We left for Thailand May 11th and returned May 22nd for a whirlwind trip. We left two days after I finished my spring classes. As many of you know, I am in a Master’s program to become a licensed teacher for English Language Learners. There is a great demand for this sort of teacher here in the States and around the world.
Going back to Thailand after being a way for two and a half years was exciting and scary all at the same time. However, once we got to Mae Chaem, I felt like I had come home in a strange way that I didn’t expect. Gavin and I have been talking of coming back to Thailand for more than a year now. He was very excited to go back, I was less so. But God has done a work in my heart to make me willing to submit to His will for me one more time. Going back was the final step for me because I realized the peace and joy I feel when I am there. It is like nothing I feel anywhere else. It is very odd to belong so completely to a place and a people who are so different than you.
It was wonderful to see the children again, two and a half years is a very long time in the life of a child. Children who were little ones when I left are now teenagers! There were so many tears and I felt so much regret that I did not get to be a part of helping them grow up these last years. They are so lovely! The new children were shy at first and not used to being hugged and (for the girls) kissed! But they were getting used to it by the end and I think they know that we really love them. It was fun to have little ones. We got a boy who is six years old! He is very cute but not sure how he feels about school and does not understand why he needs to know how to read.
One of the greatest joys for me was seeing one of our boys who recently graduated from Zoe Bible School. He was one of the poorest children we had ever had. He didn’t tell us he didn’t have money for uniforms for school when he came to us more than five years ago. We sent him to school the first day and he was so embarrassed, he ran away and went home which was hours and hours away! His mom brought him back and we got him proper clothes. He had so much rage against the people in his village because they used to call him dog or pig because his family was so poor. He said all he wanted to do was kill someone as a boy. Now he has finished bible school and is going back to his village to start a church. He said God gave him the name of his church. He wants to call it “The Church of Love.” He is a great testimony of how God can change a life from one of anger and hatred to one of unconditional love. I feel so honored to know this wonderful young man.
We interviewed at the high school where our kids attend school. They are interested in hiring Gavin and I to teach English there. I finish my Masters program next spring so hopefully we will begin working there May 2014. The principal said he was 80% sure he wanted us. This is a wonderful opportunity because 80% of the children who go to this school are from the poor mountain villages that surround Mae Chaem. It would be a wonderful opportunity to help these children and be a witness in the Thai community as well. The frustration for me has always been the lack of time to teach the kids English because of their school demands. This would allow me to teach them daily a subject that will make a real difference in their success in life. Please pray for us as we prepare to go back. We need a great increase in finances to enable us to go back.
Thank you for your continued love and support and prayers! Enjoy the newsletter!
Love,
Candace
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