Byers August 2013 update - Singapore/Arrived in Thailand!

Psalms 139:9-10 (NIV): “If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me.”

Dear Family and Friends,

This verse has really spoken to me in the last few weeks. In this Psalm David is writing about the fact that he cannot escape from the presence of the Lord. I have found that to be so true and comforting during this time of transition. I have learned that wherever my family goes, the Lord will lead, comfort and protect, and wherever we go we can’t escape His glory, “the whole earth is filled with his glory” (Isaiah 6:3). Wherever you go the glory of God is being displayed for all to see (Psalms 19), wherever we are at we marvel at how God has made his own name great among every nation (Malachi 1:11).

Our time in Singapore

Our time at orientation in Singapore was really good. We were able to spend a lot of time with other rookie missionaries who just got done saying their good-byes and are preparing for cross-cultural work. We were from about 11 different countries! Also, it was good to meet the directors of the mission, be trained by them, and hear their many missionary stories. Moriah had a good time playing with the other children around her age. She did get sick as the other kids did, but is doing much better. She made a sweet little friend named Eliora (“Eli”) and we will be with her family through language school and then to Isaan (Northeast Thailand).

OMF International Headquarters (IHQ) in Singapore

Moriah and "Eli"

I was encouraged to see what God is doing in modern day missions and encouraged by some of the young brave ones who are going out for the sake of the gospel to countries I cannot mention, please pray for their safety. Since OMF is a mission that only focuses on reaching out to the peoples of East Asia, it is a highly regarded mission in the eyes of our Asian brothers and sisters. Therefore it was really awesome to meet and to see how God is using East Asians to reach out in mission to other East Asians through OMF. God is doing great work for His Glory here!

Arrived In Thailand

We arrived in Thailand on Saturday, August the 3^rd. We are finally here and it is surreal! We stayed in OMF’s Bangkok guest home where we were able to rest after orientation. On Monday, August 5th we traveled to Lopburi, Thailand, our home for the next year. We will begin our language/culture studies at LLC (Language Learning Center) on August 15^th. Currently we are settling in to our new home and learning the ropes of Lopburi.  

 Arrival in Thailand with the Sinors Family

Moriah and Jason eating Thai food in Bangkok

 

Prayer Points

·         Language/cultural learning so we can communicate the gospel clearly!

·         To make friends with local Thai people

·         Stomachs will adjust well to new kinds of food/health.

·         Protection from the evil one.

·         Protection from the dogs here in Lopburi, they are very vicious.

·         Pray 2 Corinthians 4:6 for Thailand: Thai’s will see the glory of God in the face of Christ.

We greatly appreciate all of you and your partnership in the gospel.

With much love,

Jay and Jenn

the Byers are heading to MONKEY TOWN !

(update sent out on May 9, 2013)

Well if you haven't heard already...we are at 100% of our funds. We are leaving in July!  We will go to Singapore first for our orientation course and then to Lopburi, Thailand (the "monkey town") in the beginning of August to begin language school.

Thailand has been our dream  together since 2007.... 5 1/2  years later we are finding that dream realized.  In those years we've seen God strengthen us in His Grace, strengthen our marriage, and unite us for the coming ministry ahead.

We want to thank ALL of you for your prayers, your words of encouragement and support that you have given us.  We would love to see you before we leave.  We will be in Ephraim, UT, Park City/Heber, UT, Lake Geneva, WI and Mission Viejo, CA prior to leaving.  You are ALL INVITED to the commissioning service held at Ephraim Church of the Bible in Ephraim, Utah on Sunday morning, June 16th.

Please take a moment to read a short reflection called "The Smoke of a Thousand Villages," written by our Dutch field leader Marten Visser in Isaan (Northeast Thailand). He reflects on his plane ride over Isaan. He writes: “Lord, send people to this area to tell the thousands of villages in Isaan about you.”  Read his reflection by clicking here to read on the OMF Isaan team site.  We, like Marten, would love for many more to come to Isaan!

More to come!

-Jason, Jenn & Moriah

P.S.  If you want to receive regular, monthly prayer emails, please sign up to prayer partner at: www.omf.org/us/partner


PRAYER REQUESTS:
-For strength and endurance as we "pack it all up"
-That our minds would be "set on Him" always and especially as we will face new battles in leaving home
-For our family and friends that we will not see for awhile
-For Moriah and her new adventures ahead (she is excited about the Elephants!)



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Cultural Corner  
This last month in Thailand, Songkran was celebrated. It is the Thai New Year and also a Buddhist holiday. It is the hottest time of year in Thailand, and old and young alike throw water on each other to celebrate.  Many Christians participate in the fun of Songkran (ie the water throwing) but don't participate in the Buddhist rituals. On the Sunday around Songkran, many Christians will have different blessing ceremonies at their church. One missionary said, "We had a blessing ceremony after church today - pouring water on the hands of senior people in the church. In the process, people started washing each others' feet while blessing each other - including but not only for senior members. The bonding and emotions expressed for each other was profound. I love this group of brothers and sisters." - Tim Noble

Byers' April Newsletter - we are so close!

Dear Friends and Family,

I want to tell you a quick story about this elderly lady from the Northeast. This photo was taken in 2006 by my friend Naomi. Prior to this photo being taken, this old woman, with her large humpback(probably from years of bending over to plant rice) was sweeping the outside of the temple grounds with her little broom. It was a sad sight. Why would a woman of her age be doing such a thing? Probably to make merit. To make her afterlife better. Rather than resting in the love and eternal salvation that the Father has for her, she is still working, instead of resting in the completed work of Christ who is our salvation. This is our prayer: that God’s gospel of free, unconditional grace will sweep through Thailand and cut the cords of bondage. That women like this old lady, and men, will experience the exchanged life, HIS resurrected life given to us.

May 13^th Financial Deadline
We are currently at 87% of our support…only 13% to go! Praise the Lord! Please pray that we will be at 100% by our financial deadline (Monday, May 13^th). If we meet the deadline, we will leave for our orientation in Singapore in July, and then on to Thailand to begin language school in August. The next orientation course is in November of this year. Note to all of our financial supporters: We want to make sure that you know our school debt is included in our budget. Please let us know if you have any questions or would like us to email you our budget.

Prayer Points
~100% of pledges by May 13th
~Medical clearance
~The Lord will continue to prepare us and our families as we prepare to move overseas

Thank you for all your encouragement, prayers and support!

HAPPY EASTER!

Jason, Jenn & Moriah

March 2013 Newsletter

Greetings Friend,

“Lord, not my will, but your will” is the phrase we are learning to pray. A missionary that has intrigued both of us lately is Gladys Aylward (1902-1970). Because of her lack of education and a learning disability she was rejected by a missions agency to serve in China. But the Lord had a different plan for her. He took her through his own candidate course in the classroom of life. She was insecure of her calling because of her lack of education, she had no trade, and she was only a house maid. The Lord used Gladys just as she was. He used a willing person to express His life through her. As the British preacher Major Ian Thomas would say, “Any old bush will do,” meaning he will use any willing person who will let the indwelling Lord light up the world through them. As we continue to wait for the door to open for us, we are learning as well that we are in God’s candidate school of missionary preparation. We are learning that he will provide exactly what we need. He will send us when He decides we are ready, and in the meantime He will be our teacher, and teach us that we can depend on Him and rest in his love. Therefore, through this journey we are learning to delight and understand what it means to pray—“Lord, not my will, but your will.”

Home Ministry Team (HMT)
We had our first official Home Ministry Team meeting in Ephraim! There are 4 couples on our team, and they provide huge support and encouragement as we prepare to leave for the field. Their backgrounds are broad, and we are so blessed to have them assisting us and ultimately helping to get the Gospel shared to the unreached in Isaan!

Support Report
We are currently a little over 70% (includes pledged and verbal commitments) of our support! Praise God for raising up the funds. We have to be at 100% by May in order to leave in July. Please pray for the 30% to come in before then!

Note to monthly pledged supporters: Now would be a great time to turn in your paperwork to OMF if you haven’t done so already, mainly if you are doing an automatic transfer through your bank. Automatic transfers (EFT) through your bank take several weeks to get set up. You can definitely specify for money to not be withdrawn until the month we leave. Here is OMF's link on WAYS TO GIVE. (Note: They will not do recurring credit card donations, but you can manually go online each month and donate by credit card. Please know that because of credit card fees, a certain percentage of your gift will be deducted from our support and OMF does not send out a reminder for the next month. Checks, EFT or bill pay through your bank is preferred).

Kroger Store cards
On average, the money that is coming in from the Kroger cards is about $170.00/month! Our goal is to have $5,000.00 put on the cards each month (so that is $250.00 of support). If this is the first time you’ve received our newsletter, we have given out reloadable Kroger gift cards tied to our personal Thailand account. Friends put money on the card to buy their groceries or gas (at Kroger stores, ie. Kroger, Ralph's, Smith's, City Market, etc.), and 5% of the money put on the card goes toward our Thailand support. We have MORE cards so if you need one, PLEASE let us know! Also, if you received a card from us and have not put money on it at this point, that card is expired. We can definitely send you a new one!

Family update
Moriah turned 2 years old on February 9^th! We had a little family party in Park City to celebrate. She is talking more and more everyday, singing, loves chocolate, tries to tap dance like orphan Annie, every prince in every movie is still DADDY (and that’s the way it should be!), and she is becoming more independent (“No kissy!”).

Jenn will be officially done working for Park City Young Life at the end of the month. It has truly been a job that has prepared her for ministry in many ways, leaving is bittersweet! On the positive side, we look forward to having even more time to focus on leaving for Thailand.


Blessings on you and your loved ones,

-Jason and Jenn

 

Northeast (Isaan) Thailand Culture Corner
The official language of Thailand is Thai, but the Northeastern part of the country is full of Lao (Isaan) people. In Isaan, they speak Isan (a dialect of Lao), learn Thai in school, and some of the other people groups may even speak a 3^rd language (like Kui or Khmer).

Many of Isaans’ peoples are rice farmers and may also cut sugarcane to bring in extra money. Their music is country (Isaan style). There is always an element of sanuk or “fun” tied with almost every holiday. Here is a music video made in rural Isaan; there is so much culture shown in this video (their dress, music, rice farming, dance style, their goofiness etc.) CLICK HERE to see the video. We love these people and can't wait to be with them!

Prayer points

-new partners to join us in ministry

-provision

-rural churches in Thailand – that they would hold fast to the Truth found in the Word and turn away false teachers who try to add to the Gospel of grace

-new missionary singles and families to come to Isaan


Photos from Moriah 's Birthday: