Molly Cole Going to Panama

This year Molly Cole is going on a mission trip to Panama with Never the Same Missions. She will be leaving July 2nd and returning July 15th of 2012.
While in Panama, she will be performing a mime skit, with the missionaries on her team, called Toymaker and Son. Molly will be performing this skit in poverty-stricken neighborhoods, orphanages, and schools. She will also be washing windows, moving dirt, painting, etc. Please be praying for Molly this summer to make an impact on the lives of the Panama people!

Cinnamon Roll Bake Sale

Mary Yoder's cinnamon roll bake sale was a success! Mary donated a portion of the sale money to LOVE INC. to have them help with people's heating expenses!

Klu Moe

klu moeNovember 10, 2011My student this week is a special young lady named Klu Moe (pronounced Clue Moe). I thought I should write about her soon because she was one of the main reasons I am here. I will get into that later but first I will tell you about why she’s so special. Okay, all of my students are special and I think I might say that about all of them but Klu Moe is really, really special to me. Her English is not as good as some of the other students but she’s coming along. We talk often but usually it’s with very broken language… but even with its brokenness there doesn’t seem to be any trouble communicating. Klu is pretty quiet and somewhat shy, she’ll not be the first to speak out in class but she will still try when I ask her to and she is always paying close attention. I usually notice her repeating my pronunciation to herself while I’m talking so I know that she wants to learn even if she isn’t the most outspoken student. Her name means beautiful daughter and she really is a pretty girl and I’m sure a treasured daughter.Klu Moe is 20 years old and is in her third year at the Bible school. She comes from the same village as Hten Phaw (the first student I featured), which is Tee The Kalo in Karenni State. She has three younger sisters and one younger brother who all live with her mother, grandmother and grandfather in her home town. Her village is very dangerous because the soldiers will often steal their food and money. When she was 15 years old she watched as the Burmese soldiers killed the leader of her village, this instilled a fear in her that you can tell runs very deep. Klu Moe is a very sweet girl who exudes kindness all of the time and I can’t imagine how it must have been to see such violence but I know that the twinkle in her eye disappeared while she was telling me about it and it was disturbing to me. Her dark eyes seemed to get even darker and because of this I changed the subject, I’m sure there were several instances of fear and violence that she can recollect vividly but I couldn’t stand to see the sadness in her face any longer.Klu Moe has a sad personal story that isn’t unique to Burma but I hope that her faith and ability to overcome will encourage you. When Klu Moe was very young her father left her family and went to Thailand. When he left he told them he was going to work for the day and he never returned home. She is not sure why he left but she said that life is very hard for them in Burma and it was hard for him to provide for their family. Because of his absence her mother was very sad and incredibly worried about how they would survive with just her left to support them; for a long time they all hoped he would return. At that time in her village her family was a disgrace because her father was gone so they struggled not only to survive but also with being accepted or respected by others. Klu Moe explained that she was so sad and cried all the time after her father left. She went to Sunday School every week and once her teacher told her that God can do anything and He is very powerful. After hearing this she prayed that she would meet her father one day, if God can do anything he might allow her to see him again. This news also gave her an eagerness to learn more about God and she began to depend on His word and wanted very badly to study theology. She learned of the Bible school from the leaders in her church and was able to come in 2009.A few months ago her prayer was answered. She found out that her father is living in Chiang Mai, Thailand and he was trying to contact her. At first she was very excited and had a hard time believing that she would hear from him after so long but soon her excitement turned to anger. When she first talked to him on the phone she asked him why he would forsake her. He apologized for what he had done and she forgave him for all of the pain that he has caused in her life and eventually he came to the school to meet her. She says that she feels sad that her sisters and brother were not able to see him and she also had to give up a dream that one day her family would be together again and live happily. He has a new life and a new family in Thailand. He is also Buddhist and her prayer now is that one day he will know God and not live as a Buddhist but as a Christian. I think one day she’ll have a hand in helping him learn about God. The picture below is from the day that she met her father two months ago.When she finishes at the Bible school in 2013 she plans to return to her family in Burma. Her church is large with about 300 parishioners but right now they do not have a pastor and she is thinking she might even try to take this role. She also would like to learn more about theology and music, especially the violin and piano.I told you Klu Moe is an important reason why I’m here and that’s because when I was here in January her and I became fast friends. She was usually by my side and although her English was worse at that time I still seemed to understand her. She was the one who asked me several times “English Teacher? English Teacher?” At first I had no idea why she was repeating this all the time but I soon found out that she was asking if that’s why I was there, to be their English teacher? At that time I insistently told her ”no, sorry” but of course you all know that the rest is history.. who would have thought I would really come back to be just that? Maybe Klu Moe. Before I left in January I gave Klu Moe my Bible. I thought it might be a way for her to learn English if she compared her Burmese or Karenni Bible to my English Bible. Maybe it’s working or maybe it’s not, I don’t know. But I do know that she’s putting many miles on it with many Karenni notes and page markers throughout.When I first arrived back to the school in September Klu Moe greeted me with a big sweet grin and exclaimed “my favorite is back!” That was a day I will never forget.Please keep her and her family in your prayers as they will continue to struggle with a difficult life in Burma and as Klu Moe continues to impact the lives of others like she has mine.Jeremiah 29:11 ”For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

Christine Sian felt called to return to Thailand for a year, after our trip there in Jan. 2011, to teach English to the Karreni students. She returned to Thailand Sept 2011. She has decided to feature her students one at a time so that we can better know them. Her first featured student is then phaw, or as we knew her, Matthew. Please read and enjoy getting to know this beautiful girl.

New
post on My Thailand Mission Blog


then phawby ChristineSian



My
first featured student is Then Phaw (pronounced Tay Paw) . I'm starting with
this beautiful lady because she speaks English very well and she understood my
objective by telling their stories to everyone back home. I want to make sure
the students understand exactly what I'm doing before I put anything about them
on the internet and not only does she understand but she'll help me explain this
to all of the other students. Then Phaw also goes by Matthew (just like the
first book in the New Testament) which is the name her grandfather calls her by,
it's also the name that anyone who was with me in January will remember her by,
but her classmates and teachers call her Then Phaw. Her given name was Thaw Paw
(pronounced like it's spelled) and means "new flower" in Karenni. When she
started school she changed her� �name to Then Paw. She is a very outgoing,
ambitious student with a beautiful smile that lights up a room. She has a cute
dimple in her left cheek that shows itself when she's giggling, which like most
of my students is a lot of the time. When Then Phaw laughs she usually tears up
quickly, which is something her and I have in common, she told me that her
laughing and crying are opposites because she doesn't have tears when she is
sad. She loves to joke about my village in America when I ask her about her
village in Burma, this usually gets the tears flowing because she ends up really
amusing herself! Then Phaw is 22 years old and is in her third year at the
Bible School which means she will graduate in March 2013. She is a talented
musician (I will most likely say this about all of my students, but it is true);
she has a beautiful singing voice and she plays the violin, flute, and guitar
well. She also plays a little piano and the drums but doesn't consider herself
very good with those instruments. Music is very important to the school and the
students so they all have a little experience with several instruments, they
really put me to shame.
Then
Paw has a spunky personality, she's very witty and likes to tease her teachers
and her classmates with her clever use of new English words. She often has me
laughing and constantly impresses me with her remarks during class. Today she
told me that one of my thoughts that I was sharing with the students was very
deep. This made me smile. Not because my thought was profound but because she
knew the meaning of deep in the context of intellect, not just as an adjective
for say, a river. If you were here with me you would understand that this is a
small victory and is so encouraging for me to hear.
Then
Phaw has an older brother, a younger brother and younger sister, however her
younger sister passed away two years ago. Her mother also passed away two years
ago, two months before they lost her sister. Both died from illness, her mother
was 39 years old and her sister was only 2 years old. As you can imagine they
don't have access to exemplary health care and even illnesses that seem
non-threatening to us can be deadly to them. She is not sure what sort of
illness killed her sister but she knows that her mother's passing was
contributed to a problem with her heart. So that leaves her father and
brothers who are still living in her hometown in Burma. Her father is a farmer
and her brothers are both students.
Then
Phaw, like all of my students is Karenni, but unlike most of my students her
family still lives in Karenni State. Most of the students' families are living
in Shan State in Burma, which is north of Karenni State. Karenni State is very
dangerous with fighting so many people have relocated farther north where it is
safer. So her small village is a very dangerous place to reside. If the
Burmese soldiers suspect that you are in alliance with the Karenni Army they
will kill you and your family. Then Phaw was telling me that she stayed with
her uncle when she was attending 10th grade and it was common for the Burmese
soldiers to stop and stay in their house as they were traveling. If they did
not receive the soldiers it would be very dangerous as they would become angry
so it was not an option to turn the enemy away.
Then
Paw came to the school just after her mother and sister passed away in 2009. A
person from her church knew about the Bible school and asked her if she would
like to attend. At first it was against her father's wishes because he needed
her to stay and help her family after her mother's passing but eventually he
changed his mind and allowed her to come. The school helps the students pay
the costs to travel to Thailand which is the money they must pay to get past
several check points.
After
Then Phaw is finished at the Bible school she would like to continue studying
theology somewhere else, perhaps overseas. I have encouraged her with this
dream because I know that she is intelligent and ambitious and if given the
chance she will most certainly do well. However, she realizes that her family
cannot afford to send her to school so now she is trusting that God will provide
for her if it's His will. After studying theology she plans to return to her
village to serve her community as a missionary there. She told me that many
people in her village are Animist and do not know Christ.
Then
Phaw's favorite Bible verse is Philippians 4:13 "I can do everything through Him
who gives me strength".
I'd
say He's given her a lot of strength; she's overcome a lot of heartache and
she's a beautiful person inside and out. I wish you could meet her and I know
that this little piece doesn't suffice but hopefully it conveys how highly I
regard this young lady. If you want to help her with her plans after graduation
PLEASE send me a note and that can be arranged.
Thanks
for reading and of course, thanks for the support and prayers.
Love
Christine

These children escaped from Burma's life of murder, rape, forced labor and starvation. Now, safely living in a CCN dormitory, we can educate all 40 children at a cost of $240 for 1-year. Is there anyone willing to help?
Classrooms open this week.

Girls partitioned walls in their dorm (above)

Boys bathroom( below left)

Unfinished kitchen for the orphans (below center)

Orphaned refugees that now have a home (below right)

Inside a dorm (left)

Upper level in dorm (right)

Boy dorm and girls dorm (below center and below left)

During the planning of our Thailand trip in Jan. 2011, the construction team was going to go into Mae La Oon to build housing huts for the orphaned refugee children. There was to be a house for the girls and one for the boys. Our supplies were purchased and delivered, but as we were landing in Chaing Mae, we were informed that we would not be allowed to go to Mae La Oon as fighting had broken out there and our safety could not be guaranteed. The refugees used our supplies and were able to build the housing for the orphans. They did a fabulous job.

We have updated pictures of the kitchen we had started for the Bible school students in Nai Soi in Jan . 2011