One Team Member Coming Home

Today (Mon) Chris dropped Peter off at the airport as Peter had to return home to Australia for work. Pray for Steve, Roy and Chris as they take up the leadership roles Peter was undertaking.
Apart from tiredness, the team is doing well but Mel is not feeling 100%.
The kids ministry is going freat. They were able to run kids church yesterday with only 30 minutes warning. They've got 2 different drama's they're doing too.
The medicine is going well also.
Thanks again for your interest. Keep the prayers and words of encouragement coming as you never know what impact it can have on people serving overseas!

Some long days ahead

The team is doing OK with a few flat days in between but overall doing very well. The team is going out to a different village tomorrow and staying overnight so they are expecting some long days ahead burning the candle at both ends of the day, so prayer against tiredness would be really appreciated.
The kids ministry is going well and so is the medicine with the team having just the right amount of medicine on hand.
Chris gave his testimony the other night and Chee and Howard were giving theirs tonight as well as a native Aka (Thai) woman.
The drama they've been doing has also been going really well with the Thai people really enjoying it.
Thanks for your prayers, support and encouragement. They are all greatly appreciated.

Luxury

The team have now moved from Chang Rai to Mae Chan and they are quite happy to no longer have to use a squat toiler but have a flushable one. At the time I spoke to them, they were currently in Banana Village eating oranges! They are learning lots of languages (they have been in 3 tribes each of which have their own language) plus Thai as well. Sleeping is OK as they have improved their sleeping arrangements from bamboo floors (apparently not all that comfortable), onto concrete floors. They are getting to bed around 9:30pm-10pm each night and geting up when the roosters crow around 6:15am!
The team still really values their prayers. They are getting a real spiritual workout. Overall it is all going well but a few of the team have colds but nothing worse thankfully. Keep praying for the individuals on the team as well as some of them are feeling a bit burdened with lots of things on their minds.
Thanks for your prayers!
(Mike)

Tiredness

The following was sent through from Chris yesterday (5th Jan):
"The team is getting a bit tired. We left Paya Pai 2 days ago and went to Semiko yesterday. We caught up with a previous translators sister and did medical work there. Today's our day off and we're in transit at the moment from there to a village we haven't been to before. Feel free to send messages back. The prayer ministry is doing well and some days has its work cut out for it."

They do have limited internet access over there depending on where they are and can check this blog site so feel free to post any comments so they can read them when they get a chance and can pass them onto the rest of the team.

Keep up your prayers for the team as it's not easy of there.

Chang Rai

The latest news from Thailand... the group arrived with no problems into Bangkok. They got the medication through customs without any problems although they wanted to check every one of the 17? boxes of medication they had. They picked up Mel in Singapore and after arriving in Bangkok, set off for a 10 hour bus ride up north to Chang Rai. 13 hours later they arrived at their hotel at 1am and had a rest day the following day after more than 24 hours of non-stop travelling! The team all managed to get 8 hrs sleep which was great considering the travelling required.
Since being in Chang Rai, they have visited one of the villages where they had 'Yudanese' converts, another 'Aka' (excuse my spelling) village where there were only 4 or 5 Christian familes and they felt a need to have an outreach time at mid-day after their clinic. Surprisingly a few witch doctors were challenged and questioning things. (An awkward time for the witch doctors considering their role and status in their society.) Another Thai interprettor (Joe) who has been with them on previous trips has now joined them. He relates well to all people, especially the young ones.
If you've heard any more, please feel free to add any comments or email me so I can post it on this site. The team want to thank you all for your prayers so far and those still to come.

They're Off!!

Well, the group is finally on their way! We have just returned from the airport after seeing off the 11 people travelling to Bangkok from Melbourne (Mel is already up in Bangkok and will be meeting them up there). After a pretty hectic day for a few today they had no troubles getting through their numerous boxes of medications and didn't have to pay anything extra for any excess baggage... (Prayer point number 1 answered). The second and third big praise points today also included Leonie having to get a new passport today after realising last night (the night before they left that she had lost her passport. Steve (team leader) accompanied her into the city and after explaining to the passport people that Leonie was an 'integral part of the medical team', they issued her with a new passport within an hour. Howard (from Crossway) today also managed to get onto a return flight home with other team members after still being waitlisted up till today.

So that's the update for now. I'll be keeping you up to date as much as possible on behalf of Chris while he's away. Thanks for your prayers so far and keep praying, especially for sleep and rest on their way up to Chang Rai as they'll be flying through the night and will be hitting the ground running when they arrive.

Best wishes.

Mike (on behalf of Chris and the Thailand Mission Team)

Group Mug Shots

Here are the pictures of the team to pray for:

Steve (team leader)

Peter (co leader)

Roy (co leader)

Me (Chris co leader)


Mel Sherida

Leonie

Di

Howard

Di

David

Chee

Trip details

Ok so here is the basic plan of where we're going on this trip. Just click on the image to enlarge it! This is also the prayer calendar for the trip. Enjoy.

Next Adventure details...

OK, So it's been a very long while between posts, and since my last post I have returned, started uni and am now planing a return medical trip.
The date we're looking at leaving for the next trip is 26 December for 3 weeks. We have a meeting Sunday week (16th) about it, so if you want to come and haven't told me yet, let me know!!!

Phuket- explaination

Oh, and by the way- the reason Phuket- is that that is where she works when she's not translating for us, so it was easier for me to go visit her!

Phuket- how do i explain this as a mission???

Hey guys,
Sorry its been so long between posts! Things are going really well here and are starting to wrap up. I've just spent 1 day in Chiang Mai after catching up with our other translater in Chaing Rai for a few hours, then 3 days in Phuket with our translater from our previous mission trips. 3 days of speaking broken English/Thai/Chinese often mixed up with each other- fun, but tiring. Tomorrow I head back to Bangkok, and then from there to Melbourne mid next week!
Lookig forward to catching you all soon, but at the same time sad to say bye!
Catch ya,
Chris

Songkran II

Sorry guys this was meant to be the photo for the last post.

The call would go out... "Farang" (meaning foreigner), then 2 seconds later the water would come down my back, front or all over! This went on for 30mins every 30sec or so- hence the wetness!

Thanks heaps for all your comments too! I love staying up to date with whats happening back home!

Songkran

Chiang Rai

Hey Guys, i'm in some dodgy internet cafe in Chiang Rai so i'll just be quick. Just spent 3 days touring the Akha hill tribes with a bunch of Austrian musicians. That was fun! Tell you more about that later. ALso caught up with our translater form our previous trip. Also the water festival is on at the moment, so when I walk back from here i am going to get saturated, as they particularly love throwing water on foriengers! They drive along the street in the back of utes and throw water on people on the side fo the road, on other utes, and on motorcylists. they also have people on the side of the road just throwing water back. The streets look like it's rained. It's insane. Tomorrow i'm bussing down to Chiang Mai at 230 and then 2 days later i'm flying down to Phuket to catch up with one of our other translaters who's working there. Anyway better go. Chris :)

Pix info

The pictures below:
Top left: Easter Sunday breakfast
Top right: Easter Sunday church service
Middle left: In Bangkok one of the English Classes
Middle right: In Bangkok- kids bathing at Community Centre
Bottom: View from motel window (not bad for $7/night- and that price included mozzies!!!)

More pix

Nelson, his wife Be and daughter Carolynne in Sangkhla Buri

This was the family I went to Sangkhla Buri to visit

Kids at church on Easter Sunday

In transit- Sangkhlaburi-Chiang Rai

Hey guys, I just realised i made a boo boo on my last post- i was meant to say english teachin is now finished instead of 'not' finished. he he whoops!

Anyway, i made it back from Sangkhla buri today after a great time there. I spent only 3 days there but it felt like i got to know all the people there really well. I visited a school that was being built, and heard the frustrations of building it, i visited a hospital where a New Zealand person showed me round, that was cool to get their perspective of it all. They were on placement.

I had to suffer in a lakeside resort overlooking this scerene lake, which is where i stayed. The food was good, the company was great, and I managed to write up 39 pages of my journal from just 3 days. i think my hand is about to fall off! Thank goodness for keyboards!

The 6 hour van trip back to BKK from there was an adventure. A Christian guy met us in burma and asked us if we'd like a lift back to bangkok to day. we accepted and took the 7 seater van back to the city, although the aircon wasn't working, and so we were all a ball of sweat for the entire time. when we got out in bangkok, the outside temperature was around 30 and it felt like we'd just jumped into the beach at wilsons prom in the middle of winter! Ahh the funs of travelling. Mozzie count- not bad, Food assessment- Nelson- (the guy i was visiting) his wife is an excellent chef.

Anyway- off to the airport for a 640am flight tomorrow to Chiang Rai. HOpe you all keep having fun!
Chris :)

In Sangkhla buri

Hello and thanks for all the updates. They are very useful. Congrats Dan on being dunked (insert exclaimation mark here- im using a german keyboard so i cant find it)

English teaching is not finished and it was a great time. Everyone has now shipped out of bangkok either to Melbourne, Phuket, Malasyia or where i am.

I left at 730 yesterdaz and made it to the bus station at 929 and bought mz ticket for the 930 bus. Just made it. Then a 6 hour bus trip and got in at 440. It was a nice long daz then to top it off i got asked to preach this morning bz mz contact here Nelson- so I did. Small congregation but still gave me something to do/prepare last night.

Iäm stazing at a place called sangkhla buri which is on the border of burma and thailand and i leave here on tuesdaz. (sorrz z is a y on this kezboard) There is a house here where some people from Swityland and New Yealand are stazing. One is a doctor and the others are looking at helping the burmese.

God is looking after me verz well with things just falling into place at the right time and thanks for all zour prazers. Iäm being eaten bz moyyies alot but other than that its great.

Oh zear, the pictures were of camp and Chris and Jodie in case zou were wondering.
Catch za,
Chris :)