“Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)
On May 1, we celebrated 15 years in Thailand as a part of Team Thailand, along with the Chad Inman family and Miss Shari House. Our families went out to breakfast to celebrate, and we took time to praise the Lord together for His faithfulness through the years. We shed tears of gratefulness as we reflected on all the victories and trials He has taken us through. Our families have had a part in starting 5 churches in these past 15 years; 4 of those churches are still healthy, thriving ministries. This does not include the newest church plant in the city of Petchaburi.
God has renewed our unity and vision for the future as we continue to teach and train folks for the ministry. We pray that God will use our team and the nationals with whom we work to start dozens of churches throughout Thailand and Southeast Asia in the years to come.
I had the opportunity to preach a special Sunday for a missionary, Mrs. Srichand Horn, a few weeks ago. My family and I traveled the 14-hour trip to Northern Thailand to the city of Lamphun. We spent three days with Mrs. Horn and some of her staff. The Sunday service at Nonglom Baptist Church was a sweet time of fellowship, and it was wonderful to witness souls being saved and new converts following the Lord in baptism. On Monday and Tuesday, Mrs. Horn took our family, along with three of her staff members, to four different church plants high in the mountain jungles of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. We met the pastors and their families at each location also. What a joy it was to see these faithful servants of God humbly following the Lord and preaching the truth of the Gospel in their region. We were challenged and excited to see the fruits of the Horns’ 30-plus years of missionary work in these other ministry plants. It gave us hope and encouragement to faithfully continue where God has placed us.
We have enjoyed having my oldest sister, Amber Bosje, and the Bosjes’ youngest child Alyssa here visiting for the last couple of weeks. Just about 10 days after they arrived, the visiting group, led by my brother-in-law, Dr. Mark Bosje, came to Thailand. As part of their trip, they spent several days in Hua Hin with our team. We had a great day out soul winning on Saturday, with souls saved and many seeds planted. Sunday was spent with the group attending both church plants and experiencing the ministries here firsthand. Our team and staff enjoyed the fellowship with this tremendous group of folks.
It was an honor to host dear friends, several young people who were from our supporting churches, and one of our supporting pastors, Brother Ron Brown, as well. We also enjoyed meeting new friends in the group. What an encouragement they were to my family specifically! It is always our prayer that God will use these missions trips to call more people to become missionaries and that the trips will increase their personal vision for missions.
My wife and I have recently taken over the teen department at the church I pastor in Hua Hin, and we are excited about the way the Lord is leading. We currently have a group of 13 faithful teenagers who attend the church services regularly and are faithful to have a part in the youth soul winning each week also. Several of these young people have shown excitement and interest in following the Lord with their lives. We have begun a weekly time after the Sunday services to teach guitar and piano. Missy will be teaching a monthly life-skills time at our house. Will you please pray as we lead and guide the next generation for His glory?
As we reflected on the past 15 years, I am reminded that “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.” Through the difficulties, trials, and fiery darts the Devil hurls at us in hope to cause disunity, Team Thailand has indeed been rewarded in laboring together for Him. We are thankful for your faithful support and prayers over these 15 years. We could not do the work God has called us to do without you! We look forward to seeing how the Lord will use us, and the team, in the years ahead.
For Him,
Tim Shook
