Tell the Sim family testimony and survival story!

PLEASE NOTE: This fundraiser is not affiliated with my mission sending organization. Writing this book is a personal project I am undertaking as part of my calling, but is unrelated to my current overseas mission call.

A God of Love

When Sovath was a little boy growing up in Cambodia, his mother told him an old Buddhist poem about a "God of love."

"In the palms of his hands and in the flat of his feet

Will be the design of a disc,

In the side will be a stab wound; and his forehead

Will have many marks like scars."

But when Sovath was 10 years old, the black-clad Khmer Rouge army overthrew the government of Cambodia, and love was outlawed. Sovath was forced from his home, forced to think of survival over the promised God of love.

A God He Did Not Know

At 11, Sovath was separated from his family and sent to a children's work camp, where food was scarce and death imminent. With the help of a friend, he ran away, determined to find his family. But after 70 kilometers of walking with no food, Sovath knew he was finished. He looked around him at the identical-looking roads flanked by rice paddies. Then he looked up.

"If there is a God, please help me find my family... so I don't have to die alone!"

In the end, his family miraculously found him, and because of their love and care, he survived--though not without scars.

Meeting the God of Love

Several years later, Sovath faced a new struggle. While evading soldiers as undocumented refugees in a Thai refugee camp, Sovath's sister became a Christian.

And she wanted him to do the same.

Sovath could not leave Buddhism! It was an integral part of his identity, a way to stay connected to the family the Khmer Rouge had tried to take away from him.

Yet he was drawn to Jesus, whose stripes and marks were inflicted because he loved Sovath and wanted to save him.

In the midst of Sovath's struggle, Jesus, the God of love, appeared to him in a vision. He bid him to follow, and experience deliverance not just from the black-clad soldiers of his childhood, but from the inner wounds they had inflicted.

Why This Fundraiser?

Sovath left Cambodia and married. His daughter later returned to Cambodia as a missionary to her people.

Soon, Sovath’s family began to realize just how much God had done for them. He had shown them “great unsearchable things which they did not know.”

Sovath and his family wanted their testimony written down. They wanted to write a book.

Meanwhile, I was praying they would ask me to write their story.

One day, they did.

Will You Help Me?

I feel so privileged to be able to write this story, which I’ve tentatively titled Great Unsearchable Things. But I can’t do it alone. This fundraiser will help cover the cost of researching, editing, and marketing--several generous people have offered to help with the layout and design. Here’s exactly how the funds will be used:

It is the dream of Sovath and his wife that God be glorified through his story.

Will you help make their dream a reality?

Who Am I?

In short, I’m Abigail Follows, author and overseas gospel seed sower. Here are a few kind words about my first book, Hidden Song of the Himalayas:

"Memoirs are not usually my genre . . . But this one absolutely blew me away . . . The story flowed like a novel, but it was achingly, breathtakingly real." - Amanda

"Hidden Song of the Himalayas is a work of art with a purpose of the highest order." - Kody

"I was profoundly moved and impacted and inspired by the reading of this book . . . She opened up another world to me and pulled me in." - Melvin

"As someone who struggles with following Nonfiction and trying to concentrate and absorb everything, this one was a dream. I got sucked in as though it (were) a novel . . . I was fully aware that it was real life, but the author is a natural storyteller." - Aryn the Librarian

"As someone who has read a lot of missionary memoirs, I'm going to say this is one of the best I have read. It's funny, honest, and deeply spiritual; fast-paced and well-written. Abigail quickly pulled me into her world and made me feel part of her journey . . . " - Mercy Maude

F.A.Q.

Feel free to email me at abigailfollows AT gmail.com if you have any questions!

Q. Is the mockup the actual cover you'll be using for the book? Is that the actual title?

A. Not necessarily. The current title and cover are just a placeholder for now!