Just popped something in my ankle when I fell. Please pray, I am going to the hospital now. Pass it on.
Continue to pray for Zach that God would pull him through this. He is in critical condition. God is bigger, pray that Zach will be healed.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Bible Study at a Detention Center
Mackenzie and I had the opportunity to go with our new friend, Pat, to a juvenile detention center and be a part of a bible study. We were blessed.
Pat has quite a story. He has been a Christian for 9 months. God has called him and his daughter back to Thailand, and whew, what a testimony he is! He has been here for 3 months and is involved in many things, mostly doing bible studies and teaching people in the hilltribes. Please pray for Pat.
Mackenzie and I mostly sat and observed at the bible study. There are about 30 young men who were in attendance among about 500+ (not exactly sure the number)--it was in Thai. Pat shared about anger and how God changes your heart (I'm sorry, I didn't write the reference down) and he also shared a bit about his life. Toward the end when we opened up for prayer time Pat began to translate for us. We shared our testimony through Pat and the boys expressed to us that it means so much to them that we came, and when others come with Pat to the bible study, because they are amazed that people care about them. Even though we couldn't really follow along at all or do anything except smile and be a part without understanding, "they will know we are Christians by our love". I want to encourage YOU to be a part of things, just to show you care. This is not just a need in Thailand, but everywhere.
Everybody needs to know they are loved.
Please please pray for Pat, he is a living testimony and is doing a lot of hard work among the Thai Buddhist believers. Also, there are 9 boys of the group who do not have sweaters. In Thailand right now in the mornings it is very cold. Pray that God would provide everything they need (Mackenzie and I are looking for sweaters, but it is hard because we aren't very good at bartering, and for Westerners, at the markets if there is not a price on something, the Thai's double the price for us. We do not know the usual price for things, so it makes it hard). We know the Lord will provide. Pray that these young men will be a light to the others in the detention center. Wouldn't it be amazing if they all left as Christians? God can do it.
Also, there is a young man who is leaving soon. When he gets out he wants to go to school to study the Bible. PRAISE GOD!!! Wow. Please pray for him. His name is Shay (not sure of the spelling, maybe Shae?) Pray for his smooth release and that he would not sway from this conviction when he returns to society, but will be strengthened and encouraged by the Holy Spirit and fellowship of believers.
Pat took some pictures. I am going to ask him if he'll email them to me, but I do not have them right now.
We had quite a weekend--I will tell you about it next time!
God Bless,
Please continue to pray for Mackenzie's friends--the situation sounds very bad. Candace passed away. Zach is in the hospital in a coma. Geno is in jail for vehicular manslaughter and was driving under the influence. The fourth person in the car broke all of the bones in his back. Please please pray.
Pat has quite a story. He has been a Christian for 9 months. God has called him and his daughter back to Thailand, and whew, what a testimony he is! He has been here for 3 months and is involved in many things, mostly doing bible studies and teaching people in the hilltribes. Please pray for Pat.
Mackenzie and I mostly sat and observed at the bible study. There are about 30 young men who were in attendance among about 500+ (not exactly sure the number)--it was in Thai. Pat shared about anger and how God changes your heart (I'm sorry, I didn't write the reference down) and he also shared a bit about his life. Toward the end when we opened up for prayer time Pat began to translate for us. We shared our testimony through Pat and the boys expressed to us that it means so much to them that we came, and when others come with Pat to the bible study, because they are amazed that people care about them. Even though we couldn't really follow along at all or do anything except smile and be a part without understanding, "they will know we are Christians by our love". I want to encourage YOU to be a part of things, just to show you care. This is not just a need in Thailand, but everywhere.
Everybody needs to know they are loved.
Please please pray for Pat, he is a living testimony and is doing a lot of hard work among the Thai Buddhist believers. Also, there are 9 boys of the group who do not have sweaters. In Thailand right now in the mornings it is very cold. Pray that God would provide everything they need (Mackenzie and I are looking for sweaters, but it is hard because we aren't very good at bartering, and for Westerners, at the markets if there is not a price on something, the Thai's double the price for us. We do not know the usual price for things, so it makes it hard). We know the Lord will provide. Pray that these young men will be a light to the others in the detention center. Wouldn't it be amazing if they all left as Christians? God can do it.
Also, there is a young man who is leaving soon. When he gets out he wants to go to school to study the Bible. PRAISE GOD!!! Wow. Please pray for him. His name is Shay (not sure of the spelling, maybe Shae?) Pray for his smooth release and that he would not sway from this conviction when he returns to society, but will be strengthened and encouraged by the Holy Spirit and fellowship of believers.
Pat took some pictures. I am going to ask him if he'll email them to me, but I do not have them right now.
We had quite a weekend--I will tell you about it next time!
God Bless,
Please continue to pray for Mackenzie's friends--the situation sounds very bad. Candace passed away. Zach is in the hospital in a coma. Geno is in jail for vehicular manslaughter and was driving under the influence. The fourth person in the car broke all of the bones in his back. Please please pray.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Prayer Request
Mackenzie just heard through facebook that one of her friends was in a terrible car accident. There were three people in the car, her friend Zach is badly injured and another girl who was in the car, Candace, passed away. There was a third person in the car, but we do not know yet who it was or how they are or any details other than that.
Please pray for them.
Please pray for them.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
LOTS to do
I've begun what we call "the Textbook project". It is a huge undertaking. They are re-writing the Thai Social Studies textbooks from a Christian perspective. I am planning on telling you much much more about this project in the future, but for now I just want to brief you, there is so much more to come. My role in this project is to teach people how to use the programs (InDesign and Photoshop) and begin designing the first textbook, but design it in such a way that when I leave other people can take over the project (even *hopefully* while I am still here, so I can guide and direct in using the programs).
Some of you know how much I enjoy teaching other people programs (maybe I tutored you at Concordia?). I am amazed at how God takes even that gifting and puts it in exactly the right place in order to further His kingdom. The bulk of my time from now on will probably be directed toward teaching Pick and Jo (the lovely couple who are re-writing these textbooks) and working on this project in general.
I am beyond excited to work be a part of this project.
It is definitely one of those God-orchestrated things.
Some prayer points:
-That God would lead us
-That Pick and Jo will learn quickly and well!!
-That a Thai artist would come and be a part of the project from beginning to end.
So that is the brief. More on that later.
Sidenote! Yesterday after school we ran an after-school-extra cirricular activity thing. The students could sign up for either Crafts or Gardening. Mackenzie helped come up with the designs for the craft project (hand puppets). This is what happened:
This little girl is "wai"-ing to you--it is how they say Hello in Thai! You hold your hands in front of you (at different levels, depending on who you are saying Hello to) and bow a bit and you say "Sa-Wat-Dii".
So THAT was the craft club. The Gardening after school activity was so funny. I still am laughing about it. It ended up being all boys, and they were supposed to dig a compost hole in the ground. Haha. Here is a video about it:
They added water and it just became a big sludgy mess. Here are some after effects:
That's all folks!
Good news--> Our internet at home is nearly up and working, so when I post I'll be feeling like I have more time to say things instead of fitting this in between free time at school.
Some of you know how much I enjoy teaching other people programs (maybe I tutored you at Concordia?). I am amazed at how God takes even that gifting and puts it in exactly the right place in order to further His kingdom. The bulk of my time from now on will probably be directed toward teaching Pick and Jo (the lovely couple who are re-writing these textbooks) and working on this project in general.
I am beyond excited to work be a part of this project.
It is definitely one of those God-orchestrated things.
Some prayer points:
-That God would lead us
-That Pick and Jo will learn quickly and well!!
-That a Thai artist would come and be a part of the project from beginning to end.
So that is the brief. More on that later.
Sidenote! Yesterday after school we ran an after-school-extra cirricular activity thing. The students could sign up for either Crafts or Gardening. Mackenzie helped come up with the designs for the craft project (hand puppets). This is what happened:
This little girl is "wai"-ing to you--it is how they say Hello in Thai! You hold your hands in front of you (at different levels, depending on who you are saying Hello to) and bow a bit and you say "Sa-Wat-Dii".
So THAT was the craft club. The Gardening after school activity was so funny. I still am laughing about it. It ended up being all boys, and they were supposed to dig a compost hole in the ground. Haha. Here is a video about it:
They added water and it just became a big sludgy mess. Here are some after effects:
That's all folks!
Good news--> Our internet at home is nearly up and working, so when I post I'll be feeling like I have more time to say things instead of fitting this in between free time at school.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Update!
Mackenzie, Emma and I ride the school's van to school. I love it because I spend the time talking and playing with the kids and also trying to read Thai signs. Here are some pictures from the most recent van ride:
He is such a sweetie!
He decided to take a picture
With his mom!
This girl is so loveable! On our first day Mackenzie and I met her she came over and gave us both a biiig hug. She is very friendly.
With her mom! I love this picture. I was able to take pictures of some of the kids with their moms when we dropped them off after school. I think this one really shows her personality!
This woman had a dog and a cat in her basket on her bike. Mackenzie and I were amazed. I wish I could've gotten a better picture of her.
These are just a few of the kids. There are 30 students total. There is so much about them I want to tell you, but I'm also struggling with what I should not say in order to protect them and their identities (also the reason I didn't tell you their names--rest assured, they have names and I do know them, but most importantly so does God.)
We have been so busy these past few days. Mackenzie and I have gotten to work on lots of projects. The most recent/time consuming has been cataloguing the library.
It is such a blessing for these kids to have a library. There is a lady who has overtaken the library renovation project. She's really taken it upon herself to get books donated and has raised the funds needed in order to get new windows in and repainting the walls, etc. She was telling me about how it is really difficult to find Thai children's books, because reading is not really encouraged in Thailand. It is seen as a selfish thing, because when you read, it is an individualistic thing, so you are by yourself rather than in a community of people. As a result, many people in Thailand never learn to read. They know what road signs are, but it is not a pursuit. So there really aren't very many Thai children's books, and to buy them right out from a bookstore, they are very expensive. The librarian told me a book could cost the equivalent of a days wages. There aren't really libraries (as far as I know) except for at schools. SO--our English book collection outways our Thai book collection, but it is okay. It is a decent collection. And we *have* books for the kids to read! It is great. They are looking into another cataloguing system--the one we are using now is rather inefficient. There are some volunteers who are in the area who might take on that task sometime soon.
On another note, Mackenzie, Emma and I decided to go for a walk the other day near our neighborhood. We found lots of food resteraunts and vendors!
(DAD--tell Tanner he would be fine in Thailand, chicken *cough*rat*cough* on a stick is a common thing.)
Bananas taste so much better here.
Some commmon sights:
er....poinsettas (Mom and Dad, will you tell Grandma K.?)
errrrrr......water buffalo?
plants grow even out of rocks here. Everything wants to grow.
Roosters! They just sort of...run around here.
Also! Here's a fun story. The nice couple who invited me to go up the mountain. When we got back from our walk, we were passing by their house and they were home! We got to chatting and they invited us in for dinner :) NOW we'll be having dinner with them every Wednesday. Also, this weekend, we're going to go with them to Lampang, which is south of Chiang Mai about an hour and a half. It'll be a fun adventure! We're going to meet her whole amily. That's what we could gather anyway :). I am grateful for their hospitality and our new friendship. Please pray for us that we would have an opportunity to share the gospel with them, and pray for them to understand us and for God to do the rest. I don't know what they believe, I am guessing they are Buddhist.
Okay, I think that's all for today. God Bless you all! Pray for our neighbors, the school kids and also for one of our teachers (Brittany) she is sick!
With his mom!
With her mom! I love this picture. I was able to take pictures of some of the kids with their moms when we dropped them off after school. I think this one really shows her personality!
These are just a few of the kids. There are 30 students total. There is so much about them I want to tell you, but I'm also struggling with what I should not say in order to protect them and their identities (also the reason I didn't tell you their names--rest assured, they have names and I do know them, but most importantly so does God.)
We have been so busy these past few days. Mackenzie and I have gotten to work on lots of projects. The most recent/time consuming has been cataloguing the library.
It is such a blessing for these kids to have a library. There is a lady who has overtaken the library renovation project. She's really taken it upon herself to get books donated and has raised the funds needed in order to get new windows in and repainting the walls, etc. She was telling me about how it is really difficult to find Thai children's books, because reading is not really encouraged in Thailand. It is seen as a selfish thing, because when you read, it is an individualistic thing, so you are by yourself rather than in a community of people. As a result, many people in Thailand never learn to read. They know what road signs are, but it is not a pursuit. So there really aren't very many Thai children's books, and to buy them right out from a bookstore, they are very expensive. The librarian told me a book could cost the equivalent of a days wages. There aren't really libraries (as far as I know) except for at schools. SO--our English book collection outways our Thai book collection, but it is okay. It is a decent collection. And we *have* books for the kids to read! It is great. They are looking into another cataloguing system--the one we are using now is rather inefficient. There are some volunteers who are in the area who might take on that task sometime soon.
On another note, Mackenzie, Emma and I decided to go for a walk the other day near our neighborhood. We found lots of food resteraunts and vendors!
(DAD--tell Tanner he would be fine in Thailand, chicken *cough*rat*cough* on a stick is a common thing.)
Some commmon sights:
plants grow even out of rocks here. Everything wants to grow.
Roosters! They just sort of...run around here.Also! Here's a fun story. The nice couple who invited me to go up the mountain. When we got back from our walk, we were passing by their house and they were home! We got to chatting and they invited us in for dinner :) NOW we'll be having dinner with them every Wednesday. Also, this weekend, we're going to go with them to Lampang, which is south of Chiang Mai about an hour and a half. It'll be a fun adventure! We're going to meet her whole amily. That's what we could gather anyway :). I am grateful for their hospitality and our new friendship. Please pray for us that we would have an opportunity to share the gospel with them, and pray for them to understand us and for God to do the rest. I don't know what they believe, I am guessing they are Buddhist.
Okay, I think that's all for today. God Bless you all! Pray for our neighbors, the school kids and also for one of our teachers (Brittany) she is sick!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
THAILAND
Oh what a whirlwind of the past two days!
The weather is beautiful here. A little cold, actually, in the mornings--not what we were expecting at all. We are going to go buy jackets!! Soon though it'll be too hot to handle.
I am loving every minute. Yesterday we made a logo (which I'll tell you more about later) AND I took pictures. There are some Canadians who are in the area for 60 days, and they have been VERY helpful so far. Yesterday they addedd sod to our playground.
All in one day! It was amazing. We got to help them a bit toward the end. They are really very nice men, I am glad to have met them.
Mackenzie and I have also been working on helping to organize the library. This year the library grew by maybe about 75%? So there is a lot to be done.
The Canadians (Tony and Henry) as well as two others who joined them today are building us new shelves that will be under the windows, around the whole room. It is going to be very nice. We are also going to be painting the library soon--any ideas? We're thinking: bright colors.
Gotta go! Please pray for the students and the school. The students are so fun and lovable. I have stories I want to share soon. Also, on a personal note, my left ankle hurts :( and has hurt for awhile. Please pray for it.
Gotta go, I want to elaborate, but the van is about to leave!
GOD BLESS!
Amber
The weather is beautiful here. A little cold, actually, in the mornings--not what we were expecting at all. We are going to go buy jackets!! Soon though it'll be too hot to handle.
I am loving every minute. Yesterday we made a logo (which I'll tell you more about later) AND I took pictures. There are some Canadians who are in the area for 60 days, and they have been VERY helpful so far. Yesterday they addedd sod to our playground.
All in one day! It was amazing. We got to help them a bit toward the end. They are really very nice men, I am glad to have met them.
Mackenzie and I have also been working on helping to organize the library. This year the library grew by maybe about 75%? So there is a lot to be done.
The Canadians (Tony and Henry) as well as two others who joined them today are building us new shelves that will be under the windows, around the whole room. It is going to be very nice. We are also going to be painting the library soon--any ideas? We're thinking: bright colors.
Gotta go! Please pray for the students and the school. The students are so fun and lovable. I have stories I want to share soon. Also, on a personal note, my left ankle hurts :( and has hurt for awhile. Please pray for it.
Gotta go, I want to elaborate, but the van is about to leave!
GOD BLESS!
Amber
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Pass it On fundraising campaign
The first day at school!
We got right to work, Mackenzie and I helped make a logo for their new fundraising campaign. You can read about it here: Pass it on Campaign and see the logo we made! We really tag teamed it, it was a lot of fun.
Here were our logo ideas, and the finished product:
I would also ask you to prayerfully consider being a part of the Pass it On campaign. They have been struggling financially and are praying for a broader range of supporters. Your contribution will really go a long ways. This school is on the right track, I am very impressed with everything so far. I will tell more about the school when I have some more time, but they are strong Christians dedicated to helping these kids and sharing the love of Christ! You can read more about them on their website--especially watch the videos, they are great (the one on the Pass-it-on campaign page is super).
We have a lot of the agenda for tomorrow, including a brochure and beginning the textbook project. Will keep you updated!
Here is a picture of all of the teachers and Mackenzie and I:
We got right to work, Mackenzie and I helped make a logo for their new fundraising campaign. You can read about it here: Pass it on Campaign and see the logo we made! We really tag teamed it, it was a lot of fun.
Here were our logo ideas, and the finished product:
I would also ask you to prayerfully consider being a part of the Pass it On campaign. They have been struggling financially and are praying for a broader range of supporters. Your contribution will really go a long ways. This school is on the right track, I am very impressed with everything so far. I will tell more about the school when I have some more time, but they are strong Christians dedicated to helping these kids and sharing the love of Christ! You can read more about them on their website--especially watch the videos, they are great (the one on the Pass-it-on campaign page is super).
We have a lot of the agenda for tomorrow, including a brochure and beginning the textbook project. Will keep you updated!
Here is a picture of all of the teachers and Mackenzie and I:
Sunday, January 15, 2012
the 4th day!
Today has been very exciting.
I..woke up at 5:30 am (because I went to bed at 9pm) but it was really very nice, I had some time to myself to worship God. Once it was light out (around 7), I went for a run. There is this house I ran by yesterday where the woman was eager to speak English, and today when I was passing by I stopped. She suggested to me that I come over once a week and practice Thai, and she can practice English! This is great, exactly what I had been hoping God would provide. I am excited, I can't wait. We'll meet (I think) on Wednesday night. She invited Mackenzie and I to go up the mountains with her and her husband (who is a police man..I feel like I need to specify that this is safe ;)!! I immediately agreed, (I always jump too quickly) -- but tomorrow is the first day at the school, SO I wrote a letter to her telling her that we would love to join her NEXT time. Going to the mountains is pulling me. Just waiting for the right opportunity. Here is my funny letter:
It took me about 1 1/2 hours. It probably doesn't translate well, but, I did it all by myself!!
Mackenzie and I took a long walk today around our neighborhood. Met some neighbors.It was fun.
This is our new neighbor. She just kept talking and talking and talking, we had no idea what she was saying. Ha.
Bamboo trees!! Couldn't believe this!
We ALSO ventured out into the great unknown by ourselves, took a song-teow down to the coffee shop we were at the other day for internet.
Having dinner with Joel and Marvel tonight, school starts tomorrow. Will send prayer requests soon when we have specifics, please still pray for us!
-Amber
I..woke up at 5:30 am (because I went to bed at 9pm) but it was really very nice, I had some time to myself to worship God. Once it was light out (around 7), I went for a run. There is this house I ran by yesterday where the woman was eager to speak English, and today when I was passing by I stopped. She suggested to me that I come over once a week and practice Thai, and she can practice English! This is great, exactly what I had been hoping God would provide. I am excited, I can't wait. We'll meet (I think) on Wednesday night. She invited Mackenzie and I to go up the mountains with her and her husband (who is a police man..I feel like I need to specify that this is safe ;)!! I immediately agreed, (I always jump too quickly) -- but tomorrow is the first day at the school, SO I wrote a letter to her telling her that we would love to join her NEXT time. Going to the mountains is pulling me. Just waiting for the right opportunity. Here is my funny letter:
It took me about 1 1/2 hours. It probably doesn't translate well, but, I did it all by myself!!
Mackenzie and I took a long walk today around our neighborhood. Met some neighbors.It was fun.
We ALSO ventured out into the great unknown by ourselves, took a song-teow down to the coffee shop we were at the other day for internet.
Having dinner with Joel and Marvel tonight, school starts tomorrow. Will send prayer requests soon when we have specifics, please still pray for us!
-Amber
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