God at Work - Stories from the villages we visited!

"Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should" Ephesians 6:19-20.

This was our team's theme verse as we headed to B*rma. We knew we were going to villages that desperately needed to hear Truth. Two of the villages had no Christ followers, and the villages that did have a church presence were often under pressure and experiencing persecution (with the majority of people being Buddhist). But, we serve a God that is bigger - a God that empowers us with His Spirit, and equips us and enables us to speak with boldness! So we headed out, relying on God to open doors and change hearts, and with willing hearts to be used by God in whatever way He wanted.

(most picture in this post, and in the last one, done by JohnMark Bergen. Thanks JM!)

This is what the villages and houses looked like! 

As we trekked through the jungle, through rice fields, and through mud and streams, Jeremy and I were reminded of Mark 6 where Jesus sent out His disciples. Here we were going from village to village, staying in homes, being fed along the way, sharing the good news and praying for healing and release from bondage. Many people had never heard the gospel or even seen a foreigner. It was like we were living the book of Acts - praying for boldness and seeing the gospel spread as we went out in faith on our missionary journey. And wow was God at work!

Pastor Isaiah showing the teachers how to set up the computer and printer

A team had gone into some of these same villages in July, and were seeking to build relationships with one village in particular, which had no church presence and no Christ followers. They had gone into the school and asked if there was anything they needed. The teachers said they could really use a computer. They had been trying to get one for quite a while, with no results. So, Louise and the Burmese team of leaders began praying for God to provide a computer that they could donate. Well, God answered their prayers, beyond what they had hoped for! Through the generosity of a woman that had visited Thailand, they now had not only 1 computer to give, but 3! So, here we were presenting computers to these three schools, sharing how God had provided them, and demonstrating love and generosity!

sharing God's love with the children! 

praying for the teachers, the children, and the village (Pastor Paul, our wonderful translator is the man in front) 

While Pastor Isaiah showed the teachers how to use the computers the rest of our team taught the children English songs, Sunday school songs, shared Bible stories, and shared the gospel. We then prayed for the school and the villages. The children (as well as all the people we met) stole our hearts very quickly! They were all smiles, and it was truly a privilege to be able to share the love of Christ with them!

teaching the children at the school some English songs (Jeremy has turned into quite the song leader!) 

As Pastor Isaiah would proclaim the gospel and share his story with the adults and youth each evening, we would share Bible stories, sing songs, do skits, and color with the kids! This was a highlight for both Jeremy and I! We loved getting to know the children and had many laughs together.

the happiest kid you will ever meet! His huge smile and laughter brought us so much joy! 

some of the children from village number 4 

For the first three villages, we had Pastor Paul translate for us as we did kids programs. However, part of our group left after the third village, including dear Pastor Paul, so we were without a translator for villages 4 and 5. But that didn't stop us! In fact, God even used that situation to sow seeds.

In the fourth village, we asked if there was anyone who knew even a little bit of English, so they could help translate for our kids program that afternoon, while Pastor Isaiah did some teaching. Well, there happened to be a Buddhist school teacher (who actually was fairly new to the village) who knew a bit of English and a bit of Thai. I don't know if he would have volunteered himself, but everyone else quickly pointed to him, so really... he had no choice (all part of God's plan!). So with his limited English and our limited Burmese, we (Jeremy, Louise, and I) shared Bible stories, acted out stories, and shared about the love of Christ with the children. The whole time I just couldn't help but think, how cool is God! Here we have a devout Buddhist man, who happens to be the only man in the village that speaks English, translating the gospel message to the children, and hearing the love of Christ. Isn't that awesome!

coloring with the kids, after telling them some Bible stories! 

parachute games with the kids! We could have done this for hours! They absolutely loved it! 

That evening, we met with almost the entire village (including our Buddhist teacher friend) to share the gospel message. As Louise and Pastor Isaiah shared, many Christians stepped forward asking for prayer - that they would be strengthened in their faith and that God would equip them as church leaders. We also saw many people decide to follow Christ and receive His gift of salvation. I noticed that the teacher was engaged, taking it all in, and flipping through the Burmese Bible he had received. He didn't stand with everyone else to pray, but I know that seeds were sown. He heard the gospel and the message of God's love, and we trust and pray that God will continue to work in His heart and life.

acting out the story of David and Goliath in village 3 

coloring by candlelight! 

As we traveled from village to village, often a bit of a crowd would gather and come with us (likely wondering what all these crazy foreigners were doing in the middle of the jungle). But, that provided an opportunity to share our stories, share God's love, and worship together everywhere we went. There was one man in particular, however, that really stood out to me.

As we were headed out to village number 3, there was a man in a bright yellow shirt who showed up and wanted to help carry our bags. He had heard about our group, and wanted to learn more about Jesus. So, he helped carry our backpacks and Bibles through the jungle and rice fields, just so he could talk with Pastor Isaiah and hear more. He then joined us at the church in village 3 for times of teaching and discipleship. Here was a man who was clearly hungry for more of God! We found out later that this man had left his job and his work, to carry our stuff and come with. Isn't that unreal!? I was reminded of when Jesus talks about the cost of being His disciple - leaving family, leaving jobs, and taking up our cross to follow Him. This man did that! He didn't have a lot, but was willing to leave his work behind, to just hear even a bit more about who God is. Wow! Am I hungry to know more about Christ like that? Am I willing to give up all I have to know and follow God?

the man that came with us to learn more! 

spending time in worship and prayer 

two of the Karen pastors (the man on the far left, and the woman on the far right). they were both such a blessing! 

The last little bit of our trip we spent in Mindon (all the villages we were in previous were Karen villages. This was a Chin area). We really enjoyed meeting some of the church leaders, and young believers there! We also made 300 goody-bags as Christmas presents for the children in that area!

Goodies, not garbage - the Christmas Presents! 

We truly loved our time in the villages. It was amazing to see God at work, and to see people responding. God opened doors and opened hearts! Please continue to pray that the churches in these villages will be strengthened - that they will grow in their knowledge of the Word, and be filled with the Spirit. Pray for the leaders there, that God will strengthen and equip them to continue to make disciples and to go and reach out to the villages around them. Pray that the church will continue to grow and that God's kingdom would be built! God is at work! Let's join what He is doing by praying for our B*rmese brothers and sisters!

"And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns" Philippians 1:6.

GOD IS GOOD! An update on our time in B*rma

Hello Friends! Adrienne and I just returned from a 10 day mission into B*rma! Setting out last Monday, we travelled with Louise, John-Mark the Video Producer (from MB Mission Fresno Office), Pastor Isaiah (the main B*rmese evangelist and visionary for the MB church planting effort here), Pastor Paul, our amazing translator (fluent in English, Thai, B*rmese, and the Karen local dialect!), as well as Andy, the director of MB Mission South-East Asia. 

The TEAM!

We went as a relationship building team with the B*rmese local church, an evangelistic team to the unreached Karen villages, and an encouraging team for the Christians who exist in isolation and persecution. A big part of the journey for us was to see the people that we would be working with and ministering to in Thailand in their own country, where they are not outcasts. We got to see the people of B*rma in their glory, and experience their amazing hospitality and love! As we walked, people invited us into their homes for food and drink, and we shared the good news with them. Everywhere we were, we were welcomed with so much care; laughter and smiles were rampant!

So, the journey... We started with a 7 day trip through the mountain villages of the Karen people. This meant rising early, usually holding either a school program or a teaching time, then journeying on to the next village, 2-5 hours away (depending on the day!). On arrival, we were met by the people, ate, and rested in the heat of the day. Evenings were spent holding evangelistic meetings and playing with kids, doing Sunday school, and just being together. In a number of the villages, we were the first foreigners they had ever seen! It absolutely blew our minds, how the people gathered to see us and meet us and just stare and smile! Culture there is so amazing - if you meet someone new, you are invited into their house for a meal. When you arrive somewhere, you must greet everyone with a handshake and a smile. We showed God's love and smiled until our cheeks hurt!

I can't even summarize it all! We delivered 3 donated computers to these mountain village's schools, where they didn't have money for even desks or chairs. We sang songs with SO MANY KIDS! We coloured, acted out bible stories, played games, and shared our testimonies. The small mountain churches were so blessed  by our encouragement and prayer, and the people of the villages could see something different about our group - it was amazing to see the way they talked about the 'Christians' who had come to visit. 

One guy we met was so encouraging to me - we met him while he was drunk, but he invited us in and gave us some shelter and water on our journey. After that, he followed us for an entire 2 days, listening intently to the words and growing more and more joyful! At the end of our journey, he took a stack of sermon DVD's back to his village, set up a sound speaker, and started blasting sermons day and night through his whole village! We found out after we left that he had travelled once more to try to find us at the end of our 7 days, and wanted Christians to come to his village and plant a church there! God is so good - in a place where there are hardly ANY Christians, God is making a way! 

(the man on the left with the brown hat is the one from the story)

We finished the trip by travelling by van over the mountains, and encouraging a community of faith in Mindon City. After that, we drove straight south for 10+ hours to Yangon, the capital, and flew back to Thailand. What an amazing time! God showed us that He is our sustainer, our strength, our healer, and our voice. We experienced His provision and the power of His Holy Spirit to build relationships! At times it what exhausting, and we didn't know if we could make it. Climbing mountains in 40 degree weather for hours on end is pretty crazy stuff - and yet, our B*rmese pastor friends sang songs and encouraged us every step of the way! We were carried by His hands through so much, and we've only been here on TREK for like 2 weeks and a bit! We are so excited for what's next - thanks for praying and supporting us! :)

If you want to see more pictures, we have an album of them on Adrienne's Facebook page!
Check It out! God bless!

Amazing Race: Chachoengsao!

 Sawatdee ka! or Min ge la ba (as the Burmese people would say)!

So we're finally awake at the right hours, sleeping at night, and beginning to learn some basic phrases in both Thai and Burmese! And... best of all... we have had the chance to meet and spend time with some incredibly wonderful people at the Lighthouse church in Chachoengsao. We moved into one of their sunday school rooms on the third floor on Wednesday (needless to say it is extremely hot!) and have been extremely blessed by the hospitality of our Burmese brothers and sisters! It's been an absolute joy to spend time with them, learn some new phrases, eat with them, and most importantly laugh together!! 

our room at the Lighthouse (complete with mosquito netting and as many fans as we could get our hands on!)

While in Thailand, Jeremy and I are primarily serving with the Burmese churches. But, there are also 2 other Trek teams from Abbotsford, working with the Thai churches. So, we had the privilege of spending some time with one of the Thai Trek teams yesterday, doing the Chachoengsao Amazing Race! We split into two teams and were sent out to explore the city! I was amazed at how friendly and helpful everyone was. So many people came up to us to offer us help, to give us directions, or just say hi (and practice their English)! 

the Wat Sothon Buddhist temple we visited

Watching some of the boat races!

That evening, we also got to join in some of the city's festivities, together with the other Trek team, and some of our Thai brothers and sisters from the Hope Center (one of the Thai ministry centers). The Thai people were celebrating Loi Krathong. This is a Buddhist (mixed with Animistic) festival where people launch small wooden vessels with flowers, candles, and other decorations, into the river, to symbolize the removal of their sins, and as an offering to the river goddess for prosperity. 
We didn't take part in the launching of the boats into the river, but did enjoy some really good Thai food from the many stands and vendors along the way! It was also just very interesting to learn a bit more about their culture, religious practices, and to just spend some time observing. I also was really moved to just pray as we walked along. While the festival was exciting, with amazing colors, lights, and great food, there is still a need for the people to know true hope and forgiveness.

And on Monday we leave for Burma!! Please continue to pray for us as we prepare and then head out, and for the Burmese people that we will meet! We are excited to see how God is already at work there, and to join Him! 

Blessings!

The TREK to Thailand!

We made it!!! Our whirlwind of training and getting ready behind us, we are in Thailand! 

I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone praying for us - We can't do this without you! Thanks for all of you who came to our commissioning or tuned in online! It was a wonderful evening of worship and stories and prayer, and who knows maybe it'll be the push someone in attendance needed to get them into missions :) . 

Anyways, we hit up Winnipeg airport at 4:30 AM, flew to Vancouver, then WAY over to Hong Kong, which was a 13.5 hr flight. Talk about crazy and tiring!!! This is us after we landed. (looking fine!)

We outran sundown all the way along, so we ended up with a 26 hour daytime day, which was weird because usually you don't have 6 meals before night... 

This adventure is huge and crazy and awesome and we are so pumped to see what God has in store for us! We have so much cool stuff ahead of us, and we are praying for boldness! Join us in that!

We got to the SInclair-Peters' house at 2:30 AM when all was said and done, and then we are up by 5:30 AM, on our way into Bankok!!!! We traversed the city (home to over 12million) by Taxi and Train, and got our Visas for Myanmar, where we will be travelling next week. So right now, we have had a 2 hour sleep and a 3 hour sleep in the last 3 days, so it's nap time! God bless you all!! :)