no greater love.

the last two days have been wonderful. i've been spending a lot of my time with my ministry partners. we eat lunch with new girls we meet everyday at the schools and then at night, we go do different activities. the last two nights i've been at the night market (a popular place where you can shop for different items as well as be provided with a plethora choice of food) where i met four precious girls; wiew, pak, aer, and au. we had dinner with them and shopped around the market. we swapped random facts about each other and really enjoyed each other's company.

although everything in me wants to dig deeper with these new girls i meet everyday, i know i can't ask questions that could potentially jeopardize the exciting new friendship i've formed with them. every Thai girl i've met so far, whether it be at the school or at the night market, i've truly loved being around. they have such a sweet spirit and want so badly to speak as much english as they can with me. they genuinely want to know about my life and why i'm here. i've been telling them about campus outreach and all of them have been very interested in all the fun activities campus outreach offers. my ministry partner told me that i have to take it slow with everyone i meet because usually when they find out the reason behind why i'm here and what i'm trying to tell them about, they tend to backoff. therefore, i have to remind myself everyday that this is all a gradual process. i can't tell someone about Jesus, especially someone who's devoted completely to another religion, and expect them to understand what i'm talking about rightaway.

although this has been somewhat frustrating for me, i'm learning to remind myself that building these relationships with these girls is crucial. spending some time in the word, the Lord has showed me that His plans and purpose always prevail (Proverbs 19:21). i'm learning to trust that the Lord has a plan through all this and although i can't say much, i have to continually love on these girls and shine Christ's love through my actions and deeds. thinking about the urgency of the Gospel and how i have to take every opportunity i get to tell others of Christ makes me want to tell everyone i meet about Jesus' love for them. however, i'm learning to wait patiently on the Lord and to stay faithful in prayer for the people of Thailand.

                                                             beautiful wiew and pak

                            twins, ministry partners...thankful for out time together each day abbs

                           typical night hanging out with sweet friends at the night market

                        painting each other's nails and talking about life with my sweet Aw

                                              aer and au...such a joy to be around these girls

                                      my princess belle turned 4 today, i adore this child

i'm so thankful for all the girls i've met so far and for the many i'll meet in the upcoming weeks. please pray that my team and i will continually love everyone we meet in a way that makes them want to seek Jesus, and that the Lord would open opportunities for us to tell them about the life-changing truth and never-ending love found only in our Father. lastly, please pray that Christ will be made known as Lord and Savior to many this summer.

-milc