I have been growing up as an acronym: "MK". It means, “Missionary Kid”.
Being an MK comes with a lot of different challenges and blessings that not many of my peers can relate to. In fact, one of the biggest struggles is to have any peers at all! MKs living in big cities might have more peers, but it's usually only a handful of other MKs. In places that are more secluded—like where me and my family are serving—the number of potential close friends gets pretty close to zero. So, that is hard.
It's not that I avoid friendship with the nationals. I do have close relationships with some of the Thai youth here in Phan Thong, and I experience a sense of community. But a lot of times MKs are the only people that can really understand my life. Don’t get me wrong—being a missionary kid is great. I love sharing the Gospel with those who don’t know Jesus, and I love serving God, but sometimes I can feel kind of isolated. Jesus told his disciples, “No longer do I call you servants, but I call you friends.” I think friendship matters to God.
Recently, I was feeling like I needed to do something about that sense of isolation. I heard God calling me to take action, so I did—literally!—by going on a short-term mission program called ACTION. My dad, Cecil, went with me, which was cool.
On our mission assignment, the team that we joined ended up being sent to the Philippines. I served at a youth camp there, and experienced what it was like to be part of a very stable, dynamic group of my peers. It was life-changing! My eyes were opened to possibilities I had not considered before: What if I were to go back to Thailand and start a youth group myself? What if my need for close peer relationships was meant to inspire me to actually create that kind of community? I envisioned the friendships that could evolve, for myself as well as for others. It would be a win-win.
Coming back to Phan Thong, I went to our national partner, Pastor Bank, and shared my idea. It turned out that the Holy Spirit had already been stirring this same conviction in him! We started strategizing together to make this dream a reality.
I was excited to be partnering with Pastor Bank. I had worked with him before, on a lot of different events where I usually helped with media and videography. He has always been a mentor to me, someone I look up to as a very strong leader. He is wise, forgiving, and loving, even with people that are sometimes hard to love. Pastor Bank has also taught me a lot about working on a team. Thinking about youth ministry, I realized that this was going to be an important skill.
The first event I officially facilitated was a gathering for youth from five different Thai churches. It was really amazing! Of course, being only fifteen years old at the time meant that one of the main challenges for me was anxiety, and figuring out how to find my voice. With Pastor Bank’s encouragement and by God’s grace, I got through it all. And there was so much good stuff that happened! A highlight was seeing friendships deepening between youth who were seeing each other for the first time in years, and then growing in our faith together.
This ministry has been going on for months now. Every two weeks I gather some local youth from our neighborhood, and every six weeks or so we do a larger gathering, which now includes youth from two provinces and six churches! My vision is to see more of my Thai peers become strong leaders that can lead this ministry themselves.
There are so many different things that I feel God calling me to do. I don’t know if any of them are even possible, but God has worked miracles in my life already, so I know that with him, anything is possible. A while ago, I felt like God showed me two images in the Bible. One was Jesus telling his disciples that with faith the size of a mustard seed we can move mountains. Another was God using Moses to part the Red Sea. I don’t entirely understand what God is saying to me, but I do think that God put these images in my head for a reason.
If you could pray with me about these things, I would appreciate it so very much.
PRAY: Pray for Solas and other MKs to thrive in a healthy community of supportive friends, and to be led by God in their journey of discipleship and mission
