November 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!  I love Thanksgiving as it is a time to reflect on the blessings of God over the past year.  There have been many discouraging events, but through them all, God has proven Himself faithful and good!

Three years ago, during Thanksgiving, several members from our home church, Grace Baptist Church in Panama City, selflessly came to do a week’s worth of concerts in Thailand.  My pastor understood that this was a “plowing” ministry.  They came and performed in several venues in order to give us an opportunity at a later time to follow-up at each location.  I am sure that everyone had a good time, but it is not easy to minister and not see any fruit for your labor.  After three years, God is doing something special!  In one of the elementary schools where they played the chimes concerts, we now have a Thai lady helping to teach/tutor English classes.  There are several children from that school that now faithfully attend church.  A few have made professions of faith.  The university, where another chimes concert was performed, has begun to yield fruit as well.  Their concert opened the opportunity for me (Mike) to teach at the school.  After two years of teaching with nothing even remotely resembling fruit, I have been able to start a Bible study on campus which has been attended by about nine students.  About five have started attending church.  I praise God that after several years, the ministry begun by the faithful chimes choir of Grace Baptist has begun to bear fruit!  Missions in an unreached country like Thailand is challenging and slow moving.  Yet we are not called to save, but to faithfully preach the gospel; the Lord will give the increase!  We are so thankful for the “team” that the Lord has assembled to reach Thailand.  We have you, our faithful prayer partners and supporters, and short term helpers, and soon will add a single lady who will serve with us full time.  Without this “team,” this ministry would be impossible.  Let me encourage each of you that the work of the Lord is not a “get-rich-quick” operation, but a labor of time and love.  God is working, but we often move too quickly to allow Him to work.  Let us not grow weary in well doing.

Floods: Chiang Mai was hit hard by flooding in October. Fortunately our house and church were spared, as well as almost all of our members’ homes.  The floods drained fairly quickly (2-3 days) but moved on to Bangkok and the Central Plains where much devastation has occurred.  We do know that several Independent Baptist church buildings have been completely destroyed, but the information is still very sketchy at this time.   Please continue to pray for the churches in the vicinity of Bangkok.

Prayer Requests: Please pray for the professors Mike works with: Aom, Ying, Noh, and Ann for salvation. Also pray for Mike’s students (fifty students this term) for salvation and spiritual growth.  Pray for the Bible school students: Tom, Matt, Dtom.  Pray for the Sullivant family as they transition to plant a church in Phitsunalok (Pit-San-a-loke), a large city with no Baptist churches of any kind.  Pray for the many Christmas activates planned.  Lastly, please pray for my son, Matthew, as he will be married on January 7^th in Chiang Mai.      We pray God’s blessing on you as you continue to faithfully serve the Lord!

For Christ in Thailand,

Mike & Francis Frederick

BWMOM, Thailand

www.thaimissions.org

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