Last Day in Thailand

We were able to meet up with a friend from our home church on our last day in Thailand. Rhonda Thorne came to Thailand for a few days and it coincided with our days in Bangkok. We spent the day showing Rhonda some of Bangkok's sites. We took a long-tail boat along a canal to the Grand Palace (which was closed to foreigners for a funeral) so we visited a couple other temples--Luang Pho To and the Reclining Buddha. We rode on the sky-train around town and visited the nicest mall I've ever seen. It has a Lamborghini store, a Maserati store and tons of high end fashion stores. It's fun to look, but we can't afford anything there. It was a fun spending time with Rhonda. We flew out the following day and landed in Dallas about 24 hours later. The following morning we flew to Colorado to spend some time with family and friends and to see my new niece, Talitha.

View of Grand Palace from the canal

Wat (Temple) Luang Pho To

Reclining Buddha

Sawadee (Hello)

Sattha 2008 Wrap Up

Sattha Team 2008


Some of you might be interested to know that during our journey we covered six (6) provinces (similar to states in the US) over the course of three weeks. We saw fifteen (15) villages. We played over Twenty (20) games, some more competitive than others but all worthwhile. And as for a fairly conservative estimate, we saw--that is we made real contact with-- just over three thousand (3000) men, women and children; and most (if not all) of these we were able to receive literature, hear song or testimony, see a skit, or in some way have some form of gospel contact. I do not think it fantasy to say that in faith we can trust that the gospel touched 4-5000, just based on word of mouth, passing on of materials, explanations of what happened that day at school and more. The point of course isn't to say, " wow look at the numbers or how many people we were able to reach." The point is to both praise God and to continue to pray along the lines of such passages as Col 4:2-6 and 2Thess 3:1, namely that words would be given, with boldness, and that every opportunity would be seized that we might see the gospel go fourth rapidly and effectively. We pray this and remember that one of Sattha's purposes and goals is to see that Christ honoring, wide-spread evangelism is happening in Central Thailand. More than that we hope to see the masses have opportunity after opportunity to hear the truth of the Lord Jesus that many would repent and know Him as Lord and Savior... and this doesn't happen without first those who will go and speak the word, the Good News for those who do not know.

Teaching English outside at a school

Evangelistic skit at a school

Sharing the gospel through an evangelistic skit

One of the many schools that we visited

Fan the Flame

Sorry for the ambiguity and the lack of pictures but lives are truly at risk.

Recently we traveled to a village and met Hmong refugees from Laos and heard their tragic story. The story actually starts in Viet Nam. A large church was meeting for worship and government officials came into the church and sprayed a poisonous chemical. Many people died, some people were able to escape and they went to the hospital for medical treatment. The hospital told them to go home because they could not treat them. There were pregnant women in the church and the police cut the babies from their womb and left the mothers to die. Some of the believers were able to escape from that area and a group traveled to Laos. They found a village with believers in it and settled there. The village people helped build them houses to live in. Two of the Vietnamese refugees went back to Viet Nam to visit family, but were captured and tortured. They gave up the location of the other believers in Laos after many hours to being tortured.
The church in Laos heavily persecuted as well. The villagers did not know that an undercover police officer had infiltrated the church. The undercover police officer burnt down all the Vietnamese refugees homes one evening during a worship service. The Vietnamese and Laotian government worked together to raid this village with the Vietnamese Christians and Laotian Christians and started capturing all the Christian leaders. The police were told that if people tried to escape to shoot them. A total of 17 elders were arrested that night. Prison in Laos is terrible, families have to bring food to prisoners, but the government would not let the families visit the Christians. The cells are small and cement with no bed, no toilet or running water. You have to do your business in the corner of the room you live and sleep. The family we met was not in the village during the raid.
Later, there was a Bible conference planned in another town and Christians from all over Laos were going to attend. The family we met was on their way their when their car broke down and they were two days late. There was a raid on the conference and many people were arrested. This family showed up late and just missed being arrested and thrown in prison. Christians have scattered and escaped to other countries. They continue to share the gospel and plant churches in these new countries they escape to. Their desire is to serve God wherever they are. The family we met was traveling back to home when they were stopped along the way and asked for identification. The government had a list of people they were to arrest. The name on the identification card did not match the name on the wanted list, due to an error on the ID card. They were let go and went to their sisters house where other police questioned them. They lied and told them that they were from another village and they were there to fish. They told us they knew they shouldn’t have lied but they were very scared and didn’t know what to do. They gave the police all the fish that they caught and the police were very happy for the fish so they let them go. They then decided to escape from Laos to Thailand; so they bought plane tickets and drove straight to the airport. They had to go through security and the security officials took them into a different room and started to interrogate them. They were terrified and prayed and prayed; they knew that they needed to be on that plane or the family(mom, dad, and four children) would be arrested. The flight attendant came to the room and told them that they didn’t need to worry about questioning them because the plane was about to take off. The officials let them go and they ran to the plane. As soon as they were seated the plane took off. The Laos government has put a bounty of this man’s head; they accused him of bringing American religion to Laos and smuggling drugs and guns. They will pay one million baht ($30,300) for his capture or death. Keep in mind most Thai people make about twelve thousand baht per month so that’s seven years worth of work in Thailand and Laos is more poor than Thailand. The Laotian government has sent undercover officers and hitmen into Thailand to try and find these Christians. One of their friends was killed during a worship service by a hitman that came from Laos.
Their passport has expired so they are now illegal in Thailand and scared to travel far because of military checkpoints that ask for identification. They are scared to go back to Laos because they will be arrested and thrown in prison and maybe killed. The hardest part of this for them is that their kids don’t have any opportunities for school. They don’t have proper paperwork so they can’t go to school, so their three sons (14, 13, 12) work all day. Together they make 100 baht per day, about 2,500 baht per month. The dad told his sons that being a believer in Christ can be a hard life. The oldest son agreed, but told his dad that he wanted to serve God, whether it was easy or hard. What an amazing testimony. Please pray for these brothers and sisters in Christ. We have no idea what it is like to always be looking over your shoulder; not knowing if you will be thrown in prison or martyred for you faith. Their life is a living picture of 1 Corinthians 15:58--Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

One of the guys on the team thought that the Laotian Christians were like a fire that the government was trying to stomp out, but each time they stomped on it, little flames would fly off and start a little fire that started to grow and when the government tried to stomp of that fire, little sparks would fly off and begin to burn. What a great picture of the persecuted church in Viet Nam and Laos and it growing despite persecution.

Pray for:
Wisdom and guidance
Perseverance
Continued faithfulness

Night Vision

Thai people love sound systems and microphones. Every single game has had an announcer. This truck is full of speakers and then there is another loud speaker on the pole next to the truck. It was so loud that you had to yell to talk to the person right next to you.

Loud speakers on the truck

Well, we played in a tournament in Phrabaht(the town we lived in) at the church. It's not exactly a soccer field, it's more like a small dirt field with lots of rocks. It was a five a side tournament and it was dark most of the game. We are thankful that the Lord protected the guys during the game.
Yes, it was truly this dark!!




Sunday the guys played their last game. We were at a Buddhist temple school and there were some monks that came out to watch the game. Look closely in the background and you will see them. We tied the game 3-3. We were able to pass out tracts and Christian literature to everyone at the game.

More Soccer!!

We continue to travel around Central Thailand. We have been to many different schools. They have been much more open about us sharing the gospel this year. It has taken the schools many years to let us share. What an exciting opportunity! Before one of the games a bunch of little kids came over and sat around me and we did language exchange. I taught them English and they taught me Thai. It was fun.

We passed out tracts and literature to everyone at the game yesterday. We played at a temple, so there were many monks. George was able to give the monks some Christian literature and the monks seemed eager to receive it.

The guys played well and won the game 3-0. Go Sattha!!

We will be playing in a tournament in the town George and I lived in. It will be good to see all our friends from church. Tomorrow we will go to church and then the guys will play a soccer game in the afternoon. Please pray for everyone as we wind down the tour. Thank you for all your prayer support!!

Prayer requests:

~Softening of hearts

~Turning to Christ for those that have already received literature and heard the gospel

~Travel mercies

~Health and Safety

Phut phassa ankrit dai mai? (Can you speak English?)

We continue to teach English at many schools, as well as play soccer. Yesterday, we had an English camp, a soccer clinic and then a soccer game. This school was the most open about us sharing the gospel. It was great to be able to share and give out tracts and New Testaments to every student and teacher (about 250 people). It was the hottest day thus far in Thailand; we thought we were going to melt away into nothingness. There is a temple on the schools grounds and it is very beautiful. The head monk at this temple died last year and they have put him into a glass box and mummified him. Kinda weird. I tried to get a good picture but it's hard to see.

The middle monk is a statue of the mummified monk in the next picture

The mummified monk

The guys then started playing their game and it started pouring down rain. It cooled everything off nicely, but the two hour van ride home wasn't so much fun for the soaking wet guys.

The soccer field in the shadow of the temple

George heading the ball

The footprint of Buddha

The team took Sunday off as a day of rest and reflection. We were able to spend some time in prayer for the people that we have already come into contact with and for those yet to be contacted. We then drove to Phrphutthabat (the little village that George and I lived in) and visited the temple there. This temple is know as the footprint of Buddha. People from all over Asia travel to this temple to worship idols. The footprint is actually just a big hole in the ground that is not anyone's footprint. There were many people in the temple worshipping, so many that we couldn't even get in the door. So we walked up 290 steps to the top of a hill that looked out over the city. We spent some time in prayer and sang some songs. It was a good day.

A young Buddhist monk

People making merit

Spending some time in prayer

Slow internet!

George playing goal keeper.

I haven't been able to update the blog because the internet is slow and difficult to connect to. We are in a different town today, so I will attempt to blog.



Things are going well. We had to fight with a HUGE spider (bigger than George's left hand).

The spider has disappered, I hope that it went far, far away and didn't find it's way into our room!

We played a couple of games right next to a hospital and they roasted a pig for us. It was really good.

George had the opportunity to share his testimony at one of the games.

Yesterday we played three games and finished the last game at 11pm and then went and ate dinner and got back to the guesthouse at 12:30. Today we have a tournament all day long. The guys are getting really tired and we've had a couple of injuries. Please pray for them.

It's Raining, It's Pouring, The Old Man is Snoring...

Tournament in the rain.

Sunday we went to a Thai church in Singburi. They had a guest speaker that decided that we could not hear over the fans, therefore he had all the fans in the church turned off. It was about 90 degrees with the humidity about 70%. The church got so hot that one of the players almost passed out. We had to find him water and fan him. Part of the service was in English, that was nice--ok two phrases, but it was nice to understand something. The team had the privilege of singing "We Fall Down" to the congregation, and we taught them the chorus in Thai so they could sing with us.


Then we headed to Chai Nat to play in a tournament. The tournament was held at the place where I saw the king cobra wrapped around the toilet. No snakes this time--YEA!!!! This tournament was the second annual Central Thailand Christian Tournament. The pastor that we worked with when we lived here was running the tournament, so George was asked to be a referee.

George is the bald guy wearing black.

It was a long day because a big storm blew in and we had to wait for about 45 minutes to continue the tournament. The tournament and closing ceramonies lasted from 2pm until 11pm. Then we had an hour and a half drive back to Lopburi. We had to be up and in the vans at 5:30 the following morning.

The pastor we worked with when we lived here.

Sattha Soccer

SATTHA SOCCER TEAM 2008

Well, all the team made it safely to Thailand. We have players from The States, Mexico, Ireland, Switzerland, Singapore, Brasil, Australia, and Thailand. We have taught English in two different schools and have done a soccer camp. The kids are very polite, but don't understand very much English. The guys had to do the soccer camp right before they played the soccer game. They were hot, sweaty and sunburned BEFORE they even stepped onto the field to play. I was thankful that they had a shaded area for me to sit, cheer on the team and take pictures. Being the team nurse, cheerleader and mom can be hard work ;)!!!

We (I use that term loosely, as I don't actually have to kick the ball around) have played two games so far and tied both games. The guys are still learning one anothers techniques and moves. The weather has been very hot!! One of the guys got heat exhaustion and felt pretty crummy for a while. George scored an amazing goal and I actually got a picture of the ball going into the net!!

Please pray for:
1. Health and safety of team
2. Softened hearts of the Thai people to hearing the good news of salvation through Jesus
3. Continued opportunities for building relationships with schools for the missionaries/churches

Monkeying Around

We made it to Lopburi (where the Sattha Team will be headquartered). Lopburi has some ruins where monkeys live. The town is know for the monkeys and even has a monkey ambulance and a monkey hospital.


The internet service is scarce and unpredictable. Today the guys practiced together for about four hours in the scorching heat. Tomorrow we go to the first school and teach English and play a soccer game in the afternoon.

Please pray for the guys that they will get acclimated to the weather, food, etc. Pray for unity of the team and opportunities to share the gospel.

Dinner Special

We went to the Sunday Night Market in Chiang Mai and all these stands were very busy selling food!

Pad Thai on an open grill (you don't have to pay extra for the flies)



Grilled squid and other parts and pieces of meat

Anyone hungry?????

The hills of Myanmar

We had the privelege of having dinner with a couple from Myanmar (Burma). This couple is in Chiang Mai studying linguistics and planning on returning to the hills of Myanmar to help translate the Bible into the language of the hill people. The husband spent a month there last year and showed us the pictures. They were amazing, but a little disturbing. You can only get the the village by hiking about ten miles up a large mountain. The village that they will live in has no electricity, running water or bathroom facilities. They do not take showers/baths or wash their clothes. The food that they eat is "suspect" and when they are finished eating they put the plates outside and let the dogs lick them "clean", then their next meal they pick up the "clean" plate and put their food on it, and eat it.

Yummy!! George will NEVER be able to go to this village.

They also don't have toilets or any sort of bathroom because they say that they are "stinky". They go to a special area outside the village and take a long stick to ward off the wild boars and dogs. After they are finished the pigs and dogs "have a little snack".

These missionaries are truly amazing people, to knowingly and willingly go into this remote and isolated area to help give these peopel the Word of God.

John 17:17 "Sancify them in the truth, your Word is truth"

Buddhism, Star Wars and The Matrix

While we were traveling to the village near Chiang Rai we visited a Buddhist temple known as the "White Temple". The architecture was amazing, but scary. Most Thai temples are a combination of red and gold with many other contrasting colors. This temple was completely white with mirrors to reflect the light.









They have a moat around the temple that has hands coming up from it that are people grasping to get out of hell. It was very scary looking to see all these hand reaching up.





(LOOK CLOSELY FOR THE HANDS REACHING UP)

Our pictures are not good because they were doing construction and we couldn't get close. The architect is a rich Thai man that is seeking to earn merit by building this temple.


We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the temple, but the walls were one large mural of modern movies and events(Star Wars, Matrix and 9/11 Twin Towers) and Buddhist symbols. We were told that the mural represents how modern Western culture has destroyed Thai culture.




(This is a warning that drinking leads to hell)

(Same thing except smoking)


You can't see it very well, but there is a four sided skull with a liquor bottle on top. The other picture has a skeleton face with a horn coming out of it and hands reaching up from hell.


This temple reminds us of 1 Timothy 3:5 "holding to a form of 1agodliness, although they have denied its power"