FAITHFUL WITNESS

HOME COMFORTS HELP RYAN SHARE GOSPEL IN THAILAND

BY AMY BAREHAM CHAPMAN

When Ryan arrived to serve in the Faithful Witness team in Ayutthaya, Thailand, last year he lived in a hotel.

While it was sufficient, the Lord heard his desire for a more permanent home.

When Ryan (above with a Thai friend) visited a rental property near his Thai language school and met the owners, a Buddhist husband and wife, he realised this was more than an answer to prayer – it was also an opportunity for relationship.

The couple wanted an English tutor for their daughter; Ryan needed to practise his Thai. The husband enjoyed badminton; Ryan played it regularly. As Ryan chatted with his new landlords about why he was in Thailand, he was able to share briefly about Jesus.

Ryan said, “I’m thankful that not only does the Father hear the needs of his children, but he provides in ways that are more than we could ask or imagine. He didn’t just provide a home, but a home with a family that has not yet heard the good news.”

Since moving in, Ryan has found joy in the rhythms of the sabbath and hosting. Instead of studying scripture in a hotel bed, he now savours reading the Bible at a table with his morning coffee. Ryan also loves to invite mission workers and their families over for games, food, and fellowship.

And then there’s the gift of a kitchen. When Ryan, who has diabetes, lived at the hotel, he ate most of his meals at restaurants. He said, “The diet was drastically different from what I was used to. This home has been another provision in that I can now cook food that is best for my diabetes.”

The definition of home extends beyond walls and a roof. Home is a living, breathing thing – Christ dwelling within, choosing vessels for ministry and the outpouring of his love.

For the five Faithful Witness team members in Thailand, God’s shelter is evident all around. They see him in their answered prayers, their church services, their outreach programmes, and their community excursions.

Of course, they see God in their trials, too. Just the other day, Ryan’s car broke down and began sliding sliding backwards in the middle of city traffic. With minimal language skills to call for help, he prayed in desperation for the Lord to intervene. Together with several bystanders, Ryan managed to push the smoking car to a garage, where it was eventually repaired.

Ryan says: “Up until this point, I was scared of looking incompetent or like a failure. I wanted to be perceived as having this whole transition thing down easy, and that learning the language was going as well as expected. God used this humiliating and defeating moment to teach me it’s okay to not have everything ‘put together.’

“Even better, it’s okay to throw our hands up in the air and laugh at moments like this. I walked away with the reminder the Lord was not looking for a perfectly shaped and prepared missionary to serve him, but one who is totally reliant upon him in all things.”

Ryan and his colleagues are revelling in the new opportunities of a life devoted to ministry. They are forming a vibrant family – a home – of their own in Thailand. And in their fellowship is an invitation for anyone in Thailand to take a seat at Christ’s table.

PLEASE PRAY

• Give thanks to God for the growth of the Ayutthaya team. Pray for their friendships to deepen as they serve together.

• Pray for God to sustain Ryan as he juggles language learning, relationship building, and diabetes.

• Ask God to make Thai hearts and minds receptive to the good news of Jesus.