Mission - Sharing the True Meaning of Christmas

Over the past ten days, we were blessed to have a team from Ferris Baptist Fellowship in Hat Yai to help us share the true meaning of Christmas with Thai students. Seven schools graciously opened their doors and allowed us to come in.

Students ranged in age from kindergarten through high school. Some of the schools were in a large city and some were in the countryside. Some schools were very large and others very small. However, in every single school, the team was accepted and the 'farangs' were a big hit with the students. Following every program, dozens and dozens of students literally rushed the team to seek pictures, autographs, phone numbers, and email addresses. They definitely made an impression on the students.

The program they shared consisted of games, story-telling, songs, and a play. Each was designed to help the students learn the story of Jesus' birth. The team divided up responsibilities and, during each program, shared leadership at different points of the program.

During one particular presentation at a school far away from the city in a very small village, the leader was teaching about the name of Jesus to a group of mid-high students. She simply asked, 'Does anyone know who Jesus is?' expecting several to shout out 'Phra Yeesuu', which the team had heard a number of times before. However, all 50 students sat there with a blank stare in their eyes. She repeated the question, 'Does anyone know who Jesus is? Has anyone ever heard of Him before?' Again, silence.

At that point, the team realized they were part of something really remarkable, something so very, very special. They were humbled with the realization that they were the first believers to ever have the awesome opportunity to tell these beautiful young people who Jesus is...to share with them the truth of God's love.

It took a moment for this to sink in. But, following their initial bewilderment, they forged right ahead and shared the beauty of the Christmas story. It, undoubtedly, will be a moment the team will never forget.

We had the opportunity to share with at least 2800 students in seven different schools. Praise the Lord. This will be a Christmas this team from Ferris will, undoubtedly, never forget. They spent their time in Thailand as farmers, sowing the seeds of faith - day after day after day.

Movin' On

The past 6 weeks have been very busy and event-filled.

First off, Kay's father, J.B. Wingfield passed on to glory last month. He was 94 years old and, without a doubt, ready to enter into the promise given him so many years ago when he placed his faith in Jesus Christ. His memorial service was a fitting tribute to a man whose influence had touched so many throughout his life. Integrity...character...uncompromising. That pretty well sums him up. We will miss him but also look forward to being united with him again someday in heaven.

Our regional meeting was held in Chiang Mai last month. My faith and desire to 'get to work' was so buoyed by the words s

hared by so many of the M's of what they are experiencing in their personal work and ministry. It is evident the Holy Spirit is moving in the hearts and lives of many Thais. Once these people have discovered the joy to be found in the Lord, they are excited and boldly share that good news with their friends and family. Hardly a Sunday goes by that we don't see new believers attend our fellowship. That, truly, is the Good News!!!

FYI...we have been formally released from language school (I think they just got tired of us!) and are busy preparing our next 'snapshots' that assess our language acquisition level. Pray we will do well and meet the minimum requirements so we can move to our assignment in Hat Yai.

While Kay was home for J.B.'s memorial service, she had surgery to have the pin removed from her elbow. You might recall she fell and broke her elbow during our visit to the states last July. It has been an extremely difficult year - definitely one we want to put behind us, medically speaking.

We have had numerous opportunities to share our faith, especially with taxi drivers. When we are in their taxis, we, literally, have a captive audience. Every single one of them is courteous to hear what we have to share and we pray that the words we share and the tract we leave with them will be another step towards understanding true peace and happiness.

We had an opportunity to attend a concert with Don Moen this past week in Bangkok. There were over 4000 Thai believers (and a few Buddhists, I would bet) that came to the worship time. It was such a blessing to be in the middle of so many Thais hearing them sing 'Shout to the Lord' at the top of their voice. I think it might have sounded a little bit like what worship in heaven is going to be like.

Thanks once again for your words of prayer and encouragement. We are always anticipating the Lord to do something really miraculous in our lives and will rejoice to share with you what happens on a daily basis.

Blessings.

Post Red Shirts

It is truly going to take a very long for Thailand to 'come back to normal' after the red shirt demonstrations over the past couple of months. It has been a sobering experience to hear Thais voice their disbelief at what happened within their beloved country. I went by Central World earlier in the week and there were about 200 people just standing there, staring at the burned out buildings. Few were talking to each other...they just stood there open-eyed...as if they were mentally unable to process the fact that this had happened in Thailand and in Bangkok, no less. The congressional representatives are now delving into the 'blame game' as to who is to blame for the whole fiasco. There is no trust whatsoever by either side for those on the 'other side of the aisle' and the vitriol coming from their mouths shows that the healing process that will be long, indeed.

As always, we are trusting that people, when they find themselves in a time of crisis, will be more prone to make value changes in their lives. That value change, we believe, is trusting Jesus and discovering the truth that He is the only way.

On a lighter note, we had a really wonderful time at the Thailand Baptist Convention in Pattaya last month. Even though it was exceptionally warm, we were so blessed by meeting a number of the believers throughout the country. The confidence of their faith was an encouragement for us all. The worship times were extremely blessed.

I knew Pattaya was a mecca for tourism but I never realized how much until I turned on the TV in our room. There was programming in the following languages: Ukranian, Hindi, Spanish, French, Russian, Italian, Chinese, Arabic, German, Japanese, Thai, and English (programming from America, Great Britain, and Australia; however, I'm not sure a lot of the Australians speak 'English'...I usually can't understand a word they say). It was a good reminder we are to be lights to the whole world.

Sad to say that Pattaya has earned its' reputation as a city where sex is bought and sold in any form or fashion. Anything goes. As Kay and I walked along the beach road, we literally encountered - and not to exaggerate - 250 prostitutes. They were all just sitting and waiting for the next guy to walk by. (That number doesn't include any of the ladyboys who are in another part of town.) A talented Christian artist named Chris Tomlin was sitting in one of the bar/restaurants along the beach in Pattaya and wrote the words to God of this City. It has become one of the favorite songs we sing in church. Here's a link to the recording on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d61LamkXfwk&feature=related

God of this City

You're the God of this City
You're the King of these people
You're the Lord of this nation
You are

You're the Light in this darkness
You're the Hope to the hopeless
You're the Peace to the restless
You are

There is no one like our God
There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City
Greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City

That last line rings of truth...yes, greater things are still to be done in this city, especially after the past few months.

Blessings,

Robert and Kay

A Few Thoughts....

It has been a couple of months since the red shirts invaded town and finally, by all appearances, the demonstration looks to be over in a few days - one way or the other.

Our hearts were buoyed a few days ago when the prime minister offered a path to reconciliation and both sides immediately voiced their disapproval. That said to me that it was probably a good compromise that would allow neither side to lose face. However, those hopes were dashed by a general lack of trust in the opposition by both sides.

Much of the violence has happened in an area about a half-mile from our apartment. The past two nights, we have heard bomb explosions and sporadic gunfire all throughout the night. It seems to come and go in cycles.

I sat on our front porch this afternoon reading for a couple of hours and the distant gunfire was almost continuous. We can only imagine what the area looks like. The government has declared it a 'live-fire zone' and no one is allowed to enter. (However, red shirts are allowed to leave, if they wish. I think that would be a very, very good idea they should all pursue.) I can't fathom the idea that people are being targeted on the very same sidewalks in an area we used to frequent quite often ... and plan to again someday.

Kay had a revelation last night I'd like to share with you.

At one point late in the evening, there were 2-3 very loud explosions, not like any we had heard before. It was obvious these were from much larger weaponry, probably from tanks that have cordoned off the protest area. Then there was intense rifle fire for about 3-4 minutes. I could tell lots of ammunition clips were being completely emptied.

However, as we looked out towards the area where the violent confrontation was taking place and people were literally losing their lives, we looked down from our balcony and were amazed at the sights before us.

There was a swimming pool with a number of people frolicking in the water, laughing and playing as if nothing was going on around them.

Then we saw a couple of families heading down our soi (a small lane), dressed in their finest, heading out for a good dinner and night on the town.

Then a couple of vendors passed by, still trying to sell that last bit of fruit and ice cream that still remained in their carts.

We also saw a great number of people walking down the soi, talking and laughing - just having a grand, old time - obviously not paying any attention to the struggle going on just a short distance away.

And then it hit her - What an eye-opening illustration about spiritual warfare! Most of the time, we live our lives, doing all sorts of things in our daily routine, never giving an ounce of thought to the realization of the spiritual battle going on all around us. The forces of good and evil are in a battle to the death and we don't even acknowledge the fact that the battle that is raging. Trust me, the memory of this vivid truth will be engrained in my mind for a long time.

Please know we are completely safe in our little apartment. We stocked up enough food for 3-4 days and have pretty well 'hunkered down' for the duration. We have all confidence that nothing happening here is a surprise to the Lord and we have been praying that He would lead us to seek other accommodations should our situation become perilous. We're trusting Him for His protection, not only in our lives but the lives of all the M's in Bangkok.

Kay and I have always known the following to be true, 'When people find themselves in times of crisis, they are more prone to make value changes in their lives.' This truth has been used by the Lord in a number of situations throughout the years to bring about change in people's hearts and lives. Join with us that this tumultuous time in our country will somehow bring the Thai people that we have learned to love so much to the understanding that the Creator God is the one and only true God and His love through Jesus is for all who believe.

Robert and Kay

The Red Shirts are coming...the Red Shirts are coming!

It has been almost three weeks since the Red Shirts arrived in town. The staging area for the initial protests was centered near the Parliament building but, when things didn't go as planned, the Red Shirts began to parade around town, causing massive traffic jams and forcing businesses to close for days at a time.

A couple of times we have found ourselves in the middle of a protest march - not by our own doing - and we hurried to find a hasty retreat from the area. We live a couple of hundred yards from a major thoroughfare in Bangkok and the Red Shirts have not been shy to march down this particular avenue to try to get their message across. There are thousands and thousands of people here for the demonstration. Most have come from the smaller provinces around the country and there doesn't seem to be any kind of rush to try to get the situation resolved - either from the side of the government or the protestors.

However, I sense something will be coming to a head fairly soon. Either (1) the prime minister will dissolve the Parliament and the red shirts will win, (2) the red shirts will give up and return to their homes, or (3) there will be some kind of physical confrontation which will precipitate violence. Scenarios 1 and 2 do not seem very viable. However, there is a chance the red shirts will suspend the protest next week and take it up again at a later date. A very important Thai holiday is coming up next week and I imagine most of the Red Shirts will want to celebrate the holiday with their families. One other scenario which seems rather remote would be for the prime minister to relinquish his position so, I would assume, new elections must be held. This would allow both sides to save face - which is so very important in Thai socieity - though this possibility doesn't seem very realistic.

In any event, the protest, up to this point, has been mostly peaceful. There have been a few grenades and bombs and some minor skirmishes between individuals but, for the most part, the protests seem to take on a party atmosphere. But, as time drags on and patience becomes thin, the possibility for expanded violence becomes more of a possibility.

All of our company personnel are safe and take extreme caution to try to not place themselves in a situation near protests that could escalate and become uncontrollable. Pray for the country and the leaders of both groups that clearer heads might prevail. Millions of people are suffering heavy, heavy monetary losses and there is no doubt that it will take a long time for the country to regroup and become united again. It is our hope the Father would somehow use this opportunity to show Thais that are living in the darkness how much freedom there is to live in the light.

Alpha Class Retreat

Let me take a moment to share with you an experience from our Alpha Class Retreat last weekend. It was truly a God-inspired experience.

During the Saturday night training session, one in which Tuktaa was the leader, we had 16 young men and women from Cambodia attend who are working at the resort where the retreat was being held. Tuktaa started off by speaking to these people first, sharing a little bit of the gospel and how Jesus had died for their sins. Then she transitioned into the regular teaching, How to Know the Holy Spirit is Working in your Life. As she taught the information, I was struck with the knowledge that these beautiful people from Cambodia didn't need to know as much about the Holy Spirit in their lives as the simple message of the gospel of love in that, as best we knew, none of them knew Jesus as their Savior. The odds are that many of them had never even heard the name of Jesus before.

So, not wanting to try to interfere with our leader, I simply prayed, 'Lord, if You'll give me the chance to speak, I'll be bold and try to share the simple gospel story.' About five minutes later, Tuktaa said, 'Aachan Robert, would you please dismiss us in prayer.'

I walked to the front of the room, praying as I went, 'Okay, Lord. I promised You I would speak. Give me three words to share with these people.' And, immediately, three words came to my mind - special, love, and plan. So, I asked Tuktaa for permission to speak directly to the Cambodians and she graciously gave me additional time. I then asked one of our group, a Cambodian, if any of the people understood Thai. She responded, 'No.' So...I asked Tuktaa to come stand by me and asked Suphaap to stand by Tuktaa. I would speak in English, Tuktaa would translate the English into Thai and then Suphaap would translate the Thai into Cambodian. (Suphaap does not speak English.) I shared an extremely simple gospel message of only 5-7 minutes using the three words the Lord had given me. Understand that these people are common, manual laborers, workers in the fields. When I finished, I understood why the Lord had given me the first word - special - for, in these people's lives, there is nothing 'special' about them. They are at the bottom of the social ladder. However, they are so very special in the Lord's eyes and that was the focus of my sharing.

When I finished sharing about the Lord's love for them and God's plan for their lives, Tuktaa shared a little more with Suphaap translating for her. Somewhere in the midst of her sharing, she asked a question and, immediately, all 16 hands shot up in the air. She had asked how many wanted to become believers in Jesus Christ. It wasn't like one hand was raised and then another and then a couple of others. When she asked the question, every hand went up simultaneously! Then I heard her ask a question, using the Thai word for 'Bible.' Not a single hand came up. Then another question about 'phrakhamphii' - Bible - and, again, all 16 hands went up. (Later, I found out her initial question was asking how many had Bibles and her follow-up question asked how many would like to have a Bible.) Somewhere in this process, Tuktaa led them all in the sinner's prayer.

Then Tuktaa asked if any in our group had anything to share. Five different people in our group came to the front and shared their personal testimony about what Jesus had done in their lives.

Then, she asked the Cambodians if any of them had anything to share. One young man, almost sheepishly, raised his hand and was invited to the front to speak. In essence, he replied that he felt like God was calling him to be the leader for this particular group - to be responsible for learning about God and then sharing what he learned with the new group of believers. Holy mackerel!!! How remarkable is that. Whenever God has a purpose, He always has a way!

The next morning, we discovered another one of the Cambodians is adept at playing the guitar so he met with our worship leader and she helped him with some basic songs for them to sing during their group time until some other materials could be sent to them.

I asked Tuktaa what would happen next. She responded that someone from their church would return, probably on several occasions. This person would bring Cambodian Bibles and discipleship materials which could be translated into their heart language. In a short while, after this group has developed a good understanding of what becoming a Christian really means, they will baptize them and then this group will become a new church start.

What an exciting weekend this was. We went expecting to learn about how the Holy Spirit works in people's lives and, instead of just learning about it, we saw it first-hand. What a glorious experience it was. Praise His name.

I apologize for not staying up-to-date on our blog. Time just kinda' slips by but I promise not to let it happen again!

We just celebrated Chinese New Year. A friend and I went to Chinatown in Bangkok to celebrate the occasion...with about 250,000 people and I think I bumped into every single one of them. As I scanned the scene in front of me, all I saw was a sea of black hair. Again, I was reminded why we are here.

I have been working and teaching some with the Alpha Class at our church. It is a class for searchers - people who have little or no idea of who Jesus is. We are going on a retreat this week-end. Hopefully, several of the participants who have been coming to the class will be able to attend. Join with us that it might be a 'fruitful' weekend.

Kay and I have befriended a young soldier who has been coming to our Sunday Morning English-learning Bible Study group. As we were having lunch, he looked at me and asked if I would explain the gospel to him. Trust me - that hasn't happened very often in my life! So, I shared some very simple elements of the good news and then asked Baap, another good friend who is a strong believer, to explain the gospel again just to make sure Don had understood it. He is not ready to commit his life but is genuinely interested so, in your prayer time, pray for the light to shine in Don's life.

Kay and I both are coming to the end of our language acquisition journey. We'll keep you posted about our plans. They should become clear in the next couple of months. Plans now are to move to Hat Yai, where we will stay for about a year. Then we'll move to another city in the south where we have no company personnel...but that is quite a while away.

Until next time, blessings and enjoy the journey.