June 2023 newsletter

Summer Greetings from Thailand! 

Greetings from Thailand. I hope you all are doing well and enjoying the summer months. May you find our newsletter encouraging and informative. Lately I have been thinking on the words of Paul in Ephesians 3:17: “that you, being rooted and grounded in love…” (ESV). Our lives in Christ have an element of depth and quality to them that should not be disregarded. Especially during times of the unexpected events that occur. Whether it be medical, financial, or relational, things happen, and if not handled well can take a toll on us. We must never forget to look outward to his written Word, which points us to look inward to the indwelling Word. When we look inward, we are reminded of the inward work of the Spirit in our lives where God has planted the seed of divine love into our hearts. Therefore our responses to the unexpected events can and should flow from a life that is rooted and grounded in love. "For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out his good purpose" (Phil 4:13 HCSB). Allow the unexpected to bring out the light, so that all may see and glorify the God who lives. 

Serving Siam Conference + Isaan School Outreach 

At the beginning of June, we attended the second annual Serving Siam meeting in Chiang Mai. This is a group that my friends and I started with the purpose of coming together to resource and build up the church in Thailand with sound gospel centered materials and trainings. This meeting was then followed by a two-day seminar put on by Saphan Siam, which is a new foundation in Bangkok. What made this conference extra special was that Rodney, Deanna, Hannah, and Aliyah Zedicher from Ephraim Church of the Bible were able to come and help serve the kids’ program during the conference, which was a huge blessing. Our own 3 kiddos had a blast! The Zedichers were able to return to Chiang Rai with us and assist with a small school English outreach in the Rong Waay community. This is an Isaan community that we have been targeting to do long term work in. We were also able to meet with the head of school afterwards and are thankful bridges are being built. Thank you Zedichers for your help and being able to “roll with it” (even in the scorching heat!). 

Family News 

Kids: Moriah and Isobel finished their school year well. Jenn is doing summer school with the kids and enjoying some Bible study time with them. We've finished our "birthday season" and now have a 5, 8 and 12 year old! In August, the kids will start 7th grade, 2nd grade and Kindergarten. Time is flying. Jenn's health: Before the conference in June, Jenn had a mole biopsy done and the pathology revealed that it was stage 1 melanoma. She then had local wide excision surgery and that removed the cancer from the area. She will be doing follow up every 3 months with the doctor in Chiang Mai (3 hours away). We are thankful for the medical services and the support of praying friends while we awaited more pathology results. Also for our nurse neighbor Colleen who took out her stitches post wide excision. 

Prayer: -Wisdom and open doors to start work in Rong Waay. -Enjoyable family time during the kids' summer break (we've encountered multiple sicknesses so far!) -Wisdom and unity for The Way Foundation leadership team -That melanoma will not return to Jenn's body. 

Praises: -English outreach in the Rong Waay community. -Bill and Terri Gunderson (Jenn's parents) will be visiting us the end of June. -Opportunities to teach and preach the gospel. 

Thank you for your partnership in the Gospel in Thailand! 

Jason and Jenn Byers

End of Year Newsletter 2022- Byers Returning to Thailand

 “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”

Philippians 2:3 (ESV)

Greetings from SNOWY UTAH!

It is so fun to be writing this letter from this side of the pond. We hope this letter finds you well.

The Glory of Christ Among the Nations...

To say the least, living and working overseas these days has its unique challenges. Challenges with traveling due to different COVID policies that each country has, constant visa and work permit hassles, seasons of much packing and unpacking, saying many hellos and goodbyes all come in this package of living overseas. However, amid these challenges the posture and attitude of our hearts can remain constant. As we journey along in this changing world and culture, the humility we have in our hearts can shine bright. Doing nothing from selfish ambition and counting others more significant than ourselves not only is a peaceful way of living, but a way which reflects Christ to others, regardless of what nation we are in.

Home/USA Visit

We have been back to the US since the latter part of August. It has been great spending time with family, friends, introducing American football to the kids, and watching the leaves change color. However, there has been some frustration due to sickness which has cycled through our family, hindering us from getting to see some of our friends and partners in ministry.

Returning Back on November 30:

It’s hard to believe that we will be packing up and heading back to Thailand during the end of November. We are excited for what the Lord has for us during this 4th term of service. We plan to:

1.) Do more Biblical counseling training with Overseas Instruction in Counseling (OIC). The OIC training is a great way to help equip local believers to disciple one another with the power of the gospel.

2.) Bible Training with The Way Foundation. The Way Foundation is who we primarily work with in Thailand. They do various projects that help fulfill the mission of making disciples by way of kid’s ministries, wholistic community development projects, Bible teaching programs, and encouraging/providing trainings for Lahu pastors/evangelist so they can grow in ministry skills and understanding of what the Gospel is. It has been a blessing to be a part of the work and getting to know the individuals who make up The Way. Please lift this Foundation up before the Lord, that He would cause our hearts to burn for His glory alone!

3.) Continue to connect with Isaan communities. Why do we continue to strive to connect with the Isaan in Chiang Rai? Well, there is not a lot who stand as witnesses of his Grace among this unreached group; and that is why we continue. The idea is to continue to locate and engage Isaan communities with some of our Lahu colleagues, casting a vision for Lahu Christians to move across ethnic boundaries with the glory of the gospel of His grace for sinners.

We wish you all a HAPPY THANKSGIVING! We are thankful for you!

The Byers family

Jason, Jenn, Moriah, Isobel & Titus

September 2022 update (In the USA!)

Dear friends and family,

We arrived in America on August 23! We spent 2 weeks in Park City, Utah (Jason’s hometown) and then 10 days in Southern California (Jenn’s neck of the woods). We’ve been a little MIA as all members of the family have experienced sickness over the last 3.5 weeks. Though it has limited our ability to meet with several of our supporters (super disappointing), we have had some quality time with both the Byers and Gunderson families. We’ve also been able to have some fun along the way!

Reverse culture shock: Many missionaries experience reverse culture shock when they return to their passport countries. We feel that this has been moderate this time around for us parents. It’s been fun to introduce our kids to “American things” and places. Have you ever tried “fry sauce” in Utah? It’s good!

Praise: Jason and Jenn received new Utah driver’s licenses. We thought the process might be tedious, but it was quite simple (besides almost falling asleep during the open book written test!)

Prayer:

1. Please pray that our family completely heals up.

2. Please pray for homeschooling and that we could get in a healthy rhythm, even in our unique situation.

3. Our rented house in Thailand flooded a week after we came to America. The house needs some intense repair and our landlady is having a hard time finding someone who will fix it. Please pray that the house can be fixed before we return, or that we can find a suitable place to move to when we get back.

4. Support level: We are roughly at 57.5% of our support level. Please pray we can increase our support  level while we are back in the States!  

We are now driving back to Ephraim/Manti, Utah where we will be based for the next 2 months. We will resume homeschool, visit our supporting churches on the weekends and will be making a big trip back to Missouri in October. We will send a separate email with all the churches that we will be visiting soon. We would love if you could come to one of those services!

Blessings,

-Jenn & Jason 

August 2022 update

 “According to the revelation of the
mystery that was kept secret for
long ages but has now been
disclosed and through the prophetic
writings has been made known to all
nations, according to the command
of the eternal God, to bring about
the obedience of faith.”
Romans 16:25-26 (ESV)

Greetings from rainy season in Thailand!

We are thankful that you take the time to read our newsletters and hope you are staying encouraged in the Lord.

Faith...

“The obedience of faith.” Amid the perpetual waves of mission strategies, methodologies, and everyday life, this phrase can get pushed out of its proper place and carried to the shorelines, becoming nothing more than a foggy memory of once was. Was this phrase just for the early apostles to use as their driving ambition to take the gospel further and deeper? Is this phrase still valued by missionaries today? Is it still the driving force that is used to push the modern church into simpler methods, deeper discipleship, and innovative strategies that will send the gospel to the uncommon and uncomfortable places of the world? This phrase, although can be forgotten amid all the noise, is still the primary focus by some and is being rediscovered by many. What kind of faith is obedient faith? It’s a weak mustard seed faith, that rests in the complete work of Christ on the behalf of sinners.

“A weak imperfect faith that is connected to the perfect One makes imperfect faith
perfect” (Horatius Bonar).

The obedience of faith among the nations is still the goal.

Family, Ministry & Degree Update:

Our family had Covid in May, so we had to cancel our trip back to Isaan/Kalasin. That was a real disappointment but the Lord knows. We hope to go next summer. In June, we joined new and old colleagues at the Serving Siam conference in Bangkok. It felt like a missionary family reunion! Then we headed down to a missionary guest house at the beach. Old friends joined us and our family had a blast. What a huge blessing!

In the beginning of July, Jason submitted his last graduate assignment for his MA in Pastoral Counseling. The family is very excited to be able to close this chapter and see how the Lord can use us to move further and deeper with the gospel among the peoples of Southeast Asia. However, the pace of life post-graduation has not slowed down! Jason has been able to do various trainings in Biblical counseling, Discipleship for Development (a program connected to The Way Foundation), and translate documents for the foundation. Jenn has been full on with family/ministry budgeting, logistics for our time in the States, and homeschooling fulltime this summer.

USA Trip:

We will land in the US on August 23! We will be back a short 3 months. Our time will be a mix of reconnecting with family that we haven’t seen in the last 3 1⁄2 years, speaking at churches, visiting with supporters, and homeschooling. We will be based in Manti, Utah, not far from Ephraim Church of the Bible. If you would like us to share at your church gathering or small group, please let us know and we will try to make that work. We hope we can see you!

Thank you for all your kindness and grace to our family—we are grateful for each one of you.

Sincerely,

The Byers family

(Jason, Jenn, Moriah, Isobel & Titus)

Prayer Requests:
-Safety during our travels to and in the US.

-New Utah driver’s licenses (both are
expired!)

-Fundraising, we need to significantly
increase our monthly/yearly support level

-That the gospel would take root in the
hearts of the Isaan peoples living in Chiang
Rai.

-That the gospel would take root in the
churches in Chiang Rai.

USA 2022!

 Greetings from Thailand! 

We are so happy to announce that we are heading to America THIS August 2022! We will be back for 3 months. By the time we come back, it will have been 3.5 years since we've touched American soil and seen most of of our family members. Since we left we've gained a new sister-in-law and two new nieces! 

We look forward to reconnecting with our families, sending churches and supporters. With our friends being spread out all over the USA, the short amount of time and homeschooling, we know it's not likely that we can see everyone. But we truly wish we could see all of you! 

We feel we have been patient in our waiting to come back, but now seems to be the most opportune time. Thailand has been a difficult country to enter back into with all of its requirements (especially financial requirements) revolving around Covid. It seems that by the time we return, the requirements should be significantly less than what they have been. That being said, coming to the States is a huge financial burden for us. We need to raise about $9,500.00 for our return. Would you ask the Lord if He's leading you to help cover these funds? Your donations will help towards our airfare, rent, car rental/insurance, travel/lodging within the country, visa exit stamps, etc. We are hoping to find a couple to sublet our house while we are gone, but our rent in Thailand is pretty low so it wouldn't cover much. 

We thank you for your continued care, support and prayers for us as we've carried on here the last 8 years. 

Thank you for your partnership in the Gospel! 

In Christ, Jason, Jenn, Moriah, Isobel & Titus

Mango Season - March 2022

Greetings from Thailand! 

We are almost at the hottest time of the year. Instead of "Hot Season" we've always liked to call it "Mango Season" as that just sounds more delicious (and not so miserable!). We hope this update finds you and your loved ones well and finding your strength always in Him. 

Family News... International School/School openings Now on an American school schedule, we only have 6 weeks left until summer break! We are so thankful that it was possible for our girls to attend this year. Do you have a teaching/education background? Interest in missions? Any interest in moving to Thailand to make an impact in students' lives for a season of your life? The girls' school, Chiang Rai International Christian School (CRICS) is looking for teachers for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year. Please let us know if you have any questions! Here is CRICS website: https://crics.asia/

Ministry Update Counseling internship/Ministry with The Way Foundation- update from Jason 

Jason’s internship has been going well. He has been able to take on some counseling cases and started assisting in a monthly biblical counseling training for local believers. After the completion of the internship (May) Jason will begin his final class before graduating in July. We are all thankful for the opportunity to further education and excited for the closure of this chapter. Leadership transitions and internal re-structuring for the Way Foundation has recently come to completion.

The Way Foundation is now under indigenous (Lahu) leadership. Since the transition from western leadership to local, Jason has been asked to join the leadership team. He will serve as a liaison for the office and the foundation’s independent projects. Jason will also evaluate proposals of new ministries/projects that want to come under the foundation. Jason is getting more involved in the foundation's two main projects: PET (Pastors, Evangelists, Trainers) and D4D (Discipleship for Development). The PET program is a Bible teaching ministry; D4D is a holistic discipleship/community development project. It's based off the books Walking with the Poor and When Helping Hurts. D4D trainers from the US recently visited our team for training. Jason served as translator for both Thai and English for the 2.5 days of training, which was a new experience (a sink or swim type of situation!). Jason and a new young Lahu co-worker, Achi (future PET teacher), have begun to meet weekly with a senior missionary (founder and author of the PET curriculum) in order to learn the curriculum together. The PET curriculum has been very instrumental for Lahu people in understanding the Bible. Someday, we hope to get the material translated into Thai and revised in Lahu. To read more about The Way Foundation and its two main projects please visit: https://www.theway.foundation/ Thank you for taking the time to read the update. We are thankful for the prayers and financial support. May we all take this season to remember and meditate on Jesus’ words: “Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19). 

Happy Resurrection Day! 

Jason, Jenn, Moriah, Isobel & Titus

Prayer Requests: 

1. Rhythms of rest, recreation, and renewal for both Jenn and Jason. 

2. Wisdom and time for Jason to put together addiction and recovery lessons for the PET and D4D programs. 

3. Good time for family rest during holiday in June. 

4. Wisdom and means for a visit to the USA. 

5. The Thai church would continue to be strengthened and grow in their knowledge of God and love for others.

End of Year Newsletter 2021

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." Galatians 2:4-5 (ESV)

Sa-wat-dee-kha from Thailand! I hope that you will find this update encouraging and helpful as you pray for un-reached peoples around the world--that the nations would turn from their broken cisterns and learn to drink from the Spirit. 

Ministry Update Counseling + Lahu Trainings update (from Jason) 

I (Jason) have continued with encouraging the local church to reach out to ones struggling with substance abuse. A fellow co-worker (Yo-sha-pa), who works in agricultural development in a few different Lahu and Akha villages has a heart of compassion for ones that are trying to live life with a chemical dependency. I've been able to meet a few times with Yo-sha-pa and discuss how to go about ministering the gospel to this population. Recently, he has felt burdened for a husband/father that has found himself bound up in the messy cage of a meth addiction. Yo-sha-pa has asked for advice on what he should do to further the relationship with this man. My reply was to continue in relationship building with him and his family—showing the warm welcome of Father's love, and that when our love is genuine the next steps follow. We hope to travel to this man’s village together and share a meal with him, and slowly begin the process of walking alongside. Showing that Christ is the “yes” in our quest of finding meaning and deeper pleasures.  

Jay has been able to do more teaching during the Foundations PET (Pastors, Evangelists, Trainers) Ministry, which is a ministry that offers monthly trainings for two years to Lahu people. A lot of the teaching is to help Lahu people to grow in their understanding of who God is and the gospel. Jay has been able to do one of the sessions on addiction ministries. This has been a great opportunity to encourage and equip Lahu believers to reach out to hurting people, and an opportunity for Jason to grow in this area of focus.

Family News School update (from Jenn)

Moriah and Isobel have been attending school since August and overall it's been a great experience! It is quite a shift from homeschooling but we are seeing them grow academically and socially in a Christian school environment. The spiritual climate at the school is AWESOME and this has been so encouraging after living pretty isolated for several years. I (Jenn) am volunteering at the school every day of the week (half days) and it's been great to get to know the staff and the parents. Isobel has made a best buddy named *Lily. Lily was born in Isaan (where we used to live) and her mom is Isaan. Jason and I have been able to spend some time getting to know the mom and Jason is enjoying speaking Isaan again. God is good, isn't He? Please pray for this relationship and that Lily's family would come to know Christ. 

End of Year Giving 

Our monthly gifts make up 60% of our yearly budget. We still need to raise the remaining 40% for the 2022 year. Please pray for the funds to come in! 

Holy-days + Prayers for you With all that's gone on in the last few years and our not being able to come to the States to visit, we mean it when we say WE MISS YOU and so look forward to seeing you, whenever that is! We would love to hear about what you've been up to and how we can pray for you. Finally, we hope you have a wonderful time celebrating the birth of our Redeemer and Friend, Jesus!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Jason, Jenn, Moriah, Isobel & Titus

Praises 1. We received 100% of the funds we needed for this school year. Thank you for praying and giving! 

Prayer Requests 1. One-time gifts and new monthly givers to join our team. We are currently at 60% of our support. 2. Ministry for addiction work would continue to grow and more materials for counseling will be produced in the Thai language. 3. The Holy Spirit would work in mighty ways during the PET trainings. 4. Strength to finish Masters classes. 5. Relationships with parents at the girls' school.