Saturday Bible Study

There has been much that has happened in Thailand and so much to say that I don't know where to start. Bear with me as it's late and don't know where it would lead me.

In Thailand, we do a lot of walking around and I've noticed that there a lot of children from the poor area roaming or playing on the streets by themselves or with a group of children. There's barely any parent or guardian supervision. A lot of the children are from broken families who struggle with addiction, finances, work, and etc. I just want to pour my love on them and do so much for them, but I could only do so little.

This is one of the reasons why Ban Suan church has Saturday bible study in the mornings from 10 till 12 am. This past Saturday, my teammates (Erik, Ted, and Katie) and I was told to prepare bible study, but we didn't know what age group it was for and we figured it was for teenagers or young adults. To our surprise, when we got there...there was children scattered everywhere inside the church playing with toys. We found out that we were suppose to prepare bible study for the children living in the poor area. That morning was a hectic morning, everything was all over the place and to add on top of that the children barely listened to us. When Ted tried to read Jonah and the Whale to them, but only a few kids listened while the rest were off talking, messing, and giggling off in another corner. It was hard trying to get them to listen and get them to understand, they just simply did not want to listen to us at all. It was a blessing that we had a volunteered there who came and helped us. She explained to me that a lot of children go play video games to escape the family fights, struggle, argument, and etc. so this program is a bridge to help them.

I asked the volunteer (I forgot her name), how long Ban Suan has had this Saturday program and she said they've had it for years now. She has seen a lot of children come and go. Usually, when they hit their teenage years they fall into prostitution, work, worldly things, and etc. so they don't return back to church. It's sad to hear that some didn't find Christ while they were there and has gone the opposite way. I hope and pray that the seeds they have planted would take root and that some day they will return back to Ban Suan church or any other church and find Christ.

Even though Ban Suan church has seen a lot of children come and go, there are still some if very little that the seed was planted, watered, and God increased them. One of these few people is Anne who is 16 years old and is one of my student who I teach english to. I was told she attended Saturday bible study since she was a child and even started to go to church on Sundays too. She accepted Christ and wanted to get baptize this year, but her mother and brother forbid her not to. Her mother and brother are buddhist and did not want her to convert. I was also told that her brother has even made her stop coming to church on Sundays. God is so good though, he made a way where Anne could come to church. (This is where God is using our team as a vessel for him :) ) Since we are doing english lessons, she has an excuse now to come to church without getting in trouble. Isn't God great?! That's not the only thing...she has even told and invited her friends about the english lessons offered at Ban Suan church. So all of the students in my class on Tuesdays and Thursdays is Anne and her 8 friends.

One thing that broke and made my heart sing was last Thursday. I met Anne and her friends for the first time that day. We had gone around and introduced ourselves by saying our name, what we like, and what we want to do for the rest of our life. This is what Anne said, "My nickname is Anne, I like to watch Television, and I want to come here (to Ban Suan church) for the rest of my life." I could see it in her eyes that that statement meant so much for her when she said it. I didn't know Anne nor her story at the time so it didn't hit me until Pee Mali told me about her life story. Wow, God is amazing and it's incredible to see Him at work.

Prayer Request

-For Saturday Bible study. Pray that more children would come and hear the word of God. May they find rest, hope, peace, and life there. May God use us as vessels to further His kingdom. My our team have wisdom and understanding along with patience. :)

-For the leaders at Ban Suan Church. May they continue to serve the Lord and bring many more people to know the Lord. Pray that the Lord will give them strength and guidance.

-Pray for Anne. Pray that she will continue to seek the Lord with all her heart. Pray that she will be strong and courageous and not be discouraged. Pray that she will grow more in Him and she sees that God has a wonderful plan in store for her.

-Pray for Anne's family. Pray that they will find and accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. Pray that they will let Anne go to church on Sundays.