We know you are praying because we see the Lord at work. Thank you for being the powerhouse of this mission.
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| Pastor Sirigorn and her husband John and her oldest son. |
On the mission field, you get used to having to modify plans and go with Plan B. And the COVID crisis has made our mission have to do this on a lot of things. One of the Plan B changes had to do with a Pioneer Pastor named Sirigorn who was the pastor of Tha Chana Church in Suratthani province in Southern Thailand. Pastor Sirigorn applied with the Pioneer Pastor Program to move in April to an unreached area of Southern Thailand in Lansaka, Nakhon Si Thammarat province. Lansaka is an unreached county with no Christian churches in the county nor any of the surrounding counties. There are over 55,000 souls living in this unreached area, most of whom are Muslim and Buddhist.
We had already trained Pastor Sirigorn and had provided a stipend more moving and for renting a commercial row building. They would live on the second floor and the first floor would be where the new church would begin meeting. Her husband John had given his two week notice and was no longer working, getting ready to move and find employment in the new location. All of their belongings were packed and ready to go. The church where Sirigorn was serving already called another pastor to lead them. They were all set for Plan A.And then the Thai government ordered a full lock down. No one was allowed to travel. Pastor Sirigorn said she would need to stay put. It looked like they would be delaying for a full year because their children would miss the beginning of the new school year (which usually begins in May). So we were onto Plan B, to delay until next year, which was fine with us because finances are very tight due to the COVID crisis. Donations are down and are expenses are higher because we must provide food relief to the Pioneer Pastor churches in the urban areas where people cannot work because of the lock down and they do not have any food. So delaying this church plant was helpful to the finances at this time.
And then we received a message from Pastor Sirigorn this past week. The lock down is over and Thais are now allowed to travel between provinces. They must move because the new pastor is coming to the church where she used to serve. So they moved to Lansaka and are beginning this new church plant. It is back to Plan A.
They rented a commercial row house unit. They will live on the second floor and the first floor will be where the church will meet. The backyard was a real mess with lots of trash and weeds. John worked hard to clean it all up and he has planted a garden to help feed his family.
Pastor Sirigorn and John need your prayers.
- Pray that John will be able to find employment, which is a real challenge during with a horribly depressed economy.
- Pray for Pastor Sirigorn as she begins to build relationships with her neighbors and shares Jesus with them.
- Pray that Pastor Sirigorn will find a market where she can sell Dorayaki (Japanese pancake sandwiches with creamy filling) and that her business will thrive.
- Pray that her they are allowed to register their children to attend public school, this is always a bit tricky and difficult to navigate.
Continue to Pray for Allie and David
2 weeks ago, we asked for you to pray for Thailand NOW missionaries Allie and David Houle who serve as Field Directors for all of the Blessing Home Centers. The language school where they worked part-time (so they could have employment visas to stay in the country) closed due to the COVID crisis, and now they were scrambling to find the best way to get a new visa.
After much gathering of information and praying for the Lord's guidance, Allie and David have decided to start a business so they can receive business visas. This is a long process that required them to retain the help of a law firm that specializes in helping foreigners to start businesses in Thailand and obtain business visas. They have been busy at work getting all of their paperwork done, and they will be going to government offices in Bangkok to submit this paperwork.
Once their business is incorporated, they will begin a separate process to obtain a work permit. And after they receive a work permit, they will begin a third process to obtain visas. Please keep them in prayer since all of these processes are complicated and it is vitally important that they are able to have long-term visas so they can serve in Thailand.
How to Donate
On a different note, we have received several emails asking about how to donate to the mission, so it is time to share the information again.
Donations by check can be sent to:
Thailand NOW
P.O. Box 56
Mannsville, KY 42758
Online donations can be given through QGiv or through PayPal (Just click on these links). Our website also has information on gifts of stocks and estate gifts https://thailandnow.org/donate/
If you give online, there is a check box for recurring gifts (gifts can be set to be automatic either monthly or annually). Many people choose this convenient way for recurring gifts. Please be sure to make sure this box is NOT CHECKED if you do not want to have a recurring gift.
