First off…I LOVE THAILAND!!
Second off…why is this blog called Friends of the City?!
Mainly because that is the name of our ministry hosts! But also because they have allowed us to be friends of Bangkok specifically. There is no way Abba’s Lil Nugs could just come into Bangkok and serve like we are if it weren’t for the amazing team efforts of the ministry hosts World Race partnered us with this month.
Our team is an all-girl team. These girls are great at serving, great at encouraging and great at caring. We seek to make people feel loved and valued. We seek for a lot of things but going into this race a leader at training camp spoke words over our team to be up lifters of the people who host us on the World Race. Leaving our hosts better than we found them is something we aim to do. It is part of our hearts.
When we got to Thailand our hosts began telling us what we would be doing here. Teaching English yes but what does that actually look like?
They have started teaching English programs in slum communities around Bangkok, actually right in the smack dab middle of Bangkok. They have seen the work of a world race team in other places they worked in Bangkok and they prayed to see if the Lord wanted them to host a world race team to help do a summer break program teaching the kids English. The Lord said yes and then we showed up.
The Lord orchestrates things so well. We are able to come alongside a team as they are making God-given dreams reality. We get to be a part of a new English program, apart of the preparations for a Montessori afterschool program. We get to eat lunch and actually get to know these amazing people with these huge hearts for the Lord.
The first week we were here one of our hosts, Sprite, lead us on a prayer walk every morning of the week. It was amazing to see a man of God lead so gently yet intentionally moving for the Lord. I don’t have any super close examples of how men of God lead so for me that in itself was a great experience. In our walks, we got to see more than just where we teach. We got to see the surrounding area and take in the culture. We got to see where some of this team’s dreams will lead them as they pray for the future of Friends of the City. As they opened our eyes to the big picture and not just the two areas we would be teaching in, they started showing us their vision and love for Thailand (specifically the district of Bang Rak).
We got back after a prayer walk and three or four of us shared in our debrief that most the walking experience we just kept looking at the individual and seeing that God loves them and that they deserve to be noticed. To actually see the people, we were passing as we walked. Then two of our hosts (Suzy and Kristen) shared that it was encouraging hearing that on a quiet walk so many of us got the same mindsets. Suzy shared about when she was in Thailand earlier on wondering how this was going to work sharing Jesus… But the Lord showed her, through the story of Jesus inviting Simon to see the woman cleaning Jesus’ feet with her hair as He saw her, that her effect on the Thai people would be one person at a time. And they are doing just that! They are effecting people, one by one in their daily life. We have just begun to see that English is a great way for Jesus to be introduced to these people. These wonderful Thai people!!!
(Abba’s Lil Nugs, One of our squad leaders Rachel, and Friends of the City)
If you all reading this would join me in praying for provision for Friends of the City, to open the hearts of the people they come in contact with, wisdom in decision-making, and strength to individually persevere through the daily life of it all.
This is an amazing team and if you would like to help even more here is the link to their give platform.
Take a look at what that really means here from the actual mouth of Friends of the City:
“Our mission is to make life better for the urban poor through holistic education. We believe God’s good news to the poor (Luke 4:18-19) is that they are loved by God and created with dignity and strength and that God’s redemption includes them. We work to give opportunities to the urban poor in the area of holistic education that encourages young and old alike to reach their full, God-given potential.
We believe education is about more than a report card. Holistic education strives to prepare students to meet the challenges of living as well as the challenges of academics. Holistic education believes it is important for young people to learn about themselves, grow in resiliency, develop emotionally, engage in healthy relationships, contribute to social development, and encounter beauty and awe through a relationship with their Creator.
Friends of the City is the only Christian outreach to the poor in the district of Bang Rak, Bangkok. Ninety-nine percent of the people in Bang Rak are Buddhists; and even the churches located in this district have overlooked the slum communities in their own backyard. Children living in slums face many challenges, such as poor access to quality education, exposure to drugs and violence, broken homes, and financial instability.
You can be a part of making a child’s life better in inner city Bangkok! We are currently raising funds for equipment and materials to use in our holistic education programs. Robotic Legos are a proven way to help participants grow in perseverance, teamwork and critical thinking skills. Students also learn beginning programming and coding skills. Montessori pre-school education is a proven method to develop young learners in creative thinking, taking responsibility for one’s actions, and to prepare students for academic success in the future. Your donation will help fund these materials that will be used for many years to come, impacting this generation and the generations to come.”
Budget:
Educational Materials:
- Robotic Legos- US$960
- Tablets – 1,620
- Montessori Day-Care materials – 2,000
Translation – 300
shipping – 100
Volunteer expenses – 300
Total: 5800
TTFN,
Jenny
