God stuff in Kanchanaburi

J getting prayed up before we head up to Sangkhlaburi.

Chris, Derrick, David, and J visit with Nondo.

We spent a day and night with folks who run an incredible ministry just outside Sangkhlaburi. Nondo and his wife Tulolo are people of the Karen tribe that lives primarily in Burma (now officially called Myanmar.) The Burmese government has led a brutal crackdown against the Karen for years. Many years back, this couple's village was destroyed by the army and the people forced to flee. These two fled to Thailand. Over time, as their lives stabilized, they began to minister to Karen and others who were in hopeless situations. Today, their ministry has three areas of focus. At their home, they operate an orphanage which serves about twenty five or thirty children. In another building at their home, they house a half dozen or so older people who can not care for themselves and have no one to care for them. Finally, about two hundred meters up the road is Safe House, a housing facility for people with various illnesses that make it impossible to care for themselves. Everything from AIDS to malaria to mental illness. At Safe House, the workers are cared for and given simple job training in weaving and brick making, which gives them the chance to earn a small amount of money and to feel a sense of accomplishment. Nondo and Tulolo are amazing people, giving all they have to serve others here in the remote western edge of Thailand.

Thursday evening, we got to share in the regular time of devotions and worship with the kids in the orphanage. In addition to their formal schooling, the orphanage here teaches Karen, Thai, and English to the kids, so most are tri-lingual and fairly fluent.

It is tough to think about what these kids have already had to face in their young lives. J has just been thunderstruck by this week, and spending the evening with these orphan kids only added to the impact this trip is making on his life.

The people at Safe House are trained in weaving and operate a small store, selling items they have made. We each bought several things to take with us.

Sights of Kanchanaburi

Various scenes from this week's trip to Kanchanaburi...

The bridge on the River Kwai. Yes, THAT bridge on the river Kwai. It was rebuilt after World War II and is a major attraction in the area, for obvious reasons.

Standing in the bridge. Also inside the city, there is a large WW II cemetery where many US soldiers are buried, some who were POWs during the war and who were forced to work on the bridge and/or railway.

We stopped for breakfast at an Islamic Thai restaurant.

Houseboats on a lake along the way.

J and I went with Chris and to of his friends new to the area, Derrick and David, both from Southern California. (Chris is taking the photo.)

Derrick and J at a restaurant along the way. The family that owns the restaurant also lives there, like they do most places in Thailand. Notice in the background, the kids sitting in their 'family room,' watching TV.


J and me at the Thai-Burma border at Three Pagodas Pass.

A long wooden bridge leading into a Mon tribal area. We walked over. As we did, some kids passed under in a small boat, and one of them hopped out of the boat and scrambled right up the side of the bridge and took off walking.

That's a big ol' Buddha! Reminds me of the Audio Adrenaline song:

Never gonna be as big as Jesus.

Never gonna hold the world in my hand.

Never gonna be as big as Jesus.

Never gonna build a promised land...

Learning the Culture

While J is here, I felt it was important to mix in some cultural stuff with the straight up ministry opportunities he would have. I am hoping this will not be his last trip here, and if you hope to work with people in a foreign land, it is vital that you understand the things that make them unique. That is what Monday and Tuesday were about. Monday, we went to the Grand Palace. This is Bangkok's cultural jewel. A believer in Bangkok needs to see it to get a sense of this country's spiritual background and foundation. (And it is also one of the most beautiful places on earth.) Tuesday, we traveled two hours north to Ayutthaya, the original capitol city. Ayutthaya was destroyed by the Burmese army hundreds of years ago, but spectacular ruins remain.

Gold plating is everywhere in the Grand Palace. The grandeur of the place is hard to absorb.

The palace grounds are so big and filled with such intricate and beautiful buildings that photos really do not capture it well.

There are many intimidating figures here.

We took a water taxi back to a Sky Train station to get home. These are dirt cheap. Maybe thirty cents to go a couple of miles down stream. And they are fun.

When you are told you are going to go look at ruins, it can be underwhelming. Until you get there and see. And to think all of this was once covered by gold before the Burmese burned everything to get the gold.

Beautiful and haunting.

OK, sure, it is cheesy, but you can not visit Thailand without riding an elephant. This is J and Bamboo Pai. Pai joined us for the day, and it was great that he got to meet and spend time with J. Most of you know Pai's story. He is a young believer who I first met here in '06. He is a university student,majoring in environmental science. We were happy to have him with us.

Pai and J eat guitio (noodles) at a local roadside shop in Ayutthaya. J used chopsticks for the first time and did fine with them.
Tuesday night, Ah Jan Vee and Mhewy invited us to join them and a few others from church at Baiyoke Tower for dinner. Baiyoke is one of the world's tallest buildings and there is a restaurant near the top. Because Vee is in an intensive week long seminar at his seminary, he and J will get almost no more time together, so it was great to see them laughing and joking and just being friends last night.

Khao Lak January '09 - Part 2

Just a few more strong images from the weekend...

Ah Jan Acharaa. She works herself to the bone, teaching two or three small groups a week, Wednesday night and Friday Night services at the church, the Sunday morning service, and she oversees a school for kids preschool through second grade. Until this yer, the had three full time missionaries helping her, but the tsunami crisis is seen as a thing of the past, so groups are recalling their missionaries. Her biggest need is for help in handling the day to day ministry of the church.

J speaking on "Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest."

Vee and Son visiting with a man who had not walked for a very long time.

Just to let him feel that sensation again, they helped him take steps to the roadside and back. It was a lot of work, but he was so happy.

One day after giving their lives to Christ, our new believes showed up for Sunday services in the 'church bus.'

Forever friends. The best kind. J, Vee, Son.

The sun sets on our last day in Khao Lak.

And J will leave forever changed.

Khao Lak January '09 - Part I

Another "Wow," experience. Guess I should be getting used to those. Thursday night, J arrived around midnight. Jason Hinckley is a pastoral intern at Wellspring Community Church and a young man I have mentored for many years. By email, I introduced him to my buddy, Vee, and they have been very anxious to meet and work with each other. That day finally arrived.

We picked J up at the airport and went to my condo so he could unpack and change. By 3:00 a.m., we were on the road for a nine hour drive to Khao Lak, the village in Southern Thailand that I visited with a team from church two weeks ago and earlier in October. This time, we went with a bare bones team. J, Vee, me, and a dear young brother from church named Son. Because Vee had school obligations on Monday and Son had to work, we could only be there Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, returning Sunday evening.

This time, we worked with another church Immanuel supports, Pak Ping Christian Church, and their pastor, Ah Jan Acharaa. (Pak Ping means 'hidden in the rock.') Although we were only there for three days, we packed in a ton of adventure!

J has been looking forward to this trip for months now. He had little or no interest in doing the typical 'touristy,' stuff, but wanted to roll up his sleeves and do real Kingdom work. He was not disappointed. Over the three days, we went to four small group meetings, where we took turns haring our stories or leading Bible studies. We visited several church members in their homes and encouraged them and prayed with them. Because it was the weekend for Thailand's national Children's Day, we put on special activities for two groups of children. And at the main service at Pak Ping on Sunday morning, we each shared a brief worked of encouragement and J preached the sermon. By the time we headed home late Sunday, driving through the night to arrive in Bangkok at 5:00 a.m., we were utterly exhausted, but so filled with joy... J, who had never been outside of the US, had, in three short days, fallen in love with Thailand, had his heart overwhelmed with excitement for missions work, and had made two new friends for life in Ah Jan Vee and Son.

Sharing with a family at their rural home.

One thing you can be sure of on these trips is that you can not be sure of anything. You are certain to be asked to preach or share your story with less than five minutes notice. The plans will change in an instant. Saturday, Ah Jan Acharaa decided that, since we were there and willing to do anything, and since it was Children's Day, we'd put on a special activity for the children in a community she ministers to. This community is one where the small homes were built by the government and all the people there lost everything they owned in the tsunami. With just a couple of hours to get the word out, we had no idea how many kids would show up. As you can see... many did. More than fifty, I am sure. Son and Vee led them in games and songs, while J and I went inside with the adults and we had a small group-type meeting with them. At one point, Vee came and got J and they stepped outside so J could share his story, about growing up in a broken home and making many many bad decisions before meeting Jesus several years ago. Just a wonderful night.


As I said, while Vee and Son were outside with the kids, J and I went in and spoke with the adults. J and I are in the top row with Gai and Dto, two fishermen who love Jesus. This small group is amazing. The men had worked for a big fishing company, but it required them to work on Sundays and miss church. The church helped them find organizations that donated small fishing boats to them, so there are four fishermen in this group with their own boats now. They go out separately, but they pray together before each trip, and they stay in contact by cell phone and check on each other's safety regularly. Fishing has been bad recently. The fishermen have to buy baitfish and sometimes new hooks for every trip. If they catch no fish, they have no money to buy baitfish for the next trip. They had a plan to put together a small fund of 5,000 baht (about $150) that could be used by any of the four, if they caught no fish that day, but would be repaid the next time they did catch fish. They had the thing all planned out and were just hoping to be able to save enough to start the fund. Well, hello, Holy Spirit! Shortly before J left the US, one of his church members approached him and pressed a hundred dollars into his hand, saying, "There will be someone over there in need. You'll know them when you see them. Use this to bless them." Before we left that evening, we gave them a 3,000 baht start on their fund. Their gratitude to us, and to God, was a beautiful thing to see.

Oh, and I told them a story about me going fishing with a friend on the Grand River, back in Missouri, and sinking the boat. They laughed and laughed. And at the end of the evening, they seriously asked me to come back and go out fishing with one of the men for a day. You better believe I WILL do that!


One morning, Ah Jan Acharaa took us far from Pak Ping and to a place so remote, there were no roads or even car tracks that went back so far into the jungle area. There, we met with people in a tiny two home community. There were about seven adults and several children. Most of the adults were believers, but some had still not crossed the line of faith. We met with them in one of the homes. J shared his story and I did a short message on the Raising of Lazarus. Afterward, Aj Jan Acharaa asked if anyone was ready to take that step and give their hearts and lives to Christ, and two people did. (The man and woman on the left side of the photo.) We prayed with them and Acharaa spent a long time patiently and quietly visiting with these two about what this kind of decision meant and how they can be SURE in their new relationship with God. And angles in heaven were celebrating.

Me speaking to a small group about church, and how much Jesus loves the church and what 'doing church,' should look like, from the example of the early church.

Ever wonder?

Ever wonder where tofu comes from? Yeah, well, neither have I. Still, we went to visit the family of one of the church members from Zion Christian Center while we were in Khao Lak, and the father insisted on giving us the grand tour of his tofu manufacturing facility.

Kind of looks like a still, huh?



You can see blocks of tofu 'curing' or something.

A little clearer shot of some tofu blocks just about ready to go.

As a parting gift, each of us was given a block of tofu and encouraged to eat it up. I did eat about a third of mine. Like the one you see Ah Jan Phet holding, it had a yellow-ish rind. I wasn't sure if you ate that part or not, but figured it could not be worse than what would be inside, so I ate it, too. As tofu goes, it was OK. I've never really understood tofu. Almost gelatinous and tasteless. Other than filling space, it seems to have no use, but some folks really like it. Here, you sometimes see it fried up. Kind of like white SPAM, I guess.

Ja Rurat - First time in '09

After being gone for two weeks, it was GREAT to get back to Ja Rurat and the kids. Today, I taught a lesson about Ruth and Naomi. Afterward, the kids colored a picture of Ruth holding stalks of grain. After they colored them, we put some Elmer's glue on their pages and sprinkled some brown rice grains to add a bit to the lesson. The kids enjoyed it a lot and really remembered all the details of Ruth's story.

Vee had to translate for me this week, but we did have three new folks from church join us and help out with working with the kids, and that was great.

Ah Jan Vee quizzes the kids over their lesson.

At the request of some in my Kansas City small group, here are some more

close up shots of the kids of Ja Rurat... These are the same kids Jason

will be teaching in two weeks when he is here.

Ah Jan Greg

One of the many great blessings of my time so far in Thailand has been getting to know and work alongside some wonderful full time missionaries. Greg Brown is a great example.

Greg is originally from Tennessee. A recent graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, he has devoted his life now to church planting in the poor areas of Bangkok. Greg is working through Pioneers, a missions agency which is focused on church planting.

Greg has worked with the slums ministry team from Immanuel since his arrival in Thailand. I see him almost every week at Bearing (Soi 107). This week, he accompanied the Immanuel team to Khao Lak, and was a wonderful help, speaking at several of the meetings we held. He preached the Sunday morning service at Zion Christian Center and had a strong, meaningful message about the shepherds and the birthplace of Jesus.

Greg has a humble, servant heart, which endears him to the Thai nationals. His Thai language skills are far more advanced than mine, so he can converse quite easily in their language. He's a good friend and a terrific representative of Christ to the people here.