Jiap's Father's Funeral

Jiap was concerned for her father because of his failing health. We traveled 2 ½ hours to Ganchanidit district of Surratthani Province with her to present the Gospel to him.

The next week Jiap’s father died. We again made the journey to attend one night of the 7 day funeral held in front of Jiap’s parent’s house. Many guests who came were served 3 different kinds meat & vegetables for their rice. While eating and talking with members of the family 2 women came and wanted to believe. (Jiap had been witnessing to people from the community.) After 2 hours we took pictures and left to return home to Krabi. We promised to return and begin teaching them about God.

Prayer Meeting for King's Health

Thailand’s king has been in the hospital and many have expressed concern for him.

A special prayer meeting for the King’s health was held by our province. All three religious groups, Buddhists, Muslims and Christians were asked to have an official time to pray for the King. Our pastor, A. Dusit, was asked to lead the Christians of 4 different groups. The governor presided over the afternoon events. After the program, fish were freed into the river according to Thai tradition.

Sunday Afternoons

Members from Krabi Baptist Church have been faithful to help us pass out tracts and witness to Thais in Khao Phanom district. We travel 45 minutes to get to the area and work for 2-3 hours before returning to Krabi town. Many of those who go with us, work 6 days a week with Sunday being their only day off. But they sacrificially give of their afternoon to serve God. So far, we've received about 28 response cards from our visits to Khao Phanom. Those responding usually request a free book or video CD about God.

Thanksgiving

We celebrated Thanksgiving with our team and some others in Phang Nga. Twenty-three people were there. After a wonderful meal of turkey and dressing, some of the guys played football, the children played and watched a Christmas video while the women cleaned up and talked. It was a great time of fellowship and expressing thanks for all that God has done.

Prayer and Praise

1. Praise God for the Thai Christians from Krabi Baptist, who sacrificially give their time to help us pass out tracts and witness.
   
2. Pray for our protection from dogs and snakes as we pass out tracts in the countryside. Sometimes we don't see the dogs until we're too close and it can get scary.
   
3. Pray for the Thais in Khao Phanom to understand the Gospel and want to learn more about God, who loves them.
4. Pray for Richard & I to be bold and faithful in proclaiming the Gospel. Many days we get discouraged because we go out, present the Gospel and no one responds.
5. Pray for Jiap that she continue to grow in her faith and boldness in her witness.
6. Pray for boldness as we present the Christ of Christmas to the Thais of Krabi through caroling in a mall and members homes, tract passing, visiting the Governor of Krabi Province, the mayor of Krabi town, and the Christmas programs in Krabi town and in Khao Phanom district.
7. Pray for the preparation, boldness and impact of the OBU students, who are coming the beginning of January, for the Kingdom of God.
   

Vegetarian Festival

For 9 noisy days in October, many people dressed in white and ate only vegetables. The 9 Chinese Emperor gods were called to earth to protect, give prosperity and chase demons away. Streets were blocked as parades were held in different venues. The air was filled with the sound, smoke and smell of firecrackers. Devotees became mediums for the gods, wearing appropriate dress befitting gods, walking over burning coals, walking up dagger ladders, giving blessings, and piercing different parts of their bodies to show the might of their gods. The ceramic gods from the Chinese temples were also taken for a ride in palanquins. On the night of the ninth day the gods were sent back to heaven with resounding drums and gongs. During one parade event in Krabi city, as part of a group from Krabi Baptist Church, we passed out Christian tracts to bystanders.

Jiap

Jiap, the brand new Christian we’ve been telling you about, has really come alive. It is so amazing to see God working in her life. She is telling those she knows about God every chance she gets – family, friends, and casual acquaintances. She leads us to new people each week that she has been witnessing to. So far we’ve seen Dal, Si, Kal, Nong, and Yu. After coming to church Sunday with Jiap and Linda, Kal was excited and has been telling her friends about God and the caring people in the church. Saturday we teach another friend of hers, Pattana, Bible Storying lessons.

Prayer/Marriage Retreats

We attended a 3 day prayer retreat for the Southern Thai Team of missionaries at Railay Beach. This peninsula, not far from our house can be reached only by boat. It was great to be away, have fellowship, and pray for one another.
A week later, counselors, a doctor, a chiropractor, and several pastors came to Phuket from the U. S. to put on a 3 day marriage retreat. The retreat was refreshing and a real blessing. We talked with people we had not seen in 4 years and got to know new persons serving in Asia from different mission organizations.

New Church

Richard & I represented our team and Krabi Baptist at a new church opening in HatYai. The five hour drive necessitated our spending the night and gave us a chance to buy new literature from the local Christian bookstore. We reacquainted ourselves with people we had not seen in several years, and together celebrated the opening of this new church. Glory of God church makes the 7Th Baptist church which serves among the 6 million Southern Thai Buddhist.

Prayer Requests

1. That Richard & I will soon start a Bible Study group in Khao Phanom.
2. That God will give us good health to serve him in south Thailand.
3. Jiap is making changes in her life and now needs more income to take care of herself. Pray for God to meet her financial needs.

4. That Jiap will tell the Bible stories we tell her to others and that she will begin to memorize Bible verses.
5. Pray that the Thais we've had deep conversations with on Sunday visitation/tract passing in the Khao Din and Na Khao parts of Khao Phanom will become Christians and grow in their new faith.
6. Jiap introduced us to some new women in Krabi town. Pray that Kal and Yu will accept Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives and be faithful in going to Krabi Baptist Church.
7. For wisdom in starting activities in the Na Khao part of Khao Phanom.

Jiap

Jiap had prayed to a higher power for 10 years. The higher power was probably Buddha or a Chinese goddess that she often relied on. The prayer was that one day she would find someone to love her and care for her. Then one day God placed us in her path as we were passing out tracts in the business district on the main street in Khao Phanom. Out of curiosity, Jiap came over to see what two foreigners were doing in her town. Then she invited us to her house where we told her about Jesus, and gave her booklets to read. In a later visit, she was given a New Testament. She read everything, including most of the New Testament. We also took church members from Krabi Baptist to witness to her. In addition, the pastor went to answer some of her many questions about God. One night while looking through some things that her husband had left in the house before going off to be a Buddhist monk for 3 months, she found another Christian book. This book gave testimonies from prominent Thai people before they became Christians and then told how Jesus changed their lives. While reading one woman’s story, Jiap thought, “Wow, her life is a mess like mine, but Jesus made a difference." Reading further into the book, she began to understand things that Christians had been saying to her. Finally, she realized that Jesus was the person she had prayed for those many years, the one who would love, care and never leave her.

When we came to see her recently, she had the broadest smile. Jiap said that she had accepted Jesus into her life! From a Christian book, she showed us the illustration of self or Jesus on the throne. For many years, she had been on the throne and now she wanted Jesus to take control. Buddha or the Chinese goddess she had relied on could never give her peace or fill the emptiness she felt inside. She wanted Jesus!

Radio Program

Richard & the pastor of the Krabi Baptist Church, A. Dusit, went to the three radio stations in Khao Phanom town. One of the stations welcomed them and asked A. Dusit to provide 3 one-hour programs each week for the station to play. It's a great opportunity for Thais to hear more about the Gospel. He recorded the programs on a CD. When we went to deliver the CDs to the radio station, there was a problem. Some of the management of the station thought that the program would try to force the Thais to become Christians. They were very concerned. After 2 hours of talking and one of the station employees listening to part of the program, the station management decided to go forward with the program.

Three Volunteers

On short notice we were offfered 3 volunteers for 2 days. We were able to get them into the Benja High School in Khao Phanom city. At the school they taught some English teachers games to make their English teaching in the classroom more fun. We went to the fresh market and made balloon animals for kids and passed out tracts because it was raining. The second day we were disappointed that some of our plans did not work out as we had planned. However, the team did get to visit and encourage Jiap. In the afternoon it was very hot but we prayer walked and passed out tracts anyway.

Prayer and Praise

1. Pray that as Jiap is taught Bible lessons that she will understand what is taught, others will see the change in her life and want to have Jesus as their friend too.

2. Even though Linda has not been able to clear up her email problems, we were able to get a gmail (email) and she can send & receive email on that. Praise God!!

3. Even before A. Dusit’s radio program airs in October, there is some opposition with the management of the station fearing the program would try to force Christianity on the Thai people. Pray that listeners will like his program, that some will request further information about Christianity, and management fears about the program will disappear.

4. Pray for men and women of peace to surface, who will facilitate our work in Khao Phanom.

5. Pray for doubts about the truth of the Gospel to disappear and the hearts of people in Khao Phanom to be open to the God’s message of salvation for their lives.

6. Pray for a full time Thai Christian to minister and work with us in Khao Phanom to begin churches and help disciple new Christians.

7. Pray for us to boldly, clearly and effectively present the Gospel in culturally accepted ways so Thais will have a personal relationship with Jesus.

Moving

On August 24^th we moved to Krabi. That day was busy as the moving company brought our things into our new house in Krabi. What a blessing that Thais and missionaries from our team came to help. They put together cabinets and beds, brought food to eat and took away cardboard boxes. In the following days we bought cabinets for the kitchen, a refrigerator and got internet service and a post office box. It all went well. Praise God!!

Getting Around

We drive a 2 year old Ford Ranger truck. It takes us the 20 miles to Khao (pronounced cow) Pha-nom district. We have begun going there each week to survey, pass out tracts, & witness. Part of our work is to become friends with people and give a personal testimony about God. We have seen some pretty mountainous scenery, but also lots of people who are lost and don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ like Khun Jiap. She is divorced, in her 40’s and is searching for peace in her life. We spent about an hour explaining how only Jesus could meet her deepest needs. Each Sunday we also take a group of Christians from Krabi Baptist Church out to give their testimonies.

Richard Hurt

Richard loves to ride bicycles. He found a local group, who go out in the evenings. Richard has been going out with them 2 times a week. Friday evening Richard was going down a dirt and gravel hill and ended up going over the handlebars. The Thais riders were great and called a friend to come get Richard and his bike in a pick-up truck. After some cleaning up, I took Richard to the local government hospital. The emergency room was not busy and took us right in. Richard got 5 stitches to his chin and 1 stitch to his upper lip, plus multiple bruises to his right arm, leg, and side. Praise God that he was not hurt worse and that the doctors and nurses were competent to help him!

Prayer and Praise

1. That God will open the hearts of people in Khao Phanom to desire to hear and accept the message of Hope. Pray that Khun Jiap accepts Christ.
   
2. That God will continue to lead us to people who hunger to know Him.
3. That God will heal Richard quickly and completely from his accident and protect us physically.
4. That my computer's problems with the internet will soon be resolved.
5. Praise for those from Krabi Church, who continue to go out with us on Sundays.

Survey: Trang

The purpose of our 2nd survey trip was to determine whether to work in Trang or Krabi Province. We began first by checking out some non-Christians in Trang we had taught. Our desire was to find Thais who wanted to know more about God. Instead, they wanted us to teach them more English. This was disappointing because along with the English we had also taught Bible stories. There appeared to be very little spiritual interest. However, a highlight of our time in Trang was finding a young woman named Joy. We had taught her English and Bible when she was a teenager in Phatthalung. She became a Christian as a result of those lessons taught at our dining room table. She is now married and living in Trang.

Survey: Krabi

In Krabi we talked to pastor Dusit of the Baptist church. He began to tell us about his burden for 3 districts of Krabi which had no churches and volunteered to go with us that afternoon to one of them. In Kal Panom district, we passed out tracts, talked to residents, and took pictures. (Some of these the pastor would use to challenge his church about the need for a Christian witness in those districts.) The next day we went to Plai PraYa district and did the same thing. Sunday after worship, we went with the pastor to the third district, Koh Lanta. This island had been affected by the tsunami 2 years ago. Pastor Dusit introduced us to some Mogen (sea gypsies) and other Buddhists, who had been helped by Baptist after the tsunami with food & clothing distribution, fishing nets, and boats. We even went to Baw Island, a bumpy long-tail boat ride of 20 minutes from old Lanta town. The mostly Muslim populated island had a satellite dish at the school (necessary in remote places so the children can get instruction where there are not enough school teachers) given by Baptists.

House Hunting

After deciding that God would have us work in Krabi, we spent four days of driving around the streets of the city looking for a house in which to live. We were pretty discouraged because we couldn’t find a decent house to rent. We looked at several houses but they were either too expensive or had major repair work needed before we could move in. Finally, we set a deadline and prayed hard. God answered our prayers as we found a two story shop house on our last day in Krabi. The house is smaller than what we had previously lived in. It will mean some down sizing and selling of furniture, but that’s something we needed to do anyway.

Cell Group

During the time in Krabi we attended a cell group meeting on a bamboo shelter in Krabi Noi. Two of our fellow missionaries, Matt & Erin Malone led the group. After singing and teaching, we watched the baptism of two ladies in a nearby stream. We are sure the angels rejoiced in heaven. Praise God for the faithful witness of a Thai Christian, who urged this missionary couple to come to this community to teach the Bible to her friends and neighbors.

Prayer Requests

1. For smooth preparation, move & transition to Krabi.
2. To meet men & women of peace, who will enable our presenting the Gospel in the district of Kal PraNom.
3. For divine appointments with people open to hearing God’s message of love.
4. For God to give us cultural sensitivity & the ability to communicate the Gospel clearly in Thai.

5. For Thai Christians to join with us in bringing people to Christ.

Your Prayers Answered!

1. The selling of our house in Newport News.
2. God leading us to Krabi as a place to minister.
3. Finding a place to live in Krabi.

Trip to the South

We took a 10 day survey trip to southern Thailand to visit 7 provinces. This survey trip enabled us to narrow the places we could possibly live and work. We attended a rural worship in the home of A. Boonyun in Ranong. We slept on a thin mattress on the floor with mosquito netting and for the first time ate ants and ant eggs on rice. While at his house, it rained heavily and we prayed that we wouldn’t get stuck in the mud as we traveled on unpaved roads both to and from his home. Driving on to Phangna adrenaline flowed when we hit a slick spot on a downhill winding mountain road. We thought for sure our truck was going to hit either the guard rail or the side of the mountain. Fortunately, Richard got the truck back under control. Once reaching Phangna, we participated in the work of our fellow missionaries by passing out tracts, witnessing and going to a cell group. Next, we went to Krabi and Trang to network with friends asking advice about where would be the best place to work in the future. Traveling on to Phatthalung, we worshipped at Rom Yen Church where we had served for 6 years. It felt like being home.

Highlights:

One highlight from our survey trip to south Thailand was getting in contact with 2 individuals who had helped in the church start in Ampere Nayong about 4 years ago when we were in south Thailand. Both have moved on to new endeavors. Ajohn Boonyun moved to Ranong province and became a farmer. However, his love for Christ and a burden for lost people was still evident. He started a church in his home with Burmese and Thai neighbors. We also got a chance to see Nat, a nurse working in Trang province. She became a Christian through the influence of a journey girl named Jan and through members at the Baptist Center in Nayong. Even though she is now part of a large church, Nat is doing outreach every Saturday by teaching children the Bible at a small church in the countryside. It was so refreshing to hear of her dedication and commitment to Christ.

Amulets – the Latest Fad

In Thailand there is an amulet called a Ju –tu- kam Ra-ma-thep that is extremely popular. It is the talk of the country. The Jutukam sells from $1 up to hundreds of dollars each. The Jutukam is worn around the neck similar to a pendent. This amulet comes in various sizes along with big promises to bring wealth to the wearer as well as protection from stray bullets, disease and harm if in an accident. In the southern Thai city of Nakorn-Sri-Thammarat, an incantation is recited over the Jutukam by a Buddhist monk to give it power (supposedly). The city has become very prosperous since first selling the amulet last year. Hotel rooms are booked solid. Thousands have been sold. The odd part is that the clay image (sometimes painted with gold or silver) encased in glass and plastic is Hindu! The popularity of the Jutukam is another reminder of why we returned to Thailand. As Paul says in Acts: “… we bring you good news that you should to turn away from useless things and trust in the living God.”

Praise and Prayer Requests

PRAISE !! We will now be able to move up-country because we passed level 5 in language proficiency. Richard did his tape on the elderly and Linda’s tape was on revenge. Before leaving Thailand 4+ years ago, we had reached a level 7. That will be our new language target after we move from Bangkok.

Please PRAY:
1. There is a contract on our house in Newport News,Va. The official closing date is on Aug 1. Pray that all goes well.
2. We must decide on where to work in south Thailand after leaving Bangkok. Please pray for wisdom in making the right decision.

BSC

Mr. Pairot, a 60 year old man who practices English with Richard at the Baptist Student Center in Bangkok, has lots of knowledge about God. Please pray that Mr. Pairot will soon believe in Jesus as Lord of his life. He attends many classes and programs at the BSC.

Health

Both Richard & I have had ongoing intestinal problems since returning to Thailand. Several weeks ago Linda was admitted to the hospital with food poisoning. Please pray for us to have strong bodies which remain healthy as we work in Thailand.

We saw SI

Some of you will remember Si, the Muslim girl, who was persecuted by her family for becoming a Christian. She took out an education loan years ago to finish college. The education loan was called due. Her father generously offered to pay off the loan if she would only return home and become a Muslim again. Si adamantly refused this offer! Her Christian employer intervened and paid off the loan. Now Si is paying her employer back. Pray for Si as she studies to prepare for mission work.

Annual Meeting

Last week we attended our annual meeting for the Pacific Rim. 100+ members of Brentwood BC in TN came to lead worship, and do camps for our children and youth. It was great to worship and sing together in English. We saw many friends serving in different countries and saw three special Thai friends. An auction was held at the meeting and $40,000 was raised for Lottie Moon.

Driver's License

Richard finally got his work permit - Because of this we were able to apply for our driver’s license. We went with our arsenal of documents – passport, international driver’s license, work permit, medical certificate, certified letter from the US Embassy and the IMB guaranteeing that we were who we said we were, our old Thai license and pictures of ourselves. At first we were told that our medical certificate was over a month old, so we quickly went out and got new ones. We had to take tests for color blindness, peripheral vision, depth perception, & reaction time. Then we got to watch safety videos in Thai for about an hour. Finally we were sent downstairs to get our 5 year licenses. All this took 3 ½ hours!

Prayer Requests

1. Continue to pray for the sale of our house in Virginia.
2. For the men & women of peace, who will enable our work.
3. A Thai co-worker for our work in the south.
4. To see Thais come to be Christian from our work at the Baptist Student Center
5. Wisdom in helping Christians and others with problems.
6. Good physical & spiritual health
7. Wisdom in knowing where to live in South Thailand

Idol Worship

As we travel from place to place in Bangkok we are always deeply saddened by the worship of idols. We see it in temples and at shrines around the city. We pray for the hearts of the Thai people to be turned to Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives and for opportunities to witness to them.

Bangkok Traffic

Richard & I like to take buses, sky train and the new subway in Bangkok. Traffic is usually heavy and one learns to be patient or frustrated when driving a vehicle. Coming home from the BSC we sat in traffic and watched an unusual sight. A man stooping on the edge of the road put a string down the metal grates of the storm sewer located in the turn lane. In just a few minutes, he pulled up a fish the size of my hand & put it in a large bucket. At first we thought we had seen incorrectly, but he did it again. We are so blessed to have regular income so that we don’t have to do that to eat.

Baptist Student Center

The BSC is a Center which teaches conversational English to Thais as a Christian outreach. Many Thai government employees study there.

We are in Bangkok to freshen up our Thai language skills before going south. However, we have been going to the Baptist Student Center for 3 hours twice a week. We talk to Thais from various occupations such as nurses, a jellyfish researcher, software programmer, sales people, someone working for a funeral arrangements company, & high school & university students.

As students come to practice their English with us, we are able to have some “spiritual” conversations. Richard is talking with two men named Na and Roat. Mr. Roat studies the Bible in English with another teacher and later talks with Richard about the lesson. This past Thursday his lesson was about Jesus eating with tax collectors while the Pharisees criticized him for eating with sinners. Richard discussed with Mr. Roat the meaning of being a sinner. Mr. Roat thought that the sinners in the story were only the tax collectors. Richard had him think about the sins of the Pharisees such as critical attitudes and self righteousness. Mr. Roat then agreed that everyone in the story was a sinner and in need of forgiveness.

Another night, Richard spoke with a lady who brought her 3 daughters. She said: “My youngest child is going to be used special by God one day”. Richard was shocked to hear this from a Buddhist. She explained that about 2 years ago the family was walking together as they passed a church. The youngest child, about 2 at the time, literally pulled her mother & sisters into the church. Her mother watched in amazement as the child bowed down to the ground with hands in a prayer like position in front of a picture of Jesus. None of the family had ever stepped into this church before! All her family believe that God will divinely use this child. The truth is that God has a special purpose for us all.