After many, many hours of traveling, I’m SO happy to say that I have made it to my ministry host in the village of Sikhoraphum!!
Let me just back track a little bit and tell you how nervous I was about this place I was going to be calling home for the next 3 months. It was a great unknown. This was the first time ANY American team from the World Race or YWAM would stay with this host. All the other teams on my squad knew a lot of details about their ministry when we knew absolutely nothing. Well, we knew we were staying with a pastor but that was the extent of that.
Even though the unknown is hard, the unknown is a beautiful, beautiful thing. There are so many unknowns in this thing we call life and that is just the reality of it. Although the unknowns can be very scary, God shows me continuously to put all the uncertainty aside and put all my trust in Him. Never has He ever proved me wrong.
We were sent to the village with two translators, Fon and Nuan. These wonderful, amazing women of God will be living and doing life with us. About an hour into our trip, Fon told us that the pastor we will be staying with was her uncle!! Even crazier, the World Race had no idea. This just goes to show that nothing in life is a coincidence and that God orchestrates beautiful things. Fon also told me that she and her uncle are the only Christians in their family, so they share a very special bond.
God is SO good people. When we arrived to the church, the family greeted us with welcome arms and showed us overwhelming love. They were so kind to have rented out 2 houses for the 9 of us that are right next door to the church where the pastor and his 3 kids live. Not only do we have these very spacious houses to live in, they set up a bed for each of us with mosquito nets and everything! In no way did they have to do this, they wanted to do it. This, is an example of God’s love.
Now you may ask, what will I be doing for next 3 months. My ministry here is to teach English to a nearby school during the week and in the afternoon going to different villages within the province and attending small groups that the pastor has with the people there. During these small groups, the pastor asked my team and I to share testimonies and preach to uplift and encourage their walk with The Lord. On Saturdays we’ll go into the village to meet the locals and share what God has done in our lives. On Sundays, we will work in Sunday school for the church and play with little kids. I love this ministry because this is what I have grown up doing at my hometown church! To say the least, I’m so excited about what I will be doing and can’t wait to see how God uses me to be His hands and feet.
One of our squad leaders, Christa, is currently with my team (she’s awesome) and has been so incredible. She has done the race before so she has so much wisdom and insight on what we will be doing and has so many encouraging stories from her race. Yesterday night, our second night at the church, we were all relaxing after a long day and Christa says, “I feel at home. I feel more at home here than I do in the states.” I love this. Despite not having all the luxuries we do in the states; the Thai people, bucket showers, squaty potties, humid air and questionable food is our home. I realized that my home is where my heart is and my heart is with The Lord. Therefore, I’m at home wherever God has sent me and right here, in the town of Sikhoraphum, I’m home.
Please keep my team and I in your prayers as we continue our ministry here in Thailand. I can’t wait to keep you guys updated on what’s going on and what God is doing here.
xoxo,
Bethany
