Mission 2023
This was my first mission trip to Thailand and, on the very first night, I had the joy of listening to some students in the orphanage dormitory, singing worship songs. As their young voices rose boldly, enthusiastically, and together in Thai, I felt an excited shiver. Although I did not understand linguistically, I understood the meaning.
These students lived half-way across the world, in a small town most people have never heard of. Yet I could feel His presence there, as though he was saying to me, ‘Look, these are my children. I love them, in this corner of the world. They are loved and I want them to know my love‘.
And this first impression of the students – their joy, heart, and enthusiasm – stayed true. I was surprised by their childlike approach to our messages, altar calls and activities. They were curious, ready to receive us and to listen.
With baby steps, our relationships with them grew steadily, through many planned activities like games, crafts, singing with ukulele and guitars, teaching English lessons, and playing ping pong. We had the joy of seeing a boy who rarely smiled, now grinning as he played with us and I felt that despite the language barrier and our differences, God helped us build a bridge through our actions and His guidance. He was ultimately in control when our plans with the students for the day unexpectedly fell through. And before I knew it, the students and us in the team were already friends.
Individual Stories
Overtime, we also learnt about the students’ individual stories. My lowest point came when the team visited a student’s house in the Hmong village. The student’s mother cried as we prayed for her and her family in their harsh living conditions. I felt that God’s love comforted her in our prayer, and enabled us to think about what is really important in life. We don’t realise how much privilege we have, and the gifts we have, to help others.
There was another student, upon whom a woman apparently had decided to test a ‘curse’ on her family. The student lost her mum and cousin, who was also her best friend, and despite spells and other attempts to stop it, she wound up in the hospital on her deathbed at 13 years of age. It wasn’t until the dormitory parent came to pray for her that she recovered from her deathbed. This was a powerful testimony, and I grew to realise that God alone would triumph over our fears and burdens.
That young student now believes and has received Christ as her personal saviour in her heart. She trusts in Him, and gently loves the people around her with this Christlike love.
Among the other students, the numbers for baptism went from zero at the start, to two, then 12 at the end of our trip! Their hearts had been touched and they were eagerly listening for Him. The Holy Spirit is alive and God is present in that small Thai dormitory.
The Mission Team
Our mission team was a great support to me as well. Throughout the trip, they were loving, encouraging, and inspiring. I felt safe and cared for, especially when we were in crowded places in Bangkok. They linked arms with me so I would not get left behind as I was not pushy enough in such places. Importantly, we did morning devotions together, which helped to be purpose-driven for God from the start of every day.
The trip’s theme was ‘family’, which was really fitting. As a family, we covered each other’s weaknesses in ministry and skills, simply doing a part of the big mission. Every single person on the team seemed to have this light and humour to them and I felt that God’s love was truly shining through this team.
To leave a lasting impression on the students, we aimed to invest time, energy, and effort into building relationships and sharing the gospel with the students. These relationships were difficult to leave behind. But in fact they were not really left, as they remain present in our prayers and ongoing mission plans.
I now look to the work that we are stewards of, here in our own city. May we keep the Thai dormitory students in our prayers, and continue to be the vessels and parts of the family and body of Christ, to spread His love wherever He takes us in our lives.
Lily
Thailand Mission Team
