 2009…”Finding True Joy.”
We will find true J-O-Y by putting
J-esus first,
O-thers second, and
Y-ourself last.
Please pray that the Lord will bless our home as we learn new lessons and allow the Holy Spirit to change us.
New Additions/Subtractions to Bykota House
We have recently added two siblings, Gina age 2 1/2 and Gene age 5 to Bykota House. Gina and Gene are the grandchildren of the night guards for High Tower Ministries Center. The father of the children has abandoned the mother after she was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident. The mother continues to have residual effects of the accident but the grandparents are not able to support and provide full time care for two healthy and rambunctious children. The family is very grateful to continue to have some contact and relationship with the children and the adjustment has gone very smoothly.
The year 2008 saw Dany returning back to province to live again with her abusive mother and Bopha and Chompa leaving to live with an “aunt and uncle.” After these three girls had lived for so many years without any structure or parameters in their lives they apparently found life in our home too restricted. They made the decision to leave Bykota House and our protection to return to their previous lives of abuse and neglect. This has been very distressing to us but Bykota House is not now, and we hope never will be, a locked facility. We cannot keep children from leaving if they are set to do so…so with great sadness, we have watched them leave. We pray that the seeds that have been planted over these last years will not return void and will one day produce a harvest in their lives.
NEEDED: Prayer Partners!
One strong motivation for the new monthly updates is the increased level of spiritual pressure we are feeling. We so earnestly desire your prayers for protection, provision, and blessing upon the ministry. So we intend to include montly prayer points and in faith we will also be including praise reports in later updates! We also would like to post the birthdates that we are celebrating in the both Bykota House and Benz family and allow each child to have prayer focused on them individually throughout the year.
January Prayer Points
• February first is the due date for the annual rent of Bykota House…this totals $3600. Each year at this time in January, we have wondered where will that be coming from?? Each year, the Lord has provided. Our giving flucuates at such a level and with the increased costs of running Bykota House, we have not been successful in setting aside funds towards the rent this year.
• Peter…the good news is that finally we have what we believe is an accurate diagnosis for this child who has been so sick. 
The bad news is that the diagnosis is Rhuematic Fever. Peter is suffering a great deal of pain. Again today he was not able to attend school because he was unable to walk. He is facing very long term antibiotic treatment. We pray that our medical guidance is accurate and the care and medications provided for Peter are effective and that he will again walk in health.
• Visoth (Bykota House) and Seth Benz both have had their viral counts recently. The drug therapy for their Hepatitis B is showing some effect but the counts are still high. We are grateful for the improvement in their health but we pray for complete death to the virus that is present in their blood and for total healing.
• We are coming down to the last details of Kathleen’s college admissions process. This Friday, 8 AM, Central time, Kati has an internet- phone interview. After this only the online FAFSA remains to be done and Mark is wading through that already. Please agree with us that the phone connection will be strong and clear and that the final details of her return to the States will be worked through without any glitches.
• 
The dachshund project has successfully brought alot of fun, excitement, and learning to our home. We now have TEN dachshund pups that are almost ready for sale. Ten good homes needed, Lord!!!
January birthdays…
Chatreah and Chantal
January 3rd, Chantal Benz–8 yrs
Bykota House Birthdays: None this month
With lots of love,
The Benz family
Serving in Cambodia
