The Time and Weather is for Hua Hin, Thailand where we currently live

Daily Bible Verse

Friday, January 1, 2010

Christmas Presence. . .

In case you are wondering. . .Yes, I do know how to spell. :-)

In the days leading up to Christmas I was so excited. About presents, you might inquire? But the answer would be 'no'. I was excited to see how the Lord's Presence would affect people here in Hua Hin, Thailand where we are currently serving as missionaries.

I heard many people around me talking of gifts they hoped to get, or about the gifts they were giving. But as we approached Christmas my eyes were on THE GIFT, JESUS, and I looked with anticipation as to how that GIFT would be received.

In the weeks before Christmas, Bill and I received and saw many others receive Christmas Presence.

Several weeks before Christmas, a woman at church came up to me and said that she did not feel that she has ever really embraced the Lord as her Savior. She said that although she had been going to church for years, she felt that she had a huge hole in her heart. She said that she sensed something different about me and wanted to talk with me about her lack of faith. She and another woman decided to come to our home to talk and for prayer. The Lord was so faithful in giving her HIS Christmas Presence. The Lord gave me just the right words, to speak into her heart. She gave her life to Christ and we hugged and cried. Praise God for Christmas Presence!

Then there was the Youth Group Christmas Presence. The Youth Group baked hundreds of cookies to be used as part of our outreach. It was so great to see the care and concern the youth put into making and baking the cookies. We went caroling at a local hospital and open air restaurants around town giving out cookies, tracts and information about our church services. The youth did such a wonderful job.

The Youth Group also packed backpacks with school supplies, food and toiletries to give to needy mountain children. We prayed over the backpacks and for each of the children that would receive them. We drove a little over an hour to meet the children and give out the 78 backpacks. As we got in the truck to head home, the youth said that we had to come back, and we started talking about what we could do for them next time.

Bill and I walked and walked and walked, around neighborhoods and along the beach (hey, somebody had to do it ;-) ) giving out information about our Christmas Eve service, Prayer Time and Bible Studies. We distributed over 500 hundred fliers throughout the area.

Another Christmas Presence occurred on the beach. We were walking down the beach with fliers in hand, when a young Thai woman said “Hello”. We stopped to speak with her, and she opened her heart saying that she was sad and feeling depressed. We spoke for quite a while and then we prayed with her, leaving her with a flier. I am still praying that she will come to church, because you see, she was depressed that she could not find a job and I found someone at church who thought they could hire her. I am hoping that as the Lord continues to work on her heart, she will find the courage to come to church. I believe she will be blessed in many ways.

On Christmas Eve we had a church service followed by a time of fellowship. The Pastor invited people to stand and say Merry Christmas in their native tongue. It turned out that we had people from 15 nations attending the church service. People stayed around for quite a while talking and munching on cake. Bill and I had gotten two cakes from a local bakery. One said Merry Christmas, and the other said Happy Birthday Jesus. It was such a blessing to fellowship with other believers from around the world.

Thank you Jesus. . .for Your Christmas Presence. I look forward to seeing them throughout the year!

Praise God and thank You Jesus!

“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." Matthew 1:23

“Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.
Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.
Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.
Look to the LORD and his strength;
seek his face always.”
Psalm 105

By April

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