Answered prayer!
Claire and a group of Karen kids
Our trip last week (see previous post) took us to the border of Thailand and Myanmar (Burma). As is the case along many borders around the world, this area feels different from the rest of the country. I was impressed again by the mixing of cultures, police checkpoints, refugee camps, poverty, and the resilience of the people who live in that unstable area.
We spent some time with Karen people who have been forced from their homes by Myanmar's military and their offensive against this people group. In one informal settlement where our friends are working the 15 or so families living there had recently experienced the deaths of several young children. Some of the families had been close to making a decision to follow Jesus when these deaths caused them to reconsider. While we were there another child was sick and we spent time praying for her. After we left we heard that she was not getting better and that the entire settlement was considering moving elsewhere because they had seen or heard a ghost and were afraid that more people would die. A Christian lady and two Christian teenagers whom she is discipling used this opportunity to reach out to them again and share about the freedom from fear that they've found in Jesus. Today I called to find out if there were any new developments and was blessed to hear that the girl has recovered - and that many of the refugees have decided to be baptized this coming Sunday!
Please join us in praying for them - that they would grow in their faith, that they would not become discouraged, that God would continue to protect them physically and spiritually, and that God would use "the least of these" as witnesses of his love and power.
-Tom