Update on Khai's mother

NOTE: The email below is from Pastor Somboon concerning the cancer surgery needed for the mother of one of the Laotian Hmong students who came to study the Bible at the Bible Training Center in Chiang Khong. Khai had studied the Bible and went back to his country. Recently a generous gift was given to provide for her surgery. Here is the story of Pastor Somboon’s trip to give Khai’s family the money:

I went to Laos last week and gave the money to Khai’s mother for her operation. Their village is Luang Prabang Province, which is in the northern part of Laos. It’s the rainy season and travelling is very difficult. I didn’t get to Luang Prabang. When I told them that I couldn’t make it to Luang Prabang, they said they would like to go to Vientiene as the hospitals and doctors are better there. When I got to Vientiene, they called me and said that they couldn’t make it there as there had been so much rain that it had washed out the roads and vehicles couldn’t get past. They ended up staying overnight half way between Luang Prabang and Vientiene. The next day another vehicle came by and they were able to get on that bus and get to Vientiene. While I was waiting for them to arrive in Vientiene, I called a Hmong pastor that I know there. I went together with him to pick up the family. When we met up with them, they said that their bag with all of their clothes, passport, medical documents, etc. had disappeared along the way as there were so many people travelling. We were all startled and didn’t know what to do. The pastor that I was with said “Let’s pray.” We prayed and then went back to look for the bag. When we got back to the place where we had met them, there was a person standing there holding their bag for them. It was a miracle! It’s not like that in Laos. When something disappears, it is GONE. We then hurried to the hospital. I didn’t go to the hospital, because when the hospital staff there see someone from outside of Laos, they will automatically give a higher price. So, the Hmong pastor I was with took them to the hospital. I gave the money not to Khai’s mother, but to the Hmong pastor to use for medical expenses. That way, we know that the money is being used for it’s intended purpose. There have been other incidents where money has been given to a sick person for medical expenses, and the money gets used for something else entirely. So, I gave the money to the Hmong pastor for safekeeping. But there was another miracle! At the hospital in Vientiene, she went in for an X-ray, and they said there is no cancer! I don’t know exactly what happened, but they said she just has a bad case of stomach ulcers. The doctor said to come back in 3 days for another check up, and when she went back, there was still no sign of the cancer! The doctor gave her medicine and told her to come back in another 3 days and see how she’s doing. It hasn’t been 3 days yet. But she’s had 2 different X-rays in Vientiene now and they both have come up negative for cancer. Please pray for her. She says she has a biting pain in her genital area, and she’s scared that is cancer, but we don’t know why she’s having that pain. We know there is nothing that man can do, but we know that with God all things are possible. The pictures I’m sending are of her.

Thank you for your update on the money that people have given. Everyone here is fine. Thank you for your prayers and concern.

Somboon

Joe is the newest member of the Training Center team. He is now back at the training center assisting Pastor Somboon. Joe's Thai name is Jue Li and his Hmong name is Rwg Lis. He is the one of the first students who studied at the training center. After studying the Bible with us for one year, he went to Bible school to earn his bachelors degree. When he finished his four years of studying the Bible, he came back to help at the training center.

Answered Prayer

This past May, Somboon's father accepted Christ as his Savior. We have been praying for his father's salvation for a long time. As many of you know, his mother died a little over a year ago. Somboon's father has lived with him for several months. His father has been going to church with him. You can read his note below.

Pastors Wutichai and Leng are on the Hmong Committee for the foundation. They are very godly men who love the Lord.

Please pray for his village (some of you have been there) that the message of the Gospel will reach many of the non-believers there. God bless!

His servants and yours,
Duane & Kathy

Hello Pastors and friends,

Thank you for praying for my father. Last night my father accepted the Lord! He has been a witchdoctor for over 40 years. There were many times that he had said that he wanted to become a Christian, but now he has finally accepted the Lord. 2 weeks ago he told me that he wanted to receive Christ as His Savior. Yesterday I invited Pastor Wutichai and Pastor NyiajLeng here to explain the gospel in greater detail to my father, and he prayed to receive Christ! When my mother first accepted the Lord, my father didn't like it at all. When my mother died, my father was more open to the gospel, and now he is saved also. Thank you again for your prayers! Please continue to pray for him that he will stand firm and steadfast in the faith. On June 2nd, we are going to return to my village and my father will burn the spirit altar in the house along with all of the spirit paraphernalia.

God bless you.

Somboon

We were blessed beyond belief to see 12 people baptized Sunday, November 14th. All 12 people, along with Pastor Somboon are pictured above. It was a beautiful day at the Mekong River. The following girls from the girls house were baptized: Kung, Mone and Nee. The following boys at the boys house were baptized: Mai, Kowit, Tong, Wee, Nai and Wang. Nai and Wang are the sons of Hmong church leaders, but neither one of them were believers when they first came to live at the boys house this year. Praise God that they have accepted the Lord and have decided to follow Him in baptism. Tong and Wee had said they weren't sure if they were ready to be baptized, but at the last minute, both boys decided to get baptized. Wee practically ran into the water and gave Pastor Somboon a big hug after getting baptized. It was so precious to see! Mai, the cook for the boys house, and her daughter Pu were also baptized. Both of these women had accepted the Lord a few years ago, and have waited a long time to be baptized. Ran, a church member, was also baptized. He is growing in the Lord by leaps and bounds.

The previous Sunday, 7 people here at the foundation accpeted the Lord:

The girls include: Newt, Creme and Mone. This is Creme's first year here with us and we are excited about what God is doing in her life. Newt and Mone are sisters and this is the 2nd year they have been here. The boys include: Nai, Wang, Kowit and Joe.

Thank you for your prayers. Your prayers are bearing much fruit!

Stress Reliever

We took the boys to a waterfall in Chiang Rai. Everyone had a lot of fun. It gave everyone a chance to relax and relieve the stress of studying and doing homework. Everyone got to change gears and get a change of environment for a while. It was also an opportunity to get to know each other better surrounded by the beautiful scenery that God created.

Planting trees, trees and more trees!

The trees that the students are planting here are Eucalyptus trees Teakwood trees. We are planting these trees for use in building houses and dorms for the students in the future. It rained the day we planted the trees, but everyone still had a great time planting the trees. No one complained about how tired they were because they knew they were planting the trees for the work of God in the future.

Planting the One Thousand Rubber Trees

Through a donation of a believer in the United States, we were able to purchase 1,000 trees, that can later be used to make rubber items, as an investment for the future. If God's willing, we hope that one day the profits from the rubber trees can help the Hmong Developing Quality of Life Foundation so that we can continue our ministry in furthering God's Kingdom. Below are some of the pictures of the planting of the rubber trees as well as the making of the little rest shelter. Praises be to our God! Thank you for being a part of our ministry through prayers and financial support.

God bless,
Somboon


Two truck loads of Rubber Trees...ready to be planted.