I’m keenly aware that the bad news columns of our proverbial newspapers are resorting to smaller fonts and shrinking margins to fit everything in these days, while the good news sections are looking increasingly sparse. But history – and I’d argue the Gospel – demonstrate that even when there’s much to lament about, there have always also been parallel pockets of defiant goodness and beauty (think Jesus’ work in the face of the Roman Empire). It’s important that we take the time to share these stories as a means of encouraging one another ‘towards love and good deeds’ of the type that plods on without falling into the traps of optimism, triumphalism or naivety. Here’s one such story of defiant goodness from one of Amos Australia’s partner orgs.

CONNECT is a community-based drug rehabilitation support ministry of a little church in a slum area of Phnom Phen where people have built their shanties over the top of an old cemetery.  CONNECT uses a creative, collaborative model and isn’t a rehab.  Instead, it has a small network of volunteers who live in the slum, running workshops there on the impacts of drug and alcohol abuse.  They often come into contact with people who are in addiction, and when they request it, CONNECT assists them in their recovery.  CONNECT covers the year-long cost of an addict living at the Teen Challenge rehab 40 minutes away – a cost that they and their families simply can’t afford.  CONNECT walks with them through their recovery by mentoring, visiting regularly and bringing family members for monthly visits.  Prior to the person exiting rehab, CONNECT assists in preparing the family and community for the person’s re-entering into regular life – it’s a big adjustment, and re-entry is a difficult period for everyone.  The church that CONNECT is supported by is primarily made up of people from the slum, and has a high percentage of ex-users as well – so it’s a supportive community where the men tend to feel at home.

We recently visited this good work, and met Rahul who was initially supported by CONNECT and now works for them.  He has a wife and young child, and splits his time between CONNECT, serving at the church and working for Justees, a fantastic social enterprise that offers employment pathways for men in recovery from addiction.  We also headed out of town to Teen Challenge and met Bona who was in his second or third week of rehab, supported by CONNECT.  Bona had a posture I’ve seen many times in people who are early in their recovery from addiction: eyes downcast, shoulders slumped, mostly avoiding eye contact and a short, nervous smile – perhaps struggling with shame and regret. But it’s a courageous person who takes the hard step of dealing with their addiction, and I tried to tell him as such.

A few days later we joined the Sunday morning church service and Rahul was preaching.  He was energetic and confident, with the air of someone who has found that beautiful place where their gifts line up with a need in the world.  I couldn’t help remembering Bona and reflecting on the odds that Rahul had a similar posture at the start of his recovery – the man we heard preaching that morning was a walking testimony to the support that CONNECT provides.  My prayer was that Bona’s recovery will be similarly restorative, and the high success rates of CONNECT-supported people give me hope.

CONNECT runs on a shoe-string budget.  None of the staff are paid and they share a tiny office with Justees.  All funding they receive goes towards covering rehab costs, supporting people in their recovery and ferrying people to and from Teen Challenge. Somewhere on the road I asked Phanna – who heads up CONNECT – how things were going.  ‘Great!’ he said, ‘We’ve managed to support more people than we normally could this past year.’  I asked him how they’re travelling financially.  He replied, “Well, we always have enough.  Last week we had $120 in the bank, and had to pay a bill, so now we have $80 [he laughs]. But we haven’t run out of money yet.”

Phanna wasn’t groveling.  He wasn’t asking for money.  He was smiling (he does that a lot) and stating some faith-filled facts that are grounded in a genuine trust in God’s provision for the work Phanna believes God has given him to do. The slum-dwellers face complex, almost insurmountable challenges that extend well beyond the substance abuse that CONNECT seeks to address. But CONNECT presses on, faithfully doing the work they’ve been called to, and handing over the rest for God to sort out. 

These small pockets of defiant good are worthy of all the support and encouragement we can provide.  And I’m hoping that as our partnership develops and deepens, some of Phanna’s faith, Rahul’s vocational sweet spot and Bona’s courage will rub off on me and help shape the other little org that I dearly love called Amos Australia.

This article will be published in the upcoming Amos Magazine. You can access previous digital versions here, or let us know here if you’d like to receive a free copy fresh off the printer in a few weeks!