My First Pizza...and humungo breakfast...Jame...

Hey guys...

I know this might not interest most of the people who check out our blog but...for mom and those who care...I made my first Pizza from SCRATCH! I tell you what...if living on the mission field doesn't turn you into Betty Crocker I don't know what does! No...LOL! I am not anywhere near Betty Crocker but I can now cook more than hamburger helper and simple Prego and meat speghetti. WAHOO!

I do have to say that it has been forced upon me...no farang food to buy and if I were in America I would have run to Wal-Mart and bought my crust instead of making my own from scratch. We had an awesome team in and I made breafast for all 24 of us and it was quite the ordeal! We had homemade pancakes, eggs, fruit, ham, biscuits, gravy and hash browns with chocolate milk. The credit for the biscuits and gravy go to Amber :) And I had extra hands helping me in the kitchen - thanks to Colton and Chase - they peeled and shredded all 24 potatos.

Anyway, here are a few pics. Oh and Josiah's first frog book catch. Josiah LOVES to catch frogs and so we told him that when he catches one we will take a picture of it and when he has a bunch we'll make a book of them.

We just had a Thai guy come by and visit us yesterday evening out of the blue. John gave him a tract over a year ago in a small village and then last week he passed John passing out tracts in a market with a team and recognized him. They sat and talked for a little bit and he said he was going to come by and visit.

And he actually did! Thai's will say they will stop by but very rarely do. But he came by and we talked for about 2 and a half hours! It was awesome. He says he is a Christian but he does not know Jesus...it's just religion to him...and he is still buddhist from what I can tell. So anyway, his name is Jame...please pray for him. He is coming over tomorrow evening to go out with John to show the Jesus film.

He is 22 years old and a university student in Bangkok but he is here for 2 months for his break...he wants to study and practice speaking English! What an open door! I just pray that he is radically saved before 1 month is up so we can at least disciple him for one month!!! I claim JAME for our GOD in JESUS NAME!!!!

Welp, I hope you enjoy the pics! Thanks for stopping in!

The PIZZA!


The Breakfast...

The Team...

The Jude...

The cutie pies...

The Frog...

No wonder our idea of beauty is distorted...

http://view.break.com/171268 - Watch more free videos

Wordless Wednesday

A new area that John just found. We're showing the Jesus Film here tomorrow.

Child at home in the dump site...

A man reading a tract....

Daddy went crazy with some markers...

What a week!...Kill that plant?...21 Day Rise with God Quest

It has been quite a week! There has been a wonderful team here from Antioch church in Texas. Most of them are Baylor students - but they are an awesome group...it's been a blessing to get to know each one of them. This week John and I have been staying busy going out with this team and just taking care of business :)

I took a group of 8 women out to minister to the prostitutes the day before yesterday and it was good. I would say it was awesome but no one came to know Jesus...although there was a LOT of seeds planted. These women are so hardened up - we really have to depend on God's working power to move in their hearts.


John has been going out throughout the week passing out tracts and spending time with the team and studying language. God has really been opening up doors...it seems like everytime John turns around he has someone wanting to "hang out" with him and get to know him better. I know you would think that that happens all the time but the Thai's don't hardly ever go past the cordial hello and normal questions. When it comes to having Thai friends it has been a hard thing. John's language is picking up so much that it is really helping! Thank you GOD!





One of the members of the team snapped this shot of John with some of the kids from tin shack village in Hat Yai. The children were following them while they tracted in the city. The children in Thailand just steal my heart. There is such a need for Christian orphanages here...there are so many children who need love.

Most of the children are taken in by someone (besides the Burmese who are left to fend for themselves) in there family or village but they are not loved. Most of them are given enough money for some snacks and sent to the game shop.



These children are so hungry for someone to show them love. When we were out ministering to the prostitutes a little boy came running out and I asked her if it was her child and she said yes...he came out of the "kareoke bar/prostitution house" and I then asked her how old he was and she could not remember!

I also saw to adorable children that I saw last time I was there...their mother works there and they sell flowers while their mother works all hours of the night. They carry around little roses and sell them for 10 baht a piece.



The little boy, Nawng Swooaywat, was so excited to see us and he started rummaging through the tracts in our hands to see if we had any that he had not collected as if they were trading cards! He then continued to ask if we had any more VCD's about Jesus.

His little sister was so shy...one of the girls on the team bought flowers from her and then tried to give her one back...and I translated and told her that "She is beautiful to Jesus...Jesus loves you..." and she didn't know what to do when that kindness was shown to her.



What a precious girl...speaking of precious...the other day our electricity went out for a while and Josiah comes in the door and says "Mommy, can we just find that plant and kill it?" I asked him what plant he was talking about...and he said "The plant that takes away your power.." I assumed he was talking about some thing on Veggie Tales...like the Rumer Weed...and continued to tell him it wasn't real.



He then got very frustrated and said "But momma, it is real! I know it is...you told me about it and I know it's real...it takes the power away...that bad plant..." I was at loss for words...I had NO CLUE what he was talking about and he so desperately wanted me to find this plant and kill it so we could have our power back...and then it hit me like a ton of bricks!!



A POWER PLANT! The electricity comes from a power plant...when I talked to him about it he said..."YEAH MOmmy! I told you already...the plant that takes the power" I love him so much! I just LOVE MY CHILDREN! Not because they do cute things like that or are so HANDSOME but just because they ARE. They are our children and are wonderful blessings.



I'm reading a book right now called "Keeping our Children's Hearts" and it is really rocking my world. I got to the part about whether not our hearts are turned toward our children and what that statement really means and I had to just stop reading for a while and let that soak in.

Are your hearts turned toward your children? Of course, your heart is turned toward God first but in the bible it says that He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and turn the hearts of the children to the fathers.



This is a huge deal in parenting. God had really been speaking to me about my heart and I'm really excited. Another thing I am excited about is a neat thing that God put on my heart. I was emailing with my NEW found most AWESOMEST friend through email ever...and we were just emailing back and forth about discipline and she shared how she desired so much to get up in the morning and spend time with God.



I usually spend my time with the Lord at night but I've always wanted to do it in the morning so...I challenged her to a 21 Day Rise with God Quest! We are holding each other accountable to rise in the morning and meet with God.

We want to extend this Quest to everyone...so:



I hereby challenge you...to a 21 Day Rise With God Quest. Your quest, should you choose to accept it, would be that we rise at a predetermined set time to meet with our God without FAIL and without COMPROMISE to see change in our lives and the lives of our families.

So...do you accept? Why 21 days you ask? Well...someone once told me (don't know if it's true) that it takes 21 days to break or make a habit...so there it is. My wonderful hubby has made an awesome graphic for this and if you choose to join in you can display this logo on your blog or website to get the news out.

We are officially starting this for everyone on Monday, August the 6th. I hope you join in! I will soon have a Mr. Linky up so that everyone can put up a link if you are going to go on this quest with us!



I pray you accept the challenge and draw closer to Him!

Thanks for reading!

Great books for Moms...and quick update...

Hi everyone!

I was just over at Joy's blog and she had asked everyone to post what their best resource or mom/wife books were and she got a huge response. I started drooling over these books on Amazon.com and thought I would share the list I compiled of "Really want these someday" books:


* The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace

* Created to Be His Helpmeet by Debi Pearl

* Keeping Our Childrens Hearts by Steve and Terri Maxwell

* Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit by the Maxwells (found at titus2.com)

* Sacred Marriage - Gary Thomas

* Mommy Manual - Barbara Curtis

* CAPTIVATING by John and Staci Eldredge.

* The Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson.

* Anything from Nancy Campbell at Aboverubies.org (A magazine subscription from them would be a wonderful gift to any mother or grandmother)

* Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss

* A Woman After God's Own Heart by Elizabeth George

* The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

My personal recommendations are as follows:

* Shepherding Your Child's Heart by Ted Tripp (a must have for parents...I refer back to this book sooo much - it's used almost as much as my bible)

$4.00 on Amazon right now...

* For Better or for Best - Understanding your husband - Gary Smalley
There is also a book that is for the husbands to read - "If Only He Knew" - Understanding your wife. These books have been such a blessing to John and I. I believe Gary Smalley knows more about women than any one man on earth should know! These books are full of insight and I HIGHLY recommend them.

$5.99 on Amazon.com

I have not made much time for blogging this past week. I've been staying very busy. One of the newest things that keep me busy is my new God given ability to be disciplined enough to exercise!!!!!!! I can't believe it but I'm really doing it. I have been for almost 3 weeks now and I can feel such a difference. I pop in my Kathy Smith interval training DVD and go at it for about 45 minutes and follow it up with some crunches and stretches.

I have been consistant now doing this every other day and I can not tell you how good it feels. I have struggled with this for so long...wanting to exercise but never wanting to get sweaty and lacking the will power to do it. The words at the end of Kathy Smith's video just kept coming back to me "And if you do this workout 3 times a week you'll have the greatest body and FEEL GREAT!"...I kept thinking...oh to feel great....

To not feel worn out and to have energy...what a wonderful thought. So...I chose to trust her and tried to start doing it at least 3 times a week and I FAILED! I was so frustrated with myself. I started asking the Lord to help me because it seemed beyond myself to be disciplined enough...

And He did...I don't know exactly when or how but...wait...yes I do. It just everyday...CHOOSING to do it. Just like everything else in life. WE have to choose to do the right thing. And when I'm sitting there...already hot because of the weather and no air conditioning...I just had to take the steps. I still remember sitting there going "oh God help me get up...I don't want to do it. I don't feel like doing it...and if I do do it and then don't do it again in 2 days then it will have been for nothing..."

I then take a deep breath...try not to think about the fact that in 30 minutes I'm going to be sweating like crazy...walk over to the DVD player...grab the Kathy Smith DVD and stick it in as quickly as I can before I change my mind. I hit play and let myself think that I'm only going to do the first few exercises...The really great thing about this interval training is that it allows me to feel like I can do it. I know that probably sounds funny but you're not pushing through the whole video. It's just in spirts to get your heart rate up and then you slow down to get it back down.

It's supposed to boost your metabolism and it does! My metabolism is officially boosted and I am loosing inches...although I can not report that I have lost any weight. I'm just going to keep going...day by day...and continue to pray that God continues to help me have the discipline.

It feels so good and it's not as hard as I thought it would be to find the time. I just take the 45 minutes during naptime that I would noramlly be doing some form of cleaning or preparing and use it for that and somehow...there is still time for everything!

So! Maybe I'll be able to post some before and after pictures? We'll see. OK...as far as everything else goes. John is doing wonderful in language (ผุคภาษาไทยได) and is almost finished with Module 3 and will be heading up north to Korat to work with a wonderful family up there for a week. Clinton and John will be taking the ministry vehicle (this vehicle can bring the Jesus film anywhere...no electricity needed...has it's own generator) up there.

Tomorrow is Sunday and I can't wait to see all the kids. I have more to write but am really exhausted and it just hit me ever so suddenly. :) Please keep praying for us! We are currently raising money for Josiah's homeschool curriculum that we wish to purchase from Sonlight ($575) and we've received $250 dollars!!!! Isn't that awesome! God is so good!

Please check back to our prayer request page and please pray for Nawng Noon and Candy. They really need our continued prayer...

Thank you for stopping in!

Incredible video...

I wanted to share this video with you guys...You have to wait until the finish...absolutly beautiful....

Woodside Bible Church

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Our Round Table...

Ok guys...for those who have been reading for a long time...You've got to be thinking..."What in the world is all this Wordless Wednesday stuff and a post about her dining table???" Well, I've found a whole new world out there in cyberspace that has thoroughly encouraged me. It's a whole slew of women out there blogging their lives and journey with God.

It has been so encouraging reading the struggles and triumph so many of these women are facing. I also absolutly love that they are always posting! They are always posting because it seems like in cyberspace...everyday of the week is a special day.

Whether it be Menu Plan-it Monday, Tackle it Tuesday or Wordless Wednesday there is always something going on. My hope is that getting involved let's more people know about what God has us doing here and hopefully - doubling or tripling our prayer coverage!!! So, since I only post once or twice a week normally I thought it would be fun to take a little out of each day to really get involved and meet these wonderful women.

So...here there it is. :) Lori over at "Glass Half Full" was curious about what other people do at dinner time and where they eat dinner. So the way it works is that you make a post on your blog about the subject and then you go to her page and put a link up to your site and the fun part is taking the time to see where the other links lead you.

Every night our family joins around our round table to eat. Please do not confuse this round table with the famous one from Camelot...unfortunatly the only serious talk is usually about our new turtle named "Vern" and swords are NOT allowed. To be honest we're usually begging for a moment of silence out of my oldest son who is HIGHLY COMMUNICATIVE. After cooking in the smoldering heat a moment to catch one's breath is required. no air conditioning + gas stove equals = "I'm melting...I'm melting..."

Our little Round Table came to us when we first arrived in Thailand from a family that just moved into a new home that came with a table (yeah Thailand is weird...homes that come with TABLES???...but they don't come with cabinets??? WHY? and no it wasn't a furnished house).

It's a great table except for the fact...no matter how many times we fix that leg it still wobbles. Today my oldest son had our new turtle "Vern" on the table and was shaking it rapidly while screaming (quietly of course) "It's an EARTHQUAKE VERN! EARTHQUAKE....AHHH!!! What are you going to do VERN??? It's an EARTHQUAKE!" I quickly informed him that Vern didn't appreciate his creativness and that he should give Vern 5 minutes to recooperate from the "earthquake". He complied.

Yes...That IS the bathroom in the background there. The idea of having the bathroom right next to our dining table really grossed me out for a while but there have been no problems with it. We just keep a strict "bowl movement" schedule and everything is just fine! NO! I'm just kidding there is no schedule...It's really fine...Oh and there is my beloved Wycliff International cookbook that has brought me into a whole new world of cooking.

I've never been Betty Crocker...I was more like Hamburger Helper Lady...until I moved to the mission field and well, there is no Hamburger Helper to be found. So, we got REAL tired of eating stir fried rice and eggs all the time so we ventured out and came to LOVE the Thai food (which is a miracle because I'm married to an ex-pickiest eater in the whole wide huge world)...but then, well, after 2 1/2 years you just miss AMERICAN FOOD! AHHH!!

So a dear friend of mine let me borrow this book and I haven't given it back! I love it. It tells you how to make everything without calling for things missionaries can't get. It's a heaven send for us and it's really gotten me into cooking. My hubby is REAL happy!! Ok...moving on...

We usually gather together every night here before the sun goes down so we can keep the windows open (and have a breeze). After the sun goes down the windows have to be closed or we are forced into a full on war with the native bugs. My youngest Jude gets the seat of royalty...it's the most expensive item in our kitchen!!! High chairs in Thailand cost a TON!!! But we caught a sale at a store in the city - this baby was normally 9,000 baht but we got it for 3,000 baht. Let me put that into dollars for you: $272 normally and $90 when we bought it.

And that is the cheapest I've ever seen here! My poor flowers are finally dying...my husband brought those home for me about a week ago - they've done wonderful! I put a little bit of sugar in the water and they last days longer. I've got the best husband ever...he also brought me home a very special treat tonight. There is a store here called Swensons.

It's an ice cream shop. It's a very rare and special treat if we go there because it is EXPENSIVE and anyway he brought me home an Ebony and Ivory...which looks a little like this:

Yeah...it was delicious! Anyway, dinner is a very special time for our family. Once we've (me mainly) cooled off...taken a deep breath...and prayed together it is a real blessing. It's really fun watching my son learn table manners too! He still doesn't understand that he can't ask to be excused with his mouth stuffed full of food. He's always ready to go play! :)

Thanks for stopping in!

Wordless Wednesday

Jude and I...isn't he the greatest!!!

PRECIOUS Nawng Fun...!

I know I already posted these once below my last post but they were just too cute. Had to share again on wonderful Wordless Wednesday! Have fun!

A busy Sunday...

Hello Everyone!

FIRST let me say: I am sorry about not having spaces between my paragraphs...can't fix it!! I know it's an eye sore...try to make it through...

Thanks for stopping in to check in on us! I'm having some problems with accessing our main website so I thought I'd spruce up the "OLD" blogger account and put up some pics for old times sake. We are winding down after a long day. John and I have started taking the children to our home for children's church during church on Sunday mornings and it is truly a blessing.

I can't say it's easy teaching in two languages and it is rough sometimes but John and I have really found joy in pouring into these kids lives. John was talking about how you can see it in their faces that they don't have anyone at home who interacts with them. Their faces light up if you show them the littlest bit of attention. They are so adorable...as you can see in the pictures below. Please keep these children in your prayers.

Matt 18:14 In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little
ones should perish."

John also went back to the hospital today to go with Clinton to bring a bible to a guy who they prayed for yesterday. He had been in a motorcycle accident and has tents sticking out of his leg...but as the he heard the gospel he never looked away. John said he looked "gripped". So they came back today to give him a bible.

They were at that muslim hospital praying for people for about 4 hours yesterday. John prayed for a guy with malaria and got bit by a mosquito directly afterward...AHH! Good thing John doesn't live in fear and he trusts God right? HA! Every person in that hospital received a tract and met them face to face.

I was at home helping a dear friend...Candy who is in desperate need of your prayers right now. She has two children - Nathan (boy, 3 yrs) and BrehWah (girl, 7mos.). She is so much pain right now and is leaning on God to do a miracle in her marriage. Please pray for Candy.

Today John and Clinton went to a huge event that was going on in Hat Yai and passed out tracts with one of the churches involved with the Bless Hat Yai project. It was very encouraging because by the time John and Clinton got there (they came late because of the hospital visit) the group had already passed out tracts to everyone!!! Why is this an encouragment you ask??

Because they did it out of their own inititive!!! This is something that the Thai church struggles with...the Thai people are such a laid back people that they rarely do what is "outside of the box". But their hearts were moved and they acted!!! PRAISE GOD! That is what we are here to inspire and bring about. That in the body of Christ that is here...that they would take initiative and reach out to their own people.

We were specifically asked to be apart of the Bless Hat Yai project for that exact reason. To encourage, teach and equip the churches that are involved to evangelize their own areas...to help them catch the vision and burn for the lost.

There has been a lot going on here. We are experiencing persecution on a different level. We are being labeled as "the farangs" in a definitely negative way. When a Thai comes to know the Lord and truely gives their life to God and they start making changes in their lives their families don't know what to think except that "the farangs" are changing them. We are being accused of many things that have no foundation of truth at all and some that do...helping them leave their gods. Please pray for us and our protection.

On a different note...we had a Ngaan Booaht in front of our house yesterday. This is a celebration when a young boy of the family makes a vow and becomes a novice monk for a few days up to a year...they want their sons to do this because if the son does this the mother is allowed into heaven and it helps the family. There is nothing like waking up to a huge band parading infront of your home at 6:30am walking the "novice monks" down your road so they can collect food from you.

Monks usually walk down many roads every morning to receive food and "bless" the people who give it to them. It was very disturbing...while I couldn't understand what they were saying it felt very bad. When I spoke to Che Ann about it and asked why they played the music so early and did that he simply stated "because they are worshipping false gods."

At times I don't know what to feel...sad because of their deception, angry because of their unwillingness to think beyond tradition...or just plain grieved that they live in a culture where they truely believe if a young boy does goes into a monestary, shaves his head, chants some chants, listens to the monks, and goes home in a few days that a whole life time of sin can be washed away forever.

Well, I've definitly typed enough and there are tons of pics for you to veiw! Hope you enjoy! For old times sake...leave me a comment!!! :)

John, Nawng Ga, Nawng, Whewe, Nawng Fun and Josiah taking a short play break to take a pic. Nawng Fun LOVES to see the photo in the camera!!

John out with a team passing out tracts at a big event in Hat Yai.

Jude doing what he's not supposed to do...and he thought he was getting away with it too...

until this moment...Caught in the act....

Nawng Fi and Nawng Fun...

A young man reading a tract that he received. John and a team went out to a big event called Music in the Park and canvased the area with tracts...

The kids playing ball with John...

Nawng Whewe...Yes she is always that cute...

John teaching Nawng Fun how to throw the frisbee...

Jude showin some sweet love to mommy...

Me teaching the kids...

Che Ann leading worship...

Nawng Fun being as cute as can be...

Remember...New Blog...Come check it out...

Hey everyone!

A few of you are still coming here to find out what's going on...but as you can see there have been no new updates. And that's because I've moved our blog to our website. I really love Blogger.com but it was so much fun to create this website and it's given me a lot more freedom.

Please stop by and check it out - we even have a Prayer Needs page so that you can know what to pray for us for...and lots of new pics.

www.dead2sin.com/our_blog

Thanks for stopping in...please keep us in your prayers.

With tons of love from the other side of the world...
Steph

Meet Sam...So you've read about him - well, here's a picture to go with the name. Isn't he a cutie? I don't know who taught all the Thai kids to do this pose but they ALL do it...it's the I'm COOL pose. Please keep praying for Sam and for us also...we need your prayers! All pictures have been brought to you via the kindness of Naomi - she let me borrow her camera to snap a few shots to update you guys! Thanks Naomi! LOVE YOU FUNNY GIRL!
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What a grin!!
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Sam learning the cup game...
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Sam being goofy :)
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John - our rock...
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This is me teaching Clinton and Bang the cup game...ever played it? You tap a nice little ditty on the cup and pass it to the person next to you...until someone goes out. It's fun! They picked it up fast!!
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John joking around with a freshly cooked fish...
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John in a 'full on' laugh - I love my husband!!
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Josiah being his normal cutie pie self!!
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Pii Thak and I with our kids from the Buudthai night market. Most of these kids have been coming to hear about Jesus every Friday night for over a year now.
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This is Ta (pronounced with a hard T - not a t as in Tent but more closer to th in thing), who I have written about before, and her younger brother that she watches over. She has been coming to meet us on Friday nights at the market for about 2 months now. I LOVE THIS GIRL!
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Nawng Bow is one of the young girls that meets us every Friday night to learn about Jesus and have fun!
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Jude Andrew relaxing in the water on Children's Day! It's a huge deal in Thailand and all the kids go out and play. We took the boys to swim for half price = 10 baht a child ($0.29)
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Jude and I ontop of the mountain...What a serious face Jude has!
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One of the many alters...
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An alter to their gods and ancestors...

New website...

Hey guys!

This is a short note to tell you that we have a new website up and running. I'm really excited about it and I've worked very hard on it. If it works out then we will no longer be using the blog...because this website has a blog built into it. So we'll still stay connected...it will just be through this website from now on:

www.dead2sin.com

So...come on by and check it out. Let me know what you think - sign the guest book...Thanks for reading!

Steph

Short update....ok...ok...it's long...I know....

God is so good! I got up this morning with the boys and I thought I left John asleep in the bed. But somewere between shoveling Bananas in to Jude's mouth and going over my to do list in my head I heard a car pull up outside. Then footsteps and then I realized I'm sitting here in my chut nawn (a Thai night gown thing - totally appropriate for anyone I know to see me in but rather embarassing for just meeting people if ya know what I mean). So I do a little dance scraping the last bit of bananas hanging off Baby Jude's mouth while trying to lean to see who it could be at the same time trying to calculate if I could make it to the bedroom without being seen.

As I heard the footsteps draw closer I realized...all hope was lost...I would have to meet this new stranger in my chut nawn - ah well...just another pride killer right? Just went I was embracing the situation with Jude in arms...in walked John and Gene. EHHH??? Confusion and relief came at the same time...John had been out working the taxi and Gene had gone with him. We are currently living with our friends Lisa and Gene and have been for about a week now.

We had to take a break from the daycare setup - it is a wonderful setup for a single person - or a family who had no where else to go (like us)...but there are no windows because it's an attic/apartment and no real kitchen (so I was cooking for a family of 4 off a bunsen burner) unless I wanted to load everything up onto a tray (food, spices, milk or whatever is needed, pans and utinsils) and head down stairs to the daycare stove/kitchen area. That proved to be a very taxing thing and I found myself cooking less and less - an hour meal would end up being 2 1/2 hours...John said he felt like a caged rat...haha...but all in all...when it was time to grab our stuff and head over to Lisa's I was sad that I wouldn't hear the sounds of the children below us and be able to come downstairs and visit with the incredible daycare workers of Liberty Christian Child Care.

But Gene and Lisa's is a much needed blessing and I can NOT tell you HOW MUCH I am enjoying the kitchen. And there is even a backyard for Josiah to play in. So, this is our home until we leave. Lisa is a wonderful hostes...she really makes us feel like she is glad that we are here - dispite the fact that our two boys plus her one girl and her two dogs...and our husbands altogether in one room makes for beautiful chaos. We have to pay attention to the noise level and pray for PATIENCE! :)

OK...the whole point for all that was John walked in after working the taxi last night (John's cousin started a taxi company here in Sherman and uses John everyonce in a while when he is needed)...So...John has the taxi on Monday night to Tuesday afternoon...one of the slowest times for him to have the taxi - so we weren't expecting much but my husband walked in this house this morning with $400!!!!

I could NOT believe it...well, actually I can...God is good and he knows that we are down to $26 dollars to our name and we still havn't purchased our tickets from Bangkok back to Hat Yai nor have we paid fees for incorporation ($25) (we're working on getting incorporated and becoming a 501 c(3) through KingsWay fellowship ($300) so that when you guys give to us it will be tax deductable! :) It sure is confusing and hard work though - it's almost like they want to make it so hard that no one will be able to do it (at least little ol'peons like me) - but God has put some people that are trying to help guide us through. On top of all of that money to buy diapers, gas...ect...ect...

We still do not have our visas in hand because I made one of the most common mistakes when I sent it in...I did everything perfect...checked it like 5 times before putting it in the mail and then I hear from them a few days later that "JOHN" forgot to sign his application. What that interprets to is: I forgot to get John to sign his application. I sometimes sign for him (come on wives...you know you do it too!) but this time since it's such an official thing and all I felt that his real signature was needed. And I forgot to give it to him to sign!!!! AHH!!! I kicked myself around for a couple of days for it..."How did I miss that!?!?!?!!"

So anyway, I sent his SIGNED application off and we should be hearing back from them and/or receiving our visas and passports by the end of the week. I'm excited to have it all taken care of...just one more thing done and out of the way from standing between us and getting back to our home in Thailand. I can not express how ready we are to return. John is beyond ready to be back working in Thailand.

It's such a weird thing: wanting to be somewhere else sooo badly but yet knowing that where you are is to be cherished. I have read a book recently called Hudson Taylor God's Adventurer and it was so awesome to read about his life. He was consumed (for lack of a better word) by "Moving man through God, by prayer" It was wonderful to read about how he purposefully depended on God alone even when there were others to help him. It moved me when I realized that in order for him to get to China it took a 6 month dangerous voyage (he almost died several times) on a boat because there weren't airplanes to zip you from here to there. I was really greatful for the time in which I was born because I tried to imagine communications without computers, email and the internet.

We have 97 people on our mailing list and of those 97 - there are 6-8 people who donate and God provides the rest as needed. I imagine that in order to keep in contact with people you would have only been able to send newletters to those who donated - imagine writing 97 newletters by hand!!! Imagine the time it would consume! NO missionary I know has that kind of time. But instead I can type it (which I can do much faster than writing it) once and have it printed extremely cheap in Thailand (the shipping is another story). I say all this with a willing and open heart to our God and that if/when the time comes that we are called to an area without internet access for a long period of time (John goes out to those places everyday) and live then so be it. I will adjust!

Well, I know I've already written a lot but I wanted to share with you guys a struggle that I was dealing with...being here in America is a tough thing on many levels but on one of those levels is this. A few weeks back my friend pulled up in this gorgeous, beautiful, Hyndai Santa Fe and as she piled out my mouth dropped. I couldn't stop gawking.

I didn't know I had a favorite car until then. I just sat there - Josiah asking to get out of the car - and stared and then this longing rose up within me and my thoughts went something like this: "what a beautiful car...wow...it's so sleak...how nice that must be...good for them...'but you know if you were working here in the states you could have something like that...maybe even better'...but I don't need something like that...'but it sure would make life easier...the kids would fit so nicely in there and we're gonna have another one sometime...'...you could make good money and you are passing it up...you are going to be 60 and you won't have anything to show for your life financially.

I started to feel like I was missing something and this feeling of worry came over me and as I continued to stare at that beautiful car it got worse and worse as I started rationalizing everything we are doing and all the voices of the "wisdom of the world" started to set in. You can't even save money for your children if they need braces or even money for college if they choose to go...no insurance...no collateral building...no interest growing...no investments...there is NO NEST EGG...you won't have retirement saved up...you....you...you...you...and then it hit me and everything was silenced as I uttered these words: "All for King Jesus"

With a smile on my face and a warmth in my heart I got out of the car and went to tell my friend congratulations on the incredible new car. That is what has been hitting me recently and there are some people out there that would say that they are all legitimate thoughts and I would say they are legitimate thoughts for most people but not for us. God has directly set us where we are and we've seen him come through time and time again and he knows our needs. He knows if our children will need braces and he also knows everything and will make due accordingly. I find my peace in this:

Matthew 6:25-34

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^[b]?

28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Thanks for reading guys! It means a lot to know you are out there reading...praying for us and supporting us even when we're not in Thailand. Some think that we don't need your support because we're in the states but I believe that it could possibly be one of the times we need it the most. Thank you for your love. I'll leave you with what God gave me:

Love like there is no tomorrow but yet live with eternity in your eyes....

New return date because of visa situation...

It’s official! We’re not leaving until November 5th…Much to our disappointment we had to move our return date because we must secure a 1 year visa for our whole family BEFORE we leave. Up until 3 days before our return date we thought we were going to be able to leave on Oct. 2nd as planned and apply for one while we are in Thailand but we found out that this could leave us literally stranded in Malaysia at the end of 3 months if it did not go smoothly.

We have to apply for a one year visa and obtain it before we leave the country or risk getting exported after 3 months to some foreign country like Malaysia because we wouldn't have enough money to fly home. The new policies state that you can only remain in Thailand for 3 months on a tourist visa and then you must go out of the country for 3 months.

We were strongly advised to wait and apply for our 1 year visa here in America. We are so ready to return!!! Don't get me wrong - I'm glad to have more time with my family and friends but I was ready...really ready...in everyway...mentally, physically, spiritually...I don't know if I can pull all that readiness together again...naw...I know the Lord will prepare us when it's time. We are soo ready to be back it is incredible but we know that God’s timing is best and we are patiently waiting and ceasing every moment while we are here.

One really awesome thing that I am excited about is that we are hopefully going to be able to go to the F.I.R.E. missions conference in North Carolina in October. As you may or may not know…the team we work with are all missionaries through F.I.R.E. school in NC. We work with 2 families and a single missionary in Thailand – The Stubenrauchs, the Garsees, and Katherine Barry. At this time the Garsee’s have already returned to Thailand from visiting in the states and the Stubenrauchs are now visiting and Katherine is also in the states right now.

God really laid it on Clinton Garsee’s heart to go to the conference after they returned to Thailand but there was no way it could be possible but things started to happen and finances came in and they are going! The Stubenrauch’s and Katherine are already planning to be there. Clinton expressed a strong…strong urge for us to go also but it would have meant us staying an extra month to be able to go (this was before we knew that we would have to stay an extra month anyway) and we have a friend that was coming with us to work for 3 months and we couldn’t stay and let him go by himself for 3 weeks…alone!

So we told Clinton that we would not be coming for those reasons. The next thing we know…our friend changed his mind (which was totally unthinkable and unexpected) and won’t be going…and we had to move our tickets out to obtain our visas anyway…so, I’m just excited to see what is going to happen!

We spoke at Liberty Lighthouse Church again this last Sunday and it was awesome – God really showed up. I just love it when God has the whole service planned out – all throughout the beginning of the service people kept coming up and saying little parts of what I had to say! I just sat back and thought how awesome is it? When God wants something to be said he says it! By the time I got up there…I could feel the presence of God all over me…God had something specific to say. By the end of the service the alter was filled and littered with tears. God is so good!

Some people have expressed an interest in hearing what was said last Sunday and John happened to film it so we’re trying to get it on CD – if you’d like a copy let us know. It’s really weird to me that we’ve been asked to make a CD of it…I’m really no great speaker at all and I definitely don’t have the “art” of speaking down in anyway shape or form…I’m not funny or witty…so…I just speak from my heart…and ask God to use me.

Anyway, please pray for us as we remain here in the states for yet another month. We are staying busy and finding work here and there. The boys are doing wonderful although I can tell Josiah misses Thailand. Thank you so much for reading! May you be blessed!!!

A missionaries worth...

A recent conversation:

P1: Do think you would consider coming back to live in the states?
Steph: No…not unless God showed us that that is where we are supposed to be.
P1: What if you can’t get back in…what if all this trouble is a sign that you’re not supposed to go back?
Steph: Then we would know because God would tell us…
P1: Oh what like a voice or something? (with a hint of sarcasm)
*Frustration sets in*
P1: I mean what have you guys been doing over there anyway? I just don’t know if you have been very effective…I mean I haven’t heard much about what’s going on…

*At this point I’m getting pretty frustrated and having to keep my flesh in line because this is the second time I’ve had this conversation in 2 days…our blog always states what has been gone on and what we do and I have talk to this person specifically many times about the different things going on in Thailand…

It’s one thing for people to ask what’s going on in Thailand because they are genuinely curious and what to know exactly what God is doing there versus asking because they want to make sure that their money is well spent…or convince us that we’re not effective so we should just pack up and retreat…are there thousand people crusades going on? NO…are there 100’s of people who have come to know the Lord that we know of? NO…*

I start to go through everything that comes to mind: Well, there has been over 200,000 tracts put directly into the hands of the Thai people and no telling how many houses have been knocked on…if there is an openness to pray for the sick/preach the gospel/reach out then it is taken. Typically the Jesus film is shown 2 times a week…Constant ministry to our Thai friends directly and through our lives. Pii Saow came to know the Lord through a new Thai believer she met specifically because of seeing our lives.

Pii C came to know the Lord because of a tract that Clinton and John put in his hand. There have been many healings administered directly through John and some indirectly when John taught at the bible school regarding healing and some of the students took the truth and ran with it resulting in a woman being healed of AIDS.

All the while that I’m going through this I feel my stomach churning…I decide not to continue, this person dropped the subject and we moved on…no problems. But yet my heart was pricked about how to measure the effectiveness of a missionary.

Do we wish we could return and say that 100’s or 1,000’s of Thai’s have been saved? WITH ALL OF OUR HEARTS…do you not think that that is what we live for? Is that not what we wake up for every morning in Thailand away from our families and the country we love? Is that not what we sold everything we had for??? We wake up seeking out what we can do to make a difference through every aspect of our lives that day…I, Stephanie, wonder if my husband will come home sometimes because of the Muslim villages that he goes to. We did not come over here for anything less than to change the country and to make an impact in the lives of Thai people for the sake of the gospel in service to our King.

But yet here we are returning to visit our family and friends and we can not report that the desires of our heart have come to fruition but what we can report is that we have served our King in Thailand and we have done all that we have known to do and we will continue on doing anything and everything that our God sets us to do.

We are working in an area that is soiled and overrun by idols and false gods. These people hardly know the name of Jesus much less want to face ridicule for shaming their family by rejecting their tradition/culture and religion…I’ve heard it said many times while I’m here that “it must just be so easy to win people for the Lord in Thailand” and maybe I thought that too before I left…while they are a spiritually hungry people they still do not knock down our doors to be saved people…we labor for their souls.

They are hesitant to the extent that one time while in the village – John told a group of people “Take my hand if you want to be healed…” There was an old man and 3 other men that needed healing. They asked “If your God does heal us then does that mean we have to follow Jesus?” John replied “when he does heal you and you see that our God is real wouldn’t you want to?”

They denied prayer because they did not want to follow Jesus – they even said they believed they would have been healed!!! This is what we face daily…a people that put their very value in saving face before their family and friends…and to believe in Jesus, throw out their idols, forsake their idol worshiping customs is one of the most shameful things they can do.

If our worth for the work we are doing is to be measured by how many souls or healings we have had in the past year and a half then; having only seen from our own personal influence 2 salvations (although through a drama that I wrote and our team performed over 20 people came up in a church to give themselves to the Lord), having prayed for 100’s but only seeing around 25-30 instant healings then we should be sent home.

If the worth of a missionary is determined by how many he can get converted or healed in a certain time frame then William Carey should have gone home after the first 2 years even though it took 7 before he saw any Indian convert. Besides, if we did spend years in Thailand that results in only 2 genuine real believers…are they not worth it???

But the truth is that our worth is measured by one question: did you walk with Jesus and actively seek out what could be done to reach the people of Thailand and take action on it? One thing that is true about what we have done over the past year and a half is that we have made the name of Jesus known throughout a land that otherwise would not have known.

We have ministered through drama, English outreaches, giving away food, personal relationships, passing out over 200,000 tracts, laying on of hands, children’s ministry, helping out in Baan Nam Khem making bricks to rebuild homes, praying for people in hospitals, and going out to the prostitutes.

The other time I had this conversation it was literally said: Well, we just want to know what good your doing if we’re going to be supporting you. (Basically “we just want to know if you are doing enough to earn our support)

My feelings on this are: Please do not support us unless God has laid us on your heart to do so. If people would give because God lead them to then they wouldn’t have to worry if we were “worth” their support because they could trust the fact that God knows and God lead them to give.

Please forgive me if this comes across brash because I do not mean it to. I just want to express my heart about something that has really affected me and made me really question what it means to be a missionary – and a missionaries “worth”.

I believe that it is perfectly fine to find out what the missionaries you are supporting are doing but I believe there is a line where you have to ask yourself “Did God put these people on my heart?” “Are these people going after God and His will to be accomplished where they are working?”

I’ve always considered the blog a place to express what’s going on in our lives…what God is doing…the struggles we face…the joys we experience…this is yet another struggle that we have had to push through. It’s a tough thing to be questioned in your service to God…but I believe it does nothing but make you stand stronger and make sure that you are doing all that God has set you to do.

We need to be able to give an account for our work in Thailand and be accountable to working everyday to win souls for Jesus…but I don’t think it is about huge numbers…although that is our goal…I believe it is about real decisions. I’d rather have 3 real disciples…seeking and living for the Lord than thousands of decisions for Christ that aren’t real.

Thank you to all of you who support us…please know I am happy to answer any questions about what we do and I try to keep the blog as updated and informative as possible but if you ever want to ask about something – please feel free. Thank you for reading!

In limbo...Thaksin...Revolution...

I just wanted to give you guys a quick update - we found a contact at the Thai Consulate that can get us a 1 year visa in 3 days but we have not heard back from him. If we don't hear back from him before Wednesday then we will have to push our dates back. We are trusting God to take care of this situation in whatever way he sees fit - either way we're Thailand bound.

And I also wanted to tell you guys that Prime Minister Thaksin IS the bad guy. We have been seeing a lot of news media coverage that has said that either they didn't know who was the bad guy or they thought it was wrong for the Thai government to be ousting Thaksin and "taking a step back on democracy"...but what do you do when democracy isn't working and there are corrupt people in office controling everything and destroying lives...??? You start a revolution to bring forth change and that is what the Thai military with the backing of the King are doing.

Almost every Thai person I know in Thailand has been wanting Thaksin out of office and there was a big deal about 4 months before we left and he was supposed to be out of office but he's STILL THERE! There were protests and huge rallys and everything...

I spoke with a dear Thai friend of mine over the internet last night and she was excited about what she called the "revolution" and was glad Thaksin was going to be gone.

Please keep us in your prayers as we are 7 days away from returning back to Thailand!! :) I'm so excited! Thank you for reading - please check back often - I am going to be keeping this updated the best I can...

With much love,
Steph

UPDATE - Thai Military attempting to seize control of government

The Thai military is attempting to seize power against Thaksin:

Here are 2 articles talking about what is going on:
Fox News:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,214498,00.html

CNN.com:
CNN.com Article - Click Here

John and I will update when we know more - please pray for whatever is about to happen to happen PEACEFULLY! No Thai bloodshed in Jesus name! Also please pray for our family/team in Thailand...the Garsee's are there and our dear friend/family Micheal Melton...and for everything to work out for our return...

Thank you so much!
Steph

5 bombs went off in Hat Yai - where we live...Visa changes...

5 bombs have been detonated in Hat Yai – where we live. Please read:

There were a series of bomb blasts, totaling 5 explosions, in the southern city of Hat Yai, Thailand during the weekend which appear to have targeted tourists. "There's a concern that now they're targeting tourists or areas frequented by tourists," Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, spokesman for the tourism body, said in a phone interview in Bangkok today. "That's a new development."

Hat Yai, 700 kilometres south of Bangkok, is the largest city in Songkhla province and a major commercial and tourism hub for southern Thailand. Four people were killed and over 100 injured in blasts that ripped through central Hat Yai in Songkhla province on Sept. 16. One Canadian and three Thai nationals died, and 13 foreigners, including Malaysians, an American and a Singaporean were among the injured, he said.

Violence is spilling over to Hat Yai from neighboring Muslim-Majority provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, which border Malaysia and where more than 1,700 people have died in clashes, bombings and revenge killings since January 2004, when the deep South's decades- long separatist struggle turned bloodier.

The government blames most of the deaths on insurgents seeking an independent Islamic state. The area is governed under martial law with extraordinary powers granted to the military. The deep South comprises Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala provinces, where 80 per cent of the population is Muslim, an anomaly in predominantly Buddhist Thailand. The area was an independent Muslim sultanate called Pattani more than 200 years ago.

The last major bombing in Hat Yai occurred on April 3, 2005, when suspected separatists set off bombs at the city's international airport.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
First off: no one that we knew was hurt by the bombs although one of our dear friends was going to go to the movies where one of the bombs went off but he decided not to – Praise GOD! Our friends have told us that the city and the Thai people are very scared and living in fear.

Since hearing about this John and I also learned that the Thai government has decided to change their policies regarding Tourist Visas – which affects us greatly. John and I have been able to stay in Thailand the past year and a half by doing “border runs”. “Border runs” are an extremely common practice in Thailand…the crack down is to stop foreigners from doing business in Thailand who aren’t paying taxes.

When we entered the country we received a 30 day tourist visa and after 30 days we had to go to the Malaysian border – drive through, turn around and go right back into Thailand to receive another 30 day Tourist Visa (stamp in our passport). We have done this every month since we arrived.

The country is changing its policy and we will no longer be able to do this. The change goes into effect October 1st and it states that foreigners may remain in Thailand for no more than 90 days in a six month period. This means that someone who enters Thailand without a tourist visa provided by a consulate or embassy outside of Thailand may not remain in the country any longer than 90 days from the date of the first arrival stamp.

Therefore, if a traveler were to try to spend more than 90 days in Thailand within a six month period, with for example, 3 back to back 30 days visa exemption stamps, then it is believed they would be refused entry and would have to remain outside the country for 90 days before being permitted to re-enter.

We MUST get a 1 year visa at the Thai Embassy here in the United States before we leave – which is in two weeks – October 2nd. If we are unable to do this then we will have to stay in the states until we can meet the requirements to receive a 1 year visa. If we were to go into the country we would find ourselves stranded in Malaysia at the end of 3 months and risk being arrested if we stayed over 3 months. 1 year visas for all of us will cost $125.00 per person – which is a total of $500.

Our only concern is that, as far as we know, to receive a 1 year visa under missionary specs you have to be sent by an agency and have a letter from the sending agency and have a receiving agency in Thailand. We have neither. God is at work and knows all of our needs and we are working on getting a visa ASAP. We have been told about someone who can help us with this…so please be praying that this person is willing and able to help us out with this and the money will be available.

John and I are so ready to get back!!! I am almost completely recuperated and we’re doing our best to prepare for our return…We’re hopefully going to be able to go and visit my family (I’ve never met them) in OK before we return and I am sooo incredibly excited about that. I feel like there is a ticking clock on my shoulder counting down the days and moments till we leave… - so I’m cherishing the moments as they come.

I want to apologize for not keeping the blog more updated and I hope that you will check back more frequently once we return to Thailand because I will resume my weekly posts…ok ok…yeah…they were more like bi-weekly…and monthly a few times. ;) Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers and I’ll keep you updated as we watch as God works yet another miracle in getting us back to Thailand.

Thank you so much for reading!

Philippians 4:7
7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:28
28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

I'll leave you guys with some pics...

My Jude and I...

John snapped this shot while Jude and I were outside enjoying the weather..

Josiah in Grandpa's hat and boots...

The boys in their Thai outfits...

Jude with Grandpa Curry and Nana Dawn

The black stuff on Jude's face is from sucking on Grandpa Curry's steering wheel - Jude loves his grandparents...

Stick Em Up! Josiah playing cowboy!