Like Caleb and Joshua walking around Canaan, Nehemiah riding around Jerusalem on horseback and Paul exploring the city streets of Athens, I recently took a trip to Surat Thani to survey the southern Thai capital city of Surat Thani province. I wanted to get a grasp of what needs, opportunities and challenges existed that would likely influence our future mission work there.

Shannon and our two youngest girls had already flown to the States to attend the funeral service of Shannon’s dear grandmother, so I was obliged to fly south alone. Yet as I walked out of the baggage claim area and into the arrival hall, I was immediately and warmly welcomed by our future partners, Brian and Duang Wilson, their student missionary, Jeffrey, and a southern Thai man named Amnart who helps the Wilsons with their translation and editing work.  

They took me to a local street market in their town, where we bought vegetarian food to eat in Jeffrey and Amnart’s small storefront home. The next day, the Wilsons took me to rent a motorcycle, which I used to explore the city and several surrounding villages. I was delighted to meet many kind and helpful people who were not at all outwardly prejudiced against me as a foreign missionary but were welcoming and even willing to help me look for rental houses in their villages and subdivisions. I have a good feeling and a strong conviction that God has many people in that city, too!  

 A small Filipino SDA Caregroup already meets in a little storefront house in the city’s center. This group has five Filipino adults and two Filipino children who regularly attend. I was impressed to learn that two of them travel on a public bus for three hours every Friday to worship with other SDA believers on Sabbath. They sleep on the floor for two nights and return to their province and workplace every Sunday morning. Talk about commitment to worship and fellowship! How many of us would make gathering for worship such a high priority as to travel that far and camp out on the church floor every weekend?   

 I believe God honors and blesses such commitment! And yet, after five years of gathering, there are still no local SDA Thai members in this city whose Southern Thai population is more numerous than in our current city of Khon Kaen. These Filipino brothers and sisters are pleading, “Come over here and help us!”

After surveying the city and meeting many people, both believers and Buddhists alike, I can say that God has placed a strong desire in my heart to help make Him known in Surat Thani. Would you prayerfully consider helping us to help them to know Jesus, too?

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