We went to Thailand....

Our hearts are full because of what God did on our trip to Thailand. Let me share with you some of the highlights...

The first four days we were ministering in a little church in Bangkok. It was headed by a woman, and her daughter played a key role. Wow! They are such servants, and impressed us with their giving, loving hearts. They really gave us a lot of food, they kept cooking stuff for us! We fell in love with some of the kids, all of whom are from unchurched families. (It reminded me of the Sandvik Center, where we made sandwiches for the people off the streets.) They went around and got low income kids to come to their kids club, where they did crafts, taught English, and taught them Bible stories and songs.  I was able to teach them a Go-Kids song, which they sang very enthusiastically for their parents on Saturday.

Most of Thailand is Buddhist, and we have been amazed at the testimonies of people, how they got saved. One guy saw a cross at 14, and wondered what it meant. That started a journey of inquiry, and today he's a pastor; the only Christian in his family. Another guy is 26 and has a food business. He was drawn to Christ because he was so lonely, and the people who taught English were so warm and loving. A couple came here from the Philippines, and have run a home for poor children for 17 years, with miraculous provision from God; it reminded me of George Mueller! Some of the graduates from their children's home are today pastors, teachers, and stable community leaders.

Jerry had the opportunity to serve in a practical way, his wisdom in building was used for building a stage for a church. He was the team photographer, that's something he did with relish! I had the opportunity to paint windows and doors at the ever-expanding Hope House (the children's home). Jerry provided much valuable help laying the floor for a new dining room. One of our team members made 20 quilts that she donated to Hope House.

Then we went to Changmai , a town in the north.  Here we had a two-day our marriage seminar, I was able to teach a small part of it. We stayed in the most beautiful resort! We were suffering for the Lord...(ha). The goal was to serve the ministry partners, who come from hard places like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and they were very blessed. We made some friends there, and will continue to keep in touch with them. One young couple asked for parenting advice. That's right up my alley!

Finally we had a fun day, and rode elephants at an elephant park. Can you believe they even showed us how they could train elephants to paint pictures?!?!
We went to several Buddhist temples, and my heart was saddened seeing people bow down to idols. So much darkness. I read a book while I was there: The Boy with a Bamboo Heart, by Dr. A. Wathanavongs, about a Thai orphan child who was befriended by missionaries. He grew up to start a charity of his own, which today serves poor Thai children. It profoundly impacted me, and I'm praying for God to raise up more "Dr. A's" like him.



The people we worked with, both ministry partner couples from the United States, were very sacrificial. They bent over backwards, going out of their way to serve us, and see that we had a marvelous experience. Our hearts were greatly humbled by their love and devotion to the Thai people.

The trip really expanded our hearts, we had never felt love for this part of the world before. The Thai people are so polite, even deferential, that they are a joy to be around. Our hearts are overflowing right now, it will take a while to process it all. I can only think of one of my favorite Scriptures, that is when people from every tribe, people group, language, and nation gather around the throne to worship Him. How glorious that will be!