Dear friends and family,
We are right smack in the middle of the 3-month lecture phase of Discipleship Training School (DTS)! Looking back on the past few months, we see how God has been guiding us on His path of challenges and joy. Initially, we planned to focus on language studies in our first year on the mission field. But through further dialogue with our leaders and guidance from Father God, we decided to serve with YWAM Chiang Mai’s DTS as staff. This is the same school which we graduated from just 7 months ago. We did hesitate as we wondered if this would compete with our language learning goals.
Translating in action!
However, we experience the goodness of God and also love from our DTS community in the area of language proficiency. We have many opportunities to serve as translators from Thai to English and our fellow staff are more than willing to guide us when we get stuck. We are also not shy to ask our students for help and they graciously do, albeit not without laughing at us sometimes (this is part and parcel of the package… :P). This cultural immersion really accelerates our growth in language!
Random photo after class with Eya, our fellow staff in DTS
Lecture phase has been flying past quickly and so much has happened in the lives of our students as they come to encounter God in an intimate way. Each of the 7 students come from very different backgrounds, with various giftings but also wounds. Through the past 6 weeks of lecture, we see our students come into a greater revelation of the Father’s Love, hearing His voice, and the heart of worship.
John 4:24
“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
One of our highlights this month was during the “Hearing God’s Voice” week. After covering various biblical principles and activation exercises, our invited speaker ended off the week with a time titled “freedom for the willing”. This time required the students to allow the Holy Spirit to unearth lies deep in their hearts – about themselves and/or God – that they have been living their lives upon. Still listening to the voice of God, the students asked the Holy Spirit to replace the lies with spiritual truth. We finished off the time by witnessing the students proclaim aloud the truths that the Holy Spirit personalised for them, and experience freedom from the lies that were holding them. With courage, faith, and tears, they took turns to do this standing on a chair with their classmates and staff cheering them on.
“I am God’s masterpiece!”
“I walk in His forgiveness and grace!”
“I am a beloved daughter of Father God!”
“I am chosen and designed before I was born!”
“I am protected and secure in my Father’s love!”
The staff watched in amazement as we realised that the Holy Spirit was revealing to the students specific things that we have been praying over them for! We pray that these biblical truths will become a solid foundation for their intimacy with God as the students continue to vulnerably open their hearts to Him.
2 Corinthians 3:17
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Our beloved DTS students!
Students and staff!
As we persevere through the challenges of very full schedules, tiredness, and interpersonal issues, we really can’t do without your prayer support. Please pray for:
- The Holy Spirit to continue His powerful work in the hearts of students and staff, and continue His healing and restoration of our identity and relationship with God
- Spiritual warfare over the school that come in the form of disunity, flight from conflicts, control issues
- Strong bodies and recovery from sicknesses like sinus infections, sore throats, and migraine
- Provision for our students as some of them are still raising the funds needed to finance the school fees.
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