We are excited about a new ministry project Pastor Somchai and Aun have launched in Thailand. Through the Timothy Project they are receiving young men who are orphans or from poor families. Somchai and Aun are providing housing for the boys at their conference center. Pastor Somchai is helping them through teaching the Bible and training them with various job skills. They begin the day with Bible study and then work around the conference center while also learning various skills and trades.
Aun expressed recently that the work is hard because the boys have challenges including behavioral issues. Their circumstances are hard, and they have not grown up with structure. Please pray for Pastor Somchai and Aun as they invest in the lives of these young men. You can also pray for Poo, Pahn, Nun, and Mek to become faithful servants of the Lord to reach their family and community and to learn the skills necessary to build a life and provide for themselves and their family. One of the boys is 15 and was caught up in a group of friends that encouraged him in negative ways, including drug use and gang membership. Since he has gone to Eden, he has taken an interest in horsemanship and has been consistently working around the property and doing one-on-one Bible study. Please pray for all of these young men as Somchai, Aun, and their staff are investing in them on a daily basis.
Another person Somchai and Aun are serving is a young lady named Beam. Beam is 22 years old and comes from a hard family situation including three siblings and a mother who struggles with drug addition. Beam herself is dealing with depression and unable to hold down work elsewhere. She is being counseled and discipled at Eden Garden as well as being employed there. Sai, Somchai and Aun’s daughter, is working closely with Beam; please pray for her mental and emotional health, as well as spiritual growth and family situation.
Other opportunities our partners in Thailand have had in their communities have been at three different funerals for believers where they have been able to share the Gospel and invite family members to church. Two of these funerals were hosted at Eden Garden while the third was in a Buddist temple. In all three situations, Somchai and Aun have been able to be a witness and encouragement to the families who had recently lost a loved one.They have also been able to disciple a group of Filipino believers who live in Thailand (pictured to the left).
These are several examples of how the Lord is using our partners in Thailand to reach people with the transformational love of Christ!