Prayer and Praise Notes

The Cyclone that Devastated Burma

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Thu, 08 May 2008 00:47:00 +0000

With a million homeless and an estimated 100,000 dead, Myanmar (Burma) has been devastated by the Tropical Cyclone (Hurricane) Nargis. While we have only felt the effects of this disaster in rain and clouds, our neighbors in Myanmar have had their lives changed forever by this disaster.

Please join the world in prayer for the recovery and care for the survivors, and the emotional care and comfort for the families of the 100,000 who are feared dead. Pray also that the military government would be softened and allow the world to pour its resources into the compassionate work and recovery that is so desperately needed.

Tags:

prayer

Pray for Ben

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 05 May 2008 08:31:00 +0000

For those of you who know them, the Straits are going through a rough patch and could really use your prayer. Even if you don't know them, please pray for the quick and complete healing of our good friend Ben.

Read more details at Strait News

Tags:

prayer

Akha Dorm...

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 03:31:00 +0000

One of our good Akha friends here in Chiang Rai is starting a new ministry to Akha teenage boys. We were so excited when we heard about his plans and we wanted to share his project with you, so that you can join us in praying for him and the success of the ministry!

I want to help those who come from poor families and otherwise would not have an opportunity to continue their education by offering them a place to stay and being a mentor to them. Proverbs 22:6 says "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." I believe that God has given me his heart for young Akha teenagers in Chiang Rai and I therefore want to open a house for about 10 young men so that they can live together in a Christian environment and can be discipled. I want to provide opportunity to use the young people's energy to reach out to other people, on campus and in the city.

If you're interested in learning more about this project or helping with financial needs, please check out the Akha Dorm website.

Pray for Gary

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 21:38:00 +0000

Please join us in prayer for Gary - a fellow Foursquare Missionary here in Thailand. We just received notice from his wife, Paula, that he has been hospitalized. Here is what she wrote:

Please pray for Gary. About 8 hours ago, I took him to the hospital after he developed cold chills, extreme nausea, internal pain, weakness, and fever. His doctor looked at him, then sent him to the Emergency Room, where they did some tests, then checked him into the hospital. I just spoke to 2 of his doctors; one is an Infectious Disease specialist. They are not sure what is wrong with him, but think he may have an "e coli" infection or perhaps another type of blood infection. They have to wait a couple of days for the lab tests to confirm it. His doctor told me it could be a serious situation. Right now, Gary is in the hospital on mega doses of 2 different IV antibiotics. He was a bit delirious earlier, but when I talked to him about 30 minutes ago, he was trying to joke with me, though he was weak and in pain.

Tags:

Pray for Esther's Family

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 03:26:00 +0000

Remember our language / house / baby helper Esther? Well she continues to be a wonderful friend and it has been a joy to have her with us these last four months. She is doing great in life, and we frequently have discussions about her future, spirituality and the world in general.

Esther had to quit school and work at the age of 16. Since her older brother is finishing tech school and her older sister was married very young, she was the oldest child who could work to help support her parents. Her first job was with a Thai woman and her foreign "Boyfriend / Husband". This is a tremendous problem in Thailand as foreign men flood into the country looking for Thai "wives". She was subjected to some awful stuff working for them and ran away back home. Finally she heard about us and called us up to ask if she could work for us.

As wonderful as it has been to have her around, it would be a tragedy if she worked as a house helper for her entire life. She is incredibly bright and we have helped her get into Thai "adult education" for a GED-type equivalent. We are looking forward to what God has for her in the future.

As well as she is doing, her sister really needs your prayers. She married a Thai man who is an alcoholic, violent and abusive. They have a 3-year old daughter and Esther's sister is pregnant with their second child. The husband keeps threatening to kidnap and run away with the 3 year old. Last weekend the husband declared that he was divorcing the wife, but he keeps showing up (probably to take money for alcohol).

Esther's sister is despondent. She is not taking care of her daughter and has been talking about killing her unborn child as well as herself. Yesterday she asked Esther to take her daughter back to the village to live with their parents.

We, of course, are glad to let Esther take care of this family emergency and she will go back to Maesai sometime today and will stay there as long as is needed to make arrangements for the little girl, as Esther's sister refuses to go back to her parents.

Please pray for Esther's sister, for safety from her husband and for protection for the unborn child.
Please Pray for the entire family that they will have wisdom to intervene as necessary for the protection of all people involved
Please Pray for Esther who loves her sister and her niece and is caught in the middle of all of this

Tags:

Please Pray this Week

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 05:22:00 +0000

We have a very busy week ahead of us and would love your prayer support.

Our week is so full because it is the last week of school break in Thailand, and everyone has decided that it is the perfect time for the annual events.

First, we are heading to Chiang Mai (today) to attend the Foursquare National Convention for Thailand. We will leave the convention early to come back to Mae Chan on Wednesday to attend the staff retreat for Akha Outreach Foundation. Then, we will skip a day of those meetings to head back to Mae Salong for our village's New Rice Festival on Friday. After a brief stopover in Chiang Rai, we will head back to Chiang Mai on Saturday for the Foursquare Missionary Retreat.

We ask for your prayers for Energy, Safety as we Travel, enjoyment of these events, and especially that Abigail will be able to handle all of this busyness.

Thanks for praying!

Tags:

prayer

Manoon

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 02:53:00 +0000

Prayer Update :: Manoon

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 23:29:00 +0000

Thanks for your continued prayers for Manoon. He is still battling, but there have been some scary moments and he has been moved back to the ICU. The doctors decided that a tracheotomy needed to be performed, and now his body is much more relaxed for breathing, but there is still a long way to go. He has terrible sores all over and in his mouth from being on the respirator for so long and is still not very responsive - physically or mentally.

Continue to join us in prayer for his comfort, and that he would be made whole.

Tags:

prayer

Urgent Prayer : Manoon

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 03:24:00 +0000

We just received an email from the staff at House of Joy requesting urgent prayer for Manoon, one of the teenagers at house of joy, who was hit by a truck this morning on his way to school. Here are the details we know:

This morning he was riding his bike to school and a soldier driving a truck accidentally struck him, knocking him unconscious. We praise God the ambulance was able to somewhat stabilize him before rushing him to the emergency room, but he's been there for three hours already and is still not breathing on his own. His eyes are closed but his limbs keep jerking and fighting, and they just did a CAT scan and are concerned there may be blood on the brain. We are not sure yet if he will need emergency surgery. Please, please join together, maybe even call others whom you know have a heart for House of Joy, and pray for this precious 13 year old. Pray that God does a miracle and that his life will be a constant witness to all who see him. Pray for his younger brother who also lives here, and his family in the village that the Holy Spirit would comfort them and give them peace. We know God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask, think or imagine. He is able to heal Manoon.

Please join us in prayer.

Tags:

prayer

Pray for the Hostages in Afghanistan

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 04:51:00 +0000

I was surprised to learn the other day that this is not big news in America, in fact the people I was speaking to had not even heard that 23 Christian Korean volunteer workers, 16 of them women, have been kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan, and 2 of them have already been killed (as of August 1st). Apparently, even Christian news sources are disturbingly quiet on this story, although I have seen many updates and requests for prayer from the missionaries around the world.

The best sources I have found that are continuously covering this story are Eugene Cho and Michelle Malkin. I encourage all of you to visit their sites to catch up and stay updated on these developments.

Please pray for the remaining hostages, for their families and the families of the martyrs as these horrible events continue, and join us in asking for the release of the remaining hostages.

Tags:

Please Pray for Lori's Mom

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 03:18:00 +0000

Join us in lifting up my Mom, Jan, in prayer over these next few weeks. She goes into surgery on Monday, July 9th to have her uterus and omentum removed. This surgery is in response to some "pre-cancerous tumors" which were laprascopically removed along with her ovaries about a month ago. This upcoming surgery is intended to be both preventative of further cancerous growth, as well as exploratory, in order to look for any other abnormalities which may be present.

Please pray...

... for her safety during the surgery itself. Pray that the surgeons would have God-given wisdom and understanding as they perform this major surgery

... for the eradication of any cancerous or pre-cancerous cells.

... for her immediate recovery in the hospital. Pray that my mother would experience a God-given physical comfort and emotional peace. Also, please pray for the nurses and family members who will be caring for her during this time.

... for her long-term recovery. Recovery from major surgery like this is expected to take anywhere from 4-6 weeks. Please pray for quick and complete healing!

Tags:

Please Pray for Penny

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 01:06:00 +0000

We received an email this morning from Penny, the director of Baan Nam Jai, a foundation ministering to young children whose families have been devastated by HIV. Penny has had multiple battles with cancer, and recently learned that she now has Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma, an aggressive form of cancer. The Doctor has said that she has only months left and has suggested weekly chemotherapy, stem cell therapy, and possibly bone marrow transplant as well.

After taking some time seeking direction from the Lord in prayer, the family has returned to Chiang Rai. Penny's most recent update shares this:

Basically I (Penny) am currently consuming almost every natural remedy known to man, ...eating apricot kernels and cod liver oil, high doses of vitamin c and other supplements which I won't bore you with. My hope is that these things will shrink the tumour and that when I go back to have any CT scan in a month (early August) we will see evidence of that. Ultimately though it is God who heals and we are asking Him to heal me and hopeful that this is His plan. We have prayed together as a family since we have come back from Australia... and have a peace about this plan for now, once we get results from the next CT scan we will then decide what to do next. Paul (Wilcox)& I will travel together again to Australia for that on July 30th. We appreciate you praying with us.

Please lift Penny, the Wilcox family, and the children at Baan Nam Jai before the Lord in your prayers over this next month.

Tags:

prayer

Home Again

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 10:42:00 +0000

After 5 days and 4 nights in the hospital, I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight! As of today, the doctors felt confident that my trips to the bathroom (to put it nicely) had lessened to the point that I no longer needed the I.V. to remain adequately hydrated. I am feeling much better, but will still probably require several days of "taking it easy" here at home in Chiang Rai.

While four nights in the hospital usually denotes a fairly serious condition, this was luckily not the case with me. The intestinal infection, was never very serious, but was simply a bit slower than usual in clearing up. This was due partly to the fact that the antibiotics most commonly used for GI infections (like Cipro) are not safe for use during pregnancy. So, I was forced to be patient with a slightly less effective and slower-working antibiotic (which, of course I was happy to do for the sake of the baby!)

Thank you so much for your prayers over the past five days, please continue to pray for my complete healing and return of energy over the next few days!

Tags:

A Mystery

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 01:29:00 +0000

Yesterday Lori had begun feeling a little better, and we had high hopes that she would be released yesterday afternoon. However, yesterday evening the Doctor was still concerned about the loss of fluids and asked her to stay one more night. It turned out to be a very good call, as Lori threw up "a lot" last night.

Lori's Doctor is now calling in an infectious disease specialist who will hopefully help us get to the bottom of this mystery illness. Through it all, the baby seems to be doing fine, kicking mom at all the regular intervals.

Please continue to hold Lori in prayer and pray for wisdom for all the Doctors to figure out exactly what's wrong and the safest way to make her better. Thanks for all your prayers.

Tags:

Lori is in the Hospital

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 02:51:00 +0000

Please join us in prayer for Lori as she was admitted to the hospital in Chiang Rai this morning for dehydration from vomiting. She has a stomach infection of some sort and the doctors are working on getting her an antibiotic which will be pregnancy-safe.

Please pray that she recovers her strength quickly, that her body would be able to keep some nutrients inside, and that the baby would be protected through this entire ordeal.

We will give you more updates as we receive more information.

Tags:

Praying for Missionaries

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 05:49:00 +0000

We appreciate our prayer partners so much! Unfortunately, we are sometimes less than diligent in keeping our prayer requests current on our blogs, always waiting until "something big" comes up before making an entry. I ran across this prayer guide on another missionary's blog and wanted to share it to help you pray for us even in those in-between-times when it feels like you don't have any specific requests to pray about.

1. It is not necessary that you ask God to give us good health. The important thing is that He gives us the measure of health that will best glorify Him.

2. We do not want you to pray that God will give us an easy path on the mission field and remove obstacles. Rather pray that He gives strength and grace to overcome the difficult God-given obstacles in ministry.

3. It is not so important that you pray that God should bless our activities. Ask that He censor our activities, for it is easy for time and energy to be spent on second-best things.

4. Do not pray for us as though we lived on a higher plane. We can become lonely, discouraged, irritable, and impatient. We can do a lot of missionary work simply in the energy of the flesh. Pray that the love of Christ may constrain us in all that we do.

5. Pray that, like the Apostle Paul, we may be willing to deny ourselves in order to make our lives an example to the national believers. Sometimes this means forfeiting rights, privileges, and material conveniences we have taken for granted all our lives, but which can be stumbling blocks to missionary service.

-written by an anonymous missionary

The truck named Suzi

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 15:36:00 +0000

Our Suzuki jeep has had a major engine problem (read the whole story here). The truck is currently at the mechanic and we are awaiting the diagnosis. Pray for us, that we'll have wisdom about how to proceed once we learn the problem. God has already provided a loaner vehicle for us to use in the meantime, but even now, we ask that you begin praying for the provision of a permanent replacement vehicle in the case that Suzi has rolled her last mile.

Affordable Airfare

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Vernon) — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 02:42:00 +0000

Please join us in praying that my parents would be able to find affordable airfare to Thailand so they can visit for the birth of our first baby in July and August. A few days ago they found a pretty good online fare, but unfortunately it sold out right away and they were not able to take advantage of it in time. Now, it seems, all the available fares are double or triple the price of that "pretty good fare"... in other words very expensive. We are praying for God's extravagant provision in this matter; we pray that they will not only find an affordable fare, but one that is even cheaper than the original fare they missed.

Tags:

Praise Update :: Grandpa and Visas

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 01:44:00 +0000

We are happy to share that my Grandpa is doing much better, and though his body is still retaining water, everything else seems to be coming under control and we are hoping he will be released from the hospital in the next week. Thank you for all of your prayers. In other family news, we were able to speak to my brother, sister, dad and grandma (from Germany, Texas, Colorado and visiting from New Orleans) over Skype last night and are all looking forward to seeing each other at Christmas!

As for our visas, we were able to procure a 30-day visa extension as we are waiting for approval from Bangkok for another 1-year visa. It took 3 round-trips from Chiang Rai to Maesai, and a lot of apologies and wais, but as of early this afternoon everything is finally in order. Please keep our visa situation in your prayers as we hope to receive the approval from Bangkok in the next week.

All that driving between here and Maesai really wore Lori out, so we will probably spend the rest of the day at home in Chiang Rai and then this weekend we will join the celebration of the 2007 Akha Bible Institute (ABI) graduation. This is always a fun time, as hundreds of Akha come down from the villages to join in the celebration each year. This year we will be honored with the presence of Dr. Paul Lewis, the linguist who first created the Akha script, wrote the Akha-English-Thai dictionary, and translated the Bible into Akha. We hope to post more on all of these festivities next week.

Tags:

My Grandpa and Our Visas

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 03:56:00 +0000

Please join us in prayer this week as we have two major requests...

My 'Grandpa Du', 89, in the last two weeks has been suffering from an infection and low blood pressure and needed to have a wire then a pacemaker implanted onto his heart. In the past, he has suffered from multiple heart attacks, needing bypass surgeries and stints placed into his arteries; he also endured a severe case of diverticulitis four years ago. There has been difficulty in regulating the pacemaker, and the infection is not yet under control. We are looking forward in faith to being able to celebrate his 90th birthday together with he, his 6 grandchildren and his (soon-to-be) 9 great-grandchildren at the beginning of next year.

Please join us in praying that the pacemaker would work well, that his body would have the strength to fight off the infections and that he would be back to his full health soon.

Secondly, through the madness of morning sickness, village trips and working with our director on his dissertation, we really dropped the ball with our visa and work permit. We were supposed to send our passport info to Bangkok at the beginning of February to apply for another 1 year extension, but missed the date and sent it down two weeks late. This mistake mostly just causes a headache for everyone and will cost us some fees in renewing our visa and work permit for an additional 10 days. Our visa expires later this week and so we will have to go to the immigration office to request a ten-day extension on the expiration date.

Please join us in praying for favor from the customs officers, quick processing from the Bangkok office, and grace from all the government officials as we do not speak Thai.

Thank you for your prayers.

Tags:

Our House Sold!

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 04:43:00 +0000

Not that we haven't been thankful, but 2006 was not a banner year for praise reports. It was the most difficult year of our lives, full of hardship and loss. But the morning is breaking.

First, the new pregnancy! We are so happy, so excited and so grateful to be expecting a baby again.

And now, our house has sold! Though we never fell to worry, it was always on the edges of our minds at the prospect of having to pay a mortgage that missionaries just can't afford. We have lost our equity, but our inheritance is in the Lord and in the work that we do. We are convinced He is our source and our provision.

This year has begun with such hope, and hope is essence of faith. So, in the end, we are full of praise for the hope that the Lord has restored in us.

It'll be spring soon. And the orchards will be in blossom. And the birds will be nesting in the hazel thicket. And they'll be sowing the summer barley in the lower fields... and eating the first of the strawberries with cream.
-Samwise

Tags:

Pray for Strength

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 04:36:00 +0000

This is a very difficult time for us. Spiritual strongholds are being shaken, and we are all trying to dig in and fight through this time.
Please pray:

For Paul and Lori

Strength to keep pushing through the hardest year of our lives
Direction as we face difficult decisions
A quick sale of our home in America
Faith to lean on God in this stretching time

For Akha Outreach Foundation

Strength for the staff as they go through a difficult season
Protection over the kids as they go back to their villages during the fall school break
Continued direction from the Lord in all things

We are all spending a lot of time in prayer out here and would love you to join us. Thank you for your partnership in prayer.

Pray for Thailand... we're O.K.

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 04:35:00 +0000

Please hold the nation of Thailand in your prayers :: Last night Thailand underwent a Military coup . Everything has been peaceful thus far, but no one knows how this will turn out. The action is really centered in Bangkok so we're just digging in and watching the news for the outcome of this event. All banks and schools are closed for now, but everyone up north is very calm. Kids are playing out in the rain enjoying their day off.

Nancy, who was here during the coup in 1991, said she didn't remember banks closing last time, but it was encouraging (ok, just kind of encouraging) to know that these things happen in Thailand - this is the 18th Military Coup in Thailand since 1932.

Thank you for your prayers.

Please Pray for our Home

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 04:34:00 +0000

This has been a really good season for us. We have been experiencing some wonderful victories and personal freedom, but with all victory comes trial and one of our biggest trials right now is coming in the form of our house in the states.

What we are asking for prayer for right now is simply direction - What are we supposed to do with our home? Please join us in asking for clear and precise direction in this matter.

As always, we appreciate and covet your prayers - they really make a difference. Thank you for praying.

Hope Chapel

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Vernon) — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 04:34:00 +0000

Join us in praying for our home church, Hope Chapel in Northglenn Colorado, as they go through some growing pains. Please pray for strength and unity in the body. Also, pray that God would raise up a team of passionate lay leaders to help lead the church through this time. Hope Chapel Northglenn has so many unique strengths to offer to the surrounding community and the Enemy would just love to see this group of believers drawn away from thier God-given purpose!