the Mien village

wednesday afternoon, after totally being blown away by such a fruitful morning in clinic, i was signed up to go with the group to see the Mien village. julie and i went and helped amy work with the children, while two other thai staff workers ministered to the adults in the village. it's a very primitive village and the houses are poorly constructed wooden structures with dirt floors. we sat outside on a blanket in the grass and sang songs and did arts and crafts with the kids. i wish i could show you their amazing smiles again. adorable. we were there for a few hours and when the sun started going down, the mosquitos started coming out. i don't think i've ever been bitten by a bug that drills a hole in your leg like today. all of us could look down at our legs and see tiny dots of blood b/c a mosquito had been there and drilled a hole. ruthless!

after the others finished with the adults we drove out of the mountainside village to stop by an elderly christian lady's home to pray with her. she was outside by the road. she was wearing the traditional Mien head dressing. she was a precious child of God with a frail body and shaky voice. some of her grown children were outside too with us and after they left, she asked us to pray for her son who wasn't a Christian. we prayed for her and her arthritis as well. again, how amazing it is to stand there in the middle of the mountains, standing in a remote village in Thailand and see how the Lord has already instilled faith in some people. what a blessing for them to have that eternal life. now, will the others? at least a spark has started and it will grow into a flame. it will take continuous weekly village visits to grow these ministries. praise God that there are some to grow. i still get so overwhelmed when i think that these are eternal lives being changed.