God
is working in Southeast Asia! Particularly the country to the east of Thailand,
the Gospel is spreading like wildfire and people are coming to Christ on a
daily basis. Due to the security issue, we would like to not disclose sensitive
details in the blog. Though we would like you to know that many people are
coming to Christ and we want to thank God for the great harvest! Glory be to
God alone! Please pray for our missions
and our partners in high risks areas on their ministry and their family needs.
After
a wonderful month with the mission’s team from Boise Bible College, we thank
God for sending even more help our way! In July, right after the BBC team returned
to the US, a newly married couple arrived on the mission field only several
days after their wedding! Ben and Cristina Meyer study at Biola University and
decided that they wanted to start their lives together by serving and experiencing
the mission field. We thank God because of missions-minded folks and this kind
of dedication to serve is often rare. This is just one of the many reasons that
we thank God. And we thank everyone who has been praying for kingdom workers to
come and serve with us!
Early
in July, with our new help, we went up to a Lahu village called Nong Kio, just
north of Chiang Dao (the Lahu are an ethnic group of people similar to the Lisu).
This church is full of people whose faith is on fire. Because of the persecution
during the Cultural Revolution in China, the church founders fled to Thailand through the jungle roads of Burma. Even so, because
they did not know the Bible well, some of the people practiced their former
traditional ways of life using black magic which resulted in the community splitting into five
different churches. After Asians For Christ spent many years teaching this group of people the Bible,
this church has finally transformed! And since then, this church has become one of the most
missions-minded churches in Thailand. They have sent out over 30 native
evangelists to various areas in Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and even China. This is
the living testimony to show that the Word of God, the Bible, transforms
people. Praise the Lord! In this village, Ben was able to give a sermon for the
morning service and John preached during the afternoon service.
 |
Left to right: Nick, Yasa, Vivian (our relative from France),
Stephen, John, Ben and Cristiana at Nong Kio |
 |
| Team discussion about the different ethnic culture and history |
 |
| Stephen giving a communion message |
 |
| Double translation (English to Lisu to Lahu) for John's message |
When
we got back to Chiang Mai, we continued to teach English to local Hua Fai
government school. For Thailand’s
National Teacher’s Day, we put together funds and bought some pork for a
special meal for the students at the school. Generally, the children here are
provided a lunch which includes only plain rice or noodles and a side of soup. But
for this special meal, they each had several slices of pork! For some of the
students, school lunch may be the only meal they get for the day and these kids
are definitely in our hearts. After school, Nick would coach the kids in soccer,
which is always a great way to spend time with these kids outside of school in
an activity that they enjoy!
 |
| Local students lining up for lunch |
 |
| The kids are happy to have some slices of pork |
 |
| John and Becky are teaching English to 3rd grade class |
The
following weekend, we went up to Sam Muen Mountain to visit one of the the Lisu
villages where Christianity among the Lisu began in Thailand. Stephen’s side of
the family used to live at this village and they happened to be one the
earliest group of Lisu people who accepted Jesus Christ. From this very remote
village, God has been moving among the Lisu people in Thailand because nowadays 1/3 of the Lisu population in Thailand are Christians! Praise Him! The drive up to this remote village took roughly five hours; on top of that, the roads leading up the mountain is among the most
treacherous roads in Thailand. Driving up this mountain was a challenge, because
the road, barely wider than the average car, is mostly dirt and is filled
with large pot holes. The road from Sam Muen Village is unsuitable when it
rains, and unfortunately, we had just entered the rainy season. And so, as we
drove up the road we prayed that God would allow us to visit the Lisu up there
because it had been such a long time since our last visit. We made it there
safely and it was an amazing couple of days to visit the people and to
encourage the Lisu Church in the area about how God blessed that village
many decades ago and how He continues to bless them even until today. It was a blessed and beautiful trip; it did not even rain
while we were there, so we had a safe trip down the mountain as well.
 |
| Our July evangelistic team |
 |
| Fellowship with senior citizens at Sam Muen Village |
 |
| Fellowship in a traditional kitchen |
 |
| Fellowship over a meal |
Our
friend has started his evangelistic works among native Burma people (not ethnic
minority). Many Burmese have turned to Christ from their Buddhist faith and now
these new believers are seeking to learn more about the Word of God. At the
moment, they are in need of Bibles in Mandalay, Myanmar. We recently received
a request to send 1000 Bibles into the area. Praise the Lord! At the moment, only 500 Bibles in the Burmese language are available, so in the past week, we sent them
all to Myawaddy, the border between Thailand and Myanmar. If God is moving your
heart to be a part of this great opportunity to give Bibles to the Buddhist
Burma who are seeking His Word, you are welcome to be on board with us. The
actual costs of each Bible is $10, but some of the mission organizations like
the Bible League of Thailand asks for 3.50$ per book (transportation fee not
included).
 |
| Bibles for Burmese people |
 |
The Bibles are transferred from the office onto a pickup truck
to be sent to the border of Thailand of Myanmar |
 |
| All set for delivery! 6 hour drive to the border! |
Our
family is doing well, God is very good to us. The rain has become more
consistent which brings down the temperature, but it also brings out blood
thirsty mosquitoes! At the beginning of August, John went back to Boise Bible
College in order to prepare for another year of school. This month, Nick
preached at a local church about faithfulness and it went very well. He is also teaching to university students and investing a lot of time with the local kids. Mary is doing better but her back
is still a bit sore. Becky helped John teach a couple times at the government
school and she did a wonderful job. Stephen and Mary together have also been
occasionally visiting and praying for elderly people in the mountains. Also, Stephen
has also been communicating with a group from neighboring countries, as they
want to learn the Bible here at our center. He is also continuing to teach the
Bible via electronic devices. Pray for Stephen for his commentary works to be
done for many people are persistently asking him about his upcoming books. Please
also pray for our missions as God works through us in Southeast Asia and China.
