Once again I find myself filled with many things to share with you so I will start with the biggest piece of news:  we are moving!  Of course this was our plan all along, however we have decided to move in August rather than December, which means we have only one more month left in Chiangmai.  To be honest, I have wanted to move earlier for quite some time, but due to the presence of quality language schools in Chiangmai, it has been more beneficial for us to live here for the time being.  A week and a half ago we finished module eight, the last core module of our language school’s curriculum and have begun studying Bible electives.  The primary Bible teacher is only able to teach 2 days a week, rather than 5, which we have been doing.  With this being the case we inquired whether or not we would be able to do lessons via Skype if we were to move.  We have asked in the past, but have never been given a definite answer; however we were told that starting in August the school will begin offering the Skype option!  This along with several other providences has confirmed our decision to move.  For example, there have been two key people that we have actively been trying to minister to during our time in Chiangmai, our monk friend Sanga, and one of our other language teachers Khruu Ice; and both of them are also in transition.  Sanga will be leaving Chiangmai on July 8, and Khruu Ice has left the school to pursue other employment.  With all of these things happening around the same time, coupled with the growing needs of the ministry in Khon Kaen, we feel that God is clearly opening wide the door and calling us to move on; so barring any unforeseen circumstance we will be moving the first week in August!  Please pray that the Lord would lead us to the right housing situation that is both within our budget and also strategically located for ministry.

Playing with the Neighbor Children

Speaking of Khon Kaen, we spent 5 days there last week for team meetings and the official grand opening of Peace Music Academy, the school started via the leadership and vision of fellow missionary Ricardo Palacios.  As many of you already know, the school has been operating since last fall and it is our hope that it can offer a non-threatening way to provide a service to the community which will allow us to make friends in a natural way.  The school currently has about 10 students.  The grand opening ceremony was attended by roughly 60 people including leaders from the Thailand Adventist Mission and local Thai government officials with the Department of Education.  Our team was very pleased with how the program went and we believe that the school has not even begun to tap its full potential for ministry.  Please keep the school and its work in your prayers.

While in Khon Kaen we also spent a day and a half in team meetings, planning and praying about the future of our ministry.  There is truly much work to be done and our team is juggling the many responsibilities that come with the school, the church, and other AFM tasks such as language acquisition and culture study.  Even though our team consists of five family units we still need to figure out how to work together effectively and how to delegate responsibilities to the appropriate people. As we move forward as a team, and as Cindi and I make the transition to Khon Kaen in a month, please pray that the Lord would help each member of our team to clearly see the duties that God is calling them to fulfill in order to benefit the greater good of the project at large.  Ultimately our goal is to establish a culturally relevant ministry to the city of Khon Kaen that will result in the foundation of a strong local church with local leaders capable to planting other churches.  We also hope to establish a Center of Influence that will impact the community in very meaningful ways.

Playing with the Neighbor Children

Moving on now to current happenings in Chiangmai, our monk friend Sanga, who has not yet left; is still meeting with us weekly.  In fact, three weeks ago when we got to the temple for our visit he had the copy of The Ministry of Healing book which I had given him a couple months back sitting on the table.  During the course of our conversation he told us that he had been reading it (he is now more than half way done with it), and then proceeded to ask us some questions.  He commented that it was an interesting book, and easier to understand than the Bible.  He also told us that his goal is to complete the entire book before he moves in July!  Please pray that the Lord will water the seeds that have been planted in his heart.  We do plan to try and stay in touch with Sanga after he moves, but the village he will be working in does not have electricity, so we will do the best we can.

Playing with the Neighbor Children

Knowing that we only have one more month in Chiangmai makes us anxious to make our remaining time meaningful.  We have built several friendships with neighbors, teachers, classmates, church members, etc. and want to be in tune with God’s Spirit to know how we can best minister and share as we say goodbye.  Please pray with us toward that end.  In Language school now we are studying two different Bible electives, one on the Life of Christ, and one on Practical Christian Communications.  For a homework assignment last week we were given four common questions that Buddhists ask Christians and were told to answer them.  After doing the homework and arriving in class we were informed by our teacher that one of the non-Christian teachers would be joining our class to listen to our answers.  We expect that over the next few weeks we will have many more similar opportunities.  Once again, please pray that the Lord would give us wisdom and that he would use us to touch hearts.  Also, just yesterday I had the opportunity to preach at the local SDA church in Chiangmai, and after potluck I talked with two of the church members about the need to establish different ministry opportunities for church members to get involved in such as literature distribution, visitation ministry, personal Bible studies, etc.  Both of them agreed and seem committed to try and make this a reality.  Please also keep this venture in your prayers as it has been a burden of mine for quite some time. 

Playing with the Neighbor Children

In closing, as I have been doing homework for one of my online seminary courses, I came across the following quote:  “Every time the church has set herself to praying, there have been stupendous movements in the mission world. If we should but transfer the stress of our dependence and emphasis from appeals to men to appeals to God—from trust in organization to trust in supplication—from confidence in methods to importunate prayer for the power of the Holy Spirit, we should see results more astounding than have yet been wrought” – A.T. Pierson.  With each passing day here I am confronted with the reality of how big the task is that God has given us and how incapable we are to accomplish it, we need to pray more and exercise greater faith.  We appreciate all of you along with your faithful support both financially and spiritually, please continue to pray for us and remember to let us know how we can pray for you, may the Lord bless you all!

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