Thank
you!!
It
is very hard to believe that it has been almost 3 months since I
returned from Thailand! There is so much to tell & share of
God's goodness!
Since
my return I have finished all my coursework and graduated from my
first year of TSSM (Transformation School of Supernatural Ministry).
This was a really important step for me – I even remarked to Mike
that it feels like I worked harder during this year of ministry
training than I did during 4 years of university; and not only that,
but it means more to me than my degree. Thank you so much for
partnering with me! You have each been an integral part of God
changing my life. Yay God!!
Our
trip was nothing short of amazing! Thailand is a beautiful country,
but my absolute favorite part was the people. They are so gentle and
sweet. I absolutely loved being out in the culture. It was in
Thailand that my heart was awakened to the fact that I could
definitely be a permanent missionary. On some level I have always
known this, but it was during this trip that I knew
that I knew. God is
always so faithful! I built a really great relationship with the
missionaries there, Jason & Sarah Ricketts and their family. It
was so difficult for me to leave and return to the US, although I was
happy to see Mike & the kids!
During our
time in Pattaya we taught at-risk children about Jesus, we ministered
to prostitutes working on the streets and we even had some
opportunities to minister to the broken and hurting “johns” {men
that are living/visiting Thailand with the sole purpose of exploiting
the sex trade}. Holy Spirit moved and poured out His unconditional
love on EVERYONE, regardless if they were Buddhist, atheist, happy,
sad, angry, men, women, children, believers or not. The true gospel.
One of my
most unforgettable experiences though was at the local prison.
Unfortunately we could not take and photos inside the prison, but I
will do my very best to capture the experience with my words. This
prison has men, women & children. It is an initial “holding”
place until the authorities figure out what they are going to do with
the people. The entire cell portion of the prison is no bigger than
50' x 50'. Women & children are on the right hand side side
of the room and are separated into cells of Thai and “foreigner”
which is mostly Cambodian, but could be anyone, like you or I. Cells
are about 6' deep x 10' wide with cinderblock walls between cells.
The men's side was similar except slightly bigger cells, because
there are way more men. The day we visited there were 3 women, no
children (thank you Jesus!) and 27 men. There is one potty in the
cell for everyone to use in the wide open. The stench was
horrendous. I was gagging as soon as the door opened for us to enter
the
5' wide walkway between the cells. We brought sandwiches,
bottled water and apples to distribute. They were so thankful to see
us because lots of them had been locked up since the week before and
hadn't had anything to eat or drink for 4 days.
The corruption is bad in Thailand. Most of the men there were from
Cambodia and had come to Thailand to work illegally on construction
projects, likely for the Russian mafia {who own most of the new real
estate development}. What happens is that they hire illegals because
it costs less. They house them, hide them & feed them but they
do not pay them until the project is complete. You can probably see
where this is going... so the end of the project is nearing and
instead of paying their workers, they call the police to raid the
jobsite. They pay off the police instead and the workers are hauled
to prison and deported. Then likely they do it all over again.
While
we were there I had the interpreter ask if anyone needed a physical
healing in their body. One Cambodian gentleman limped forward from
the back of the cell. He could not walk, only hop because one leg
was in excruciating pain. I could feel the anointing of Holy Spirit
all over me and as I held his hand and prayed {in English, without
interpretation} he started to stretch his sore leg and move it
around. I prayed more and very intensely because of what God was
doing and God reached down and healed my friend!!! As I cried and we
held hands to praise Jesus, our fingers side by side, he had on a
plastic yellow ring that said LOVE and I had a silver metal ring that
was stamped LOVE. Love wins, every
time!! He walked easily back to his place in the cell, no longer in
any pain. Yay Jesus!!
God moved
powerfully through myself and our entire team while we were in
Pattaya. During one night of our VBS we were teaching the kids to
“soak”, which is simply to sit or lay still, let music play and
listen. We didn't even tell them we were going to listen for God.
We said it was ok to close your eyes, relax, and just listen.
Afterwards we went around the room and asked the street & slum
children {ages 3-15} if they saw or heard anything. Their responses
and experiences truly blew me away: I saw a white, glowing man
smiling at me; I saw gold & clouds; I heard pretty music; I feel
really loved; I saw God. Wow!!!
A
very powerful moment I will always remember for the rest of my life
took place on Beach Road, where men and women meet to negotiate
sexual contracts of various natures. We were walking there
purposefully with the intent of blessing people. God “highlighted”
a woman to me, who was standing around, waiting to be approached for
work. I could not take my eyes off of her, so I knew God wanted to
do something. But what? I asked Him. I did not get an answer, so I
approached her anyway. With my interpreter I asked about her night,
was she busy, could we talk? She told me about herself, where she's
from. She came to Pattaya to make money to send home to her mother
in a northern farming village. This was her first
night in Pattaya. I knew then that God had sent me to her. She
started talking about trying to meet a husband, a good one though,
one that would take care of her and truly love her. I started
talking about a man I know, and how He already loves her, He's always
loved her and will never quit pursuing her – that He's passionate
about her!! I said much more but I can't remember the exact details
because most of it was straight from the heart of the Father. I was
on my knees, proposal style, in the dirt, surrounded by other
prostitutes and johns and I asked her if she wanted to know that man,
that His name is Jesus. I will forever remember how hard her finger
nails dug into my hands when she said YES! We prayed right there
that Jesus would come into her heart and that she would give her life
to Him. We then connected her with a ministry that would give her
job training so she never has to get involved with working on the
streets. She then told the interpreter that she could hear voices
singing and I believe it was the angels in heaven rejoicing for a
Buddhist prostitute, turned Daughter of the King!! My new sister,
Pong!
I could
write so much more, it would probably fill a small book. Maybe I
will do that. But what I want to do more so is thank you for
investing in me, in the children and people of Thailand, in my
family, and in the Kingdom. Your heart to sow generously has been
blessed and I pray it be multiplied back to you 100-fold. Each
prayer and financial partner was critical to this work of God, and I
thank you each from the depths of my heart. I know that a life of
missions has been birthed in my heart. I do not know exactly what
that looks like, but it will be a God-led and Spirit-filled
adventure!
Now for some
exciting news! Mike has been offered a promotion at work; He has
been asked to manage the construction of a wind farm overseas, in
India! We will be able to go as a family, be together and to preach
the gospel as we go. This is such an incredible God setup for us, we
couldn't be happier. We will leave August 6th and will be
there for approximately 5 months. Afterwards we will have the chance
to go to Thailand to visit the Rickets, possibly for a month or so.
God is so good! Myself & the kids have to pay our own airfare to
get there so if you would consider whether you are to support us in
any way, that would be greatly appreciated, especially since we have
such a short time frame. We just found out 2 weeks ago :) God is so
good!
I love you
each dearly as Brothers & Sisters in the Kingdom. May joy, love
and peace fill every day you have. May you continue to sow
extravagantly into the works of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In total
devotion,
Jenn Burnett
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