PIBC Thailand Mission Team

It is finished!

2009-08-04T00:21:00.000-07:00

Here is the team as our Thai friends say goodbye to us at the bus station in Chiang Mai. We will miss our friends and we are thankful for the many blessings that God gave us throughout our seven weeks in Thailand. We are thanksful for all your prayers and support.

On our way home.....

2009-07-29T00:42:00.001-07:00

We have been traveling since noon on July 28th.... We left ChiangMai by bus.. (10 hrs). We rented a van to take us to the airport. We stayed up most of the night and checked into our flight at 2:30AM.... (If you are ever traveling with Micronesians - it seems that people in many countries do not know that Micronesians do not need US Visas..... it slowed us down but they eventually figured it out.) We flew from Bangkok to Tokyo. I was actually able to sleep most of the trip.... This is VERY unusual for me. We will board our flight in Tokyo around 5:30pm local time and arrive in Guam at 2AM on July 3oth.

Maejo University - Chiang Mai

2009-07-17T21:06:00.001-07:00

The team has spent much of our time here hanging out and meeting new friends during our six weeks here. During the Student's Holiday break we took a break to pose near the sign for a picture.

Please pray for the students of Maejo and our team as we finish our work here. A number of the students now have the Swine Flu. Many people wear face masks. Pray for all our health and safety.

A night of Dumplings

2009-07-12T02:15:00.000-07:00

Although most of the people that we meet and have become friends with are Thai, we also met two Chinese ladies who are studying Tourism at Maejo University. They asked to come over and make Dumplings for us. There is a lot of work which goes into chopping and preparing all the ingredients. So many of us got involved in the preparation. We invited some other students and staff and before we knew it we had an impromtu party. It was really a lot of fun.

Phoebe's perfectly beautiful dumpling. (Mine did not look at nice.)

Even "K" helped out.

Rosa show Ceci what to do.

Phoebe cuts the mushrooms.

General Updates

2009-07-07T20:04:00.000-07:00

Here is just some news..... sorry the updates have been slow .... my laptop died and I have had trouble downloading new pictures.

1. Erten had the bandage removed from his hand. It looks good but since he has not used it... it is stiff and he needs to do exercises to get it back to full usage but we have already seen great progress in a couple of days.

2. We have passed the half way mark. In fact I believe we have two and a half weeks left. Time is quickly passing.

3. Today another mission team arrived. They are staying with us. Ladies in one house. Men in another. Up until last week our team stayed in one house together. There will be some adjusting but we are looking forward to getting to know our new friends. They are Korean but the come from California. Another team arrives from China at the beginning of next week.

4. Today we are on holiday. Actually it a Buddhist holiday and schools are closed. We have spent time with the Lord and praying over the last two days and today we have a day off. Hooray!

5. Every one seems to be doing well over all. Continue to pray for unity and homesickness as the time gets longer.

Home of the Cowboys

2009-07-07T19:51:00.000-07:00

As we are in Chiang Mai, most of our time is spent on the campus of Maejo University. Interestingly enough, it is the "Home of the Cowboys". There are cowboys everywhere on campus and "cowboy shirts and hats" in the student store. Apparently the president went to school in Arkansas.

Guam Booth

2009-07-07T19:33:00.000-07:00

One of our projects that we did while in Thailand was a "Guam Booth" we made samples of Guam (and American food) including Chocolate chip cookies, potato salad (Chuukese style), fruit salad, coconut candy, and some kind of Chuukese soup with coconut milk and dough balls.

Kalvin and Pai were serving food to people sitting in the cafeteria.

People looked at many pictures from Guam and the Micronesian islands. Many people have never heard of Guam before.

Meluat shows some students the map of Micronesia.

A sample for you to taste.

A Buddhist Nation

2009-06-28T02:45:00.000-07:00

Thailand is considered a Buddhist nation. From the figures I have heard as much as 95% of the nation considers itself Buddhist. Chiang Mai, where the team is staying, has the second largest number of Buddhist temples in Thailand. It is second only to Bangkok - the capital. This is one of the temples off the famous "Walking Street" market in Chiang Mai.

People leave offerings at the statues of Buddha.

Campus Life

2009-06-28T02:13:00.000-07:00

One of the things we do during each week is to participate in "Campus Life". Once a week the Christians on Maejo University campus get together and spend time playing games, worshiping God and hearing from his word. One of the weeks we did an action song. The first week we only had 6 students but by the second week we had about 14. We really enjoy spending time with the students and the Campus Crusade staff.

Prayer Requests

2009-06-25T04:55:00.000-07:00

Pray for PIBC students to continue to meet new students and build relationships with other students.

Pray for us on Friday night as we will be having a chapel service for students from all Campuses.

Pray for our relationship with the Campus Crusade staff, that we will be able to be a blessing to each other.

Pray that each member of the team that they would grow closer to God during this time. Pray that they would not get discouraged. Pray that God would give us a spirit of Boldness to share with our new friends.

Pray for the health of the team. Right now a few people have cold sores. (from CC Staff) Erten will get his cast off next week.

Pray that we would stay focused on our purpose here.

Pray that we would be patient and loving towards all we work with here.

Pray that God would help us go out of our comfort zone more.

In two weeks we are having "Eternal Friends Camp". Pray we would have the courage to invite our friends and that many would say yes.

Sweet Gifts

2009-06-25T04:37:00.000-07:00

On our second week we were supposed to have a "Guam Booth" with picutres and food from Micronesia. However we had to postpone it until Campus Crusade got permission from the school. Since we had told students about the booth and it wasn't going to happen we made Chocolate chip cookies for them instead.

Meyou really liked the cookies.

Mesikt was a big help in making them.

Meluat, Meyou and Lucy sang to us while we were baking. Our Thai friends really seemed to enjoy the cookies as well.

"Night Markets"

2009-06-25T04:31:00.000-07:00

One of the popular things in Thailand are the night markets. We got an opportunity to go to one the other night on our way to pick up groceries.

Campus Crusade Thailand

2009-06-25T04:16:00.000-07:00

Every week we have two meetings with the staff for Campus Crusade for Christ. We have a staff meeting at the beginning of the week. On Thursdays we have a prayer meeting. Both times are times of worship and prayer.

Maejo University

2009-06-18T20:36:00.000-07:00

Most of the afternoons we spend time at Maejo University meeting people and making friends. Here are some pictures of the campus. This is an outside picnic area we often sit at.
This is inside the dining area on Campus.
Mesikt and Lucy hang out in the picnic area --- dining hall in background.
Scooters and Motorcycles are the main type of transportation here.
Here we are with the statue of the founder of Maejo.

Prayer Update

2009-06-17T21:28:00.001-07:00

Originally our Micronesian booth was scheduled for this week (6/16 & 6/17) - however we then found out we needed to get permission before we could have the booth. So we met with a professor yesterday and have to meet with her again today.

We hope to have the booth now on 6/23 & 6/24.

Pray that many students will come and we would make many more friends.

Welcome Students

2009-06-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

Our timing as we arrived in Thailand was just in time for the start of the summer semester. During our first week here we had a party for the students who are involved with Campus Crusade for Christ on the different campuses. We started the evening with dinner made by Ngon and Lar (with my help).
We had worship and games for the students.

These are two students Nee and Laddie that I met. They don't go to the University that we are working on but they are English majors and I enjoyed meeting them and getting to know them.
Group picture of the Guam team with all the students and staff of Campus Crusade. It was a fun night for all.

Everybody has a Water Buffalo!

2009-06-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

Here are Lucy and Mesikt posing with the water buffalo (also known as Carabao in Guam). They are the mascot at the university, Maejo University, where we are hanging out and meeting students.

Erten Update

2009-06-14T19:09:00.000-07:00

On Friday night we were going to the gym for volleyball and basketball. For some reason Erten didn't see the glass door and walked into it. The door shattered severing the tendons and two veins in his hand. They rushed him to the hospital where he needed surgery. The doctors believe the surgery went well. Erten seems to be doing well over all. He has returned to the house after a two night stay. The doctors expect that he will have full use of his hand after he heals. The doctors, nurses, Kalvin and the Thai Campus Crusade staff took very good care of him. Now he is home and we are all helping. We are praising God for that and that the expenses were only $1000 (approx.). Continue to pray for his recovery. Thank you all who have been praying.

Prayer Requests for Thai Team

2009-06-14T19:01:00.000-07:00

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Pray for….

Health and safety of the team.

Pray for Erten as he recovers from his surgery. Wisdom for his best care. Praise God for that the cost was less than $1000 for his hospital stay and surgery.

Pray that God will meet the financial needs of the team after paying the medical expenses. (Although we feel ok so far… when we are on campus lunch costs us less than 1.00 each for a hot meal…. Which helps.)

Pray that many students will come and be blessed by our “Micronesia Booth” which will be set up on both Tuesday (6/16) and Wednesday (6/17) afternoons on Maejo University campus.

Pray that we would have wisdom in the preparations for our booth.

Pray that many students would consider coming to our “Eternal Friends” overnight camp in a couple of weeks. Pray that the details would be worked out and that it would be blessing for all who attend the weekend.

Pray for the Thai staff of Campus Crusade for Christ. We have really been blessed by their ministry to us so far. Some need to raise more support so that they can continue in the ministry. Pray that God would pour out His blessings on them. Pray especially for those working directly with the team…. Pai, Ngon, Lar, and K.

Pray that we would continue to develop relationships with the friends we met during the first week and that we would continue to meet others.

Pray that we would allow God to direct and lead us as we minister to the people of Thailand.

Meeting with Students - Maejo University

2009-06-10T21:09:00.000-07:00

On our second day after some training from the Campus Crusade staff, we went to the Maejo University to meet and hang out with some of the students. Here are our guys having lunch with one of the Thai staff (on right) and a student who is also part of the ministry.
After lunch the students all walked around campus just to get to meet and know the different students.
Ertin and Meluat work with a student name Knot who is also the brother of one of the campus crusade staff to meet some of the other students on campus.

Getting Settled

2009-06-10T18:43:00.000-07:00

Our first day included a trip to the grocery store to get some basic supplies for our house. We road in a Thai style taxi.
In the evening we had dinner with the local Thai staff. So far it is hard to know what to order because most of the food we don't know and the menu is in Thai. Most times I just say "mai pet" or not spicy and they give me something that I usually enjoy.
In the evening we went to a street market to get fruits and vegetables. The market is located next to this beautiful river.
Meluat is a picture taking fool and I will be sure to upload some of his pictures shortly.
We came back from the market with many fruits that I had never seen before. Not only Beautiful but delicious.

Home Sweet Home

2009-06-09T19:15:00.001-07:00

Here are Lucy and Meyou standing in front of the house in which we will be living during our stay in Thailand.
This is a picture looking down the street.

Arrived Safely in Thailand

2009-06-09T18:56:00.001-07:00

It was an exciting day as we headed off to the airport for Thailand. We were awakened to the sound of thunder. (Although we get much rain we get very little thunder in Guam.) We also were greeted by a beautiful rainbow reminding us that God keeps his promises. What a good reminder for a mission team. Ceci and Mesikt are ready to go as we arrive at the Guam airport.
On the first flight from Guam to Narita airport in Tokyo we all were closely together.
In our long layovers in both the Tokyo and Bangkok airports we had to find many ways to amuse our selves.
Keiny and Meyou hang out as we wait for the airline in Bangkok to open so we can check into our flight to Chiang Mai (our final destination).
Meluat and Mesikt wait for the car of the Campus Crusade staff which will pick us up at the airport. We were totally exhausted as we arrived but after a good night sleep we are feeling a bit better.

Thai Team Departed

2009-06-08T00:20:00.000-07:00

I am writing this blog post from the Narita Airport in Tokyo, Japan. We arrived here safely about 1 pm. Our flight does not board until 6:15pm and then leaves at 7:10. We arrive in Bangkok at 11PM at night. Unfortunately our next flight does not take off until 6:45AM. So it will be an extremely long day for us.

Before we left this morning we woke up to lots of thunder. If you are reading this in the states, you might think.... Big deal.... However it rarely thunders here on Guam. It was very loud and long. As we drove out of the campus we saw a beautiful rainbow. Since we were just in the dry season....rainbows have been more rare than usual. What a wonderful way to start a mission trip with a reminder that God keeps his promies. (See the story of Noah).....

When we got to the airport we heard the loudest thunder yet. In fact it was so loud it shook the building and set off the terrorist alert system with lights flashing and announcements to leave the building immediately......

Until Thailand....

Thai Team Working Hard

2009-05-21T05:27:00.000-07:00

Here is the Thai team. They work hard every morning on campus in exchange for their room and board. Here they take time to pose for a picture.

Preparing for Thailand

2009-05-21T05:15:00.000-07:00

This year the Thailand team is staying on campus until we leave for Thailand on June 8th. Right now we meet every afternoon for 2.5 hours. We practice songs, skits, action songs. We learn about Thailand. We practice giving our testimony and sharing about Jesus. Here the guys practice their actions for an action song.
Here the students practice one of the popular skits that we do at PIBC.

Working Hard for Funds

2009-05-21T05:04:00.000-07:00

On Saturday after classes were over, the Thai team worked really hard helping a local church rake their leaves and power wash their side walks.
Ceci also helped to pull the weeds growing out of the parking lot.
Meyou pauses for a picture.
Erten takes his turn powerwashing as the men do quite a bit of sidewalk all around the church.

All of this work and we still need to come up with about $5000 in the next three weeks. We have a couple more car washes to go. Please continue to pray that God will bring in all the funds we need.

A Taste of Thailand

2009-04-24T22:30:00.000-07:00

The other night we took the Thai team to a local Thai restaurant to sample some of the foods that we would be eating in Thailand. We started with one of the traditional drinks.... "Thai Tea".... a very sweet tea with milk. Ceci and Meyou are pretty excited about the trip. Lydia reads her menu and tries to decide. Lydia was part of last years Thai team and she came along to share some of her experiences with the team.
Many of us ordered different things and then we shared with each other to get a taste of many different foods. It was all delicious. Kalvin kept talking about his pet chicken. Then I found out that "mai pet" is Thai for "not spicy". So in the end I ate "mai pet" chicken.
Lucy poses with the Thai women statue is the posture of the traditional Thai greeting. (Lucy is on the left).
Mesikt, Ertin and Lydia posed with the carved elephant. Lydia shared the story of how she had the opportunity to ride a real elephant in Thailand.
The Thai Theam posing outside the restaurant. This group picture has Ertin who was missing from the original picture.

Meet Ceci

2009-04-24T20:55:00.000-07:00

I am going to try and introduce you to each member of the team over the next couple of weeks. So we will start with Ceci. Ceci is 19. She is a second year student here at PIBC. She is Palauan but she grew up mostly in Yap and Guam. Although she can be can be a bit shy she brings many contributions to the team. She is good in music both singing and playing the guitar. She is also good at performing in skits. She has also has a great sense of humor. God has already done a miracle for her by paying off over 1000 of her tuition. Pray that God would use this experience in her life to give her a greater understanding of God's love and grace.

Another Car Wash for Thailand

2009-04-24T20:45:00.000-07:00

Saturday April 18th, the Thai Team hosted another car wash to raise support for the mission team. Unfortunately the weather wasn't very cooperative --- raining twice during the day.... so it was not our best effort. We did have good fun and good cooperation from the other students and the staff who washed their cars. Here Marcus helps support the Thai team as he cleans the inside of the car.
MayMay and I work on cleaning the windows on this minivan. However most of the day i spent either collecting money or dancing on the street with a sign.
Ertin is always a hard worker and does a good job.

Thai Team Update

2009-04-24T20:37:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately it does not look as if Jaynee will be able to go with the team due to complications with her being a minor. We are all disappointed and a bit sad. She is still being supportive of the team and has handled her disappointment well. She hopes to go next year when she will be 18 - Lord willing.

Currently we have $4200 raised for the trip. We need somewhere in the neighborhood of $20,000 to cover all our expenses.

On May 1st we hope to purchase our tickets so that we will have time to apply for our VISAS. (Takes approximately one month to process.) Two students still have to clear their academic balance.

We still don't have firm dates for our trip. We hope to have this finalized when we purchase our tickets. Right now we are hoping to leave between June 6 - June 10 and return sometime during the last week of July.

Prayer Requests

2009-04-24T20:35:00.000-07:00

Thailand Team Prayer Requests
1. Pray for each of the students. That God would prepare them physically, emotionally, mentally and of course spiritually for the work that he has prepared in advance for them to do.
2. Pray for the students to finish will in their semester and pay off their school balances so that they can still go.
3. Pray that God will be with Kalvin and Melissa as they lead the team and prepare to go themselves.
4. Pray that we would be focused on God and not on ourselves.
5. Pray that God would raise up a sending team to pay for and pray for the work that He is preparing us and sending us to do.
6. Pray that all of those who are part of our support team will have all their needs met that they will be blessed and not be without anything they need because of their faithfulness to the work that you called them to do.
7. Pray especially for the local churches that they would decide to be involved in the work that we should do.
8. Pray that God would let us have a spirit of unity as a team. Pray that He would help us die to self and serve each other as we minister to the people of Thailand and the people in Thailand.
9. Pray for the Campus Crusade staff with whom we will be working and bless and encourage them by our presence and service.
10. Pray that we would know what and how to prepare and take for the ministry that we will be doing.
11. Pray that we will show wisdom and grace as we adjust to the local people, customs, and foods.

Power Team Power Washes for Proceeds

2009-04-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

Last week over break, the Thai team jumped at the opportunity to help power wash the house of one our staff members who plans to paint in the near future. They are always willing to help ---- especially to increase the financial support of the team. Mesikt and Lucy take a break since there was more helpers than equipment.
Keiny and Jaynee work together to get rid of the layers of red dirt and mold and mildew which build up in a tropical climate.
Jaynee gets a shot at using the power washer.
Ertin is the newest member of our team. Last year he worked really hard along side the Thai team to help them raise funds. This year he decided that he wanted to go for himself. We are excited to have him as part of the team.

Thai Team Prepares for Mission

2009-04-11T19:05:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday afternoons, the team spends time preparing for our trip. We are spending time praying, learning about the culture and customs of Thailand, and talking about raising support. Mesikt (on right in photo) was in Thailand with the team last year. She really enjoyed her experience and is looking forward to returning this summer even though she graduates in May. Meluat is from Palau this will be his first year on a mission team.
Lucy and Meyou are never too shy to pose for a picture.
Kalvin is the team's main leader in preparation. He was in Thailand twice as a student and now will return for a third year as an adviser. Knowing Kalvin for the whole time I have been there it is extremely exciting for me to watch Kalvin develop his leadership skills even farther.

Fundraising

2009-03-27T19:04:00.000-07:00

We are counting on God's people to supply the majority of the financial needs for this trip. However, since the students don't have much money of their own, they are willing to do their part in raising funds. Today at the school the students are running a car wash. They have also made themselves available to help people with different projects at their houses. If you would like to join us by supporting us financially email mheck@pibc.edu for more information.
Lucy, Meyou, and Jaynee work hard to clean the cars well.
Meyou cleans the tires.

Meet Jaynee Sam

2009-03-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

Meet Jaynee Sam. She is scheduled to be part of the mission team to Thailand this summer. However she needs your prayers. The problem is that Jaynee (who has been a student here for two years) is only now 17. This makes her a minor. We are currently trying to work out the necessary details so that we can take her out of the country without her parents. This is futher complicated by the fact that her parents are hard to reach as they live in the outer islands of Chuuk.

New Team Member

2009-03-27T18:56:00.000-07:00

Here is our newest team member. Ertin William (on the right - pictured with Keiny Aisek) joined the team within the last week. Even though he missed the deadline, he approached the leaders and asked if he could be added to the team. In the past Ertin has worked hard to help the previous mission teams with fund raisers even though he did not participate in the trips. This year he felt God tugging on his heart to not only help with the fundraising but to participate in the ministry. We are glad to have him as part of the team.

Thailand Trip

2009-03-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

Thailand has a population of over 62 million people. Ninety five percent of the people practice the religion of Buddhism. Only half of a percent of the people are Christians.

For the last two summer, Pacific Islands Bible College sent a team of students to the northern part of Thailand to help share the Gospel of Christ.

In 2007, we sent two teams of 5 people. One team went to partner with Campus Crusade for Christ at Chiang Rai and Mae Fah Luang Universities. They built friendships with the students, led bible studies, organized fellowship nights and shared the Gospel when opportunities arose. The other group focused on teaching ESL in coordination with the Open Mind Project to elementary students in Nong Kwai. They also spent time with the children and taught them about Jesus through music and stories. They also had opportunities to share Christ with their host families and neighbors.

During the second year a team of eight students again partnered with Campus Crusade for Christ. In addition to using activities from the year before, they also added teaching English as a Second Language and sharing about Micronesia to help build relationships with the students. This was very interesting since many people that they meet have never even heard of Micronesia.

This year a team of 8 students and two staff are scheduled to go again to the northern part of Thailand to partner with Campus Crusade for Christ. This year we will spend approximately 8 weeks this summer sharing with the students. However this year the team will focus their work at another university, Chiang Mai University.

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