From Sarah
Dear all, greetings in Jesus name.
Some folk have written and asked how Samuel is progressing. Well I am pleased to report that he is now settling in really well. He has joined a local Thai soccer team and also Scouts. So he has friends with Thais and Westerners alike. Thankyou so much for your prayers, please continue to pray for everyone in the family as this is so important.
Jonathan turns three next month, which is so hard to believe (he is our baby!). he is active and keeps me on my toes, which is great at this time of my life! He is adjusting well to life here.
Daniel is attending an international preschool in the home of a lady literally just around the corner from where we live. I send one of the children to drop off and pick up most days as it takes them about two minutes to walk there. He is enjoying this and is learning Thai as well as English ABC’s. In fact he says the days of the week in Thai with a much better accent than me!!
Rebekah has settled in beautifully. She is thoroughly enjoying her school work and is progressing well in it. She has made a couple of friends and is quite happy with that. She is quick at picking up Thai language skills as well.
Rachel is enjoying her work with Brisbane School of Distance Education. She is a friendly girl and has made friends easily over here. She is also well settled. Rachel enjoyed a visit from a close friend from Brisbane for the last few weeks, as did Christina. The two girls (sisters) were sent over by their parents to visit with us. We had a lovely time with them and it did my girls a lot of good to see someone from ‘back home’.
Christina has just come home from a bible study group (youth) and attends a youth group on Friday nights along with David who helps out with the organization. Christina is also on the task force that has a hand in what the youth get up to each week. She has written a missions report, which I am sure you will enjoy reading.
I am continuing slowly but surely with the Thai language and feeling a bit more confident out there on the street. Please pray for me as I am still finding my feet here, although coping quite well on the outside.
Speaking of prayer… please keep praying for Stewart (Dave’s Uni friend) as he is coming along really well. He has yet to make the final decision for the Lord but is still enquiring. He went into a bookshop and bought two Christian books, one of which is Josh McDowell’s ‘More than a Carpenter’.
A few weeks ago we had a large group of high school students go past our house on the way to the local temple to celebrate a Buddhist festival. I prayed for them as they went, that their eyes would be opened to the deception which they are under and also to the Truth of the Gospel. Of course, quite a few of these youngsters may never have heard the Gospel. On the way back from the temple I gave the children some Thai Christian tracts which we had purchased and said “Lets show them the Truth children”. Have I told you how much the Thais love children? They adore mine and whenever we go out of the door they are there to touch and talk to them, whether it is in simple Thai or in broken English. I do have a couple of blonde haired ones amongst them and that is pretty novel over here! Anyway, when we were giving out these tracts, the children didn’t have to go to the students, they came to them. We gave out all we had that day, which was 200 tracts and I remembered that we had some ‘Jesus’ audio tapes and magazines left over and so we raced into the house and gave out these as well. Please pray that the dear ones that received the Word of God that day would be open to the Truth and that their hearts may have already been prepared to accept him into their lives. I have since found out that a printing company over here, gives away Christian Thai tracts. I went and picked up six boxes the other day and we did a walk down to our local street stalls giving them out as we went. No-one has ever refused to take one and I believe that they will have an impact on the people who read them. Please pray that our lives will speak volumes to these folk as well, as we live with them and talk to them.
Thankyou again for your support and love. The emails and letters are wonderful signs of your caring for us. They mean a lot to us, as we are far from familiar friends and our families. We look forward to sharing more with you in our next newsletter.
Love in Christ
Sarah
MISSION TRIP REPORT (The shortened
version)
From CHRISTINA ANNE
EVANS
When I went on this – my 1st – youth mission trip, I was wondering how the teenagers were going to get along for 10 days straight. I only knew a few of them personally, so I wasn’t aware of their personality’s, behavior, and attitude’s. But by the end of the trip, I’d pretty much figured out everyone!! By working, teaching, fellowshipping, eating and living with each other for 10 days, we all became acquainted .
Not knowing any of the village language – Thai Yai (or Shan) - and hardly knowing Thai,, it was sometimes a bit difficult to communicate with the youth there. But it did help that a few of our youth could speak fluent or good Thai, which everyone in the village spoke and understood!!
Myrrh, a really nice 15yr old Thai girl from Bangkok was our translator, and helped us to learn Christian songs in Thai, to sing on Sunday morning, for the village kids. Those times were fun and interesting. We sung, did a skit, prayed, Myrrh did a Bible Story and then the kids ate snacks outside.
Going to church on Sunday at 10am (after the kids left) in a Ute was interesting. It was in a neighboring village. The downside was that everything had to be translated into 3 languages!! So it basically took 3 times the ‘normal’ time to finish. Even if I and the other youth couldn’t understand some of the songs, we all could tell that these people really loved God and wanted to express that love.
Organizing sports for the school children (and teenagers!!) was really rewarding. As well as having fun, we made friends and worked as a team. English teaching is much needed for all the villagers, who can read it but can’t speak or understand more than “hello”, “goodbye” and our names.
All the people were very kind and helpful. We built them a kitchen near the daycare, since the one in the daycare (where we slept) was tiny. The chaperones were a bit worried about us climbing all over the roof in case someone fell off, so Bobby spoke to his Thai brother in-law and the next morning this group of workmen from the village came and did the roof and stayed for the next week to supervise and instruct us in the building of the walls.
We also worked in the fields, pulling and hoeing weeds for the locals. Some of the youth who could speak Thai, witnessed to the other field workers or owners. Myrrh alone witnessed to 2 people in the fields, after having done a big share of the work. She also went out with a chaperone (Mrs. Stuart-Auzzie) into the village to talk and witness to people. When she had come back, 20 people had been witnessed to!! J
Every night 2 or 3 teenagers would lead the devotions – choosing songs, sharing something (a favorite bible verses or an issue) and sometimes playing a game. After one of the chaperones did a BS (bible study) on a chapter in Eph (spiritual gifts etc) , we separated into small groups to discuss any prayer needs and to pray.
Since then, Bobby (the Belize organizer) and Dad have been up there, and where no –one was a Christian, a man thought to be crazy, was changed and accepted Christ. Now lots of people are asking O (Bobby’s bro in-law) questions about God and healing. More people have watched the “Jesus” video and just recently, they have acquired their own video player. The monks in the “Wat” (temple) on a hill near the village, are getting upset, because in instead of feeding them, the people are going to O’s house to talk about God’s healing power! J
Overall, I think as teenagers we were a positive influence on the villagers there. They appreciated our labor, listened to our songs and bible stories, and some even came with us to church! So wherever you are, try to be a positive influence on those non – Christians who you might meet, and don’t forget to spread the gospel like you’re excited about it – because it is exciting!!! J
Until another time,
Your Sister In
Christ,
Christina.
- - - - - - - - - - From
David,
Hi everyone! Sorry for being a little late with this newsletter. It
seems as though every time I go to write, something brings distraction, but I
trust you will be patient and understanding with us. Thanks to those of
you who have emailed us with news and prayer requests. Thanks also to
those who haven’t emailed us but are praying for us, as we really do covet your
support in prayer. Sarah has written the ‘family report’ for you and
Christina has included her report on the Youth missions trip. Actually,
many of you may not have known that due to a strong prompting from the Lord, and
of course a desire on my part, that I was able to accompany Christina on the 10
day missions trip to a village near the Thai/Burmese border in the North
west.
The village we went to has about 500 people and is made up of mainly Shan, Lahu, and some Thais and Burmese. Most can speak Thai and all the children learn Thai at school. The reason we went to this particular village was to support a Thai missionary and his wife who had recently moved into the village to reach out to the people for Christ. The young man “O” and his wife “Meela” and their two children live in a bamboo hut (which I have spent 2 nights in) and they are (or were) the only Christians in the village. “O” is the brother-in-law of a brother (Bobby from Belize, Central America) who organized the trip. Six adults and nineteen teenagers went to the village where we stayed in a ‘daycare center’. We ate well, worked hard, slept on the concrete floor (on mats) and shared two outdoor toilets and cold showers. Our main purpose was to serve the people by building a kitchen for the daycare center, working in the fields, and teaching English in the school. We were really well received and able to demonstrate Christ’s love through service and some individual encounters with the people throughout the week. Since the trip, many villagers have spoken with “O” and asked questions about Christianity. Over a dozen have viewed the ‘Jesus’ film in their own language which had them riveted to the screen.
Of course there has been some opposition to “O”’s work and the 2 resident monks are not very happy. The people are not strong Buddhists, but are very superstitious and animistic in their beliefs. Several weeks ago a young man who had a reputation of “going crazy” on regular occasions “believed” on the Lord and is being discipled by “O”. Hallelujah!! Pray for this young man as he used to attend the temple regularly and now has no need to which has raised the ire of some. It is early days yet but I truly believe much fruit will come from this work. As for me, my heart was stirred and I have asked the Lord whether he may have our family go to this region to serve Him. I have committed to a once- a- month English teaching weekend with Bobby for the local storeowners to help them with communication with passing tourists, as their village is on the main route. This of course, enables us to support “O” and work and pray with him while further building relationships with the people.
There really are so many “ministry opportunities” over here with so few laborers. However, I have become acutely aware of the need to be directed of the Lord and to be patient, because the foundation must be strong before the building can proceed. As much as I would love to throw my all into a work right now I strongly believe that we need to continue as we are, learning language and about the people. It may not make for exciting newsletters in the short-term but I feel that we will be here for the long haul and so we will (by the grace of God) do whatever it takes to be effective in His work for His glory. Of course, we are involved in helping the local church and doing whatever we can to help any in need. I have been in contact with the prison visitation ministry and may well pursue that. I will finish full-time University in October and at this stage am looking for some part-time paid work, both to have a reason for our visa renewal and to supplement our income as most of our Government support will be gone.
I want to thank those of you who have given financial support and those who have committed themselves to us, both in finance and prayer for the Lords work. We are mindful of our need to be good stewards and also very thankful for provision through the generosity of our friends. Thanks again to those who write to us, as your correspondence has been a tremendous source of encouragement If you have specific questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We are also very interested to hear your news and prayer requests. Allow to me sign off with some of our prayer requests.
1. Clear direction in service for Christ
2. Compassion for those around us
3. Wisdom for family decisions
4. The work in Namgat (“O” and Meela)
5. Continued provision
6 A family vehicle.
Your brother and fellow-servant in Christ.
David
Email: info@evanstribe.org
61 Suthep Soi 4
T. Suthep A. Muang
Chiang Mai 50200
Phone: 0011 66 53 810446
Bank: Details upon request
Don't forget to visit Evans Family on Mission in Thailand web site