Evangelistic Outreach Galore!

It's evangelistic outreach galore, which started today, and will last all the way til 26th December!

Do keep all of us in prayers as we spread the joy of God's love to the Shan people.

24th morning:
Suan Luang Village with the children
- Do remember the BC team that is coming up. They will be running the programme for the morning, teaching songs, games and sharing their testimonies.
- Pray that the children will be able to come.

24th evening:
Shan Church
- The parents of the children from Suan Luang village, plus the other villagers from Suan Luang village has been invited to come for the Christmas programme in the Shan Church.
- Do pray that the adults will come not just for the free gifts and presents, that God will open their hearts to hearing His Word as well.
- Pray for Sam as he shares God's Word with the adults, that God will annoint his lips and help him speak forth His truth.

25th morning:
Parmueat School
- We'll be visiting a public school this morning.
- Thank God for this opportunity.
- Pray for the hundreds of students in the school (from Primary 1 to Secondary 3).

25th evening:
Nam Jam Village
- This evening's programme will be with the children and their parents from another Shan village - Nam Jam village.
- Continue to pray for strength and wisdom as we enter in the 2nd day of evangelistic outreach.
- Do remember these unreached people as well.

26th morning:
Nam Jam School
- BC mission team will be heading down to Nam Jam School (where Sam and I teach english) to teach english to the P1-P3 students.
- Pray for wisdom and good interaction, especially since most of the BC team members can't speak Thai.

26th evening:
Christmas Celebration with Shan youths
- Pray that God will be in our midst as we celebrate with songs and games and also a time of thanksgiving to God for sending Jesus Christ to this world for all of us.

Do keep the team in your prayers as well, as they fly up from Singapore, and then take a 3 hour bus ride around the mountainous terrains from Chiangmai to Maesai. Pray that they will have a fruitful time here, as God opens their eyes to a new environment of mission that is different from what they have experienced before (for those who have been on mission trips prior to this), and that God will make use of this period here to expose them to mission work (for those 1st timers).

Chiangmai

Saturday was spent in Chiangmai to spread the joy of Christmas to a group of children there.

Thank God for journey mercy to and fro. 3 hours travelling round the curvy mountains was definitely not the easiest thing to do, but I thank God for protecting all of us.

Thank God that the programme ran well, that the children had a fun time with us.

Thank God for guiding the lips of Care, who shared the story of the birth of Christ with the children. (She was exceptionally nervous the night before, practicing over and over again.)

We pray that one day, these children will really come to know the true meaning of Christmas.

That's us teaching the children to sing some Thai Christmas carols.

The children dancing and posing to "Jingle Bells".

Learning the memory verse through games.

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:11

Care sharing with the children the story on the birth of Jesus Christ.
Craft time had the children colouring, cutting, pasting, to make a paper bag which we filled with sweets and a tract about Christmas.
After everything ended, we were given a great treat (the children included)!

Chicken rice! Seriously delicious.

Brother & Sister in Christ

I thank God for these 2 people that He put in my life during my time in Thailand.

For p'Kul. She's like an elder sister to me (though we're just a year apart). She looks out for me, and during my first weeks here, she made it a point to call me to chat, just to make sure I was ok alone. She never fails to chirp me up with her little quirky antics. It's encouraging to see how much she trusts in our Heavenly Father. I'm glad she's here for the whole of December. :)

For Motu. He's an irritating kid brother that you wish you didn't have, yet at the same time, without him, it feels like something is missing. This brother is one sensitive and caring dude who never fails to step out to help when help is needed. It's a joy to see him interact with the children, leading them in songs and teaching Bible stories, and you can feel the love of God strong within him. I'm glad to have known him.

We stopped by a resort for lunch on our way to Chiangmai. While waiting for lunch to arrive, we climbed up the bamboo bridge (which look extremely fragile) to explore the compound.
Upon arrival in Chiangmai, I had the opportunity to visit the OMF Mekong office, to see the faces of the missionaries serving in the Mekong Region amongst the many people groups in this area.

Off to Chiangmai!

I'll be going off to Chiangmai tomorrow morning at 9:00am!
Aunty Chalor, p'Sam, p'Kul, Motu, Care and myself will be travelling by car down to Chiangmai and staying one night on Friday.

We're going there to hold a simple Christmas celebration with children over at Chiangmai on Saturday morning. We'll be teaching them simple Christmas songs, sharing with them the story of the birth of Jesus and bringing some joy to them through games and crafts.

Do keep us in your prayers.
- For God to guide us, that He will go before us and open the way for us.
- For journey mercy, as the road trip from Maesai to Chiangmai is about 4+ hours. Pray that God will give Sam the strength and focus as he drives for long hours.
- For the time spent with the children over there, that we'll be a blessing to them.
- For the children that God will open their hearts to His Word and the joy of having Jesus Christ in their lives.

I'll be back soon for updates on Chiangmai so keep coming! =)

Baan Zhong

Friday, we went to Baan Zhong to celebrate an early Christmas with the children over there.

It's a village further down from where we are. There are about 150 Shan families staying in Baan Zhong.

Upon arrival, we were treated to a super yummilicious meal of khaaw soy.

The traditional khaaw soy that we ate is kway teow in a slightly spicy soup broth with minced meat and pieces of pig's blood. *YUMMY*

A close up of my khaaw soy.
We sang some Christmas songs with the children, played some simple games with them.
The girls cheering after winning the game.
Aunty Chalor telling the children the story of Christmas.
A group shot of the children at Baan Zhong. ;)

There are still many unreached Shan people in this village.
We thank God for opening up this opportunity for us to share with them His Word to the children there. It was great joy to see the children listening intently and enjoying every single moment of the 2 hours spent singing songs, colouring, playing games.

Please pray for the Shan people in Baan Zhong, that God's Word will reach them.

Do continue pray that God will bring forth workers in this ministry to work amongst these people who have yet to learn of the great love of our Father.

December is here...

Which means Christmas is coming really soon! :)

A time of celebration, spreading joy and blessings to others and a time to remember God's greatest gift for all of us - Jesus Christ.

A peek at the weekend that passed...

Bible Study with the youths

Do continue to pray for the Shan youths. For those who have accepted Christ, pray that they will be eager to learn from God's Word, and to grow strong in their faith. Also pray for those who have yet to accept, that God will open their hearts to Him.

Pray specifically for Chompuu and Yupin, 2 of the youths that Sam is currently discipling. Pray that as they are being trained up as youth leaders, that they will understand what it means to be a servant of God, and that God will use them mightily in His work amongst their own people.

A heart of thanks.

Time is flying by really fast. December's here and I've been here almost 2 months.

Just thought I'd share 2 thanksgiving. =)

My 60day tourist visa will be expiring on 8 Dec. I knew how I should go about renewing the visa in order to stay for another 30days (by going into Myanmar and coming back), but the thought of having to go into Thachilek alone worries me. I definitely had to go into Thachilek once next week, and was still thinking which would be a good day, and wondering if there would be anyone who could possibly go with me. So I prayed.

Yesterday when we had our meeting at Sam's place for the Christmas events, it was confirmed that we would be going into Myanmar, to visit a Shan village and to spend some time with the children there, teaching them songs and craft. And guess the date? 8 December!!! Not one day less, not one day more! Exactly on the day I have to leave Thailand!

Amazing how God plans for everything. Now I don't have to worry no knowing what to do, coz I'll be with 4 others! Praise God! =)

Do pray for us as we enter Myanmar on 8 December to visit the Shan village. Pray for God's presence to go before us and for protection during our journey there. Pray also that we'll be a blessing to the children there, and that God will open up opportunities for a potential ministry in that area.

For those who have not been updated, p'Sam fell off the motorcycle today while on the way back from the village. He had gone to the Shan village to take pictures for the Shan calendar.

He got a deep cut on his left cheek and had 20 stitches for the cut. All praise to God for preserving p'Sam's life and letting him suffer a cut, even though he fell off the bike! There is not other major injury (fractures, dislocation, internal bleeding etc.). A huge THANK YOU to those who knew about it and prayed for him. He's now back home resting.

The left side of his face is now swollen and he is currently unable to chew, therefore can only take liquids. Do pray for speedy recovery, as well as health as he recovers. The cold weather makes the wound more painful, so do pray also for strength and endurance. Pray also that God will instill in him a strong spiritual mind, to battle any distracting and discouraging thoughts that satan might put in his mind.

Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given
Jesus Christ His Son

Loy Krathong

Loy Krathong is a festival celebrated annually throughout Thailand. It is held on the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. It's very much a Buddhist festival where a raft decorated with elaborately-folded banana leaves, flowers, candles, incense sticks etc. is released into the river/water channel. Many Thais believe that floating a krathong will create good luck, and they do it to honor and thank the Goddess of Water.

This year, Loy Krathong was held on 24 November, and Maesai was full of festivities as well.

Da (my weekend housemate) and I went up to the border to join in the fun as well.

Floats being paraded along the main roads of Maesai.

Traditional Shan Lion Dance

That's Da & me! We climbed up to the Maesai customs house, where it directly overlooks Myanmar as well as Thailand.

Do remember the Thais in your prayers, many of whom have not heard about the wonderful love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"You shall have no other god before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them..." Exodus 20:3-5

Thanksgiving

Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day and I was really honoured to be invited to join the Fongs and their American missionary friends for a Thanksgiving lunch at Uncle Harry & Aunty Pattie's house.

It was a great treat with lots of 'aahaan farang' (western food) like turkey, pasta, salad etc.. as well as a couple of Thai dishes.

That's 3 turkeys worth of turkey meat!!!

Everyone getting a plateful of goodness!And the best must be the desserts! There was pumpkin pie with ice-cream, brownies, shortcake with strawberries & fresh cream! Oh the thought of them makes me hungry.

*Dessert pictures are with Lydia, coz I was too busy eating all the yummy dessert to remember any phototaking, so I'll post them up when I get them!*

It was a good break from the plenty of Thai food I had been eating (though I still love Thai food very much).

That's a picture of Nelly, Uncle Harry & Aunty Pattie's youngest (4th) child. She's 2 years old and is the cutest kid I've seen here. With her perfectly blonde hair and blue eyes, she's as "ang moh" as she can be. Yet, this little girl here speaks Thai more fluently than English! When you speak to her in English, she answers in Thai. Even her family members speak to her in Thai! According to her mom, Nelly thinks she's "Thai".

Now everybody say "awwwwwww.....!"

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Teaching...

Yesterday was the first time I taught at Nam Jam School alone.

Really want to thank God for bringing me through the 3 hours of lessons with the 3 classes. =)
I was initially worried that I wouldn't be able to handle them. Prayed and asked God for wisdom and courage to teach in a language that I had barely mastered.
Everything went well. The children could understand what I was trying to explain, and I could more or less understand what they asked.

"A picture paints a thousand words"
Decided that since I wasn't able to hold long conversations with the children (lest I start becoming confused by the endless chatter from everyone), I shall draw to keep them entertained. So entertain them I did, by drawing cartoon animals on their worksheets. It kept everyone (including myself) laughing for a good half of the class.

Thank God for this 'practice'.
At least now I know I am able to handle the class next week when p'Sam is not in Maesai.

Also want to thank God that He sent Lois and I down to p'Sam's place at the right time on Monday night, to be able to find out that he had disclocated his left shoulder.

We had just finished dinner and decided to bring the pork bones to the dog that lives in p'Sam's house, as we usually do. Just approaching his place, we saw the song tiaw leaving his house and were wondering what had happened. Then we saw Motu, and he explained with gestures that p'Sam had dislocated his shoulder and is going to the hospital. We then went back home to inform the rest. Uncle Charles went to the hospital to make sure everything was ok, while we stayed to pray for p'Sam.

Thank God the dislocation has been fixed and he's back home resting.

Do keep p'Sam in your prayers, as he will be travelling around with p'Kul this weekend to Central Thailand and then to Chiangmai next week. Pray for protection as they travel, and also recovery of his arm so it will not pose as a great discomfort during the long bus journey.

Do also pray that I'll be able to prepare the lessons well, and to go with a heart prepared to be a blessing to the children, no matter how small it may be.

Nam Jam School

Here are the 3 classes that Sam & I teach at Nam Jam School.

It's a lot of joy teaching these children.

Their innocence and enthusiasm for English lessons is seen in every student.

Despite the fact that children of this age tend to be more restless and noisy, they never fail to bring a smile with the little things they do.

Primary 1

That's Sam teaching, with the children giving full attention.

This class has 32 students.

The children copying the words learnt into their books.

I drew pictures beside the words to emphasize the meaning of the words.

Them working hard at drawing the best picture they can draw.

They are rewarded with stars at the end of each assignment, and they are really happy when they get 3 stars!

Primary 2

This class has 27 students.
Both the P1 & P2 classes LOVE colouring and join-the-dot activities.

They literally jump for joy and shout in their loudest voices "YAY!!!!!" when Sam takes out a stack of such activities for them to do.

On Tuesday, there was no time for them to do any colouring so nothing was given out and the children kept asking if I had any for them to do. So I told them to ask Sam, and they all went "AWWWWWWW......."

The P2 children filling in a crossword puzzle on words associated with our body.Those who have completed their assignment just happily posed for my camera. =)

Primary 3

The smallest class with 19 students.

This is the most interesting class among the 3.

They are super competitive and they absolutely LOVE competitions. They'll always be divided into 2 teams and worsheets will be given out to them for them to complete. The team that completes it the fastest without any mistakes will get like 50 points, & the team with the most points at the end of the lesson is the winner of the day.

Team 2 eagerly discussing the answers to the assignment.

Team 1 frantically flipping through every single English book they have to look for answers.

Team 2: Pointing out the right answers and letting their team mates in on the correct answer.

Team 2 gathering all their worksheets for Sam to check before confirming their win. 'Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."' Matthew 19:14

Doy Wow

During my 2nd week here, Chompuu kindly offered to bring me to Doy Wow.

Doy Wow is a little hill up right at the border of Thailand & Burma.
We decided to do a little exercise by climbing all the way up. It's around 180 big steps.

The scorpion statue with many more tiny scorpions surrounding it. It overlooks Burma and was built not long after the Burmese army fired some shells over to Thailand.

View from the top: Maesai, Thailand.View from the top: Thachilek, Myanmar.

Thailand and Myanmar separated by just the river running.

Prayer Meeting

We had our first Prayer Meeting at one of the Shan youth's house today.

Apaporn gladly opened her house for prayer meeting.

This will be a weekly affair - every Wednesday 7pm @ Suan Luang village.

I really thank God for this time that we can just come together for a time of praise, and read His Word. It's also a great time for the youths to share their thanksgiving and prayer requests, as well as to learn to pray for one another.

There were 9 youths who came today - Chompuu, Pao, Pee, Laa, Apaporn, Bua, Yupin, Somchai & Seagame. Together with p'Sam, Motu and myself, we spent time praying for each other. We also prayed for wisdom for the upcoming Christmas events, as well as for God's direction and provision, to bring forth a suitable person to work amongst the Shan in this ministry.

Do pray together with us, that through our weekly prayer meetings, the youths will not just learn about prayer, but also learn to pray.

"19 I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall.

20 I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me.

21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:

22 Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.

23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

24 I say to myself, "The Lord is my protion; therefore I will wait for Him." "

Lamentations 3:19-24

Just a random picture I took one morning while bringing out the trash.

A beautifully spun web at the gate of my house.

Shan Church

Every Sunday morning, I go to the Shan church, and help out with the Sunday School for the little ones.

This is the Shan church where the worshippers come.

There's usually about 7 people in this church.And this is the sala where the children have Sunday school.

The girl is Da, the intern from Bethel who stays with me on weekends.

I really thank God for His amazing grace, and His provision for such a lovely girl for company on weekends.

I remember when I first met her, we could not converse at all. There were lots of awkward silences and puzzled looks, but 4 weeks on, we are able to have a simple conversation, find out more about each other's family and how she decided to go to Bible College. It's really amazing how God provides when we have the faith in Him. This was taken during my first Sunday here. Sunday school starts at 10am, but usually around 9.30, the children would start arriving, and we'll all help to clear the sala (which is also covered with leaves and mud over the week), and lay the mats to sit on.After worship (together with the youths), we'll have memory verse time. The kids will learn a verse from the Bible, related to the Bible story that is being told that day. The kids remembering the verse.Yesterday, the verse was taken from Luke 10:27.

"Love the Lord your God with all your hear and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and Love your neighbour as yourself."

The kids had to rearrange the jumbled verse written on paper, and recite it upon completion.Bible story time! Da told the story of the good Samaritan.Then it's craft time where the kids will do a craft, also related to the story told.

Yesterday, the kids had to colour a house. They had to draw their neighbour and paste him/her in one of the windows. The other window was Jesus. They always love craft time.