“We have land. We are farmers, and one day, she can be a farmer, too. She does not need to go to a better school.”
Bloy has been our student since she was two. Her mother brought her and her two older siblings to learn English and hear Bible stories when we started the Kids’ Church program in 2016. We would read books and do crafts with Bloy during the week at her preschool, and later taught English classes at her elementary school. From the start, we noticed her potential, but over the years, we have also seen her face challenges.
Bloy would occasionally become emotionally withdrawn for days. Her older siblings struggled academically; the oldest experimented with narcotics. Bloy displayed indicators of emotional distress, likely linked to family financial disputes and her father’s substance abuse and gambling. We offered support to Bloy’s mother, an early contributor to our efforts at the learning center and a frequent volunteer despite frequent fatigue.
After Bloy started elementary school, we often discussed her academic and social development with her teachers. One, a Buddhist, also saw great potential in Bloy and encouraged her family, as well as us, to send Bloy to an SDA boarding academy in northern Thailand, where she would have more opportunities to grow. Bloy’s grandmother supported the idea, but her father would not allow it, saying, “We have land. We are farmers, and one day, she can be a farmer, too. She does not need to go to a better school.”
Bloy was dejected, but we never let her give up on herself.
Over the past two years, we have coached Bloy, developing her leadership skills. She has become more confident and is now comfortable expressing her thoughts in front of a group. She frequently leads Sabbath morning sessions for the Kids’ Church program and regularly facilitates the adult Bible study discussion and worship time for our church plant near our learning center. One recent Sabbath, Bloy attended the largest international SDA church in our province and, when the pastor asked for volunteers to share their insights from the sermon, Bloy went to the front and shared with the congregation.
We are deeply thankful for Bloy’s spiritual growth, but saddened that so many children and adults with the potential to lead their families and communities into new pathways have yet to find this freedom. We want to continue investing in these future leaders, young and old, so that they can reach out to other communities and plant churches.
To sustain this movement’s growth, we must meet critical fundraising goals by the end of our U.S. furlough in September. Here is how you can help.
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