Love has great power

We are in our week of debrief at YWAM in Colorado Springs after 2 months of outreach in Thailand, and it is great to play back all of the great things that happened during that time.  Tomorrow we graduate and will all head out to what we have planned next.  So I was thinking about the things that I learned through this time and wanted to share.


When we look at the ministry that we did in Thailand, and the most significant moments of the outreach, they all surrounded one main point, loving people the way that Jesus teaches us to love.  No special formula or great amount of resources needed, just authentic love.  This love that we gave was enough to bring 2 ladies out of a bar to meet with the people who are there to help them find a lifestyle other than prostitution to support them, and most amazing was that one of them was the owner of the bar.

 We also were able to put smiles on the faces of many people in a slum neighborhood simply by showing up to talk to them and throwing 2 small carnivals in their neighborhood to play with their kids.

The same love gave the opportunity talk about the love of Christ to a Buddhist college professor on the campus of the college in Chiang Rai that we were reaching out to, and have the professor, in response, offer to help with the coffee shop that the ministry is running. These are just a few of the examples of how simply showing love provided for change in huge ways.

Time and time again we were amazed at the opportunities for ministry that were created just by showing love to the people around us.  It was great to see how simple it is to make a change in someones life just by caring for them and showing interest.  The great thing about loving is it cost us very little to do, more time than anything, but the results on the faces of those that we were reaching out to was more reward than any of the cost of giving it.

We really loved this time in our lives during our discipleship training and outreach.  We will me sharing many stories as we settle back into Cincinnati.  Thank you to all who have been praying for us and supporting us.  Keep praying that our next steps will be clear and we can use what we have learned to continue to pour out this love on all of those around us.
--Troy  

Halfway there!?!?

Seems like time has flown by since we left for Thailand. We have already spent a few days in Bangkok and then 3 weeks in Chiang Mai! There are so many stories to tell about our time. For now I will just update about how we are as a family, stories for the trip will follow when we can.

First thing that has been really amazing about this trip is how we have been able to adjust. The girls hit the ground running in Bangkok. No jet lag at all! Both girls slept for a long time on our overnight, 12 hour flight, and were ready to go the day after we arrived. They have also loved all of the Thai food that has been available. The picture here is of us on a cultural tour 2 days after arriving. Thanks for all of the prayers in this

area, they have worked!

The Thai culture has been great, but we have been really busy since we arrived, so not much of a warm climate experience (for those not familiar, warm climate cultures are more laid back than cold climate). With really hot and humid days it just seems to take it all out of you by the end of the day. Aria had stopped napping before we left the US, but has taken a nap almost every day since we arrived. So we spend most of our break times just trying to rest a little before heading out again.

Here is a

picture of one definite difference in Thia culture, that truck is a Songthaew. It is the primary public transportation for us and for most folks outside of Bangkok.

This is the view from inside of a canal boat, one of the ways we traveled on our cultural tour. Seems like we traveled by all means of non-live vehicle available that day.

We have had many opportunities to make friends around Thailand and interact with the people. There have been great ministry opportunities and opportunities to just talk to people and share life. We even took some time to celebrate Anya's 7th birthday with a trip to the park. Thanks to everyone that sent cards and birthday wishes, Anya was overwhelmed when she received all of the cards and gifts that morning.

So I will wrap up for now. We hope to post more often as we go, but thanks for all of the prayers and support that everyone has given. We are loving Thailand but definitely need all of the prayers and support during all of the changes and reaching out.