Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 118:1

Like the psalmist, I want to give thanks to the Lord for His goodness to me and thank you for praying for my 6 weeks in the USA.  I will be sending another newsletter soon to catch you up with what is happening in Thailand, but I want to take a moment to share highlights of praise for the summer.

eThe Greenlake Missions conference celebrating 200 years of Baptist missions was indeed a celebration on many levels. 

• The corporate worship was fantastic—I can better imagine what Heaven will be like with people of every nation joining in magnifying our God.  It was a wonderful time of meeting with colleagues from all over the world and being encouraged by their reports as well as connecting with other missionaries who also are doing medical work and work with women and children at risk.  Of special note was visioning with the group of the future of missions. My personal sharing in 2 different workshops went well—thank you for praying for my presentations.

• Then, 100 national church leaders from all over the world joined in the visioning process.  Waraporn from the CDPD as well as Rev. Sunny from the Karen Baptist Church were able to join in these meetings.

• Next, 1000 more people from ABC churches came.  This was a great time of reconnecting with supporters and prayer partners.

eI was able to fly to Maine to spend some time with my friend and former medical missionary colleague Dr. Bina Sawyer.  We served together at the hospital in Maesariang, and it was wonderful to be together as it had been several years.

eAn open house was held for me to commemorate 30 years of missionary service.  (A special praise is that the 4 other missionaries who were commissioned with me are all still serving in missions!)  I can remember arriving in Thailand on September 14^th, 1984, and within 48 hours I had already started language school!  I spent 10 months in Bangkok before moving to the north of Thailand to the Maesariang Christian Hospital, where I worked as a nurse for 10 years.  Then, I moved to Chiang Mai, where I have been for the last 20 years.  All I can say is this journey has been one where God has directed me step by step—I could not have envisioned this life I have 30 years ago.  I praise God for His leading in my life.

eFinally, I had a wonderful time of rest and restoration with my family in Canada.  I love being a great aunt, and to have extended time with these precious nieces and nephew was so good for my soul!  Here is a group photo of us at the lake.