Expect the Unexpected

Here's a blitz of pictures from the past 6 weeks, with a quick update!

We successfully moved into a different house.  Many unexpected circumstances along the way made it challenging: no water, bees building a nest, the shower tried to electrocute Ken, the refridgerator died, major flooding in our community and many more in-between things.  Thankfully, we are functioning and well again!

If you have to find one of these: the most dangerous centipede in Thailand, in your yard,
at least you found it dead!   Hoping to never see another one!



 I took the kids to get groceries 10 minutes from home and an hour later many roads were closed due to flooding.  After and hour and a half of taking side roads and turning around many times, the police officer let me turn through and we made it home!  We were sad to see the damage, but were able to help a family with some of the damage. 

This weekend closes out the mourning period.  It was insightful to hear from our 

Thai friends, both believer and non-believers, about their affection for the King.  

He was looked at like a father to the nation.   Many tears were shed in Thailand.

I joke that we live in perpetual Fall because things are always growing and dying,
but we managed to find some pretty "autumn colors" on a ride through our mubaan.

The banana lady lives close to our house, so we visit her weekly.  

We are helping launch a Thai/English (bilingual) church service.  Ken and I taught 

a lesson to the kids on the Tower of Babel.  The kids cut and drew a picture to use as a way to help tell the story.  One day, there will no longer be a language barrier and every tribe, tongue, and nation will be gathered around the throne of God! 

I can't share pictures of the kids I work with, but I can show you what 

I taught them.  This sweet girl is learning how to knit!  They love craft time, especially stickers, and old magazines.  We have a new child in the program who doesn't know the Lord...yet.  Praise God that the other kids are walking with Christ and will share their hope!

Celebrating the birthday of a friend.

Thanks for following along with us, praying for us, and supporting us to be here.  We plan to be home next year to touch base and would love to share more with you, your church, or small group, face to face.  Please message us!!  

We're moving!

No, we aren't leaving Thailand, not even the city is changing.  Just the neighborhood. Our lease is up in a couple weeks and we planned to renew another year, but the Lord opened the door to a different home.

 We don't know if there is any gospel presence in this neighborhood.  This was what helped us make the decision to move.  Our current community is huge, but scattered throughout are believers.  I was hesistant to leave because we're the only "light" in our section. BUT, yesterday, 2 of Ken's co-workers moved in a few houses down from us!  I attended Bible study with one of the ladies and she has a heart for evangelism.  We are confident that Light will shine after we go!

I'm sorry I don't have a pic of the outside! I was most concerned with the small yard, so all of my outdoor
pictures are of grass.  Seriously, we signed the lease and paid the deposit and I couldn't even tell you what color the house was!  It wasn't until a friend drove by and said, "Oh, you have a pink (mauve) house," that I even noticed!
The inside of the house is filled with another family's things.
 We'll update pictures when we move in.

We know spiritual warfare is ahead, 

so please join us in praying.  

• Please pray for Nang, one of the street cleaners here.  She is our friend even though she speaks a different dialect than we are learning.  I gave her the Gospel (book and tracts) and a Thai friend told me she goes to church now.    

• Please pray for Dang and Jon.  They too speak a different dialect of Thai, so communincation is challenging.  We've seen them at the temple for special ceremonies and we're confident they are Buddhist.  



Thai Mother's Day program.

• Pray for our kids.  They have only known 1 home here in Thailand, so moving is yet another transition.  The new house hardly has a yard, but I've just left that with the Lord...we can't fix that but He has it taken care of. 

• Pray that I will be outgoing.  New situations are just uncomfortable and when you add a dose of culture it takes it to a new level.  I need to be intentional.

• Pray for Ken.  The school year just began and there is a lot to sort out...and now we're moving. He overseas many departments at work, and preaches at church occassionally, so please pray for wisdom and discernment.

• Pray over our new home.  There was a room filled with pictures and alters dedicated to "worship" by the family before us.  

Thank you for walking through this with us, for battling with us in prayer, and supporting us with words of encouragement and financial support to sustain us.

May God be glorified here in this beautiful country.  As rice fields are being planted; may the people's hearts be fertile soil for the Gospel seed to take root, grow, and bear fruit.

HOW TO be TRAINed by YOUR DRAGON

On Saturday Jack became a pet owner.  This is the first pet for our family and it isn't a cat or dog, it's a bearded dragon.  See, we told our kids if they showed responsibility in their chores, schoolwork, and routine, we'd allow them to add to that responsiblity with a pet.  Jack wanted a bird...me, not so much.  So, when I saw that a friend's lizard had babies for about $6 each, I thought of my gecko-chasing boy.

Building the home for Jack's pet.

He truly earned this and wore a smirk while we told him the good news of his promotion to "pet owner."  His sister teared up, not out of joy, but jealousy. We reminded her that her response would show us how responsible she was in handling her emotions and how a sister in Christ rejoices in good. She dried her eyes, nodded, and smiled.  (She wants a bunny).

 Our 4 year old chimed in, "Can I get a pet?"  Back story: Max keeps a collection of Gecko tails in a jar.  He chases the poor things down and attempts to catch them, but almost always ends up with a wiggly tail in his hand, (they can drop their tails as a defense mechanism) while the tail-less creature scurries to safety.  He knew the answer was no, so he didn't fight us...

Ken took Jack to pick out his little dragon from the litter, or is it a clutch?  They came home with a cute little bearded dragon not even 6 inches long.  Jack found a rock to put in its cage, learned how to feed and care for it, and we all enjoyed having the little guy in the house.

Cute, right?  

Fast forward 5 days.  A heat lamp has replaced the desk lamp and the cool breeze from the air conditioner is gone with the wind.  Jack's room is a desert.  Here's what got me as I cleaned my room today and caught a glimpse of him across the hall.  Reading a book on his bed, you would never guess it was about 85 degrees with no breeze.  He was more than content.  The boy who nightly asked to make the room colder is now basking alongside his lizard.  Why?

He delights in his pet.  The conditions surrounding him are a non-issue because of his love for Oscar. I have never heard him complain.  I don't have to remind him to get the meal worms (gag) out of the fridge to feed his pet, 3x a day,  or to mist the cage, because he is caring for and loving his pet.  He reads articles on Bearded Dragons in his free time!

Making sure he gets sunlight to stay healthy.

Immediately I thought of my walk with the Lord.  I complain because the air in our room is musty and the top step in our house smells funny when it gets hot upstairs, (weird, right), and it's challenging (and expensive) to find "normal" undergarments here.  But, if I loved the Lord, the way Jack loves his "dragon" I would embrace all of it out of love for my Father.  It's part of the job he's called me to do.  When my love and faith run staight to the source of the Lord, I can be grateful in all circumstances because I find my delight in Him.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,  give thanks 

in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in 

Christ Jesus for you."   

                        I Thessalonians 5:16-18

Callie's response is too often mine.  Jealousy.  "Why can't their situation be mine?"  So, today I am reminded to rejoice with my brothers and sisters in Christ for what He is doing in their lives and to find contentment and delight in my journey because I'm doing it for my Maker, my Rescuer, my Joy, my God.  And one day I will be in His presence!

And when Oscar grows to be 18 inches long, and the crickets have yet again escaped the cage, I'll re-read this and remember the lesson the Lord taught me through him and his owner.

Mid-year review

Hello friends and family,

2017 is half-over and we wanted to highlight what has happened in that time:

This little neighbor girl moved away unexpectedly.  

We arrived back in Chiang Mai in January to find that a family in our neighborhood moved.  Their son was Jack’s friend and came over almost daily.  My heart sank because although we had conversations with them, we had not yet fully laid out the gospel.  Sometimes we share the gospel with people on day 1, but with this family we knew it would be a slower pace...but now it seemed it was too late.

One Saturday afternoon, the dad popped in to visit and get our phone numbers.  We were so excited!  He stayed and we caught up on their lives and he began asking questions about us.  This opened the door to share Christ with him!  He asked more questions, like “Why are you here (in Thailand)?”  “What if people don’t believe what you do?”  After he left, I was just jaw-dropped.  Again, God brought people to our door to hear the story of Jesus.  

After this conversation, it seemed like we had few opportunities with people.  I discussed my frustrations with Ken one night and then next morning prayed something like, “Lord make me ready to share with whoever you put in my path.  Hours later, here’s what happened:

I was grocery shopping and an elderly man, wearing 2 pairs of glasses approached me, “Is this brand of cheese any good?”  This man was American but had lived in Thailand for over decade.  He shared many stories and told me he was a writer and a Buddhist.  “Really? I asked, “It is a fascinating religion….interesting that it has no creation story.”  He was curious about what I said and after much conversation, told me I was a wonderful representative for my people (Christians).  He said that Jesus never claimed to be God, so I got to walk him through scripture (on my phone).  He had never heard that before, yet he didn’t want to follow Christ.  We talked a bit more and parted ways.  He said he rarely meets people who will talk to him.  

These exciting moments are usually chased with sadness.  Few want to hear about their Maker, and even fewer want to follow Him.   Will you please pray?   Pray with us that eyes would be opened and that we are ready to give an answer for the hope that we have!  

Max, getting a haircut.

Callie celebrating her birthday at school.

The kids are doing really well!  Jack and Callie attend Thai school 3 days a week and we homeschool twice a week.  Max is home with me everyday.

 I continue to teach a few teen girls  arts-and-crafts once a week.  Two of them got baptized and I was able to attend.  I cried as the handful of people who make up the congregation gathered around and sang a hymn in Thai.  Baptism is a beautiful picture, but to see it here, where less than 1% are Christians, it is soul stirring!   

I can't share pictures of the kids I work with, but here's a craft we made out of a pair of socks!

Ken has taken on a lot responsibility at the school in addition to being the Director of the homeschooling department.  The school needed a Deputy Superintendent of Operations.  Ken has an MBA, so he has been working 2 jobs to help. (These are not paid positions).  Through the school year we didn’t see much of him, but with summer here, we’ve enjoyed seeing his handsome face a bit more often!  

In Ken's free time he chases snakes....

  

...and sweeps up the termites during termite season.

We took a trip to visit, encourage, and provide academic testing for a family near the southern border.  We're thankful for these families who are often alone in their homeschooling journey.  They encourage us by what they do and we encourage them to continue and assist them along the way.

This ice cream shop has been around for 3 generations!

They mix egg yolk and pour it over the ice cream.  It has a caramel-like texture.  

Since this family lives so close to the ocean, we had fresh fish for dinner!  Amazing!!

We made this to focus our hearts on what Christ did for us on Easter.  We moved a marble each day.

We hosted Easter dinner at our home.  Such a sweet time!

Sometimes things don't go as planned, like when the power goes out  and it's 102 degrees.  Or when you attempt to wash your hands and there isn't water...for over 48 hours.

 After 2 days of the "dry spell" the water trunk filled our tank to get us by.

At a friend's house, keeping cool during hot season...

Celebrating Songkran, Thai New Year's!  Nationwide water fight.

We increased our Thai language study while Ken had some extra time in June.  We’re so encouraged that the Thais can understand us most of the time as we play with sentence structure and attempt to use new words and phrases.  Sometimes I feel a huge sense of accomplishment and other times I laugh at myself, like when I asked a man what time the door was opening for an event we were attending….except I said, “Yesterday the door opened.”  Nice, huh?   His look of confusion encouraged me to try again and then all was well.    Here’s another winner- I was trying to explain to some teens how to play Skipbo (a card game) but later learned the word I was using for cards refers to gambling. So what I really said was, “Today we’re going to play a gambling game.”   Yeah, that’s what I said.  One can only improve, right?

This summer we've been involved with a small group from our church, praying for and laying out a Thai/English church service to launch in August. It is exciting, yet a time of expectant waiting to see what God will do and if people will come. We need you to join us in praying.

I'll leave you with this:

She insisted on buying this outfit while we were along the Myanmar (Burma) border.



Thank you for praying and supporting our family to share our Hope with the people around  us.  HE is worth it!

'Tis the season

Drenched fields and yards become the norm during rainy season, and our yard has become a new playground of wet!  With this time of year come mosquitoes. Stagnant water creates more and more of them and somehow, though we try to keep the doors and windows shut or screened in, they find their way into the house.  

It's in the evening when I notice my leg itches, or the kids ask for Tiger Balm (our Thai solution to off-set the itch, which mostly behaves like Icy-Hot).  "When did I get bit?"  I question for the third time today.  See, that's the thing, mosquitoes are sneaky; by the time you feel the bite, the damage has been done.  But there are warning signs.  When the kids are in bed and the house is quiet, I can hear that high pitched squeal.  Hoping the electric tennis racket flyswatter is charged, I swing in hopes of hearing that rewarding sound, "zap."  

I realized something new tonight.

When much is going on, you cannot hear the mosquito's war cry for blood.  It's when there are few distractions that I am prepared to fight because I hear it coming. Life is loud and busy and mosquitoes of all species are fighting to bite.

"Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls

 around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."  I Peter 5:8

I need this reminder.  The enemy never misses a day of work and if our distractions, even well-intentioned ones, allow our minds to drift, we let our guard down and open the door for the enemy to get a foot-hold.

"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.  Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  In you anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. " 

                                                           Ephesians 4:22-27

Putting off the old self.  Sometimes I get weary of these words.  They feel like dirty dishes in the sink.  Never-ending.  Scrubbing, rinsing, drip-drying (do people really dry their dishes?) and putting them away, only to be used and dirtied again.  They never achieve "clean for life" status.   However, I cannot stop tending to my sinkful.  Imagine the stink!  Honestly, I don't have to imagine. 

 Two weeks ago we were without water for nearly 48 hours.  The dishes in the kitchen sink began to fill so I shut the door to the kitchen.  I just knew we'd have water back by lunch...well, certainly by dinner...breakfast?  By the time we finally had water in the tank, the real surprise came.  A cockroach was in the sink, surely going after what we had left behind, unattended.  Nearby, my mop bucket had not been emptied and a huge spider called it home.  

We cannot leave our homes unattended and expect all to be well.  (Especially in Southeast Asia!)  More importantly, we cannot neglect the temple of God: our bodies.  We must be watchful, fighting, with the power of God in us, to strip away at our old self.  With this conscious decision we hold our fists to the enemy and actively pursue more of the new self: righteousness and holiness through the covering of Jesus.  

Tonight I'm sitting on my couch, listening to buckets of rain fall onto our roof and waterfall to tile and ground below.  My heart is wrestling with these questions.

• Am I actively shedding my old self?
• What doors am I leaving open for the enemy to walk in?
• Noise.  What do I need to tune out in exchange for being watchful and ready?
• "The attitude of your (my) mind."  Ephesians 4:23    

Mosquitoes are this rainy season's gift to me.  Flying reminders that warn me to be watchful and to quiet myself with determination to pursue Christ.

Happy Easter!

It was Thai New Year's here! (Songkran )2 days of nationwide water flights. 

Shopping for Easter baskets

This year we hosted an Easter celebration at our home.  27 of us ate and celebrated what Christ accomplished!  Our kids played together and the adults got to know each other better by sharing stories of our upbringing and how God called us here.  It wasn't a typical family gathering for Easter, but it was brothers and sisters in Christ, gathered together to remember that we were bought. Our ransom was paid.

The children are finishing up the school year (homeschooling) although we plan to continue part-time through the summer.  Jack did really well on his MAP (standardized) testing, so I as his teacher feel like I passed! He is a great big brother to Max, still loves Legos, climbing trees, waterfalls, and starting campfires with flint and steel.  

She lost her first tooth (teeth)

Callie is finishing up 1st grade.  She likes to read, but more so, the girl likes to draw and craft. She comes with me to work with the teen girls and craft with them.  Recently she's been "teaching" Max.  He participates most of the time.  She also loves to sing.  We've been teaching them hymns and it's so sweet to hear her doing her work, singing a hymn or praise song.

"Mommy, look at me, I'm a sloth!"

Max...well, the boy is hilarious and a handful and snuggly and loud.  He has a growing vocabulary.  Yesterday he was sucking on an ice cube and told me, "it tastes familiar."  He refers to things as "cool," or "that's my style!" He loves to build Legos and has hit this stage of playing with activities for long periods of time instead of bouncing from one toy to the next.  We see signs of the soon to be 4 year old peeking out and it's encouraging.  

We were making resurrection rolls with the kids, where you take a marshmallow to represent Christ, prepare the body with oil by rolling it in butter, and then put spices on it (cinnamon and sugar).  Finally, you roll the marshmallow up in the crescent roll tomb.  After you bake it and let it rest, the tomb is empty!  (The marshmallow melted).  Well, a couple days later at dinner, Max prayed, "and Jesus, you had butter put on you, and cinnamon and you died."  He went on and on about it.  I guess it was a bit too much for a 3 year old to draw the correct connection!

Ken is really busy at Grace.  Many of you know that he has taken on another major role at the school in addition to supporting homeschooling missionary families.  He's gifted to do the work, but like I said, his plate is quite full.  He had the privilege of preaching at our church (which meets at a zoo).  The Lord has grown the gift of teaching in him and I'm excited for him to speak again in June.

After my hair cut.  

Thai hair salon with a friend
.  You have to climb
up onto the chair to ge
t your hair washed.  There is no
hot water , so it was refreshing!  

As far as me, (Summer), my health overall is soooo much better!  I have much more energy and my joint pain has subsided, as well as most of my muscle ache, PRAISE GOD!!  I'm not sure if it was/is the Epstein Barre Virus, but I have noticed that I need to get plenty of rest, so I am trying to discipline myself...but it isn't easy!  All of my blood work has come back normal, so there is nothing to report there.  I did get food poisoning yesterday, which was awful. No one needs to hear those details though!

I am still teaching crafts to a small group of rescued teens, which I really enjoy...they are discovering their value and beauty that is found in knowing our Father.  They are helpful in correcting my Thai and they learn some English from me.


PRAISES and Prayer Requests:

• Please thank God with us that we are able to continue our language study.  Thank you to those of you who have prayed on our behalf and to those of you who answered the call to give!  We recently completed our reading/writing portion of the class and will continue to focus on speaking.  This is a long process, so please pray that we aren't discouraged and that we are diligent.

• For the month of March we were fully supported!  Thank you so much for giving!  We have asked for prayer over this very matter and I was teary-eyed to find out how many people gave.  I don't even know how to say thank you.  You are essential to our ministry here and an encouragement to our hearts.  Thank you for your one-time gifts, monthly gifts, and prayer!

• We are considering enrolling Jack and Callie in a nearby Thai school for language study.  We want them to be a part of the community and language is essential.  We are waiting to hear back from the school concerning space availability and cost.  

• Next month we'll be headed pretty far south to visit one of our remote families.  They are anxious/excited to have us visit and we too are eager to go!  The area is safe, but a bit further south there is some political unrest.  We have no hesitations in visiting, but ask you to pray for our safety.

We'll leave you with more pictures:

Temple ruins

Observing religion and culture

Callie attended a friend's birthday party.