The Last Team Thailand Newsletter

As I sit and write this, back in Lynden, WA, there is much to reflect on. The last full week of ministry and our travel week went by at a breakneck pace. The goodbyes, the packing, the cherished moments with the kids, it was a lot to happen in 14 days. I’d better start at the beginning.

Sunday the 26th, apart from hosting church for the kids, marked the start of Visa Wars. Visa Wars is what I’m calling the battle that our fearless leaders had to fight to get visa extensions for us all, which had always been the plan (our trip was 66 days, and on 60 day visas it cost slightly more to pay a visa overstay fee rather than get an extension). Over the course of that week and the following Monday, they, some, and all of us visited the immigration office half a dozen times for varying lengths of time. Eventually, they worked their way through the red tape and bureaucracy and came out battered but victorious.

For the last couple weeks of children’s ministry, we would draw sticky notes out of an ornate tissue box holder with Bible stories written on them to decide which one to perform whatever night we were planning for. A couple that went over very well were: David and Goliath, where overacting had the kids very engaged and some of the boys ending up on the wrong side of history as Goliath laid on the ground, vanquished. Noah’s ark was also a massive hit, as all of the children were contracted to be animals and we brought them into a massive boat we built in front of their eyes out of prayer mats and chairs.

• Trevor Sullivan

One evening, we were invited to go on house visits. Trevor, Ethan, and I went with Tao, our contact, to one of the girls houses to meet her family and perhaps share the Gospel. There were 13 people living in a very small house. Tao talked to the girl's grandmother, but unfortunately they were talking in Thai, so none of us could understand exactly what was being said. I assumed that what he was talking about was Jesus related, so I started praying for God to move. Moments later, Tao turns to us and tells us that she wants to follow Jesus, but is scared of what her mother will think. Tao found her mom, who also lived in that house, and shared the Gospel with her as well. They both decided to follow Jesus that night. It was incredible to be a part of that, no matter how small my role was. I got the opportunity to pray for both of them, and then we left. As of a few days ago, Tao has gone back to their house, and after a few attempts, has successfully shared the Gospel with all of the family, and eight of them are now Christians. Put this family in your prayers; pray for community to come around them, for the Bible to be able to be read and understood, and for a passion for Jesus.

• Kiah Nordgren

Friday the 31st we took a step outside of our comfort zones. In the afternoon, we took cars to Walking Street, where we’d been before to pray… This time, however, we were armed with more than the full Armor of God… We had a guitar. We set up on the beach just outside of Walking street and started worshipping. After playing the list of songs we chose, we walked half an hour up the beach road to Soi 6 and did the same thing. We weren’t singing quietly, and it was such a cool experience to worship God in two incredibly spiritually dark places. Here are the songs we sang:

Walking Street:

How Great Thou Art

Amazing Grace

The Blessing

I can Only Imagine

How Great is our God

God of this City

Soi 6:

In Christ Alone

Be Thou my Vision

Yeshua

I speak Jesus

God of this City

On Saturday, most of the students went scuba diving with Toss and his wife, which was a fantastic experience. They went to an airplane cafe, took pictures with Nemo, and went to four different islands.

On the Monday and Tuesday before we left Pattaya, our schedule consisted of packing, cleaning, and preparing to leave in other ways. Tuesday was one of the wildest days we had at Little Hugs, as well as the last. Rather than have an academic program, we ended up dancing with the children and playing games and hanging out for much of the evening. Everyone was dripping with sweat by the time we were done dancing. The most meaningful thing we got to do with the kids was surprise them with friendship bracelets we made for each one of them. As we tied them around their wrists at the end of the night, we prayed over each of them. It was so special, and ended in many tearful goodbyes. The time we spent with the kids at Little Hugs was precious, and none of us will forget it or them. Each of us had one or two children that we connected with on a deeper level, and they were especially hard to part with.

On Wednesday we returned to Bangkok and had a joyous reunion with the Cambodian team. We had a worship time that evening, and the atmosphere was rich in the room. It felt like a victory celebration. Thursday we were surprised with a visit to Khao Kheow Open Zoo, a massive nature park which is home to 8,000 animals. The most famous of its inhabitants is Moo Deng, a Pygmy Hippopotamus who has garnered vast internet attention for her antics. We saw lots of birds, fed giraffes, and had a wonderful day.

On Friday night, we left the YWAM base in Bangkok around 9:00 p.m. Some 31 hours later after run-ins with immigration, customs (a piggy bank I was given by a student looked like a puffer fish on an x-ray, all of my checked bags got scanned after I mistakenly brought a pork sandwich into the United States of Freedom) we arrived safely in snowy Lynden, WA. 

The end.

• Trevor Sullivan