*Rinda's first day in her new home!
Between moving a third family into the Safe House, starting a school, and preparing to return to the states, I've hardly been able to catch my breath this past week.
It has been a beautiful mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration.
Out of danger and into safety
*Greg and *Mina along with their 4 young children had been living in a very dangerous area of town for refugees and asylum seekers. The immigration police had raided their apartment twice in the last 5 months that they had been living there. At the time I met them they were staying in a cheap hotel for fear of being arrested and detained. The difficulty of their situation was greatly magnified by having 4 small children between the ages of 10 years and 11 months.
Only a couple days after checking out the house, the moving truck was packed and we were on the way to get them settled into their new home. Everything went smoothly and the transition was better than I had expected. The children enjoyed having space to run around. The parents enjoyed watching their children play in a clean space without dirt, cockroaches and standing water. Everyone was overjoyed to be safe. Greg told me that one of his daughters had been faithfully praying every day, "God, please give me a new home that is safe for my brother and sisters and mom and dad." God answered her prayer that day.
Opening a school
Within days we realized that something needed to be done about school. Three of the children are school age, and all of the adults need to improve their language skills. One of the men in the house is fluent in English and used to teach, so together we have been putting together 4 curriculums from the materials that we have; children (multiple subjects) and adult beginners, pre-intermediate, and intermediate English. We hope to eventually teach them Thai as well. Right now knowing English will help them to communicate with one another and the people that are helping them.
It has been a beautiful mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration.
Out of danger and into safety
*Greg and *Mina along with their 4 young children had been living in a very dangerous area of town for refugees and asylum seekers. The immigration police had raided their apartment twice in the last 5 months that they had been living there. At the time I met them they were staying in a cheap hotel for fear of being arrested and detained. The difficulty of their situation was greatly magnified by having 4 small children between the ages of 10 years and 11 months.
Only a couple days after checking out the house, the moving truck was packed and we were on the way to get them settled into their new home. Everything went smoothly and the transition was better than I had expected. The children enjoyed having space to run around. The parents enjoyed watching their children play in a clean space without dirt, cockroaches and standing water. Everyone was overjoyed to be safe. Greg told me that one of his daughters had been faithfully praying every day, "God, please give me a new home that is safe for my brother and sisters and mom and dad." God answered her prayer that day.
Opening a school
Within days we realized that something needed to be done about school. Three of the children are school age, and all of the adults need to improve their language skills. One of the men in the house is fluent in English and used to teach, so together we have been putting together 4 curriculums from the materials that we have; children (multiple subjects) and adult beginners, pre-intermediate, and intermediate English. We hope to eventually teach them Thai as well. Right now knowing English will help them to communicate with one another and the people that are helping them.
The nations coming together in one accord
Developing a 3rd Culture Community
I am so proud of all of the families. Prior to moving them into the house we were a little worried about what kind of cultural clashes they would experience. We had no idea if it would be manageable or not. To our surprise and pleasure there have not been any issues. Everyone lives together harmoniously despite the fact that many of them can not communicate beyond simple phrases, hand gestures, and google translate (which doesn't work very well anyways).
They have even gone a step further and begun to meet together for prayer. I had the opportunity to be with them during one of these prayer sessions and it was quite powerful. While nobody could understand each other's language, they all seemed to understand each other.
It is an honor to eat, pray, and hang out with those who have sacrificed everything for the gospel. I learn so much from them every day. And it's the joy of my heart to see them step out of the oppressive labels that have been placed on them and into their identities of loved and cared for children of God.
{By liking, sharing, and re-tweeting you can help bring awareness to the issues of persecution, refugees, and what is being done to help them in Thailand}
I am so proud of all of the families. Prior to moving them into the house we were a little worried about what kind of cultural clashes they would experience. We had no idea if it would be manageable or not. To our surprise and pleasure there have not been any issues. Everyone lives together harmoniously despite the fact that many of them can not communicate beyond simple phrases, hand gestures, and google translate (which doesn't work very well anyways).
They have even gone a step further and begun to meet together for prayer. I had the opportunity to be with them during one of these prayer sessions and it was quite powerful. While nobody could understand each other's language, they all seemed to understand each other.
It is an honor to eat, pray, and hang out with those who have sacrificed everything for the gospel. I learn so much from them every day. And it's the joy of my heart to see them step out of the oppressive labels that have been placed on them and into their identities of loved and cared for children of God.
{By liking, sharing, and re-tweeting you can help bring awareness to the issues of persecution, refugees, and what is being done to help them in Thailand}
RSS Feed