At 8am, I wake up, get dressed, hop on my motor bike and head down the street with the rest of my team towards an open aired restaurant called “Lucky Tea.” My team and I talk and laugh while eating roti and naan with chickpeas. We pay then leave. We haven’t shared the gospel, said one word about Jesus or even told anyone we are Christians. But this is Ministry.
The restaurant is located in a Muslim community where Christian’s are tolerated but not liked. Our missionary friends who live here permanently have come to this restaurant almost daily for the last year. They bring all visiting teams to this restaurant which supplies them business and friendly smiles. Over time, hearts have softened in this area. The hostility that once ran thick in the air as white people walked through has now diminished. And the gospel has not even been spoken to this community yet.
It is known that in the Muslim community, it takes a really long time to earn a trust which opens the doors to share Jesus. Our missionary friends are waiting patiently however for the season in which their faithfulness to these people will bring about opportunities to share more than just breakfast with them. But for now, we will continue to carry His Presence.
His presence inside of us is what softens the hearts and atmosphere of these places where the spoken gospel will not be received graciously. His presence is what gives us a boldness as we walk into places where darkness roams freely. And His presence is what speaks on our behalf when we are urged to be silent.
My team and I are in our third week of our ministry in Mae Sot, Thailand. Our primary focus these past two weeks has been building relationships with the community through the burger and bike shop, planning a community event called the BeaUtify Project, and ministering to the Burmese refugees at a school and the border. We have been busy yet completely fulfilled in the ministry that we are in. The community event on Saturday brought in 200 plus people from the community for soccer and basketball tournaments, carnival games, water fights, face painting, chalk races, a concert and free food.
Our focus this week is preparing a children’s program that our team will be conducting when we cross into Burma on Thursday this week. We are praying that God opens huge doors for us and that we would be good stewards of the time we have there. Please also join us in the prayers for safety. Burma is a war torn country and we are told that there are many safety risks including active land mines in many fields. Love and appreciation to all my friends and supporters.
Abby- Obeying Jesus in Thailand
