We are the body of Christ

Sorry, It's been SO long since I've updated! We have been so busy hanging out with everyone here and making the most of our last few days here. It's crazy that we have only 10 days left here in Thailand. Part of me is so ready to come home to see my family, friends, comforts of America, but so much of me wants to stay and live this life serving the Lord in missions forever. I have to just realize that when i get back to America, it doesn't stop. I'm still serving the Lord doing his mission, and most importantly glorifying him. This past week, we have been cheering on all our new friends at their Freshman games. We've been to badmitton, tecraw(kinda like volleyball, but you use your feet instead of hands), crosswords, basketball, water polo, and tennis). It's been so fun. It's even better watching the freshman you are closest to and seeing how happy they are that we come and watch them. This week was also Townsend's birthday, so we had alot of fun things planned for him. All of the girls learned a dance and performed it at his team birthday party. I started dancing to his favorite song, "Making my dreams come true" and then Milcah joined in, and then the rest of the team. He was so shocked and loved it. We cooked spaghetti,bread, and cookies and brownies that night. What a sweet American treat.

More and more people this week have been sharing their testimony with the Thai students. Milcah and her ministry partner, Aw, actually shared theirs three times this week. Two of them have now accepted Christ into their life. Hallelujah. It's been awesome to hear the stories of how God is working here in Thailand. Last weekend was fourth of July, but we celebrated it on the 2nd. We had a big pool party with Thai food and amazing desserts. It was such a nice treat that reminded me of home.Today, Sunday, we woke up early to play field games with the Education students... IT WAS SO MUCH FUN. We played this mosquito game where one person had to run around like a mosquito and tag ppl without getting captured. We played a toss the balloon game, and capture the flag with powder balls. All of the students loved that we were there and let us join in their games. Afterward, we went to church and Towsend and I taught a sunday school lesson to 4-7 year olds on family and Jacob and Esau. As a team event, we went to kareoke tonight and sang almost every American song offered. It has been the most amazing, and fast 44 days here and I know I will enjoy the last 10.

Prayer now would be to make the most of the time we have left here in Thailand. Also to continue reaching and caring for the lost when I go back to the States. Thanks again for all your prayers. Please keep it up!!

Love you guys

Education Field Day

Our little Thai model shoot. So much fun!

Love our team

Cheering her on at the Badmitton game. She won!

Freshie Games

Birthday boy turned 23

Ministry team in our new shirts that say "rooted in Christ" in Thai

Ministry team. I love them

singing at the walking street

Sunday school... ladies man

love this girl

i'm gonna miss this one for sure

kareoke time

happy 4th(2nd) of July!

GRACE

G- God's

R- Riches

A- At

C- Christ's

E- Expense

This week has been such a wonderful reminder of God's grace. This summer we have been seeing a lot of our pride, selfishness, and many more sins, but this week God's grace as been so abundant in my life. We don't deserve a Savior or even to be in heaven, but God saved us anyway through his perfect son dying on the cross. He loves us and we are valuable in his eyes. We are not his slaves, but his sons and daughters. We are not in bondage, but have FREEDOM in Christ. What an incredible feeling.
Last week was so wonderful. We celebrated Courtney's birthday with karaoke, visited an orphanage, learned how to play field hockey, went on a double date to the Green Leaf, played scrabble, swam in a green pool,  and ate with the staff here at KKU.(Khon Kaen University).
The day at the orphanage was one of my favorite days. The kids were so precious and fun to play with, besides the kid who squirted milk on my new shirt. No big though. The kids would not leave your side for more than 5 seconds. Right as we would set them down, the immediately ran to our knees with their arms high saying "Om, Om" Meaning- Hold me. Such a great picture of how we should be crying out to the Lord saying "Hold me" or "Take me".  When we left it broke my heart. They were bawling, grabbing onto our legs as we had to leave. I wanted to keep them all. I will adopt a Thai baby one day, Lord willing.

Lately, we have been hanging out with freshman while they are playing their sports. Starting Wednesday, the students will begin their freshy games. This is where students from certain faculties( or majors) will play against each other in games such as volleyball, tennis, badmitton, field hockey, basketball, fencing, and crosswords. We will be cheering and following around the education faculty. We've been helping the girls with crosswords(aka scrabble) because it is in English. It is sad that I have been beaten twice. However, they also get to use special words such as xi, and qi, and many more that I am not aware of. It's been so fun and real good bonding with them. I am loving the Thais more and more everyday. I don't know how I am going to leave!

Please continue to pray for health, strength, and taking opportunities that God is revealing to us. Thank you for prayers and support!

New Thai words:
Jip joy- No worries
Law lin- just kidding
ma(same tone)- come
ma(rising tone)- dog
ma(low tone)- horse

This is a video Townsend created. I absolutely love it.. Might just bring tears to your eyes! Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2oTHkm69Qs&feature=player_embedded

If God is for us, who can be against us?

This week has been so wonderful and such a great learning experience. It's week 4 and it is starting to set in that we have been in Thailand for a while and starting to miss the comforts of America. ex. (queso, shopping, F.R.I.E.N.D.S, family, soft beds.)However, answered prayers from God, team encouragement, and lost souls have kept us energized and ready for more of Thailand. This week we have been learning about open doors and being watchful for opportunities that we pray for. I know I pray for opportunities, but how often do I watch to see if God answers. Not too often. God has taught me to pray for opportunities and thank HIM! We definitely had a wonderful opportunity last Wednesday night when we were able to hang out with the freshman for an extended amount of time while they were making pons(gifts) for their teachers. We played ninja, told stories, and shared our testimonies. It was such a fun time to hang out with them. 

Thursday and Friday were good times with our ministry group. We really were able to connect with our ministry partners and re evaluate how we are making the most of our time... and we got PIZZA. Mah... aroy(delicious).

Sunday was such a special day. The church had a baptism service for new Christians. It was so sweet to see how they were so joyful as they were getting baptized. There were tears, laughs and many smiles that day. We also were able to invite many of our new Thai friends that have never been to church before, and they got to enjoy the service with us. It was such a wonderful opportunity to show God's mercy, love, and faithfulness towards us and be able to share it with others. Sunday night was fun team bonding as we celebrated Courtney's birthday!! We had a scavenger hunt for her, Auntie Anne's and bowling. Such a wonderful end to the night. I scored maybe 45. 

Monday night I learned how to play field hockey and kareoke.Yes, I sang Celine Dion and Achy Breaky Heart in Thailand, as well as attempted Thai songs. Loved it. 

Today, I celebrated the wonderful Joy's(ministry partner) 21st birthday by a lake, with friends, in a market, and ate dinner. So thankful for her and all she has taught me already. Today we had a wonderful sermon over the verse, "If God is for us, who can be against us?". It was such a great reminder that God is ALWAYS for us. Never against us, even when bad things happen to us, he works for the good in us. He does not want to punish, or harm us but to love and care for us. He knows the plan for our lives and we are to trust him. Also, no one can successfully be against us. There will be people against us, aka. Satan, but there will never be anyone that can be successfully against us. God is too great, powerful, awesome, holy, hardcore, THE MAN.  Just a little encouragement. Think about it... no, just pray.

Pray for humility, security in Christ, and devoted time in prayer and scripture please. Also for my sweet friends I have met here. Thanks again for your prayers and support. Love you to the moon.

New words: 

Fone- rain

fan-boyfriend/girlfriend

Sabadi mai ca-how are you?

nam-water

fun di- sweet dreams

NA RAC CA- sooooo cute!

Making pons!

Ninja at Care team(bible study)

Present for their teacher.. good work ladies!

Nam Oi and I at church. Such a sweetheart.

Baptism service at the church. Congrats Yoke and Beauty!

Kareoke for Court's bday. Happy birthday buddy.

Joy's birthday. Sooo fun!

The Harvest is Plentiful

 Week 2 went by so fast. It felt like three days had gone by when Saturday came around. I wish it would slow down! This week we had the privilege to celebrate Beauty's birthday. It was so fun to eat dinner, play games, sing songs and have such a fun time together. I've learned two new card games that I will bring back to the states. We also had amazing brownies and cake. Good for my tastebuds. Bad for acid reflux.
Saturday we had the privilige of visiting a Buddhist temple in downtown Khon Kean. It was very beautiful-9 floors high. Alot of statues, paintings, and instruments that represented their culture. It was cool to get a better perspective of their religion. It also is such a good way to just be with the Thai students and ask them questions and just show them love as best as we can. Afterwards, we went to lunch at the mall and had such a fun time watching the shows, dancing, and singing that were going on. I actually got a picture with a kind of famous popstar there, Mac. I only liked his music because he sang Justin Bieber.
Sunday was such a wonderful day of worship and fellowship with the team. At church we learned the importance of brokeness and the blessings that come from it. Brokeness leads to deeper love and deeper worship. You can see God a little bit clearer. After,We played sports, went to dinner, and watched the Goonies late at night.
I love my team more and more every day. I am so encouraged by their encouragement, joy, and love for the Lord. It makes me so happy. This coming week we are going to be encouraging our ministry partners and just trying to be faithful to where the Lord wants us to be. Each week brings new excitement. Thanks for reading and your prayers.

Prayers would be just to be faithful to God's plan. Loving and serving more than ever.

No new words in Thai. fail.

Beauty's birthday celebration. So fun!

The Buddhist temple in Khon Kean

One of the areas where people worship Buddah

Top of the temple. The view was beautiful.

Famous Thai singer: Mac

Make an animal face. Razorback snout. Duh.

Little cuties dancing at the mall

Freshies and Johnny Depp

These past few days have been so wonderful and so affirming that God has me in Thailand for a reason. I've seen God move in so many ways and am learning a ton. Lately, I have been seeing the authority of God and how powerful he is. So often I want to put God in a box and say he can only do so much, but really he can do as much as he wants. He has parted the waters, made a burning bush talk, and raised people from the death. My God is sut yah!!(awesome). Anyways, this weekend has been so great for rest and refueling ourselves up for the week. Saturday night, our team (guys and girls) went and did aerobics and then went to Pirates of the Carribbean afterwards. It was such a fun time for team bonding. I loved it. Sunday was a great day of rest and fun games with the team. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday we have continued to go to the canteen( like a cafeteria) to meet more and more students. Thai students have convicted me so much because they are so welcoming and friendly to foreigners. When have I ever been so inviting to a foreigner besides Milky? hah j/k Milkshake;). But really, they have taught me how to love in a whole new way. Monday night was so fun. The students in edcuation had a big/little reveal. Basically the same as what we do in America. They all came with laundry baskets filled with stuff to give their littles. This week has been hard to get alot of time with the freshmen and sophomores because they are so busy with cheers( not so cheery, they get yelled at) and getting ready for freshy games. This week we are going to the temple and inviting students to come with us. I'm really excited about this week and can't wait for the next weeks to come. It's crazy how much I love these people already.

Prayers would be to put on the image of Christ every time I meet a new student and leave Katy K behind in the car. Pray also for health, alot of students are getting sick. Thanks again for reading and all your support. Much love.

New Words in Thai:
bocnoc or zaparot- pineapple
i like- chan chob
How much-tah ray
Lower the cost-lod dei mai
yak yei lei yak lek- big giant chasing little giant



The bigs and their baskets



Ministry group

They say this will be in style in 2 years for USA

Freshman cheers. Kinda like hazing

Roti- delicious!

Thai aerobics

SuSu--- "Press On"

 These past few days have been such a blur and so much fun. I have seen God answer so many prayers in so many ways. We still continue to go to the canteen( cafeteria) everyday for lunch meeting with more and more freshmen. Our talks have been so encouraging and fun. We are getting to know them more and more and they are starting to build trust with us each day. Wednesday night was so much fun.Our ministry team went to a gymnasium to do aerobics and meet some freshman there! Wow, it was a workout. I was videoing most of the time and I still was exhausted by the time it was finished. As aerobics was ending, we were kinda feeling a little bummed because the freshman group didn't show up but we were making plans to go to the market and meet some. Little way to show God was faithful and that he answers prayers- the sweetest freshman girl walked up to us(speaking perfect English) and asked if she could join us for dinner. How cool was that? And just as we were leaving, two of the freshman we were supposed to meet showed up last minute and joined us for dinner. God is so faithful. We had such a great dinner and conversation. I am hoping to keep in contact more with these girls. They have already left an impression on my heart.
Thursday night we had care team with all the Christians. This is the bible study discipleship group that P. Betsy (our leader) leads. (P is like Mrs. or Mr. in Thai.)  It was really cool to hear them share their heart, their struggles, and their praises and that we got to share ours as well. Thursday was also a special day for me, because I finally bought some American food. I did not know how much I would miss it. Annie Anne's pretzel was heaven in my mouth. God placed that wonderful place in the mall for a reason. 
This morning( Saturday) we awoke at 8 and jumped in the car to be taken to a cobra snake farm. Had no idea what to expect, but did not know it was going to be as intense as it was. They had snake boxing, snake dancing, and we got to hold a snake. Yes, I had a snake around my neck. I still feel gross. The dancers stuck the snake in their mouth, down their pants.. etc.. etc.UNBELIEVABLE. At one point, a snake snapped at us and everyone in our team literally jumped across the stands. It was so fun and such good team bonding. 
Please continue to pray for these Thai freshman we are meeting and that they would see Jesus in us and notice something different. That they would be interested in Christianity and open to friendship. Thank you again for praying and all your support! This has been an incredible opportunity. 
Big thing i learned last night. When God gives you the most important,best opportunities for something to happen, Satan usually tries to make you not want to do it. Such a good thing for me to think about.


Thai words

law-handsome
yin ti di dye rou jah- nice to meet you
Su su-press on/ keep fighting

Been dating this cutie for 17 months now. It's been so much fun!

Dinner with our ministry team at a cute Thai restaurant

Yes, that is a snake wrapped around my head and yes I was fearful for my life.

This child on the other hand thinks it's normal

Ghost Ladybug and Squid

Day 5 and 6 have been such a blast. We have been hanging out with our ministry partners more and it has been so fun getting to know them better. 

Day 5:

Today was our first day to go out with our ministry partner and start talking to freshman in the caf. Right now, we are trying to build friendships with these students and really just be interesting to them. We, CCP, pretty much are bait. We are the shiny cool toy that attracts the Thai students, but that is kind of all we can be right now. If we rush it, we could ruin the relationship from the start. Tikky and my target goal is the Education freshman. We will try and hang out with these 40 girls because they will be here the longest and P. Betsy (our staff leader) has already met all the sophomores, juniors, and seniors.The freshman are easy to spot because of their white shoes. Only the freshies wear the white shoes. After lunch we took a break and then went to the night market together. Better believe I was picked up on a motorcycle.SO MUCH FUN. I met some of Tikky's friends and walked around the night market looking at cute cheap clothes and yummy fruit. Dinner consisted of squid and shrimp. I ate 2 bites. So very thankful though for this food, especially lime smoothies.

Day 6

Today started with a double date trip to the Amazon cafe( coffee shop). I was so excited, just picturing a yum bagel, muffin, anything.. but sadly none were available. Little disappointing when I saw rice patties as the breakfast option. Towns and I split the blueberry smoothie instead. After that we went to the church and listened to a sermon about the urgency of spreading the gospel. It talked about how hell is real and Jesus can come any day. How much do we hate someone to not share the gospel with them? God uses our weaknesses in his strength. I love knowing that. Evangelism-not a strength of mine. After training, we went to lunch again with our ministry group. I met with Tikki and some of her friends. We had such a good conversation and found out some of their nicknames which included:

Bear, Nun, Elephant, and Ghost Ladybug(of course because she likes to fly and ladybugs are everywhere)

After lunch, we took a break and then met up with them again for the freshman orientation. The freshman were introduced and we actually were introduced as well. Favorite moment: As I was walking back to my seat, a Thai student yells I love you Katy and does the "I love you sign". Such a sweet moment. Later, we met up with some of the Freshman for dinner at the market place again. When  I introduce myself as Katy, they love to laugh and say "haha.. Katy Perry." so cute. I found out that my name in Thai means Coconut milk. Apparently, it's a good name. 

This week has been so incredible and I thank you for your prayers. Now I pray to be selfless, be a servant, and to not grow weary. They respect and value their king so much, and I want them to know the REAL king. How in awe we should all be of him. Thanks again for your prayers!

New words:

aroy-delicious

baba bobo-crazy

narac-lovely

cry cay cay guy-Where can i get fish eggs? 

The marketplace

Had to. They loved it.

Matching t-shirts. Don't worry. Me and Towns will get these.

This is the meal i ate. Well bought and stared at.

Motorcycle drive. Bah so fun!!!

Dragon fruit. Are you Americans jealous right now?

Princess Belle and Black Spaghetti

Day 3.

Day 3 started out with church and then many games of sports. If the boys were not in shape, they will be after this trip. They played 3 games of soccer, followed by 2 games of basketball, badmitton, and knock out. The girls played badmitton and knockout, but were too busy chatting with all our new friends or playing with princess Belle and the other tines. Princess Belle was a name given to the most precious tot by Princess Milcah. I cannot remember her real name. She might be the cutest child I've ever seen. After the games, we met with our ministry group. I loved this night. We went to a cute, romantic spot called "The Green Leaf." Besides the thousands of lizards that crawled around us, it was incredible. It had American food as well! I got a pepsi and rosemary chicken wrap. YUM. During dinner, the Thai students told us their testimony and how they came to know. It was definitley my favorite part. Hearing their stories was so special to me because they went against what their culture believed to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. That is incredible! Once my ministry partner, Tickky, converted and accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior, she immediately told all her friends and some of them have come to know the Lord. I have so much to learn from her and I could not be more excited.

Day 4 was a Sunday, so naturally we went to church. Ha, but Church started at 1 so the students could sleep in. How nice! Love it. Church was amazing. We had lunch and then went into the big room to worship with the Thais. I was wondering how this was going to work out, since we both speak different languages. However, it was the most beautiful worship I've ever experienced. We sang together in our different languages rejoicing the Lord. Emotional experience for me-i cried the whole time. It reminded me of the verse in Revelation 7:9 which says, " After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. "

What an amazing picture of heaven.

After church we played more sports and games and headed home for the night. For dinner I had a drink that literally tasted like a butterfly. Interesting, I know. I fell asleep watching Letters to Juliet in Thai. What a great day. Tomorrow, going into the campus to do some ministry with Tikky!

Words for the day:

Cun Chu Aray- What is your name?

Kob Kun Ca- Thank you

Mai ped- no spicy

The boys after their soccer game

Sweet Princess Belle

Black Spaghetti-I did not order this



Our ministery team