Hi everyone, hope you are all doing well. This month has been stressful, but has ended very nicely. I got covid from one of my students, this is my second time, I had a small fever and lots of mucus, but it really wasn't bad, Calvin and Fang had similar symptoms, but Abby of course gave us a scare, this was her first fever, and we were relieved when she was herself again. The weather has cooled off dramatically as well, and fang has had lots of customers on weekends, and we got the very expensive electric bill paid early. I got a better electric valve installed for the sprinklers on the roof, which will cool the house more, and will reduce the electric bill dramatically. I figure we save 40-50 usd on electricity by shooting 6 dollars of water on the roof every month. The water drains off onto a wall that is lush with vines and moss now, which we like. Lots of very interesting birds have made their home next door recently, not sure if its the water, or the worms from the compost or both, but its nice.
Yesterday a new friend of mine came to visit, he is thai, but has spent 25 years in america, while he was there, he became a christian. He found my paul washer video that me and a few friends had subtitled, and on my website he found out i was in nakhon si thammarat, his hometown, so when he and his wife and children flew here to visit their relatives, they planned to come visit us too, so he told his father that he was going to visit me, and his father being the southern thai, overly playful, far too direct type of guy (like my father in law) said "whats this american's name, maybe i know him" which of course is highly unlikely, but he did know one american, who teaches his granddaughter english, so to both of their supprise, it was me. So God is at work in this families life, and I shared with him for quite a while when he came to visit, how i have been sowing seeds of truth into his neices life. So pray for this family, and pray for my new friend, he is considering returning to nakhon after 25 years in america, and is waiting for the lords direction. I told him that I would be much more comfortable doing a church plant if we have a plurality of elders, especially being a foreigner. So who knows what the Lord is cooking up. If Teen comes back home and says he wants to plant a church at the same time, we are going to have to make it offical, that may be a bit hopeful, but i can dream right? I am planning a trip to bangkok to do all of the paperwork needed for our trip, so that we can begin to look at airfare. Its looking to be quite a deal, but I will be super relieved when my children have u.s. passports, and my wife has a permanent u.s. visa that she can use forevermore. Please keep us in your prayers with regard to our trip. Needs Citizenship declaration and Passports for the kids- 500 dollars for both kids Visa for fang- 265 dollars for a type k immigrant visa (Which is a permanant visa, so the cost will be worth it) Flights 3000 for 3 people 2 ways, Abby will sit on our laps. Thats almost 3800 dollars when you add everything up. And that's assuming we get good prices on airfare. We currently have raised 850 of that. This is not including the regular monthly support I get from a particular supporter, however, when i am finished showing my money for my visa here for my visa extension, then i can use that money from that account for this as well. Currently that amount is 750 dollars, which does help, but I need that money for ministry expenses, and visa extensions, so i can only borrow that money from that account temporarily, but will have to put it back before next year. Basically i can use next years money for this years furlough, but it puts me in a stressful position next year. But after that is included in the amount, i will still need 2200 dollars at least. Every little bit helps, and we've managed to raise quite a bit already, but we still have a ways to go. If you would like to support us, you can send me a private message and I will respond with how you can donate. Thank you. Writing I have continued to work on the childrens books, adding more as I can, i put in the time every day. I have also made strides in illustration methods with the software i am using, which will save time in the end. A friend here shared that missions is a marathon not a sprint, and we should pace ourselves, doing what is needed to stay. I fully agree, and it hit home. I run 3 kilos on monday, wednesday, and friday, mainly for health, but it makes for really awesome prayer and worship time too. Running is a great way to embody the frustration and stress that comes with missions, and then to recognize the great reward, yes, temporary endorfins, but more importantly, my heart and mind are strong, and those tater tots my wife makes me probably won't kill me. Missions, and the christian life in general is the same kind of long term investment, temporary pain, some temporary enjoyments that don't seem worth the pain, but followed by an eternity of joyful returns. If this life now is for me, and afterwards there is nothing, this would never be worth it. But we will receive our reward. We will run painless victory laps on streets of gold. So all that to say, i am keeping it steady now, this is a marathon. I put a little time into the writing, a little into homeschooling, a little into building a workshop, a little into fixing up the house for my mrs., a little into physical fitness, and possibly most importantly, a little time each day into time with my King. I have a bit of wall art in Calvin's bedroom i drew with a piece of chalk before Calvin was born that reflects this concept. Teaching I've organized my students into 3 groups by level, and created new rules for myself on how I will interact with the students in different levels. I will use Thai to explain almost everything in the beginners group for example, and will allow students to use Thai to occasionally talk about the meaning of things, but will teach them how to use english to define words, so that by the time they get to the intermediate group, we can use english as our primary language of communication, and the student isn't completely lost. The last group is Fluency, and it is very satisfying to say that within only a few months, at least one of my students has gone from complete beginner, unable to say much in english at all, to now, i am considering bumping him up to advanced. I really do enjoy teaching, and I enjoy helping to encourage a spirit of creativity and curiosity in each of my students. By the time they disappear, they will not only speak english fluently, but will leave with a basic understanding of the gospel and the human condition, (as well as other things they won't get it school) Making I took my mouse apart and modified it to stop it from clicking when i scroll. I don't recommend trying it at home, if you do, the risk is busting the little clicker off its circuit board when you bend it out to flatten the bump with a pair of pliers, but it worked, and it has already increased the efficiency of my work. That combined with the bible app getting an update that makes mouse scrolling work properly again. I also built a menu stand for fang using a few new techniques, a countersunk bolt with a threaded insert, edge banding, and the legs are actually a branch that split into 3 branches. I sanded it all down and finished it nicely, and it matches the look of the place. It didn't take long to make, so i am getting faster which is important. Conclusion We're working hard to share the truth in a place where it is seldom heard, we are working to provide for ourselves and hopefully others too as we grow. Thank you for standing with us as we move forward together. This weekend our place was swarming with people, and I just thought of all the potential this place has to plant a seed here, and there. Please pray for us, that doors would continue to be opened, and that we would boldly speak, and that they wouldn't freak out and vanish... which happens sometimes, and its bad for business, and its frustrating, its all about balance, and y'all know me, I ain't tickling no ears, ill be honest. Pray for wisdom for me in learning the ropes here, cause i'm still learning.
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AuthorMy name is Kaison, my wife is Kritti, our children are Calvin and Abigail, we are a missionary family living in Nakhon si thammarat Thailand for the longhaul. I want to start blogging regularly but pretty sure the posts will be pretty random about things i think are not being covered at all, or family related updates. So follow along and leave a comment, i love comments, thankyou. Archives
September 2024
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