“Never stop learning because life never stops teaching!” – With these encouraging words, we started our life skills school, where children come to learn life skills that will help them be more independent and also grow in Christ-like character. At this moment, children are learning how to prepare meals using a rice cooker, take care of their bodies and clothes, and also how to manage money, especially when they have only a few coins. There are more than 50 children who come from different backgrounds and family settings. They are happy to spend time together and feel that someone cares. They are also learning that having a good character is very hard on their own, but God is always there to help them!
“Please allow my children to help you in teaching, practicing their skills, and assisting other children.” In other words, “I want my children to be with Christians!” – This was a request from two families whose parents asked us for their teenage daughter and son to join our team. They see the church as a place where their teens can grow, learn, and make friends. Both families’ parents are educated people, with one of them still being a strong Buddhist believer. So now, three young people have joined our team to teach life skills and learn about Christ! We are praying that their parents will join us as well.
One day, a lady from the village (who is not a believer) visited our church. She saw the teens singing and playing musical instruments and, with disappointment, said to her friend, “Why doesn’t my daughter come to church? Look how these young people are singing and seem so happy.” It’s a powerful testimony for people to see that those who do not follow rituals but believe in the Highest God have a better, blessed life!
A few months ago, during a baptism in our church, a young man got baptized, and the non-Christian mom asked her daughter, “Why aren’t you getting baptized as well?” Her daughter was surprised and happy to hear these words. Perhaps her mom could also testify to the changes that happened in their family. A few years ago, Jane* (the name of the girl changed) experienced a lot of pain growing up with her grandma and longing for her parents’ love, as both of them were working in a big city far away from her. Later, she found out that they were not together and were planning on separating. That was an even bigger pain, but she prayed and asked us to pray, holding onto hope that one day their family would be together again. God heard her prayers, He saw her faith! Time passed, and her parents reunited and even moved back to stay with the family. Their family was reunited! God is real! She can testify to how God worked in her life and how life with Him is much better than being on her own. Jane* made a decision to follow Jesus and was baptized last Sunday. We continue to pray for her parents to come to Christ and believe it will happen soon. Thank you for your prayers! These are only a few testimonies of how God is working in people’s hearts. Please pray with us as we strive to reach adults, parents, and grandparents of our children, that they would recognize their personal need for Jesus as well.
Thank you very much for all your prayers and support. May God richly bless every one of you!
“Never stop learning because life never stops teaching!” With these encouraging words, we started our life skills school, where children come to learn life skills that will help them become more independent and grow in Christ-like character. At this moment, children are learning how to prepare meals in a rice cooker, take care of their bodies and clothes, and manage money, especially when they only have a few coins. There are more than 50 children from diverse backgrounds and family settings. They find joy in spending time together and feel cared for. They are also learning that developing good character is challenging on their own, but God is always there to assist them.
“Please allow my children to assist you in teaching, practicing their skills, and helping other children.” In other words, “I wish for my children to be around Christians!” This was a request from two families whose parents asked if their teenage daughter and son could join our team. They see the Church as a place where their teens can grow, learn, and make friends. The parents from both families are educated individuals, one of them still strongly identifying as a Buddhist. Thus, three young people have joined our team to teach life skills and learn about Christ. We are praying that their parents will join us as well.
One day, a non-believing lady from the village attended our church. Upon witnessing the teens singing and playing musical instruments, she expressed to her friend in disappointment, “Why doesn’t my daughter come to church? Look at how these young people are singing and appearing happy.” This stands as a powerful testimony for people to see that those who don’t merely follow rituals but believe in the Almighty God have a more blessed life.
A few months ago, during a baptism in our church, a young man was baptized. The non-Christian mother asked her daughter, “Why aren’t you getting baptized too?” Her daughter was surprised and glad to hear these words. Perhaps her mother could also bear witness to the changes in their family. Some years back, Jane* (name changed) endured much pain while growing up with her grandmother, yearning for her parents’ love as they worked far away in a distant city. She later learned of their separation plans, which brought even more pain. However, she prayed and asked us to pray, holding onto hope that her family would be reunited. God heard her, He saw her faith! Time passed, her parents reconciled, and they moved back to be with the family. Their family was reunited! God is real! She can testify how God worked in her life and how life with Him surpasses being on her own. Jane* decided to follow Jesus and was baptized last Sunday. We continue to pray for her parents to come to Christ, believing it will happen soon. Thank you for your prayers!
These are just a few testimonies of how God is working in hearts. Please join us in prayer to reach the adults, parents, and grandparents of our children, that they may recognize their personal need for Jesus as well. Thank you so much for your prayers and support. May God abundantly bless each one of you!
Ministry in Thailand – San and Anita (Avoda Foundation)
Avoda’s simple pick-up truck goes from one village to another, and as it stops, young boys with all their energy run to it with great joy. They are loud and happy, even though they come from two different tribes and speak different languages. They share the same goal and vision! What are they happy about? What unites them? They are going to play football, and soon they will have a competition where, of course, they dream of winning! 🙂 God has given us the opportunity to have a football ministry to reach young boys. Some of them come from very strong animist families who don’t allow them to participate in any church activities or hear about God, except for football. Practicing to play as one team, building their skills and character, learning about God in small group talks, and sharing snacks together brings them a lot of joy. It helps them see God as the one who cares, unlike the spirits that always want to harm them. God has truly blessed this ministry, and even though our boys had only one week to prepare for the competition, they placed third! One of our boys once said, “N’San, before I used to spend five hours a day playing games on my phone, and now I don’t have time for that. I need to practice football! You know, I feel happier now!” Please pray with us for God’s guidance in reaching Thai Sambun village. We need help, so please also pray for God to send the right people to join us in this mission. Thank you to everyone who is financially participating and helping in buying sports uniforms, providing snacks, and covering the cost of gasoline and other expenses.
Camp is another ministry that helps our youth grow and reach other children with their families. We were blessed with “The Incredible Race” day camp at our church, where we shared that no matter where we live, what shade of skin we have, or what language we speak, we are all part of the same race—the human race—and all part of the same family from Adam and Eve. We all need one Savior – Jesus Christ! About 50 children were able to join and experience a fun and learning atmosphere as we discovered where all these languages started, why we all look different, and had an opportunity to try snacks from different countries and learn how God made everyone unique, yet with the same need for the Savior! For many of them, this truth was new, but we believe that the seed will bear fruit at the right time. You can experience our camp ministry at the link below 🙂 Hope you enjoy watching it.
In October this year, we are planning to share this news with many other children and hold day camps with Burmese refugees and other people groups in Thailand. Please join us in prayer and financially to be able to cover all the needs. Also, please come and participate in those camps. This would be our Camp on Wheels 2023, where we will do camps for one month in a few different places in Thailand. Please pray that God would provide the right people for this year!
Thank you very much for your faithful support. May God richly bless you and strengthen your faith until our Lord comes!
How many times have we prayed for God to help us find ways to reach adults? Our church is very young, and most attendees are children and youth. Grandparents and parents are happy to leave their children “under good care in a safe place.” They do see positive improvements in their children’s lives and are glad that they can learn. But what about their parents and grandparents? They are very strong in their beliefs and don’t see any reason why they need to change. This is where the student project “5 Loaves 2 Fish Bakery” began.
Older children need to provide for themselves to cover their personal needs, as well as help cover church expenses. A woman who attends our church was kicked out of her tribal community because she became a Christian. What could we do? We asked God and realized that we could use our limited skills in the bakery. We began baking and selling cookies, with children selling them to their classmates at school. Soon, we realized that we needed more people because orders exceeded what one person could handle.
Another woman, a single mother, joined our team, and a few days later, another mother with health issues who could no longer work in the fields became a part of our team. Those who were previously not open to hearing about Jesus now come for prayer and Bible reading every morning before baking. God opened opportunities to share the Gospel and improve their quality of life.
“I am so grateful that I can work in the morning and take care of my family in the evening!” said Mae Chong. “I am also grateful that I can work here and don’t need to go to another country or city to find a job to provide for my family.”
We had the opportunity to share the meaning behind our bakery’s name, “5 Loaves and 2 Fish,” and tell the story of Jesus’ miracle when He took something small and multiplied it. We believe that our God cares, unlike spirits that only want to harm and need to be appeased.
Our prayer and vision are to build a small bakery building where we can continue baking, as we are currently using our church’s kitchen, which serves many other purposes. A one-room building costs about $6,000. Yes, it sounds like a big number, but we believe our God cares! This ministry helps us reach adults and parents of our children, support widows, provide for our church, and help young people with their needs, as some grow up without parents.
If you would like to participate in any way, whether by praying, donating, or coming to share your baking skills and experience with our ladies while sharing the Gospel through this, we welcome you. For those who want to donate, please send your donation through New Fields Ministries, San and Anita, with the note “5 Loaves.” For those who want to pray, please pray for God to send the right person to teach us baking skills and for our ladies to get to know God and grow in Him.
Around 40 children have been coming to our church on Sundays! Last month, we had a day program in a public school up on the mountain. We sang songs, played games, shared the Gospel, and at the end invited them to come to church on Sunday. We didn’t expect more than 40 children to show up at our church that Sunday, with some walking over 2km (1.24 miles) to get there. We faced the challenge of not having enough chairs to sit on and plates for the Church lunch that we are having every Sunday. However, these were happy challenges that were quickly resolved. Now, our prayer is that we would plant a seed in these young hearts that will grow towards salvation. We are praying for the right people to come and join us here because our team is getting smaller as some of our youths finish school this year and move on.
We are grateful to God for the house for volunteers and missionaries that is in the process of being built up. Thank you to everyone who is participating in it! Together at this moment, we have roofs, walls, and windows. At this moment, we are working on putting in electricity and finishing the walls. We still need finances to buy doors, paint, and things for the bathroom and kitchen. If you would like to participate in this work, please join us. We believe God provides, and soon people who will come to serve here will have a nice place to stay. We call this house “Doulos house” – which means the bondservant of God.
The number of children continues to grow, so now there are about 100 people attending on Sundays! And around 50 who come during the week for evening programs. Please answer God’s calling if He is asking you to come, help financially, or pray!
May God richly bless every one of you!
San and Anita’s ministry in Thailand, with the Avoda Foundation.
In 2012, the Labor Foundation launched a rescue operation, protecting Burmese children from slavery by sheltering them in the Orphanage “Avoda”. Ten years later, many former children themselves are actively involved in child rescue and evangelism. We now have five branches, almost all of which are run by former rescued children. By Gods grace, the law have changed and Burmese children are now better protected from exploitation. The Avoda team thanks New Fields Ministries and all associated churches, pastors and church members for their support. Thanks a lot! May the Lord Jesus bless you.
However, the need to find a secure job is still high. Situation with Covid-19 makes it very difficult to find a job. Thailand’s looming economic recession is once again opening the door to unscrupulous gangsters who may exploit innocent Burmese teenagers. Therefore, Avoda expanded its activities to include job creation projects. In the Thai capital Bangkok we have opened a home group for Bible study and support for believing teenagers. We invite you to take part in this mission.
