The Blessing of Children

I am really excited to move to Bangkok, Thailand. The more I talk to the friends and people we know already living over there, the more excited I get. The more I talk to people about it, the more excited I get! I know this is a blessing from God because I have quite a bit of apprehension moving from one country to another, especially so quickly!

As I talked to my friend in Bangkok, she assured me there is much to do in Bangkok, especially with my children. This is much different than in Haiti. She talked about meeting ladies at the park and developing friendships with them. Again, this reassured me and calmed my fears and anxieties about moving yet again to another country. But the point she made was even bigger. It is something I thought about while I lived in Haiti, but something I was unable to accomplish on the fullest level. Perhaps it was because I didn’t have the opportunity or perhaps it was because I didn’t act on the opportunities I was given.

Our children are a gift from God. He has entrusted them to us to raise them up in His Word and to be great leaders for His Kingdom. But He has also given them to us to make lasting friendships that open up doors to share the Gospel with those who do not know it or to help others deepen their faith by talking through it with someone who is going through some of the same things in life and can walk along side them. The Bible says so!

In Matthew 19, Jesus blesses the children and passed on the blessing from one generation to the next. This is where we must pass on our knowledge of the Bible and raise our children to know the Word and be warriors for the Kingdom of God. We also must not underestimate the power they have for the Kingdom. Whether through meeting others or sending them to school or them talking to their friends about Christ, we must remember that they are a gateway to sharing with others the love of Christ.

I know my friend has done a great job ministering to others through the relationships she has built through her children, and I pray I can use every opportunity God gives me to do the same. I am excited to go to Bangkok and fulfill God’s plan in this. BUT I also have to remember God has placed me here in the States for now, so I have to use the opportunities He has given me now too. I hope to encourage those of you who have children, both moms and dads, to acknowledge the opportunities God has given you to share the Gospel. And even if you are not a mom or dad or your children are grown, then still look for the opportunities God places in front of you to share His Word.

Brittany

Who We Are

My husband and I were married in July 2007. We started attending LifePoint Church around the same time. About 1 year after first attending LifePoint, we joined a small group. Fast forward to October 2011, when our church did a church wide study on David Platt’s book,

Radical

The book challenged us to go on a short term mission trip, so with another couple from our small group, we went to Haiti in January 2012. We had a great time on our trip and really felt like we learned so much, but never did we consider becoming international missionaries. Upon returning from Haiti, we got pregnant with our first child. Then in April 2012, our church held an event for a time of fasting and praying and just a time to figure out where God wanted to use us next. Through attending this event, we felt God calling us to move to Haiti. Our daughter was born in October 2012, and then we moved to Haiti in May 2013.
We lived in Haiti for a year. In Haiti, we helped with a discipleship program, had a Children’s Home with 13 children, and aided our organization with getting children life saving heart surgeries. We learned so much from living in Haiti and know God was using it as a time to prepare us for what He was calling us to next. As we prepared to come home to have our second child, we felt God calling us home from Haiti. The more we prayed about coming home from Haiti, the more we were met with the answer to move to Bangkok, Thailand.
Our church had approached us about moving to Bangkok with our church plant there, but when we were approached, we still believed we were called to live in Haiti, but God’s perfect timing opened up, and He eventually called us to Bangkok anyway.
We returned home from Haiti in May 2014. Our son was born in July 2014. We are taking some time to live in the States to adjust to being a family of 4, work on our marriage, visit with family and friends, raise support and prepare for our move to Bangkok. We will be moving to Bangkok in February 2015. We are excited about our new journey, and we are excited to share it with you too!
In Bangkok, we will be working with our church to raise up local Thai leaders to serve in the church. We will also be teaching English as a means to share the Gospel with the Thai people in our community. We also have a Cafe at the church that we use as an opportunity to share God’s love. Also, we will be partnering with an organization, ONEless, that ministers to ladies working in the red light district and caught in the sex trafficking industry. Also, we will be using the relationships we build through our children to share God’s love. Please pray for this to be fruitful! Our visa will be a Thai learning visa, so pray that we will be able to learn Thai quickly and effectively!

We hope that you will follow along here and hear about our journey and read some of our thoughts while we embark on the unknown journey God is sending us on in Bangkok, Thailand! Please pray for us as we continue to prepare to move to Bangkok, and when we move our labor be fruitful in a country that is only about 1% Christian. Pray that we continue to seek God in every decision we make. Pray that everything we do points back to Jesus, so that people question why we are the way we are! Pray for our staff that is currently in Bangkok.

We will update often as we prepare to move and after we move, so please check back often to keep up to date with everything we are doing!