David & Lila's News letter for Feb. 2012

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
The saying goes for dengue fever that, “It will not kill you but you sure feel like you’re dying!” Why? The reason is because this mosquito-borne illness brings about terrible body aches along with fevers, followed by nausea, loss of appetite, rashes, and a drop in platelets in the body. Dave was the lucky recipient of this fever this month!
There were moments he really felt like he wanted to die, and there were intense moments of spiritual battle where he questioned why he is even here in Thailand. Yet our Lord was gracious, and He reminded us of 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 through a supporter (“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”). He also reminded us through the OMF Daniel Retreat (for language & cultural learners) this past weekend of the vision and calling He has given us for Thailand.
We were physically refreshed yet we were also mentally reminded of the great need for the gospel in Thailand. Dave was reminded of a conversation he had with a Thai lady named Jib during our train ride up to Chiang Mai this past Christmas (they tell us to always look for opportunities to practice your Thai with natives, and what better opportunity than on a train – before the native falls asleep, of course!). Jib, a master’s graduate working as an aviation industry analyst, was delighted to hear that Dave was learning to speak Thai and had taken a real interest in Thailand and the Thai people. She was curious why we were here, which led to a conversation about Christmas and Jesus Christ. For her, she studied about Christianity in a religious studies class in college, yet Christmas was only a celebratory holiday and about hanging out with friends. There was no real understanding that Jesus had come into this world to save people like you and me. Yet the conversation ended amicably, and she wanted to give us her contact information in Bangkok if we ever visited in the future.
We have also had the opportunity to meet some of our Thai neighbors in our neighborhood as well. There is a cheerful old lady named Mae (whom we have had over for a drink of water) as well as another lady named Nam Wan, who has been very friendly towards us. All of these experiences have reminded us that God has surrounded us or allowed us to cross path with people who need to hear the gospel. This is the reason why we are here, and this is the reason why we ask you to partner with us. Thank you for your constant prayers and thank you especially for your recent overwhelming outpouring of love and support during Dave’s ordeal with dengue fever.

Gazing heavenward,
Dave, Lila, Caleb, & Caden