I arrived in Bangkok, Thailand, on June 2. Dr. Curtis Hall arrived the next day to join me in a month-long series of events in Southeast Asia. The first Sunday there, I preached for Pastor Eddie Arold at First Baptist Church Nawong. We had 2 precious souls saved during the services. It was good to fellowship again with many of our Thai friends at the church.
We worked two days in the Distribution Center at Rangsit, getting caught up on paperwork, paying bills, and moving cases of Scripture to make needed room. It never ends.
The Soul-Winning Conference at First Baptist Church Nawong started on June 7. My good friend from Texas, Pastor Danny Ortiz, preached the conference. I preached in two services. Ten different nations were represented at the conference. Dr. Mark Bosje also brought a group from our sending church, First Baptist Church in Hammond, Indiana. We were truly blessed by their attendance. Hearts were stirred by the preaching of God’s Word, and many commitments were made to do more for God.
On June 10, our 21st container of material was delivered to our Distribution Center. We are thankful for the ministry of Bearing Precious Seed for putting together nearly 900 cases of John & Romans and whole Bibles for several different language groups. To view a video of the Bibles being delivered, please go to https://youtu.be/6s1CyEn8RKU.
I sat down and did the math on the cost of shipping Bibles and materials over the past 12 years, and I found that $130,000 has been raised through my personal support for shipping alone. That does not include the cost of printing and distributing the Scriptures. Praise the Lord for providing the funds to get the Word of God to Bible-less believers in Southeast Asia!
Andy Long, missionary to Thailand, is now located eight hours north of Bangkok in a city called Ching Mai. Brother Long will be distributing Scriptures from this new location, which means we now have three Distribution Centers in Thailand. This will increase the cost of renting property and shipping, but it will also increase the number of believers receiving the Word of God. Most of these believers are receiving their very own copy of the Word of God for the first time.
On June 18, I preached for Pastor Tim Shook in Hua Hin on Sunday morning. That afternoon I went to a new mission work they started where Tim’s father, Randy Shook, is the pastor. What a blessing to see how God is continuing to multiply the churches in Thailand! Thank God for men with a vision to establish Baptist churches.
The following weekend, Brother Hall and I flew to Cambodia. I preached for my long-time friend and missionary to Cambodia, Lomer dela Cruz. He had over 80 people in attendance, and 12 souls were saved. From there, we drove about three hours to Phnom Phenn to preach the 10th Anniversary Service for Pastor Sihok Soeurn at Liberty Baptist Church. He had 225 in attendance! There were more people outside the church than inside. I gave the invitation, and 23 souls walked the aisle for salvation. Praise the Lord!
On Monday we drove with Pastor Sihok to a church he planted last October, located two hours from Phnom Phenn. I visited this new church in November 2016 with 15 in attendance. B.E.S.T. purchased Bibles and songbooks for the church at that time. Eight months later, they had 80 in attendance, with 45 receiving Christ as their Saviour. They are in the process of putting up a church building. The walls are up, but they are in need of a roof. Praise God! A building has never made a church; the believers make a church.
On Monday evening, we drove back to Brother Sihok’s church and observed while he conducted his “Teaching All Nations” class. “Teaching All Nations” is a three-year program designed for national pastors to train national leaders. Pastor Sihok has started four new churches with the men he has trained in this program.
After a very profitable month, I left on June 29 to go to India. At Chil Chil Baptist College located in Nagaland, I conducted a teaching program for seven days for national pastors.
Please pray that God will continue to provide funds for shipping and distributing Bibles and material to Thailand and the surrounding countries. Dr. Freret at BEAMS notified me that they have two more pallets of Thai whole Bibles that I can ship as soon as we get enough material to fill our 22nd container. Praise the Lord!
Tan, a young man I have known and worked with for 16 years, is now taking care of our Distribution Center in Bangkok. I plan to enroll him in an online training program. He is a good investment! He is a personal soul winner, a youth pastor at First Baptist Church Nawong, and a faithful helper in the work in Thailand. Tan produced a video on YouTube of our B.E.S.T. Ministry. You can view it at https://youtu.be/6s1CyEn8RKU. Please pray for the work of God to continue in Southeast Asia. The need is great.
The first six months of 2017, I have seen 87 people trust Christ as their personal Saviour, 13 follow the Lord in believer’s baptism, and 25 surrender to full-time Christian service. Praise the Lord! God is still in the soul-saving business. I pray every day for more laborers.
We love you folks. We thank God for your faithfulness to give and to pray. We could not be doing this work without your prayers and gifts. Thank you! Thank you for your prayers for my wife’s health.
Please be informed that our new email address is as follows: bob.bowen@fbmi.org.
Into all the world,
Bob Bowen
Missionary to Southeast Asia since 1999
Philippians 4:13