My name is Rebecca and my family and I have been living in Thailand for almost 4 years now. This is our first time living over seas and it has been quite the journey. We have two boys who were going into the 6th and 8th grades when we moved here. If you have moved overseas with older kids I’m sure you can imagine the adjustment this was!
For the first year and a half we did “business as mission” work and during that time we built a relationship with a local Akah hill-tribe family. We are now helping that Akah family get their dorm up and running. We have joined them with a foundation so that all the work is legal with the government. Currently we have 26 students from remote mountain villages attending the dorm so that they can receive an education. Our main objectives are spiritual formation, education, and sustainable vocations.
In June 2015 we all decided that it would be best to move the dorm 2 hours north of where we are currently living (at the moment we are on a rental property with very rundown buildings). So we got the word out that we would be moving and that land would have to be purchased. We didn’t really push for funds until December and in a matter of a month and a half 40 thousand US dollars was raised for the purchase of the new land! This has been a humbling process for me! Every time a donation came in I was reminded just how big God is and that He is in control. I honestly wasn’t sure how long it would take and would find myself doubting a lot. I have had to ask God to forgive me many times for doubting so much.
The dorm students finished school here in March. At this time we will be making the move further north. We are not sure what we will do for housing as we have not raised funds for that part of the project yet. I have a feeling that God has this under control too (I’m a slow learner). Most of the students will go live with family members during their break from school. So needless to say my big prayer request now is for the funding for buildings. Our family is considering going back to the states for 6 months to help raise awareness and monthly financial support for the dorm. Prayers are also welcomed in this transition back to the US where the boys will attend one semester of public school.
If you would like to see some videos that show our dorm you can visit our blog at www.intodiscomfortzone.