THAILAND: The Unreached People Group Next Door

Thailand videoSource: Asia Stories, International Mission Board, January 25, 2015

A number of shacks were empty, and fewer children came to the tarp than in weeks before to play games, listen to a Bible story, and make crafts. During their last visit to this small village in Thailand, the International Mission Board missionaries found out many workers were moving.

But this night was still special. Believers from another migrant worker camp just down the road came to share their testimonies. That camp is where [an] IMB missionary serves. She came to encourage her friends as they shared with the neighboring village—a huge answer to prayer.

“We’ve prayed a long time for believers in our camp to be bold,” said the faithful prayer intercessor. “They haven’t really shared their faith outside of their relatives.”

A young couple invited the missionaries and migrant believers into their home. Stepping gingerly inside the shack, the wooden floors sank under the extra weight of the visitors’ every move. “Than” and his wife were the first believers here and they were excited to see other migrant workers choosing to follow Jesus, just like them.

The visitors invited the couple out to the tarp to hear a Bible story. The wife stayed home with their newborn, but Than came out, as did several other adults, including a few who hadn’t before shown much interest.

The sweet-spirited migrant families are special to [the foreign missionary], a 40-something mother of two from Mississippi. It’s in their camps throughout northern Thailand where she sees the gospel change lives. It’s where disciples are trained to share God’s love in their home country, a place where foreigners cannot go.

The journey to reach this unreached people group began five years ago with a simple prayer—two mothers asking God where he wanted to use their families.

» Read full story and related material focusing on prayer and reaching out to immigrants.

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