Our apologies that this update is arriving a little behind schedule! The last month and a half has been overwhelmingly busy and it is hard to believe June will be our last month in Thailand. However, so many great things have happened we are so excited to get to update you on some of the happenings from our travels and ministry. God has continued to be so faithful to bless our ministry with CCC.

In May, a team of ten American students and one CCC staff member arrived in Thailand for a six-week Summer Project. These students have been joining alongside our STINT team and several Thai national teams on campuses in Chiang Mai to help spread the Gospel to students. Their energy and enthusiasm has been contagious, and Thai students have enjoyed the opportunity to meet new Westerners! We had the privilege of welcoming the Summer Project Team and helping facilitate their orientation into Thai culture, language and ministry. We helped lead several days of orientation in Bangkok, sharing in the team’s first encounters with Thai food, stories of cultural ‘do’s and don’ts’ and guiding them through the ever-exciting Bangkok traffic! It was a blessing to be able to serve their team as they were adjusting to life on this side of the globe, and it has been a great encouragement to spend time with them as well.

After the orientation, our team of STINTers, Summer Project students and Thai students from our campus movements headed to the South of Thailand for a five-day tsunami relief project. The rebuilding process is still ongoing in many areas affected by the devastating tsunami that struck parts of Southern Thailand and other parts of South East Asia in December 2004. Our team traveled to Koh Chang (aka “Elephant Island”) where a Moken village has been slowly restored after losing everything in the wake of the tsunami. Campus Crusade staff and volunteers have aided this village over the last several years by helping to restore their lives with the construction of numerous houses, a church and by digging a freshwater well. As a result of the relief efforts over the last few years, many in this village have come into a personal relationship with Jesus. For all, they are first generation Christians in their families, and it is beautiful to see them now worshipping God together alongside our teams from around the world.

During our week on the island, Jonathan led a team of 12 students and several Moken villagers who constructed a pathway leading from the main village up the hill to the church. The days were long and hot, and everyday we ended up covered in mud, but it was an amazing picture of teamwork and was such a great blessing to serve the villagers in a very tangible way. In the five days on the island, our teams helped to construct a dock, lay a foundation for a new house, improve the water drainage system, and clear pathways for new roads.

The last evening we were on the island we received some sad news. Since the Moken people are fishermen by trade, often the men in this village will take their boats into the dangerous waters of India to dive for valuable black sea worms or eels. Poat, a 20 year old Moken villager, died unexpectedly while he was under the waters of the Indian Ocean. His friends were able to bring his body back to the island so they could observe their cultural traditions. Their tradition is to celebrate a death with loud music and dancing in front of the home all night long. Mike and Judy Christian, two staff members with CCC who have been in Thailand over 20 years and have been instrumental in coordinating tsunami relief projects, were able to be with the family and explain perspectives from the Bible about heaven, eternal life and assurance of salvation. It was very obvious that these new truths were an encouragement to the family. Although our teams had to leave the following morning, we were told that the funeral service took place on a nearby island and that these first-generation Christians were now finding hope in the midst of pain caused by the loss of their fellow brother in Christ. Poat had placed his faith in Jesus as his Savior in the last year as well as many of his other family members. Please continue to pray for Poat’s family as they are experiencing this difficult time of loss. He left behind a wife, who is five-months pregnant, and a two year old child.

Our STINT team and the students who joined us left the island to enter into a new school semester with a renewed perspective on life. It was a tremendous blessing to get to share these experiences with our students and process through life together.

We have been back to Chiang Mai Rajabhat University over the last week, and have two weeks of campus ministry remaining. This time will be filled with commissioning students to live strong for Christ and share their faith with friends and family. We are striving hard and relying on the Holy Spirit to work through our final appointments with students in a significant way.

Thank you for your prayers for us over the months. We are truly blessed to have your encouragement, support and prayers. We hope all is going well for you and your family; you are all in our prayers.

Much Love,
Jonathan & Candice
1 Thessalonians 2:8

Prayer Requests:

• Our key students at Rajabhat would take ownership of the movement on campus and share Christ with their friends and family.
• Our travel and transition back into the U.S. We will be back on July 5!

• Great American Summer Project Team, Amazing time at Tsunami Relief
• Continued encouragement and support from our ministry partners... like You!