God Moments

We just spent the past two weeks touring I-5 between Eugene and Seattle. It was great seeing friends and family that we hadn’t seen in awhile, and it was cool experiencing God’s amazing sense of humor. We had several “God Moments”, but one stands out. (Editor’s note: “God Moments” refers to those times when God shows up in surprising ways).

I had sent out a request via email for folks to talk to their pastor/mission committee/anyone who would listen and ask if there was a chance we could share a bit of the vision God has given us for the people of Thailand. Several responded, among them, my aunt. She had passed our name on to a man I knew from a Bible Study 20+ years ago (Kip), who had passed us on to another gentleman from the Mission Committee of their church (John). They wanted to meet with us on Sunday the 15^th.

On Sunday, we went to this church – Shoreline Community Church in Coos Bay – without my aunt. Now mind you, I haven’t seen Kip in more than 20 years and I’ve never met John. But we trusted that God would do what needed to be done. In this, we weren’t disappointed!

Upon arriving (unannounced), we were given a bulletin. The Scripture for the morning included this passage from Romans 15: “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. Rather, as it is written: ‘Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.’” This is one of Pioneers’ theme verses. We were also given a “Welcome Gift”. It was a DVD talking about the wonders of God’s universe, subtitled in Thai. There was fudge too.

We knew we were in the right place. However, we still didn’t know how we were going to find Kip or John.

After the final song, the pastor stood back up. He started talking about a fund-raising dinner. Then he asked the organizer to come up and talk about it… Kip. Kip spoke for a few minutes, then directed the man that everyone was supposed to pay to stand up… John.

I could almost hear God chuckling.

We received a couple more churches that are supporting us, and more family and friends as well. It was a wonderful trip. For those we were able to see, it was wonderful! For those we missed this time, you haven’t entirely dodged that bullet. But perhaps more than anything else, this two weeks was another chance for God to confirm and affirm that we’re going where we’re supposed to be going. Our hearts are more than ever with the people of Thailand, and our hopes to be there soon remain undimmed.

Thank you all for keeping us in your prayers, and for standing with us as we raise the necessary finances to soon be overseas.