This week we’ve reached the half-way mark! It’s been a very busy week. On Wednesday, we started working in the schools. The four white people (David, Melissa, Jamie and I) will be at the Kuhn Wang School teaching English to grades 1-6 for the next 3 weeks. We have one Thai translator with us (which we would be lost and pointless without them). David and I are on a rotating schedule for grades 4-6. The students have memorized phrases like “Hello, how are you? I’m fine. My name is so-and-so” but they have no idea what that means. The first day of 5th grade class, the teacher handed us the English book and said “peace” and he never came back. David and I had Au translate where they were in the book and what they knew already. The teacher does not let them speak English, only copy the paragraphs in the book. They knew the alphabet song, but don’t realize that letters make sounds and can’t remember them. So, after a planning period, David and I will start at the basics (and do what Jamie and Melissa are doing with grades 1-3) and teach the alphabet and phonics for the remainder of the time. Compared to the craziness of China classrooms at the orphanage, the kids were pretty well behaved. We told them to go run around outside for 5 minutes so we could gather our thoughts for class and everyone was back in 30 seconds. Some didn’t even move. The kids are all really cute and they were entertained by the “silly farang” instead of their normal teacher. Everyday we are reading to them (first in English and then translated into Thai) from the Jesus Storybook Bible (http://www.jesusstorybookbible.com). It’s really cool to see the kids around the village now and they shout out “P. David, P. Jen!” (“P.” is the “Mr.” or “Mrs.” before someone’s name and is a sign of respect to someone older) and it is our hope to start to visit with them around their families. Half the kids drive motorcycles and mopeds around town (at 7 and 8 years old). They can barely kick a soccer ball in a goal and they get mopeds to drive around at 40 mph? Yes, really.

An update on the Shan grandmother, Jing, that we prayed for last week: Melissa, Eak, and Well (the Shan couple on our team) went again this week and her wrist was still swollen and her legs were still swollen and the three of them were persuading her to go to the doctor. She showed them all of her medicines (all unlabeled and in plastic baggies) and neither Jing, nor her family knew what they were for. Melissa wanted them to go to the doctor just to straighten out what the meds were and the correct dosage amount since she wasn’t taking any. The family can’t go to the Thai doctor’s office in Chomgtong because they don’t speak Thai, only Shan. They also didn’t have enough money to go pay for the doctor’s visit so they went to the mawpee (witch doctor) instead. Eak and Well went back again to help this family pick flowers and talk with them some more. Please pray for this family: for Jing’s health to improve and that they would be open to receive the Gospel from Eak and Well’s relationship with them.

On Saturday, we hiked up one of the mountains that was in sight of the highest peak in Thailand, Doi Inthanon. It is actually in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains. It was super steep both ways and our team is pooped, but the view from the top was incredible! Even though Clemson lost badly in the Orange Bowl we still represent our Alma-Mater in Thailand. (Over our left shoulder is the highest peak in Thailand).

Pray for sleep and rest for our team as many of us have not been sleeping this week and a lot of us have been sick. Pray for the village of Kuhn-Wang (specifically the church here, that has lost members as people revert to ancestor spirit-worship over New Years). Pray for continued encouragement (our team is doing well), but for our hosts who have been here for approximately 20 years, but have seen little change. They are candidates for a miracle right now. Also, pray for one of our staff members, Bow, who had to leave DTS because her visa ran out and at the bus station someone stole her bag with her passport. So, she can’t stay in Thailand, but needs a miracle to get back to Germany.

Thanks and let us know how you’re doing! Big love, Jen and David