Blessing Home updates

Fern with her Sunday School teacher, May

Most of the Blessing Home children are served at the Blessing Home Ground Zero Center in Pattaya.  But a few are from some of the other churches that we have planted.  We want you to meet Fern and her older sister Wen, who are two new children in our Blessing Home program, but are being served from the Nakhon Pathom church, a church we helped to plant in this city which is west of Bangkok.

Fern and Wen started coming to the Nakhon Pathom church earlier this year.  Fern suffers from leukemia, and she is not expected to survive.  Her mother is very poor and must be with Fern constantly.  Pastors Ekerat and Da and the Christians at the Nakhon Pathom church have taken her in and have helped the family to the best of their ability, providing food and limited financial help.  Because Fern's medical treatment drains all of the family's financial resources and attention, Wen did not have what she needed to go to school.  

Through your generous financial support, we are able to help Fern and Wen in the Blessing Home program.  We help Fern and her family with help for medical expenses and food, and we now scholarship Wen to go to school, providing for the uniforms, books, transportation, and other needs.  In cases like these, children like Wen would be in great danger of being trafficked to provide needed finances for the family and younger sister.  But now she is protected from this fate.

 

Left to Right: Pastor Da, Wen, Fern, Pastor Ekerat

We also want to give you an update on Naet, who was saved from life as a drug mule at the young age of 4.  Naet moved into a permanent family earlier this year.  Pastor Namporn is now her mother, and Naet has received a new Christian name.  Her name is now Maria.  Pastor Namporn wanted to give her a new life, a new start.

Auntie Bangon, Grandmother Bau, Maria (formerly Naet), and Pastor Nampon

Maria was struggling in school, and having great difficulties in all subjects.  Pastor Nampon has taken a lot of time and effort to tutor her, and now she is doing very well in school.  She even read one of her school books to Sherri.

We have never seen Maria happier.  Now that she is doing well in school, she is really blossoming.  Thank you for your prayers for her.

Construction on the Blessing Home Isan center is on schedule.  Last week, we went to inspect the site with TMM missionaries Carol Fare and Vicki Brown, who will be serving at Blessing Home Isan once the buildings are ready in January.  We are very blessed to have Carol and Vicki serving with us here and it is our prayer that many more will join as long term missionaries here with us.  We have a great need for people to serve at Blessing Home and with the Pioneer Pastor Program.  If you believe God may be calling you to serve, please contact us at thailandumc@gmail.com

Vicki Brown and Carol Fare at the Blessing Home Isan site.

Great news from Pastors Jerron and On, and progress on Blessing Home Isan construction

Sherri and I constantly tell people that we love what we do, because we see lives totally transformed for Jesus Christ.  When Thai people receive Jesus and begin a new victorious life in Him, it is very rewarding and exciting.

Pastors Jerron and On planted the Mai Ya church three years ago, planting cell groups throughout the unreached region.  Many times, more than one cell group begins to grow rapidly, and two or more churches are formed to make a circuit.  God blessed the ministry of Pastors Jerron and On, and now a second church, the Phayamengrai church, opened this year, and we see very rapid growth there.

A few months ago, new believers from the Mai Ya and Phayamengrai churches were baptized, showing the world that they have new life in Christ.  Everytime we see the joy on the faces of these new believers and they tell us how Christ has made them new, we are just overflowing with great joy ourselves.  This would not be possible without faithful Christians who support this mission.  Thank you, for giving to the Lord.   These are lives that have been changed because of you.

Phayamengrai church has very quickly developed a large children and youth ministry.  Pastors Jerron and On approached us because they had over 40 children and youth coming to Sunday School and to Saturday School (one time per week was not enough!) to learn about Jesus Christ.  They had no furniture, so the children sat on the floor and did their activities there.  They asked if there was any way TMM could help purchase some tables and chairs.  It was a great pleasure to be able to say, "Yes, of course."

Now, to a different location.  Many of you generously gave to open a new Blessing Home center called Blessing Home Isan.  It took awhile to find the right location, and then we had to build retainer walls and add landfill to raise the land about 5 feet, so it would not flood.  Then we had to have water tank trucks come everyday to wet down the landfill, to make it settle and become solid so we could start building construction.  We were all set last month to begin construction, but the contractor had a series of medical emergencies in his family and had to give up the contract, leaving us to find a new contractor.  God led us to the right contractor, and he began construction 2 weeks ago.  We hope to have the new center built and ready to move in by the end of January 2014.

The new Blessing Home Isan Center under construction.

Please remember the Thailand Methodist Mission in your prayers and through your compassionate generosity as well.  You can give online at thailandmethodist.org
OR send a check to TMM at this address:
TMM
P.O. Box 56
Mannsville, KY 42758