01 Mar Easter Mission Project: Ministry Center in Thailand

Our future ministry center in Chiang Rai, Thailand.

Global Ministries is launching a major mission effort in Chiang Rai, the northern-most provincial capital in the once infamous “Golden Triangle.” We will focus on reaching Thai Buddhists. A team of United Brethren missionaries from three countries—the United States, Honduras, and Hong Kong—will begin arriving in 2016.

This year’s annual Easter Offering will help prepare the way. We hope to raise $50,000 to renovate our ministry center in Chiang Rai.

Global Ministries and Hong Kong Conference, together, bought a two-story building in a fast-growing part of Chiang Rai. This will be our base of operations for a number of ministries. The building sits on the corner of a busy street in what would be a middle-class neighborhood. To get anywhere, people in that neighborhood pass our building.

The building was previously owned by a doctor and her family. She works at a nearby hospital, and is very excited about the types of ministry we hope to bring to the neighborhood.

It is a solid building, structurally sound, with a very good roof. However, it has sat empty for a couple years and needs a lot of work. We want to expand the upstairs and turn it into classrooms for teaching English and other subjects. The downstairs will include a large space for group activities. Other major renovations are needed.

• Nearly all windows must be replaced.
• The interior walls are very thin. The exterior walls have no treatment on the inside.
• The decrepit bathroom needs rebuilt.
• The stairway needs repaired.
• A new air conditioning system will be installed (this is very important in that part of the world).
• A new kitchen area is needed.

Nearby are the city’s three major shopping outlets. A few minutes away is the Big C, which is like a full-size Meijer or WalMart. Across from the Big C is a very modern mall, similar to what you would find in North America. Further up the highway is another major store, like a Costco. This is a developing part of the city. In addition, the area is home to many out-of-town temporary workers employed at the malls.

Across from our ministry center is a simple but clean extended stay hotel. Several UBs from Hong Kong stayed there, and intentionally walked to our building at 11pm just to see what it was like. They felt very safe. Many small vendors were still selling their food and other goods. Motorcycles and cars zipped by.

We have a large vision for this building. We will offer language learning in both English and Mandarin Chinese—the two most sought-after languages in Thailand. We will offer activities to engage the surrounding community. We will build caring relationships that open doors to love people and share the Gospel. Others will use the building to reach into the community—visiting teams, local Thai Christians, and partner organizations in the region.

Over time, we are praying for a discipleship multiplication movement to begin among the Thai Buddhists, resulting in new churches being planted.

We United Brethren have just over 20 years of experience in northern Thailand. Three United Brethren churches have been planted among the Akha hill tribes, along the border with Burma, under the leadership of Hong Kong Conference. Chiang Rai is the closest large city. It gives us the opportunity to possibly help people from the mountain churches who come to the city for jobs and education. But it provides an even greater opportunity to spread the Gospel to Thai Buddhists—the least-reached people group in Thailand.

You can donate online to the 2016 Easter Offering. Your financial support would be greatly appreciated.

(Thanks to Google Street View, you can drive down the street right past our building. The building is on the right, just after you begin seeing a silver pickup truck ahead of you on the road.)

09 Feb Canadian Team in Haiti Once Again

The Canadian team standing by the same tree outside the Chevalier church–the same tree where the first Canadian team, in 2002, also had a photo taken. Joan Sider, a regular visitor to Haiti, is on the far right.

It was quite a celebration as the congregation of the Archaie church marched to their new church building on January 31.

Persons from the Archaie congregation made the move into their new building on January 31.

A team from the UB churches in Canada has been in Haiti since the end of January. They have been involved in a variety of ministries, including quilting classes, eye clinics, construction, and children’s ministry. The Canadian churches have sent teams to Haiti every year since 2002.

On January 31, they were in Archaie for the opening service of their new church. The people and guest choir members marched from the old church to the new church, accompanied by a marching band. It was very celebratory. King Street UB church in Chambersburg, Pa., was instrumental in seeing this accomplished.

They distributed dozens of eyeglasses in several locations after doing vision tests, which typically took 20-25 minutes. Joan Sider wrote, “There was one particular man who was thrilled at being able to see so clearly. His face just lit up.”

They went into a school to teach girls who were having their menstrual cycle, and gave out 54 “Day for Girls” kits. Joan wrote, “The girls seemed very interested and appreciative of this gift. It was fun watching them learn how to use each piece of the kit.” Ladies from the UB church in Kitchener, Ontario, made these kits.

At Cayes, they joined a bucket brigade to pass stone for the floor of the new sanctuary.

On February 3, Joan Sider was in a motorcycle mishap while riding with a pastor to the Archambault church, which otherwise required a 15-20 minute walk over rough terrain. She tumbled off the bike, the pastor landed on her leg, and the motorcycle landed atop him. Joan was shaken up and sore, but not badly hurt. A doctor and nurse were handy, so she was well cared for.

February 8 found them in Grande Saline for a full, productive day. They produced four quilts; in a drawing, two men and two women “won” quilts. The Children’s Ministry attracted about 50 children, who were very attentive despite many distractions. About 43 kits were given out in the Day for Girls presentation. The eye clinic gave out 35 pairs of glasses. They gave out ten baby bonnets knitted by a lady from the New Dundee church in Ontario.

They also held the first medical clinic of the trip, working with Haitian doctor Robinson Germain (right), who has ministered alongside them on previous trips. They saw 44 patients, mostly with high blood pressure and women’s issues. There were some issues with malaria, but improved water purification has greatly improved the situation.

The team will return to Canada on Thursday, February 11.

05 Feb Opportunity to Serve Syrian Refugees in Lebanon

Does the thought of working with Syrian refugees interest you or someone you know? ELIC, our partner in the Middle East and Asia, has a few spots left on their teams going to Lebanon this July. We are looking to fill those spots with United Brethren people. Help share an opportunity to impact the lives of refugees through the power of education! Contact the Global Ministries office if you’re interested.