Celebrating Christmas in Thailand

We have just finished our first week of ministry at Abba House and I already love it here! Every day is filled with lots of joy and laughter!

On most days, we are with the guys in the afternoon for Bible study, worship, and English lessons. Abbie and I are teaching the beginners class and we have two students – Sit and Lek. It’s great because we can do more one-on-one stuff and really focus in on what their needs are. So far, we’ve been learning ABC’s, counting to 100, some vocabulary, and conversational English (How are you? What is your name? Where are you from? etc). It’s awesome to see them learning and really grasping what we are teaching them. And it can also be pretty funny! Picture this scenario with me for a minute:

Me: How are you?

Lek: My name is Lek.

Me: No…how ARE you? (re-emphasizing the words and saying it slower…)

Lek: I am from Thailand.

Me: OK…repeat after me…I am fine.

Lek: I am fine.

Haha…these are frequent conversations in our class but both of our students are doing SO good at learning English! I’m amazed at their progress already! Sit often shouts out ‘Thank you, Jesus!’ when he gets something right! I love his enthusiasm!

We eat dinner with the kids almost every night and have English lessons with them in the evening. Again, Abbie and I are teaching the beginners and we have 5 students: one boy (Laa) and four girls (Sih, Patcha, Sophia, and Gift). They are ages 8 to 11 and we all have so much fun together! We do lots of songs and games with the kids and they love it! We often end up chasing them around after class because they are very playful and love to run around. They are also very affectionate and like to hold our hands and give us hugs (we like it when they do that too! J).

My first Thai Christmas was incredible! We had an amazing opportunity on Christmas Eve to go and speak at a men’s prison. We were there for about an hour and a half and we each shared part of our testimonies and about what an awesome God we know and love and serve. God is so good and it was great that we got to go there because the doors have closed now for churches to go into that prison – we were the last group that was allowed in to the prison for a while. Pray with us for the 150 men that we had the opportunity to share with about the love and grace of Jesus Christ!

Later on Christmas Eve, we all (guys, kids, and YWAM team) went Christmas caroling from 7pm til almost 1 in the morning! We squeezed in to 2 song tao’s and set off on our adventure! Our team quickly discovered that Christmas caroling here is different from caroling back in Canada and the States. We drove to the first house and all hopped out of the song tao’s. We then snuck up to the house (with lots of ‘SH’ing and whispering) and, once we were all ready, yelled ‘Merry Christmas!’ and started singing loudly and dancing around! After we finished singing a few songs, the lights came on inside the house and they opened the doors to welcome us in for snacks! We drove around to about 10 houses of people from the church and this is pretty much what happened at each house. Thai people are so welcoming and hospitable! I think that we need to start welcoming people into our homes in Canada and feeding them delicious treats when they carol for us!

Loading into the song tao on Christmas Eve (the guy on the left doing the peace sign is Sit and the guy to the right of him with the purple sweater is Lek - they are in my English class)

Caroling and dancing at the first house

Laa (one of my students) eating some soup at the last house where we went caroling

Christmas day was a full day and it was even better than Christmas Eve! Our team met together and enjoyed a little celebration that included stockings and a gift exchange. I got a beautiful purse from Catherine! In the afternoon, we played outdoor games with everyone - there were water balloons and sack races! Our Christmas dinner was a barbeque which was so cool since that’s how my family always celebrates Christmas! Because we lived in Botswana, we had summer Christmases and would have a barbeque (or ‘braai’, as we would say in Botswana) each year on Christmas day. So fun! After dinner, there was a piñata (how random is that? I never expected to see a piñata in Thailand…) and we all laughed as people took turns trying to punch it down! Later, there were Christmas skits, opening presents, and a dance party to end off an amazing Christmas day!

Playing outdoor games on Christmas

Sack race

Watching the games (the girl next to me is Sih, one of my students)

Gift (another one of my students) getting ready to throw some water balloons

Christmas BBQ!

Throwing punches at the piñata

Dance party!

Christmas in Thailand is all about being together to celebrate Jesus’ birth! It was really amazing to see how gentle and loving the guys were with the kids. They were all holding hands and joking around! These guys that used to be in prison have been totally transformed by Jesus! They are some of the most gentle and caring people that I’ve ever met!

It is such a blessing to be at Abba House and I’m looking forward to this next week of ministry! Thank you for your prayers and financial support! Merry Christmas!

We're here!!!

I’m in Thailand! We got here on Wednesday morning at 1:00am and headed over to the Nancy Ross Training Center (YWAM base in Bangkok). After spending two days there, we took an overnight bus to Chiang Mai and arrived at Abba House early on Friday morning.

Abba House is where our team will be living and serving for the next month. David and Joyce Moore are the founders of Abba House. There are about 20 girls that live here – these are girls who were at risk of being trafficked (had been sexually abused, have mothers in the sex trade, or are orphans). There are also 10 men that come here on a regular basis who were in drug rehab or prison before but are now following Jesus.

So what will our team be doing while we are here?

We will be teaching English lessons to both the men and the girls; sharing devotionals, songs, and skits; and leading some worship services. We will also be doing some prison ministry, visiting a home for disabled children, and maybe going to a village for a weekend. All of this ministry started yesterday for our team!

We had this past weekend off to settle in and see some more of Chiang Mai. On Saturday night, we had a neat experience while visiting a night market. I was exploring the market along with two other members of my team; Marissa and Gulya. While walking along and checking out the numerous stalls full of different fun things to look at and buy, we eventually ended up at a Buddhist temple. After going in and looking around the temple, we began talking to a Buddhist monk who was standing outside. His name was Jan and he was from Cambodia. He was very well-educated and had studied and read lots of books. Gulya asked him if he had ever read the Bible before and he replied that he actually had three Bibles (all in different languages). We started asking Jan questions about Buddhism and discussing our faith. We talked about how we place our trust in Jesus, and he told us that his faith was in himself and his good works. We had the opportunity to hear more about what he believed and to also share the truth with Jan about how we need God and we are only made clean and whole through Him, not by our good works. We talked for a long time and Gulya and I prayed for him at the end of our conversation. We encouraged Jan to continue reading the Bible, specifically the book of John, and to pray to Jesus. He seemed to really enjoy our conversation and to be genuinely interested in what we had to say about Jesus and our lives as followers of Christ.

About halfway through our conversation with Jan, Marissa noticed that there was a girl standing nearby who was listening to our discussion so she invited her to join us. The girl asked what we were talking about and Marissa told her that we were sharing our different beliefs (Buddhism and Christianity). She seemed interested so Marissa stepped aside and began having a separate conversation with her. Her name was Chloe and she was from China. Chloe told Marissa that she admires people with different beliefs because she didn’t grow up having faith in any religion. She had gone to church before with two of her friends who were Christians but she was still unsure and had questions about Christianity. Because Marissa grew up in a Catholic family, she was able to share from her experience of also not growing up as a Christian and really wanting to be sure of the truth. Chloe was very interested and open. She was curious about Christianity but seemed to be unsure of where to start in asking questions. Marissa explained the gospel to her and talked about how we serve a living God – we don’t worship idols and statues. God is always with us and the Holy Spirit lives in us. At the end of their conversation, we all prayed for Chloe. We prayed that she would continue to seek the truth and that Jesus would reveal the truth to her.

It was great to have these conversations with both Jan and Chloe and to see their hunger for the truth. Pray with us that both Jan and Chloe will remember our conversations and will truly seek after Jesus. Pray that God will reveal Himself to them and that they will come to know Him. Only He can truly satisfy them!

Our team now has a blog so I probably won't be updating my blog as often. Here is the link: www.pleasebringtherain.blogspot.com.

Merry Christmas!

I am with you

We had our last lecture on Friday morning - it's time to go to Thailand! The last thing that our speaker left us with was God's promise that He is with us. This is a promise that God repeats to His people throughout the Bible, and this truth is something that God constantly speaks to me.

For me, these words are very comforting and reassuring. I can rest in the truth that I am not alone, that I have a constant friend, that I am loved and cared for, that God is never going to leave me.

But these words are more than just a comfort. They are powerful. I am empowered by the reality that God is with me. I am reminded that I am not doing this on my own, but that the Holy Spirit is working in and through me to bring real and lasting transformation. The impossible becomes possible. Sick people receive healing. Darkness is overcome by light. Slaves are set free. Mourning is turned into dancing. The lost are brought home. God's Kingdom comes on earth as His people embrace the truth that He is with them always.

"Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20)

God is with you! Celebrate Emmanuel this Christmas season - God with us!

Fun times

This was a very full week! We only had three days of class because of American Thanksgiving. Our speaker Dan Baumann was amazing and had so many crazy incredible stories – I learned so much from him! The depth and intimacy of his relationship with Jesus is so evident in the way that he lives his life! So inspiring!

The rest of my week has involved lots of fun times with my team and my whole DTS so I wanted to share that with you and show you some pictures!

On Thursday we celebrated Thanksgiving! We had a big yummy dinner and then later went over to one of our DTS staff Sean’s house for dessert and an outdoor movie. We were planning on watching the movie Elf…so me and my roomies decided to dress up as elves! We even had special elf names on our hats (check out this website to find our what YOUR elf name is: http://www.jokesunlimited.com/christmas_elf_name.php)!

Me and my roomies waiting in the long line for our Thanksgiving dinner

Roomies dressed up as elves!

Hawaiian sunset on Thanksgiving

On Friday my Thailand team went to another part of the island for the night! We stayed in a cabin at a retreat centre. It was so nice and homey! We spent lots of time relaxing and just getting to know each other better. There was lots of laughing – we have a fun team! We danced together, ate lots of food, shared embarrassing stories, and celebrated Catherine's birthday!

Thailand team!

Team dance party - we will definitely be having more of these!

On Saturday, our team went to Pololu Valley. We hiked down to the beach and played around for a while. It is SO beautiful there! It was definitely worth the hike...

Pololu Valley - the view before we hiked to the beach down there

Me and Marissa

Our team at Pololu Valley

I feel so blessed to be a part of this amazing team - we have so much fun together! I leave for Thailand in 2 weeks and I can't wait to spend 3 months there with these incredible women.

Prayer requests:

- This week is the celebration of the 50th anniversary of YWAM - pray that everything will go smoothly. It's gonna be a big celebration of God's faithfulness with lots of people coming from all over the world!

- That our team's visas would come and that all of the other preparations for our trip would come together.

- For all of the finances to come in for everyone in my DTS!

- For continued growth in my relationship with Jesus - that I would be open to receiving all that He has for me and that I would be willing to step into whatever He calls me to in each day.

Thank you!!!

LIVE!

Over the past little while, I’ve been meditating on LIFE! What does it mean to be alive in Christ? I keep reading Ephesians 2:1-10 and there is such a huge contrast between who we were before knowing Christ and who we are now as followers of Jesus. It’s amazing!

Who were we before knowing Jesus? Who were we apart from Christ?

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.” (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Dead. Lost. Overcome with sin. Defeated. Hopeless. Lonely. Sick. Deceived. This is life without Christ. This is who we were. We were dead.

BUT our amazing, gracious, merciful, loving, compassionate God did something incredible and now we are alive!

“Because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:4-10)

Wow! Pretty awesome, right? Here’s the thing though…I think that sometimes we forget about all this. We forget that we have been made ALIVE with Christ. We forget that we have been RAISED UP with Christ. We forget that we are SEATED WITH CHRIST in the heavenly realms. We forget about GRACE!

Too often, I don’t embrace the love, grace, victory, and life that Jesus has already given me. But God has been revealing LIFE to me and I want to fully embrace this real, full, abundant life. God has a plan and a purpose for my life. I want my life to be wholly about following Jesus - wherever, whenever, whatever, no matter what the cost. I just want to know Him more. I want to continually be amazed by His incredible love and grace. He is so good!

“The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).” (John 10:10)

LIVE! Live abundantly! Live fully! LIVE! LIVE! LIVE!

Pictures!!

I realized that I haven't posted ANY pictures yet. This is mostly because I hardly ever take pictures. I've been trying to take more...OK, that's not true, I haven't been trying that hard. It's just not really my thing. I love looking at other people's pictures and I figure that I can just get theirs later anyways.

But I do have some pictures to share so that you can have a little peek into my life in Hawaii. Enjoy!

Beautiful ocean

Me and my roommate Becca

The Ironman competition happened in one of the first weeks that we got here and our DTS volunteered as security. We also headed out in the morning to check out the start of the race - you can see the swimmers in the water here.

Me and some of the girls from my DTS at the Ironman (Rebecca, Becca, Mary, me)

Palm trees!!!

Me and Becca like to go to a coffee farm called Kona Joe's on the weekend. Here she is with her free coffee sample...mmmm...

The view from Kona Joe's

Some of the flowers here remind me of Botswana so here are a few pictures - these are for my dad because he loves plants!

A Hawaiian sunset

I'll try to post some more pictures sometime soon!

Revelation

“God, I feel quite apathetic.”

This is what I wrote in my journal on Monday morning. I wasn’t really looking forward to the week. I didn’t want to feel apathetic but that’s how I was feeling. I prayed that He would revive me and renew me.

And guess what? He did!

“Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” – Jeremiah 33:3

On Monday nights, there is ministry night in the prayer room here. Anyone can come and there is worship and prayer and we just see where God leads. That night, we were specifically praying for a revelation of God’s love.

“I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” – Ephesians 3:17-19

It was an amazing time of worship and prayer and God was revealing lots of little things to me throughout the night. But it wasn’t until I was walking back to my room that He brought it all together for me.

As I was thinking and processing, God began to reveal so much to me about His incredible love and His worthiness of my praise! I found a spot to sit down and just started journaling everything that came to mind.

I find it difficult to receive God’s love and grace and forgiveness because I am a perfectionist and tend to be very critical of myself. So often I focus on the past and on the mistakes I’ve made rather than looking to Jesus and accepting that I am forgiven. I believe lies instead of the truth of who I am in Christ. God really called me on this and showed me how it hurts Him when I don’t believe and receive His love and grace.

God reminded me of who I am in light of who He is. I love this quote by John Stott. He talks about the importance of reminding ourselves of who we are in Christ and believing this truth:

‘We should constantly be reminding ourselves who we are. We need to learn to talk to ourselves, and ask ourselves questions: “Don’t you know? Don’t you know the meaning of your conversion and baptism? Don’t you know that you have been united to Christ in His death and resurrection? Don’t you know that you have been enslaved to God and have committed yourself to His obedience? Don’t you know these things? Don’t you know who you are?” We must go on pressing ourselves with such questions, until we reply to ourselves: “Yes, I do know who I am, a new person in Christ, and by the grace of God I shall live accordingly.”’

God spoke to me about my identity and amazed me with how big His love is! His love is so deep and wide and real and He wants me to receive that love. He’s not holding it back – I’m the one who has been unwilling to fully receive it because I have been so focused on myself and my unworthiness. He wants me to experience His love, to amaze me with His love! When I chose to follow Jesus, there was rejoicing in heaven, there was a party! (Luke 15) That’s how much He loves us. He delights in me! He wants me to draw near to Him and to enjoy His presence.

And as I experienced God’s love, I was so overwhelmed with how worthy He is of our praise and worship! There is no one like Him!

“I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me. Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it… Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me? Or is there any other Rock? I know of none." – Isaiah 44:6-8

Nothing compares to Jesus! There is nothing on earth or in heaven that will satisfy us other than Him. He is so worthy! How could we not worship Him?

"Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever." – Revelation 5:12-13 (read this whole chapter!)

There is so much more that God revealed to me that night and now I am trying to live it out day to day, moment by moment. Receiving His love and giving Him all the glory and honour and praise! I am realizing more and more that intimacy, loving God, is the most important thing. This comes first: knowing Him, worshipping Him, receiving His amazing love (Luke 10:27).

Out of receiving this revelation of His love and worthiness to be praised, God has been filling me with love for others. God loves all of us so much! In feeling His love for me, I have realized that He loves each person just as much as He loves me. As I pray for Thailand, I am deeply aware and moved by His love for the people of Thailand. They are so precious and valuable to Him and He longs for them to know Him intimately. Pray with me for Thailand!

Thank you for taking the time to read some of what God has been teaching me and revealing to me! Thank you for your prayer and financial support!

Also, some students from my DTS have been doing interviews with our speakers and have made a youtube channel. Here is the link if you want to hear more about what I've been learning: http://www.youtube.com/user/JusticeDTS2010.

quotes from desmond

"To be neutral in a situation of injustice is to have chosen sides already. It is to support the status quo."

I'm sitting in Borders (a bookstore) and I picked up this book of Desmond Tutu quotes. There were some great thoughts and wisdom so I thought I'd share a few quotes with you.

But first, here's some info about Desmond Tutu: He became famous during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid and was the first black South African Archbishop of Cape Town. Desmond Tutu denounced the South African system of apartheid and called for equal rights for all South Africans. After apartheid, he was appointed as the chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, investigating the human rights violations during apartheid. Archbishop Tutu counseled forgiveness and cooperation, rather than revenge for past injustice. He has been active in the defense of human rights and uses his high profile as a champion for the oppressed.

Here are some quotes about justice and injustice:

"When we look squarely at injustice and get involved, we actually feel less pain, not more, because we overcome the gnawing guilt and despair that festers our numbness. We clean the wound - our own and others' - and it can finally heal."

"In a situation where human life seems dirt cheap, with people being killed as easily as one swats a fly, we must proclaim that people matter and matter enormously."

I'm excited to get involved, to be a part of what God is already doing in Thailand. I don't want to shy away from hard issues - I want to be engaged in the fight against injustice. I want to speak out about the value of each life. I want to feel God's love for every person that He has created in His image.

I also loved this other quote:

"When you have a hand and you have only the separate fingers, it is easy for people to break the fingers. But when you put the fingers together it is difficult to break them. Let us come together and be one, let us be people of peace, let us be people of harmony."

This speaks to me about the importance of unity, of working as a team, of the body of Christ. On my own, I would have very little impact and not very much would change. But I'm part of a team! A team of 9 women who are going to be serving in Thailand. A team of all the people who are supporting and praying for me - as a person reading this blog, you are a part of that team!

One last quote:

"Nothing is too much trouble for love."

Thank you for being a part of the team of people that are supporting me financially and in prayer! Please continue to pray for me and contact me if you feel that God is calling you to support me as I go to Thailand. Thank you!

Land of the Free?

So yesterday afternoon I started to do some research about Thailand. I mean, if I’m planning on going there then it would probably be good to know a little bit about it, right?

Well, the first thing I learned was that Thailand means “Land of the Free”. This really struck me and got lots of thoughts going in my head. The Operation World prayer guide explained a bit more about the meaning behind this:

“Thailand means Land of the Free because it successfully retained its freedom when surrounding countries were colonized by Western powers. It is believed that a special guardian angel, Phra Sayam Devadhiraj, protected the land, and a golden image of this spirit being was made. It has been worshipped ever since. The land is in bondage to a complex web of culture, spirit appeasement, occult practices and Buddhism, with a social cohesiveness out of which few have dared to come. For many Thai, their nationality and religion are inextricably linked. Pray for the spiritual breakthrough so that in the Lord Jesus the Thai may be free indeed.” (http://www.operationworld.org/country/thai/owtext.html#1-2).

So, with the meaning of Thailand being ‘land of the free’, how is the kingdom of Thailand actually doing in terms of freedom?

First of all, over 90% of Thai people are Buddhist, and less than 2% are followers of Jesus. There is widespread spiritual bondage in this country. It breaks my heart that so many Thai people don’t know Jesus. As they bring their offerings to Buddhist shrines, many have no idea about the love and grace that God longs to pour over them. God loves Thai people and desires to be in relationship with them! He wants MORE for them than continual offerings and rituals that will never appease the idols that they are presented to. He wants MORE for them than the works that they do in efforts to gain merit.

And the irony behind the meaning of Thailand – land of the free – is even greater when I think of the focus of our outreach. We are going to be working with women in the sex trade – a place of desperate bondage. Freedom is not a reality for the prostitutes on the streets of Bangkok.

Here are some stats to give you a glimpse into the extent of this bondage:

There are 2 to 3 million prostitutes in Thailand, a third of which are minors and children (one website called Thailand ‘Disneyland for pedophiles’).

4.6 million Thai men regularly, and 500,000 foreign men annually, use prostituted women and girls.

Many of the prostitutes that are working the streets of Thailand were sold into the sex trade at a young age because of poverty. They had no choice, they had no options, they had no opportunities. Their lives are shortened because of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, spiritual), sickness (HIV/AIDS, etc), and addictions (drugs, alcohol).

There is so much brokenness and bondage in Thailand. This is so different from what God wants for these beautiful children and women (and men too). This is not what God intended for Thailand.

But can Jesus redeem and restore this nation? Can He bring change and transformation to the poor family that is hungry because they can’t find employment and buy food? To the victim of sex trafficking who has been repeatedly violated and abused? To the drug addict that is now affected with HIV/AIDS? To the businessman who stops by and visits the brothel each day after work?

I believe that He can! I believe that God wants to transform Thailand so that it truly is the “land of the free”!

This past week, our speakers were talking a lot about the kingdom of God. So I started thinking; what would it look like for God’s kingdom to come in Thailand?

Isaiah 61:1 says:

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.

Jesus brought freedom! There is spiritual freedom in Christ! Freedom from sin, guilt, and shame. Freedom from having to bring offerings to shrines and constantly striving to make merit. Freedom to be who we were created to be – His beloved sons and daughters. Freedom to know and love Jesus and be in relationship with Him!

And Jesus also proclaimed physical freedom! Freedom from sickness and disease (HIV/AIDS) and addictions. Freedom for the captives – for the many women and children who have been trafficked into the Thai sex trade.

In Isaiah 58:6-12, God says:

Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free and break every yoke?

Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry a

nd bring the homeless poor into the house; w

hen you see the naked, to cover him; a

nd not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

Then your light will break out like the dawn, a

nd your recovery will speedily spring forth; a

nd your righteousness will go before you; t

he glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; y

ou will cry for help, and He will say: "Here am I."

If you do away with the yoke of oppression, w

ith the pointing finger and malicious talk,

And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry a

nd satisfy the needs of the oppressed, t

hen your light will rise in the darkness, 
a

nd your night will become like the noonday.

The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins a

nd will raise up the age-old foundations; y

ou will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,

Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

God longs for Thailand to be a kingdom of freedom. Light. Healing. Peace. Righteousness. Justice, Salvation. Love. Grace. Mercy. Hope. Jesus reigns! And Jesus wants to reign in the hearts of the Thai people!

Pray with me that God’s kingdom will come in Thailand! Pray for freedom and healing! Pray against the lies and deception that the enemy has used to keep Thailand in bondage for so long. Praise God that the darkness has to leave when His light comes! Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world!

I'm going to Thailand!

When I first arrived here in Hawaii for YWAM, I thought that I would be going to Cambodia. This country has been on my heart for the past few years. I had learned about the poverty and child trafficking that is so prevalent in Cambodia and was really hoping to one day go there.

But God had a different plan in mind for me (His plans are always better J)! A few days after I got here, we were having a time of worship with the whole YWAM base. As I was worshipping, God suddenly brought a picture of Thailand to my mind. I was confused and dismissed it at first. But over that week and the following week, each time that I was worshipping, God brought the same picture to mind. And I couldn’t get Thailand off of my mind! I had to go there!

I also found out that the outreach in this country is going to be focused on sex trafficking. This is exactly what God has placed on my heart – to work with women and children in the sex trade.

Today we found out our outreach locations and I am going to Thailand! I am on a team of eight girls – my teammates are Allysha, Marissa, Abbie, Ivy, Gulya, Marisa, and Catherine, and our leader is Jackie. These ladies are amazing and I feel so blessed to be on the same team as them! I know that we are going to grow so close together during our time in Thailand.

We don’t have all of the details together for our trip yet but we have a rough idea of what we will be doing. First, we will be going to northern Thailand to see where many of these women have come from so that we can understand their background and life situations. After that, we will mainly be serving in Bangkok. We will be working with women who have come out of the sex trade as well as women who are still working in the sex trade. We will be partnering with various organizations and churches - so don’t worry, we will be safe!

I know this is going to be an intense trip but I am so excited about what God is going to do! Today our speaker was talking about this verse:

“And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18)

We are the church and God has called us to bring light into dark places. The gates of hell cannot prevail against us! We are not called to live in a defensive posture – we are called to go to the places where evil is setting up its gates and to take them down. There are gates of hell in Thailand but I believe that these can be taken down by the love and power of Jesus Christ! God’s love for the nation of Thailand and for those who are enslaved in the sex trade is so incredible!

I will keep you updated as things come together! Also, I am still in need of money for my outreach so please contact me if you are interested in supporting me. Thank you!

Please also pray for me and my team as we formulate plans and come up with creative ideas for our outreach. Pray for unity and love as we grow closer together. And pray for Thailand!!!

Thank you – love you!

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

What can wash away my sin?


Nothing but the blood of Jesus;


What can make me whole again?


Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow


That makes me white as snow;


No other fount I know,


Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is one of my favourite songs and I was reminded of it again this past week. We’ve been reading a book called “Celebration of Discipline” by Richard Foster. The first chapter was on Meditation so I’ve been trying to put this into practice each morning. I’ve been meditating on the same passage for four days and allowing God to teach me through His word. The story that I’ve been looking at is that of the woman who wet Jesus’ feet with her hair, washed them with her tears, and anointed them with perfume (Luke 7:36-50). Each day God has been revealing His truth to me and highlighting different aspects of the story.

I’m not going to tell you everything that I’ve been learning from this story, but I will share a few things. I love how this woman is so passionate and unashamed in her worship. Her actions show single-minded, whole-hearted devotion. She is completely engaged in what she is doing as she washes the feet of Jesus. Her desire is to serve and honour Him.

She knows that she is unworthy, that she is a sinner. But Jesus tells this woman, “Your sins have been forgiven.” This statement is so powerful. Jesus forgives our sins. This is a big deal!

My sins are forgiven. There is nothing I can do but accept this incredible forgiveness and grace. But too often I find it difficult to accept it. Although I know in my head that I’m forgiven, at times I still dwell in the feelings of shame and guilt because of sin in my life.

I'm so proud and independent. It's difficult to believe that God's love and grace are unconditional, that we really don't have to do anything, that we can't do anything but believe. We are redeemed by Jesus, His blood cleanses us and washes away our sin. He makes us whole and complete. His grace is sufficient.

Jesus tells her to "Go in peace." What an amazing gift - peace! We are reconciled to God in Christ. He is our peace (Eph. 2:11-22). And as we rest in His grace and forgiveness, we experience this amazing peace.

This is a bit of what I've been learning. I also wanted to add some prayer requests:

- Pray that I will be open to whatever God wants to do in my life during DTS and that my focus will be completely on Him

- Pray for God's guidance in choosing an outreach location (options are Haiti, Togo, Cambodia, and Thailand)

- Pray that God will provide for the rest of the costs for my outreach - contact me if you are interested in supporting me.

- Pray for healing for my foot. I hurt it before I left and it's been feeling a bit better but is still sore.

As you pray, please email me if there is anything that God puts on your heart that you want to share with me. Thank you!

Seek My face

Before I left for YWAM, I felt that God was calling me to refocus and reprioritize my life. I’ve been so busy this summer and my focus has too often been on DOING things rather than on KNOWING Jesus and resting in His presence.

In the week before I left, I was reading the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. I was convicted of living a life like Martha where I was so busy doing and serving that I was neglecting to simply stop and sit at the feet of Jesus and learn from Him. In this story, Jesus says to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:41-42). I was reminded that my life should be about knowing Jesus and going deeper with Him rather than busying myself and neglecting relationship with Christ.

God has continued to speak to me about rest and refocusing. A few days ago, I was chilling out in Hawaii and reading my Bible and God brought a verse to mind. It was Psalm 27:8, which says:

When You said, "Seek My face," my heart said to You,

"Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.

I read through the rest of Psalm 27 and there were a few other verses that also stood out to me:

One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek;

That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,

To behold the beauty of the Lord

And to meditate in His temple. (v.4)

Wait for the Lord;

Be strong and let your heart take courage;

Yes, wait for the Lord. (v. 14)

God has been calling me to seek His face. Not just now. But for the rest of my life. He has been pressing this idea and longing into me. My desire is to live a life of fixing my eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:1-3). I want to sit at His feet and learn from Him and worship and adore Him. I want to seek Him singlemindedly, with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength (Luke 10:27).

There are so many more verses that I could quote or things that I could say, but I just wanted to share a little bit of what God has been laying on my heart and showing me.

* My favourite Bible story is in 2 Chronicles 20 and I think it’s a beautiful example of what can happen as we choose to focus on God and look to Him. I love King Jehoshaphat’s response to an impossible situation – recognizing his powerlessness, fixing his eyes on God, and directing others to also look to God (v.12-13). Take a look at this story if you are interested.

My address in Hawaii

Hey!

Just wanted to let you know my address in Hawaii:

Katie Born

Justice DTS, September 2010

University of the Nations

75-5851 Kuakini Hwy.

Kailua Kona, HI 96740-2136 USA

See ya!

I'm in Hawaii!

I made it! It's been a long and busy day but I'm finally here and I'm feeling good. I got two hours of sleep last night because I had to wake up VERY early to head off to the airport for my 6:20am flight. I got to Hawaii at around noon and since then I've been registering, getting all the stuff I need, and unpacking. It is crazy humid here and I feel like I'm sweaty all the time. But I am loving the warm weather!

I've also been meeting lots of great people and making new friends that I'm excited to spend the next 6 months with! I have seven roommates (I haven't met them all yet) and our room is awesome. Right now I'm sitting outside on a deck in a different part of the base cause the internet isn't working in my room. Hopefully it will be working soon...but one of the benefits of me being out here on this deck is that I get to watch a beautiful sunset! (I will try to post a sunset picture sometime soon...)

"The One who calls you is faithful and He will do it." (1 Thess. 5:24) This verse was given to me on a note in my room from one of the leaders of my DTS. It was a wonderful reminder that God has called me here and He is faithful. In the week leading up to me leaving there were lots of emotions, but I feel very at peace now that I'm here. I believe that God is taking me on an amazing adventure where I will be transformed and will also see the lives of other people transformed by Him.

Pray for strength and energy for me as I adjust to a new schedule and new place. Pray also that God would provide for my financial needs as I still need to raise more money for my outreach.

Thank you for your prayers - they are appreciated.

18 days.

It's hard to believe that I will be leaving for Hawaii in just 18 days. The most frequent question that I am asked nowadays is: "So...are you getting excited?"

I never quite know how to answer this question. Because usually when I'm going somewhere it doesn't really feel like I'm actually going until I'm gone. I think there are both positive and negative aspects to this.

Positive:

I don't have tons of expectations so then I'm not disappointed if things aren't the way I pictured/imagined/expected.

I am able to be fully engaged in what I'm doing right now in the present without being so caught up in what is going to happen in the future (living in the moment).

Negative:

I could find myself in Hawaii and be confused about how I got there. :) "How did I end up here? Where am I?"

I might not be prepared for the next 6 months in the same way that I would have been if it actually felt like I was leaving.

So, to answer the question about my level of excitement, I have to honestly say that I don't feel very excited... But at the same time, I would definitely say that I am looking forward to this DTS and outreach. I wholeheartedly believe that this is where Jesus is calling me. He has been preparing me for this for a long time and I'm anticipating that this is going to be an incredible time of growth, transformation, vision, and renewed passion. I am excited about that - I am excited about deepening my relationship with Jesus no matter where that is. Botswana. Texas. Abbotsford. India. Hawaii. Wherever.

I'm reminded of a quote by missionary Jim Elliot:

"Wherever you are, be all there. Live to the hilt of every situation you believe to be the will of God."

This is my desire. Wherever I am, I want to be all there. I believe it's God's will for me to go to Hawaii so that's what I'm doing. And for the next 18 days God has me here in Abbotsford, so I'm going to be fully engaged here. This is the way I want to live my whole life. Following Jesus wherever He calls me and having a singleminded focus on Him and what He has called me to. To surrender and allow Him to work through me for His glory and honour and praise.

On another note, I wanted to thank all of the people who have supported me financially and in prayer. There is still a lot of money that I need for this school but God has been continually reminding me that He is my provider and I can trust in Him. (Pray that God will increase my faith and that I will truly believe this - the reason that God has to keep reminding me that He can provide is because I keep doubting...)

Please also pray for me in these next couple of weeks as I pack, finish work, get all of my stuff together for my social work application, and say goodbye to friends and family.