Deposit Returned!

In order to ‘hold’ the warehouse site we felt was ideal while we investigated all the legalities, we signed a letter of intent with the current renter and placed a significant deposit down for improvements he had made to the property.  Our fear, then, became that he would refuse to return the money even though we had anticipated this possibility in one of the clauses of our agreement.  But when we sat down to talk with him a couple of days ago, we were pleased to find him understanding and agreeable.  Some payment for use of storage space and his loss of time was in order—and before going to see him, we came up with what we felt was reasonable.  When we sat down to talk, that was the exact amount he requested!   

Undone by CHIC

Ruthie and I just put 5 wonderful people on the plane back to Bangkok last night—an advance team of planners and videographers for the CHIC conference to be held this summer (this is a nation-wide gathering of high-schoolers from Covenant churches held every 3 years).  We flew down to Bangkok, met them, and accompanied them to many sites around the city, then Chiang Rai, and Laos.  Why CHIC?  Because two of our Covenant ministries here in Thailand will be the subject of the CHIC project offering this year—our Mekong Valley Project and the Abundant Life Center in Bangkok (Karen and Carl Groot)—and these creative people are concerned that this offering be more than just another “missions moment” in the life of the CHIC week.  Like us, they are concerned that young people catch a vision for the needs in the world around us and a conviction that God has “good works that he has prepared in advance for them to do” (Eph. 2:10)—a way that they can become involved in showing Christ’s love.  Though we are tired, it was a great time of discussion, travel, visiting—the whole of which was very encouraging to us.  Praise God.  And please pray that this project will come together in the minds of planners and video-editors over the next months.  

Where is that place you want us, Lord?

As we said earlier, we thought we had the perfect place for our factory—a large warehouse big enough, with a tall roof at a very reasonable rent.  But when the final word came last Friday from the Office of Industry, we realized how short the time is getting:  We have two families ready to join our work, and two short-term, highly- skilled Christians from the States arriving to help  with the factory lay-out and installation.  But no location and no work for them to do!  Unless God intervenes!  Our Dutch friend and colleague explained the situation to his mother and she counseled, “Remember Jairus’ daughter!  Jesus said, ‘Only believe’,” and the matter was solved.  We are open to whatever God has for us, any location he has for us.  Please pray and believe with us!

God's Sense of Timing

It looks like we may have hit our first road block.  The site for the factory that we sent pictures, we discovered, is just outside of the zone for factories like ours.  Would you pray with us that God would lead us to an even better site?  We have never fully understood the ways of the Lord and one of the most difficult things for us his God’s timing.  It has been our desire to get this factory up and running so that we can submit a bid to World Food Program in March of this year and begin shipping the product in June.  We knew this was a tall order, but we know that we have a God of the “impossible”.

  

So while we don’t understand why this set of circumstances has arisen, here are a few things we are banking on:  Our God is an awesome God and he will provide all our needs according to his riches in glory.  (Philippians 4:19).  Our God is sovereign—that is, according to my dictionary, “Greatest in degree, above all others in character, importance, excellence, etc.”  So we are confident that he will provide us the right site for this factory and that He will provide it at the right time.  Please pray with us that we will wait with faith.  Ruthie. 

Getting Married is a Big Deal!

Wessel is marrying Ut!  And if his marriage is anything like his engagement party, this promises to be another fascinating, cross-cultural event, full of humor and drama.  Ruthie and I were asked if we could stand in for Wessel’s parents as his closest foreign friends.  He also asked our mutual friends, Tongsa and Sipha, to be his Lao parents.  As his representatives, we were tasked with negotiating a reasonable price for the bride he had chosen.  “So, how high are you willing to go, Wessel?” we asked.  “Oh, that’s all been carefully negotiated for me by Ut in talking with her parents.  We’ve all agreed to a price.  But it can’t look that way in the ceremony.”  So, we met ahead of time to plan our strategy in striking the right pose.  “They’ll go high.  You go low—but not too low,” Wessel told us, “then we’ll arrive at a good compromise.” 

And so, when the time came, that’s exactly how it went.  Sipha and I, the stand-in “dads” took turns in the bargaining.  But when Ut’s family suggested a high price, Ruthie, not having been part of the rehearsal, was pinching me and whispering in my ear:  “That’s NOT WHAT WESSEL AGREED TO!”  “Calm your jets.  It’s going to be okay,” I told her.  “Just listen.”  At one point, Tongsa said about Wessel:  “He may look like a rich foreigner, but look how tall and skinny he is!  He can’t have that much money.  He’s a really good deal--our guy really knows how to work!”  And so we brought the price more down to the realm of reality.  And finally we were all in happy agreement.

After that there were a few speeches from the village head man, the parents, and anyone else who was deemed important.  Not having been warned, I was not ready with all of the stories I would have liked to tell on Wessel, but consoled myself with the knowledge I will have another chance before this marriage drama is concluded.  In one concession to Wessel’s western upbringing, there was unanimous agreement that we should witness a kiss on Ut’s rosy cheek.  Once, twice.  Arrgggh!  Stupid lagging digital camera.  “One more time, please, Wessel!”

Now comes the dogged work Wessel and Ut must do to get the official approvals from their respective countries, before their wedding sometime later this year.   Please pray for them as they experience the joys and challenges ahead! 

Christmas with a Big C

Ruthie and I had a wonderful Christmas here in Chiang Rai with our Dutch colleague, Wessel,  and his fiancée, Ut, (from Laos) staying with us.  Yesterday the little inter-tribal church we have been attending was asked to present a program at a local superstore called Big-C and I was asked to speak.  So, given the atmosphere, I opted for a kind of question and answer format—questions like "Is Santa Claus in the Bible?" and “What is the Real Meaning of Christmas.”  Many Thai are crazy about celebrating Christmas, at least in a commercial way, but really don't know much about it's origins and meaning…  It was so wonderful to be able to speak openly about my faith and what Jesus means to me!

Across the Mekong