This was a fun night of a Thai barbecue that we planned as part of a weekend trip we organized to encourage some of the missionaries we know who are in need of fellowship. Thai barbecue combines Korean barbecue and Chinese hotpot to create the best of both worlds.
The twist and turns of life never fail to surprise me. It’s why I have such a hard time answering the question “What’s your plan?” when being asked about ministry direction. I know that whatever answer I give, if it’s specific, likely won’t be accurate in a few months time. God never seems to take us on the journey we think we’re headed on. The only time it’s accurate is when we give the generalities God has already given us, “We plan to work with missionaries to support and encourage them to help keep them on the field.” However, the next question is sure to be, “How will you do that?” and as soon as I try to answer that with specifics, using my oh-so-logical brain, inevitably it’s not where God ends up taking us. While a general answer isn’t the most satisfying, it’s usually the most accurate. The solution to answering that question accurately, of course, is to talk about what God has been doing so far with you on the field. However, when you’re just starting out in a new direction, like we were when we were in the States this last time, there’s nothing yet to talk about but the future. So, for all of you who are supporting missionaries and interested in what they’re doing on the field (as is right and good), give the ones starting in a new direction some grace when a few months later what they are doing isn’t what they thought it would be (and again a few months after that when it happens again…)
All that to say, if you talked with us while we were last in the States, we assumed we’d be partnering with a missionary guest house here in Thailand once we arrived since they had asked us too. However, since no one foresaw covid travel restrictions, no one realized the guest house wouldn’t have any guests for over a year, making ministry with them impossible right now. We still plan to restart the music ministry we had with them right when we came back, once guests are there again, but for now all cooperation with them has necessarily been put on hold until missionaries are traveling here again.
We also planned a bamboo rafting trip down the Wang River. Despite the monstrous slugs (leeches?), flooding, and downed trees excitement, it was super relaxing and a lot of fun.
Our work with O’B and Frontier Ventures is ebbing for awhile since he will be traveling to South America and the States for a few months as he works on this new partnership for helping other organizations bringing missionaries in to Asia. This is good timing for us as we will soon be starting to organize and prepare for the upcoming holiday celebrations we host for single missionaries. If you or your Sunday school class are interested in helping us with the cost of these holiday celebrations, please see our “Support Us” page where you can quickly and easily make a donation right from there. The more ministry funds we receive for this, the more special we’re able to make the events. I remember Midwest Camp (the summer camp I attended growing up) once blessing the missionaries in attendance by giving them holiday celebrations during the week. It made me realize how hard it must be to celebrate the holidays away from home year after year without traditions and family to share it with, even more so when you’re single and when the culture around you doesn’t celebrate the day. Strange as it is, Christmas is just a regular work day here for the Buddhist majority of Thai people around us. While we can’t replace family or other’s holiday traditions, we can try to fill that gap with our family, traditions and someone to celebrate with together.
Right now we are very excited about the newest project we’re working on that is evolving from our work with FV, and our experience with Amanda as our homeschool helper. Our current hope and prayer is to be able to develop a program that facilitates bringing in homeschool helpers for families here on the field, in order to reduce the overall stress on the missionary family enabling them to be more involved in ministry and increasing their long-term effectiveness and viability. Please pray with us these next few months as we pray about, discuss and start to plan this project with others here who are interested in partnering with us.
As always, we wouldn’t be here without your prayers and financial support, so thank you for both.
– Ruth, for the Baker family.