Thai Village Update

Our team

Wow! We are halfway through the summer! We have a few days off here at the missionary compound, then we will go back out to our locations and finish up the summer! I am going to try and fill you in on all that we have been doing without boring you to death! I apologize in advance if this gets kind of lengthy, but it is my one post of the summer! Feel free to take a break and come back to finish! :)

We are working in one main village. This is our main headquarters and where we spend most of our time. Adam and I are paired with two national partners, Bank and Happy, who knew limited English at the beginning of our time! This is a Lua village located about 3 hours from the missionary compound. To get there we got on a road for about 2 and a half hours.. Up, down, around, and up some more. These roads are crazy! After that we put the truck in 4wd and proceed up a “truck trail” that is mud! Just when you think you are there, we get on a dirt bike or walk 8 km up and even more narrow trail! Yeah, if you look up "middle of nowhere Thailand" in a dictionary, this place would be the definition.My partner Adam and I departed for the great unknown on June 15! We had no idea what to expect, but we knew that God wanted to do big things in and through us! We have had the opportunity to work in several villages in the beautiful mountains of Thailand.

We also have done work in another village which is about 5 km from the first and also work in a much more modern and nicer village.

Okay, so you might be wondering what in the world we are doing out there?! Just to fill you in, we are working through a Life Development Center through the missionaries here in Thailand. They have been going into village #1 once a week for about two years now, with a national leading the group. His passion for this place is amazing, and the ministry would probably not still be going on here without his diligence to load up every week and go. One of our main goals while here is to help teach English. We have been working hard with our national partners Bank and Happy, whose English has tremendously expanded in our time with them. We have also taught everyday in the village schools. There are many children in these villages who desire to learn English. We also play soccer or “football” on a daily basis. We have really seen the kids come out of their shells and have a good time on the soccer field!

Teaching English

We have also been showing Jesus films, and our national partners have been sharing Bible stories and "Creation to Christ." There are no believers in either one of these villages, but we are praying for opportunities to continue to share.

Children in our classes

Wow! It has been a great yet challenging summer for us. It is very spiritually challenging to work in a place that does not know our Savior. The people here are somewhat buddhist and animist. They believe greatly in spirits and they are a part of their everyday life, even depending on where they build buildings and where there children can go to school. Although it is difficult, I look out at the beautiful mountains that we are surrounded by and know that God is there and has a great and mighty work that He wants to do in and among the people! I am reminded of Lottie Moon's testimony. She was in China for 4 and a half years before they ever had one convert come to know the Lord! It is very encouraging to know that we can be apart of God’s almighty plan for this village, and although no one may accept Christ while we are here, that the great “I AM” has a great and glorious love and plan for these people!

Helping work on a local home

Your prayers can be felt tremendously and depend on them to make it through everyday. This is a quote from a Bible study that we have been doing on the field:

“Prayer opens prison doors and preaching doors. Prayer binds the enemy and opens the heavens. Prayer is the plow that breaks up the fallow ground for the Gospel seed. Prayer ushers in the manifest glory of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ”

So your prayers are so near and dear to us! The summer will soon be over, and I know that God wants to do great things in the remainder of our time here. Here is what you can pray for:

• Good health for our team
• For our teaching and sharing the Word with the children
• For more adults to open their homes for us to come in and talk
• For travel safety as we do a tremendous amount of walking each day
• For two teachers who we pray diligently for:
  • Achan N
  • Achan KD (They speak very good English and we want the opportunity to tell them why we are really here!)
• For God’s continuous work among all the people in this village and that His will be done in and through us.

I look forward to sharing all this and more with you in the near future! He is the “God of this City”, and we know that God is going to do exceedingly, abundantly, and above all we can ask or think!

Praise be to God! I am truly blessed!

-Nick