A letter from Sharon Bryant serving in Thailand
christmas 2014 - a new day dawning
Dear Friends,
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Sharon Bryant with members of the Bangkok Combined Choir and its Director, Dr. Charunee Hongcharu
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The new officers are introduced at the 33rd General Assembly of the Church of Christ in Thailand
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Christina Penticuff and Elizabeth Etter arrive in Thailand
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Anne Gregory will arrive before Christmas to help out in Ecumenical Relations
On October 17, 2014, the final day of the 33rd General Assembly of the Church of Christ in Thailand (CCT), new officers were elected and installed. While they won’t actually begin work until January 1, 2015, it was evident that a new day is dawning within our partner church and the next four years will be different from the past four. Rev. Dr. Thaweesak Mahachavaroj, the new Moderator, is an independently wealthy businessman who attended seminary late in life. Rev. Dr. Rung Ruengsan-Ajin, the Vice Moderator and former President of Bangkok Institute of Theology, was re-elected to a second term. Mr. Surapong Mitrakul, the new General Secretary, comes from the deep South and is one of the most successful and visionary of the CCT school administrators. Mr. Kusak Sarakitipan, the Treasurer, was re-elected for a second term and is also from the deep South, though he has spent 40 years in Bangkok as Manager of the oldest and most successful Christian school belonging to the CCT. Most people are pleased with the election results and many assume that the coming years will strengthen the church here.
The street protests that began one year ago and eventually led to the coup d’état in May 2014 severely hurt our Christian Volunteers in Thailand (CVT) program. News stories of the unrest and the U.S. State Department’s travel advisories recommending that people NOT travel to Thailand scared away more than tourists: It kept many people from considering Thailand as a place where they might dedicate one or two years to mission service. I praise God that it did not keep Christina Penticuff and Elizabeth Etter, recent graduates of Pepperdine University, from coming to Thailand! They are both now teaching at Trang Christian School and learning more about Thailand each day. But a new day is dawning in the CVT program as well: We have seen our first short-term mission worker assigned to a ministry of the CCT that is not a school. Adam Royston, a Global Ministries intern (Christian Church [Disciples of Christ] and the United Church of Christ), is dividing his time between the Ecumenical Relations Office and the Child Protection Program as the first mission worker whose primary responsibility is being an advocate for, and coordinating resources of, those who work to reduce human trafficking and minister to those who have been trafficked. In October he led the CVT Fall Retreat on the theme of human trafficking and raised our awareness of the scope of the problem and its many manifestations.
A new day is also dawning in the Ecumenical Relations Office as we received confirmation that Rev. Anne Gregory, a new mission worker also supported by Global Ministries, will arrive in November to take up her duties here. Like me, Anne first came to Thailand as a young child with her parents who served for many years as American Baptist missionaries in Thailand. This will mark a historic day as some of the original mission partners of the CCT will be working alongside their CCT counterparts to support Ecumenical Relations and mission workers in Thailand. We are also processing the paperwork for a talented young Thai woman to join the office staff. A graduate of McGilvary College of Divinity in Chiang Mai with an earned doctorate from Yonsei University in Seoul, Rev. Dr. Rungtiwa Mamo will begin work next month in support of the many Korean missionaries who now work with the CCT in its many districts and ministries. It is great to see the work that God is doing to build the capability of this church!
Finally, a very personal note: My first love, and my undergraduate study, was vocal music. Yet the need to support my family and some strategically placed economic recessions kept me from focusing much time and attention on this gift. When my move to Bangkok allowed me to join the Bangkok Combined Choir (BCC), it was the highlight of the year. This year also marks the 60th Anniversary of the BCC, which I sang in as a teenager in high school. The BCC is known throughout Asia for its performance of Handel’s “Messiah” with orchestra each December for an unbroken string of 60 years. This year, on October 19, the BCC gave a special performance to mark those 60 years and a member of the Thai royal family graced the event. I was invited to sing one of the alto solos from Handel’s “Messiah” for this event and it was a dream come true for me. The words of one of my favorite psalms came back to me: “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.” It was a long wait, but worth every minute. Praise God for his faithfulness!
Prayer requests:
• Please continue to pray for the people of Thailand as they work to restore their democracy.
• Please pray that God will send more people to serve as short-term mission workers.
• Please pray for Rev. Anne Gregory and Dr. Rungiwa Mamo as they prepare to join the CCT staff.
• Finally, please pray for the newly elected leaders of our partner church, the Church of Christ in Thailand, as they take up their duties and usher in a new day for the church in Thailand.
Join me in praise to God for all the gifts that God has given, especially the gift of his precious Son, Jesus, whose birth we celebrate as this year closes. I pray that the joy of this season will find a place in your heart and that God’s love will overflow in blessings to you throughout the New Year! Please remember us when you consider the work you will support with a financial contribution this year.
With joy,
Sharon Bryant
The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 224
The 2015 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 235
Read more about Sharon Bryant's ministry
Blog: Thailand Tales
Write to Sharon Bryant
Individuals: Give online to E200484 for Sharon Bryant's sending and support
Congregations: Give to D507551 for Sharon Bryant's sending and support
Churches are asked to send donations through your congregation’s normal receiving site (this is usually your presbytery).
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A group of committed donors has pledged to match all gifts sent by individuals for mission personnel support now through December 31, 2014, up to $137,480. This means your gift today will be matched by a gift to support mission personnel around the world, wherever the need is greatest. We invite you to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to double the impact of your gift. Thank you!
