Newsletter #6

Thailand Newsletter #6

4/21/2014

Rusty:  Our time here is rapidly coming to a close. The team is deeply rooted in their faith ministering to each other and to the Karen (Ka-ren with accent on second syllable) people.  They have been extremely patient with me when I didn’t have a clue what would happen next and when plans changed at the last minute.  They are centered in prayer.  Jesus said in Matthew 21:13, “My house shall be called a house of prayer.”  Prayer has circled this team and the work done.  The team fully trusts God and gives me their trust, which humbles me.  Each member is qualified on his or her own to lead teams to the foreign mission field.  The only thing I brought to the table was that I knew the missionary hostess, “Susie”. It is easy to live out with the team Jesus Christ’s command in John 13:34, “A new command I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”

If you’ve been following the Face to Faith Ministry newsletters then you should know a little about what we’ve been doing so I’ll not try to plough the same ground.  Instead I’ll share an observation.  The Thai New Year’s Day is January one just as ours is.   They also celebrate New Year’s Day at the end of February and the middle of April.  It’s the celebration in the middle of April in which we found ourselves immersed (almost as in full immersion baptism) with the Songkran water festival. 

The Gregorian calendar and Christian calendar base year one on the birth of Jesus.  “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”  (John 1:14)  Every time we think of a date, write a check and date our signatures we are testifying to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  We are claiming the birth of our Savior, of Whom it was written:  “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  (1 Timothy 2:3-4) and “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”  (1 Timothy 1:15)  Christ was born to die but He didn’t stay dead as we celebrated yesterday on Resurrection Day!  We are redeemed!  Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  

Here’s the observation.  The Thai New Year is 2557.  What do they base their number on?  Year one is marked by the death of Buddha. They mark it by his death not his birth and not his resurrection from death.  Buddha died and is no longer.  He didn’t come back.  He wasn’t resurrected.  He supposedly passed on to Nirvana, the eternal state of nothingness.  There’s real despair that comes from total and complete death.  There’s no hope.  A Buddhist lives a life of despair.  The best a Buddhist can work towards is Nirvana and ceasing to exist.  That’s how they end suffering, by ceasing to exist.  Where’s hope?  Hope is found in Jesus.  “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”  (Romans 5:5)

It has been a privilege to join God in His work with this team.  We have worked hard to share the hope of eternal life found in Jesus.  God has been generous to allow us to witness some of the fruit of His work.  I always feel like Bob Uecker, baseball player and comedian who sat in the wrong seat at the baseball stadium and when told to move said, “I must be in the front row.”  It’s as if God has given us front row seats and a glimpse into His kingdom work.  Join God and serve Him.  You’ll enjoy the view from the front row. 

Thank you for sending us.   Cindy, Tracey, Rhonda, Priscilla, Leigh Anne, Chandler, Don, Rusty.

Easter....Is this just another Sunday????

Is this just another day of the week???? or is this just another Sunday?????

Our day here in Thailand had already begun & with that, the celebration of Easter. We are so blessed to be able to be in this special place, working & serving with special people....."for such a time as this..." (Esther 4:14b). God's timing in all circumstances is always perfect, as Tracey shared yesterday from the book of Esther during our team devotion. Today we celebrate the realization of the fact that we serve a risen Lord . "Christ died for our sins...He was buried, and...He rose again on the third day" (1Cor 15:3-4).

As we will be spending our day worshiping with  a group of people, who have been forced from their homes due to persecution and fear, we are reminded of the freedom to worship that we have in the US - a freedom that too often is taken for granted. While this freedom is an earthly freedom - for those who serve the risen Savior we have eternal freedom from the penalty of sin.

So....is this just another Sunday????

Thailand April 17-18 Pictures :)

Children's Ministry Pictures

Newsletter #5

Thailand Newsletter #5

4/17/14

Leigh Anne:  As the F.A.I.T.H. conference commenced on Monday, several of us helped Don set up as attendees arrived.  As soon as they were registered with properly spelled nametags (quite a task in itself!) and had received their packet of materials, the conference was off and running. 

Chandler, Cindy, Rusty, Susie, three Burmese caregivers and I alternately entertained ten precious little children. We started out playing with the children in the large hall on the third floor of the hotel.  After a hotel guest complained of the noise, we were sent to the fourth floor soon to be booted to the top floor of the hotel, a rooftop floor with a beautiful view that overlooked the city of Mae Sot. After a morning of songs, Bible stories, puppet shows and anything else we could think of, Susie drove us through the downtown area of Mae Sot.  Of course, because of the water festival, the children and the Burmese caregivers who sat in the back of the truck were soaked to the bone by the time we returned to the hotel.  Chandler, Cindy and I were not too keen on getting wet so we safely sat inside the truck. After an afternoon of swimming in the pool (a first-time experience in a pool for most), the children were exhausted and all piled in one hotel room to take a nap.  Ten little bodies, sleeping on three twin-sized beds was quite a sight to behold--what a luxury for those who normally sleep on floor mats in homes with no air conditioning in this blazing heat.

On Wednesday, the last day of the conference we looked up to see one of the conference attendees with his five-month-old baby. I asked if he would like to leave him with us, but he shook his head no. No diaper bag or list of care instructions, not even a word but simple trust in our ability to take care of his little one.  And what a sweetheart!  We couldn’t help but adore his plump arms and legs, his beautiful full lips, almond shaped eyes, and unceasingly calm demeanor.  It was sad to say goodbye to all our little friends especially our little baby. 

On Thursday we visited Burmese refugees that live in a shantytown just a few minutes from our hotel.  The town was built on the river around thirty years ago on a small slice of land that floods so often that it cannot be used by the owner for anything else. He rents the land to these people for $3.00 a year per household. Lean-tos made of corrugated/particle board houses about 125 people.  Months ago, Rusty coordinated our visit with the American missionary couple who live on the property.  While Rusty, Tracey, Don and Priscilla played games outside with one group of children, Cindy taught the children about proper hygiene.  Chandler, Rhonda and I taught the story of Jonah and the whale, and shared the story of creation from the wordless child evangelism fellowship book.  Chandler then shared the gospel using the Evangecube—a seven-picture cube “puzzle”.  When we asked if anyone would like to accept Christ, a young girl raised her hand. As our Burmese translator prayed the prayer of salvation with her, she invited Jesus Christ into her heart.  It was such a thrilling opportunity to share the truth about God’s love and forgiveness with these sweet children!

Tracey; I’d like to share two humbling moments.  On Tuesday afternoon I was doing street evangelism in a small hut community and my team approached a young lady returning from her mile walk to get fresh drinking water, what made it special was she was 8 months pregnant and it was 100 degrees outside.  We spoke to her in the road and she accepted Jesus Christ…..while that is special it gets better.  She offered to finish her walk and show us where she lived.  Her husband was home so my team again used our newly learned FAITH training and spoke to him as well. As we were presenting to him she poured us all a large cup of water.  I did not have the heart to drink from the gallon of water that she walked in 100 degree heat a mile to purchase.  She needed that water more than we did!  Her generosity was touching.

These people live in huts with walls of cardboard and plastic bags but were so inviting and shared with us what little they had without hesitation.  Another humbling moment was after spending the morning with the children in the Shantytown on Thursday. Once we sent the children on their way, an elder came back with several large bowls of a sweet warm soupy treat for all of us. Again, so much generosity and appreciation from these people.  Oh, and the pregnant mother I mentioned (this was her first child) had not one thing in her home that suggested she was about to have a baby.  In fact, the babies and small children in the Shantytown do not even have diapers! Believe me, just pick one up and you can tell. These people have nothing, but give everythingJ

            

Thailand April 14-16, 2014 FAITH Witnessing Conference

Thailand April 14-16,2014

Humble Servant Hood = Light of Love Church

04-16-14

Humble servant hood – that I how I would describe the Burmese people from Light of Love Church. They greeted us with Ming La Bah when we first met, Sunday night at their church. They now greet with American “Good Morning” & “Hello”. Their humility, sweet spirit is such a reflection of the Christ manifested in their lives. Their Pastor gave up a successful career & financial security to answer God’s call to start a church. The pastor’s wife works for Partner’s Relief & Development, the mission organization the missionary we are working with is associated with,& was spending all day work only to go home each day to spend her evenings visiting the parishioners & ministering to their needs. 

Shrines – We have seen many shrines here that have an array of offerings at them. Their faith in idols is so evident as you walk the streets. They are obvious to everyone. The question that begs asking is what idols do we, in America, have?   Ours are less obvious yet they continually take our focus from God. It could be anything from things or to our time. This morning in our Bible Study we talked about intimacy with God. Is God truly the Lord of our life, of our every waking thought, is all that we do governed by Him, do we hear Him when he whispers to our hearts???? Or, are we too busy to have time to do those things that He has laid before us to do, to speak a kind word, to sit with someone who is hurting, to be the salt & light in this dark world???? I would venture to guess that America, the land of abundance, has more idols than those we see on the streets here. The difference being that ours are subtle and at face value seem so insignificant – yet in many ways may be more hazardous to our spiritual relationship with our creator, the one true God. How do we know just how far we have drifted….I would venture to guess that if we analyzed what we spend our money & time on we would know what we truly value. . I am so convicted of how I have allowed those things in life that we deem important to steal me from growing in my personal relationship with God.

I am so grateful that God open the door for me to come here. Asia was a place in the world that I had no desire to go come to, yet He knew that this is where I needed to be at this time.

Cindy

Newsletter #4

Thailand Newsletter #4

4/17/14

Don; Praises to our Lord, the conference is over with 33 people Faith Trained and a factory sweatshop workers community has 34 new believers in Christ. Doing street Evangelism in a community where the people only get Sunday off and one week a year vacation has many challenges. Their days are long and hard as you can imagine, and not all are interested to hear what you have to say. But we thank God for the 113 that stood still and allowed us to share the Gospel.

A couple special moments to share- Tracey Marshall was one of our students. She tells a story of getting into a house/shack, sharing Christ and leading 2 people to the Lord. I think she was more excited then they were. Going back the next day for follow-up she found 3 more family members and lead them to the Lord. 5 salvations in 2 days is awesome.

Next, I went with Priscilla and Leigh Anne to follow-up visit. A husband and wife had accepted Christ the day before. The husband tells a story of a dream he had during the Night. His great grandfather came down to him from heaven, white hair, white beard and spoke with him. We stayed visiting with them longer than I normally do and started feeling a little un-eased that it was taking so long. Within 40 feet of leaving this couple we found a couple factory working young men relaxing. We stopped and started talking with them within minutes three more workers came down the path a stopped a moment later another one came. When it was over 7 men heard the plan of salvation and 6 prayed to accept Christ. Leaving these young men it occurred to me, that we had left the husband and wife when I first wanted to we would have missed the 7 men. Thank you Lord for your perfect timing.

Our translator, “Stephen” proved to be a special man after God’s heart, we were fortunate to have him for this conference. Our missionary host coordinated with Pastor “Siya A Thee” for the conference. Pastor

Thee told a friend from the backcountry of Myanmar. That friend asks his friend to come translate for us. I love how the body of Christ works together. Anyway, Stephen has a passion to help the Makua Naga people group from Myanmar. This people group doesn’t have a Bible, so he has written a  dictionary, translated the Old Testament and is working on the New Testament. He had a  North Carolina sponsor that founded this effort until recently when he got involved in a different project. So if anyone would like to help Stephen finish the translations for this people group please contact me and I’ll get you in touch with him.

Overwhelmed with praise as we see God’s hand at work in Thailand. Thank you for your prayers.

Rusty, Chandler, Leigh Anne, Rhonda, Cindy, Priscilla, Tracey & don

Newsletter #3

From Face 2 Faith Newsletter 

*The team has people from a few different ministries, one of which is Face 2 Faith, who conduct the FAITH Training Conferences around the world. So to not duplicate efforts I am re-posting :) 

Thailand Newsletter #3

4/16/2014

Priscilla; Today is day two of the FAITH Conference.  All the attendees were on time and eager to learn.  You can tell and see the excitement they have to be able to attend this conference.  Their faces are always beaming lights of joy.  They recite scripture in unison, sometimes without even opening their bibles.  I am in complete amazement in their ability to know the word, and wanting to know more about sharing their faith.  One attendee asked me during one of their breaks if sharing the Word with others was easier in America.  I answered him quickly by saying "No". It is never easy to share the gospel, but it is rewarding. John 15:18 immediately comes to mind, "If the world hates you, know that it hated Me first." No one said it would be easy to share the good news of redemption and salvation, people will hate you, and they will criticize you, and mock you.  Just know that for every handful of rejections there is a salvation, and that alone makes the whole thing worth wild.  It makes this trip to Thailand worth the long plane ride, the separation from family, and the lack to understanding or speaking their language, just to train a hand of attendees wanting to do what God has asked us all to do.

Don; We are batting 100, every time we load up the truck to go somewhere a few tenderhearted girls rush to ride inside. Their reason is that as we drive through the city you are appt to get wet, I guess they don’t want their makeup to run. The penalty or prize, depending on how hot it is, you are going to get wet. Little kids with water pistols, bigger kids with soaker guns, others with a plastic bowl or bucket dipped into a barrel then there are the few with garden hoses zapping any vehicle [especially tourist] that have an opening. Walking, bicycling, motorcycle, car, truck if they can get to you…you’re going to get wet. All those riding in the back of the truck, watch out, its open season and you are an easy target. Yesterday was our first day of visitation, scared, apprehensive but willing 34 people pile into two small pickup trucks and head to the factory workers hosing area. The ones that have the Evangelist heart quickly rise to top, bold as brass they walk up to or into peoples homes and start talking. 90min later 21 names have been recorded in the Lambs Book of Life, hallelujah. They are making plans on how to do follow up and we haven’t finished the training yet, I love it, I love it. Thank you Lord.

Serving our Lord in Mae Sot Thailand

Rusty, Leigh Anne, Chandler, Rhonda, Cindy, Tracey, Priscilla and don.

Thank you for your prayers of support and encouragement.

Slide Show: Thailand April 11-13, 2014

Click on the date (link) below to see some fun pictures (with comments) of our first few days in Thailand. 

April 11-14,2014

Thailand Newsletter #2

Don: We have seen God's hand again and again before leaving the States. The lady that checked us in at the hotel the night before we left was so impressed with what the Lord is doing through us she asked for information so she come next trip. [Yes, Kathy, we have room for you anytime]. Being inline early when they assign seats has advantages also as can see from the Exit row seats for the girls. The plane later was packed. After a long and uneventful trip we arrive just minutes before Rusty, Leigh Anne, Chandler and Cindy. The only casualty was one small tote with ministry supplies.

Friday After breakfast at Starbucks Rusty & I do some Banking and go after Bibles. The Lord lead us to a close and friendly Church/Bible store where after applied discounts we picked up 18 Thai, 25 Burmese and 41 Sgaw Karen Bibles for under $600.00, Praise God.

One wrinkle we hadn’t expected was our transport to Mae Sot. A very nice & clean large minibus arrived ready to take us, until the driver seen how many bags we had. Can’t all fit in one bus, so we’ll take two buses at double the cost. Stopping off at the airport to pick up the AWOL plastic tote we are on our way to Mae Sot.

We are in the Queen Palace Hotel in Mae Sot. A nice hotel with A/C and clean sheets [thank you Lord]. Mae Sot on a border town next to Myawaddy, Myanmar. We were tempted to walk across the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge today, only tempted. The Moei River is a twisting-turning shallow river at this time of year. It was strange for us to see the “legal” border crossing on the bridge and the “illegal” crossing on boats or wading across a hundred yards up stream, in clear view of the authorities.

Not the "normal" mission trip update

In light of some events yesterday and a burden God has placed on my heart, I am deviating from the “normal” mission trip update.

  

Today started with unexplainable sorrow. We learned the news of the tragic death, that occurred yesterday (Sunday),  of a friend in my Sunday School Class. Within 20 minutes of receiving that news, I received the wonderful news of the birth of my great niece. The wave of emotions were from one extreme to another in a matter of minutes.

As I struggle to comprehend the events of yesterday one thought is resonating in my spirit. God is still God. We have both Blessings and hardship in our lives. Though there are tragic things of this life that are beyond anything we can comprehend...God's desire is "not to harm us but to prosper us" (Jeremiah 29:11). HE desires to have a personal intimate relationship with us, not only here but for eternity. The fact that we live in a sinful world means that there will be pain and suffering  For those of us who have Christ as our personal Lord and Savior we have the assurance that God has overcome this world (John 16:33). A fact that we will celebrate this coming Easter Sunday, remembering that pain and suffering were not God's design, but the choice of man, to whom God gave a free will. A free will to choose Him or not. But HE chose us as HE hung on a rugged cross to pay the ultimate price for our sins, a price that we could never fully pay.

Now, imagine going about your daily life, with all the joys and sorrows that this life brings, trying to adhere to rituals and rules to try to earn the assurance of your eternity. Each day you have to complete tasks hoping that you do it all correctly, always wondering if it is enough. As we drive through this area of the world there are many shrines to various gods with a wide variety of offerings laid before them. Some of these gods are not even worshipped any longer but the people won't take them down and continue to leave offerings for fear of offending some god they don't even know or believe in. They have no assurance of their eternity, but live in fear. Placing their faith in their abilities. A faith based on our abilities is no faith at all as we all have sinned and fall short (Romans 3:23).

That brings me to today's program, the first day of the F.A.I.T.H. Witness Training. As I sit in this room of 28 of my sisters and brothers in Christ I am humbled and encouraged, for they have chosen to spend the only 3 days they have of annual vacation earnestly studying how to share God  with this dark and dying world,. They realizing the urgency of what God has called them to do – to tell others of the one true God.

God is still God.....A God who choose to leave Heaven, live among us in human form, and die a horrific death on a rugged cross then be raised from the dead so that mankind could have Heaven, both here and for eternity (John 10:10b)

  

The scripture from my devotion this morning:

As our family celebrates the new life God has brought to my  niece & her family, it reminds me of the new creation that we all are in Christ. For Christians we will fully realize the perfection and wholeness that we were created to be when we see Christ face to face – as my friend did yesterday. While he will be greatly missed, I know one thing for sure: One day there will be a great reunion in heaven. Please keep his wife & mother in your prayers as they deal with his sudden tragic death. Their journey will be something I could not imagine – but God can surely carry them through.

So…… the question for each of us is……What have we done with this knowledge of who Christ is? Is HE our personal Lord and Savior?

For me, I have chosen Christ & although I stumble (often), I choose to follow HIM, knowing fully that HE is my Lord & Savior. My prayer is that Christ is Lord & Savior of your life, for none of us have an guarantee of tomorrow. 

Cindy 

My first day in Mae Sot

Today was our first full day in Mae Sot. After much travel & working our way here, we finally arrived last night. The morning started slowly....some of us slept right through breakfast only to find out that if you arrive in the dinning room  too late that at least you get a glass of grape koolaide for breakfast. Late morning Marci Haigh Toe (the nurse missionary we will be working with), her husband, & 2 children came to greet us & give us a little tour of the town. First stop was a coffee shop, a very welcome site after my grape koolaide breakfast, yes I was one of the sleepy heads. Then we headed on to the Friendship Bridge which crosses a river & joins Thailand with Burma. There was a lot of activity with people crossing the boarder - both "official" and "unofficial." Many of the people are headed home to Burma for the coming week, which is a national holiday that is celebrated by an excessive amount of water throwing - more details (& I'm sure pictures) to follow in the coming week. For these people, who work in sweat shops, work 6-7 days a week & are paid very little, this is their only time off from work all year. While we were there we walked along the river, visited a market & had lunch with a sweet time of fellowship & getting to know Be Soe Toe, Marci & their children.

They brought us back to the hotel so they could head onto a family obligation. Some of the team tried to catch up on that ever elusive jet lag sleep & the rest of us headed to the market to get some wash basins to do our laundry in & 200 bars of soap to distribute when we have our Community Health Evangelism lesson on hygiene. There were children along the way already practicing the water throwing skills & Rusty became their target. With the temp up into the low 100's he was probably the most comfortable one of us walking back to the hotel.

There are many sites similar to those I have seen in other countries in Africa. There were  boys being boys swimming in a river with a lot of trash floating by & on the river bank; people going about their daily lives which, for the most part, entailed poverty &  a struggle to survive; a mix of development & squalor so closed together that you mind wonders how such opposites can exist together. In it all you see the human spirit searching for some meaning or purpose. There are a lot of shrines here & I'll post info on the religious beliefs here tomorrow to give more background.

This evening Rhonda, Priscilla, and myself went to get more airtime for my phone. As we walked through a market area there was a man, missing his left leg & arm, scooting himself along the pavement. As we passed, Priscilla felt called to pray for him. We backed up & she knelt by him, placing her hand on his shoulder & prayed for him. With the language barrier there was no way for him to understand what she was saying. But the look on his face when she finished said it all - there was a change in his expression as he looked at her.

We don't know what all God has in store for us here, but prayerfully we will see through HIS eyes & love these people as HE does, fully with grace & mercy. Our prayer is to serve HIM fully & unconditionally every minute that we have the privilege to be here.

Cindy

News from Mae Sot :)

F2F Newsletter:

Thailand Newsletter #2

Don: We have seen God's hand again and again before leaving the States.
The lady that checked us in at the hotel the night before we left was so impressed with what the Lord is doing through us she asked for information so she come next trip. [Yes, Kathy, we have room for you anytime]. Being inline early when they assign seats has advantages also as can see from the Exit row seats for the girls. The plane later was packed. After a long and uneventful trip we arrive just minutes before Rusty, Leigh Anne, Chandler and Cindy. The only casualty was one small tote with ministry supplies.

Friday After breakfast at Starbucks Rusty & I do some Banking and go after Bibles. The Lord lead us to a close and friendly Church/Bible store where after applied discounts we picked up 18 Thai, 25 Burmese and 41 Sgaw Karen Bibles for under $600.00, Praise God.

One wrinkle we hadn’t expected was our transport to Mae Sot. A very nice & clean large minibus arrived ready to take us, until the driver seen how many bags we had. Can’t all fit in one bus, so we’ll take two buses at double the cost. Stopping off at the airport to pick up the AWOL plastic tote we are on our way to Mae Sot.

We are in the Queen Palace Hotel in Mae Sot. A nice hotel with A/C and clean sheets [thank you Lord]. Mae Sot on a border town next to Myawaddy, Myanmar. We were tempted to walk across the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge today, only tempted. The Moei River is a twisting-turning shallow river at this time of year. It was strange for us to see the “legal” border crossing on the bridge and the “illegal” crossing on boats or wading across a hundred yards up stream, in clear view of the authorities.

*****************

More personal thoughts to follow.

Cindy

We are in Thailand!

The gang is all here....minus 1 bag. Everyone is doing well, just very tired :)

We are headed to bed. Tomorrow we will prayerfully collect the missing bag and set out for our leg of travel to our ministry location.

Keep the prayers flowing!

Counting the hours.....until arrival in Thailand

As many of you know I am heading off to Thailand tomorrow. This is an area of the globe that until January 26 of this year I had no desire to go to. It never ceases to amaze me how God can open doors & place a yearning in your heart that you never even knew existed. With that said my trunks are almost packed & I can't wait to see what God has in store!  We have a team of 8, lead by Rusty & including Don (Face2Faith Ministry), Leigh Anne, Chandler, Tracey, Priscilla, Rhonda, & myself.

Thank you for your prayers & support!!!!
Cindy

Here is the first Newsletter sent out by Don (F2F)


Don: Well it is coming up quickly, packing our bags, picking up last minute items,
coordinating ground transportation, hotel, checking and double checking everything.
We all fly out early Wednesday morning 9 April and arrive 11:30-11:50 pm Thursday
night. It feels good to get back into the excitement, anticipation, and expectation of
what God is going to do on this trip. Not sure if I need to say sadly or joyfully many of
the team are experiencing satanic attacks the closer we get. I think I’ll use these
attacks to confirm we are doing what the Lord wants us to and Satan doesn't like it.
Thanks Lord we are so thankful you have called us to serve you In Thailand.

Rusty Russell [our team leader] has labored for months to gather information,
supplies and support for and from team members, assign projects, coordinate with
our host [I’ll call her Susie] for in-country accommodations, conference, travel
arrangements and IDP Camp coordination.

The team consists of Rusty, Leigh Anne McLean, Chandler McLean, Priscilla
Griffin, Tracey Marshall, Cindy Albertson, Rhonda Hilliker and me. Interestingly
enough we have four different departure times from two different airports with
connecting flights in Beijing and others through Seoul, yet arrive within 20min of
each other in Chiang Mai.

Some of the activities we plan are; an Evangelism Conference in Mae Sot, street
ministry, children ministry, VBS, showing the Jesus film in the evening and
attempting medical awareness training. Finally we will visit with “Internally Displaced
Persons” [IDP] from Burma [Myanmar]. Some of these Refugees have spent their
whole life in these crowded, unsanitary camps. We hope to spread the WORD to all
that will listen.

Rusty: In November 2009, I was part of a Face to Faith team that went to
Yangon, Myanmar. While travelling I sat next to an American missionary nurse
who is the Susie, to whom Don refers. She told me about the work she does with
Partners Relief Development providing relief and development assistance to the
IDP’s inside Burma and the Burmese Refugees who fled persecution in their
country to live in refugee camps in Thailand. Their ministry fascinated me and
we’ve kept in touch.

In 2011, I went to Mae Sot to join Susie and another American missionary to hike
into the jungle along the Thai-Burma border to help establish a Christian house
church in Hskay, Thailand. They also took me to a Burmese refugee camp
where I saw the desperate living conditions. These camps were designed for a
three to five year life which has now lasted 30 or more years. Parents are
becoming great-grandparents and there are generations that only know life in a
refugee camp. I love the people and the ministry draws my heart.

We’ll spend our time in the Mae Sot, a large city on the border. Don will hold his
evangelism conference with a church where the members work in factory
sweatshops 16 hours a day 29 out of 30 days a month.

This is the one-week of the year they have off because it is the Songkran water
festival in Thailand. So understand this and you’ll understand why we go. These
people get one day a month off, one week a year off and they choose to spend it
learning how to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost and dying world in
which they live. Oh me of little faith and little effort.

We’ll also meet another missionary couple for the first time working with the
Shanty Town children doing VBS for three days. We don’t know what to expect
but the description of “Shanty Town” has positioned our hearts a little higher in
our throats.

This is the most experienced and capable team. Being called their leader is
superfluous as each one is a leader himself or herself. The team has a diverse
set of talents. They love the Lord and are completely sold out on serving Him
with all their hearts, souls, minds and every ounce of strength. I’ve have no
doubt that they will leave it all on the field for the glory of God.

Thank you to everybody who has helped to send us. We covet your prayers.