'I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'
~Jesus Christ
Hello sisters and brothers!
It's me again, with a quick update on the mission in Thailand. Over the last few weeks some very wonderful things have been happening. As Dave, Oy, and myself get used to the changes (Dave and Oy's marriage obviously changes things up a bit) God has been so faithful to lead us into the paths that He has, and I must say the transition has been almost painless. I'm reminded of Proverbs 3:6: 'In all your ways acknowledge [lit. pursue intimacy with, submit to, know deeply] Him and He will make your paths straight.' Sometimes life can be a bit overwhelming, and you begin to wonder just what on earth you're doing. But God has certain promises in place, and God cannot lie. He cannot lie. Therefore, it has been with great joy that Dave and I both have been leaning on such promises, trusting the Lord to direct our steps for the mission He has us on, and we have seen things happen in wonderful ways.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Dave was asked to start teaching at a local middle school. This, as you can imagine, is a very unique and excellent opportunity to reach out to Thai people, since he will have a long-term relationship with dozens of kids in the community. Praise the Lord for that! In addition, I will be teaching one hour on Monday and Tuesday at the same school, working in an after-school program. As every school is filled with Buddhist shrines and spirit houses, and as every child is expected to pay honor to the idols in place, you can imagine how excited I am to bring the light of Christ in. Please pray that lives would be changed--not just changed, but completely transformed in Christ.
So Dave has been getting closer to finding out what his weeks will be looking like, trying to balance his family life with his work in ministry, and the Lord has been faithful to direct him as he seeks His will. I knew that as he and Oy began their lives together, things would change a little bit, and the Lord would be mixing things up for me. And that is exactly what happened just two weeks ago, when my good friend and brother Neung (who is a part of the church body in Galasin) asked me to begin playing live music with him nightly at a couple bars in town. What a wonderful opportunity for the Gospel! So since then, we have been playing folk/old-style music in these bars, and because the populace generally does not speak English, I am free to sing any song I'd like, which means I get to play songs like 'Come Thou Fount' at a crowded bar for a ton of unbelievers. But the best part is the relationships built as a result. Because of the novelty of having a foreigner playing music at these places, the customers and employees are more than happy to talk to me, frequently asking me to sit with them after the music stops, and it is here that I have had numerous chances to share the Gospel and explain the Christian life to quite a few people. I figure, if they will give me the time of day, I will use it to tell them about Jesus. And it has been wonderful. I have had people shut me up, I've had people hate on me, but I have also had people ask questions, wanting to know more. One man expressed interest in staying in touch because he 'might want to know this Jesus'. So I thank Jesus for opening this new door, one that I did not at all expect a month ago. Please pray that the people reached through our playing music at these places would be brought to repentance and freedom in Christ.
As far as the church here in Galasin, I was very excited to visit the first new church plant I've seen come to fruition since I've been here. And with this new church came three new believers! Praise the Lord for these new saints, and please pray that they would grow strong and not be drawn back into the clutches of the socially excepted religion of demon and idol worship.
I haven't a lot of time right now, so I must be going. Much love to you all, remember the Cross, remember His blood.
In Christ, with love in abundance,
Derrick
