SPOTLIGHT ON MISSIONS: Siripong & Jessie Yaebeang

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you and your family! It’s been an extremely busy month or so for us, with several things going on. We are excited to share some of that with you!

We are always excited and looking forward to this time of the year to celebrate Christmas with our people and tell the Thai people the true meaning of Christmas- the birth of Jesus.

Some people from our church brought gifts to a community where other church members live and gave those gifts to the kids/families there. We also gave out gospel tracks and told them why we do what we do — to celebrate Jesus, who came to the world to save sinners! The following Sunday, a lady and her daughter visited our church!

We had our Christmas service on Dec. 22. We worshiped and spent time in fellowship together. We had at least 5-6 guests who were Buddhists who joined us and heard the gospel that day. And like every year, we had several activities for the kids and gave away gifts. What a day!

We were able to attend Roman’s school for a Christmas program. All the classes prepared a song to perform. Seeing Roman with his friends and meeting some of his classmates’ parents was fun.

As you know, we’ve been looking for a church building where we can meet for a while now, but we couldn’t find anywhere that fits what we were looking for. However, I recently found one place we all feel at peace about, and Lord willing, we will start using it after the new year!

I pretty much “stumbled” over this place. After lunch one day, I was drawn to go check out this area I had never been to, which was very close to where our church meets, and I saw this building. There was no sign for rent or anything, so I thought it was unavailable. I almost drove away, but a coffee shop was nearby, so I asked them about that building. I discovered it belonged to the same owner, and they asked me if I was interested! It’s a long building that has enough space for us. We are making a kid’s room and the rest will be the worship room.

We’ve been working on fixing and getting the essential stuff to start using it soon. We will slowly add things to the church building, but we still need many things for the new building. Please pray for us as we are getting everything ready, and you may reach out to me if you want more information about this. We are very excited about this new step and hope you are, too!

Not long ago, when I called my mom, she shared with me two encouraging things relating to our ministry (and I thought it might encourage you as well). First, my mom went to a wedding, and a couple of people came up to her (knowing she’s my mom) and told her they were still thinking about the sermon I preached at my dad’s funeral and would never forget that. The only explanation is that it’s God working in their hearts because it’s been over seven months since they heard the message. Second, she told me that a young man she knows just got out of prison. To her (and my) surprise, he said he read my books in prison! Moreover, he told her several inmates had read them as well! This is the first time I learned my books are in the prison. We don’t know who purchased or placed the books, but the Lord used them to reach some people there. We praise God and are humbled to hear this kind of news. Glory be to His name.

This month, I had the opportunity to visit with Pastor Tam. He’s one of the pastors who attended the preaching seminar a couple of months ago. I met with him to follow up after he attended the seminar and to encourage and pray for him. It was encouraging to hear how he adapted and applied what he learned to his preaching and his walk with the Lord. He said his congregation commented that they could tell the difference in his preaching. I hope to meet with more pastors who attended the seminar as the Lord allows, but most live in different parts of Thailand. Pray for Pastor Tam and others here that God will keep them faithful.

It was a joy for me to see Jessie gather the ladies from church and have a special time together after church services. Some men and I helped watch the kids to free the ladies. They decorated cookies, talked about the meaning of Christmas, exchanged gifts and enjoyed fellowship with one another. Everyone had a great time and wants to do it again! But we told the ladies it should be the guys’ turn next time. We are thankful for these ladies!

A church we know well invited me to preach at their Christmas outreach service. It’s been on my schedule for some time, so I was thrilled to be there. I was told that several attendees were Buddhists, and it was their first time at church! I was given about 40 minutes to preach, and it was a joy to plead with the people there to repent and come worship the Lord Jesus. Please pray for those who heard the gospel!

This month, the big brother of the house turned 9! We got to spend time with him and did several activities he liked. This year, we took the cake to his soccer practice, and everyone sang Happy Birthday to him!

Thank you for reading our updates. Please do not hesitate to contact us for any questions or details you may want to know more about our lives and ministries. Ladies, Jessie would love to hear from you! Blessings to you all!