Love-scarred Hands

Khlong 9 Church began as a small gathering of Myanmar factory workers at the height of the pandemic. With migrant workers being so transient, leaders have had to re-define this church many times. They’ve had seasons of rapid growth, and seasons where all the believers were relocated, reducing them back to a cell group. 

In the last year, the church grew significantly and began worshiping in a small yellow house next to a market. As believers multiplied, more children attended. Myanmar children, without documentation or funding, have no access to public education here. So, two of our pastors who had already started other schools for migrant worker children began to pray. 

An influential Myanmar family in the neighborhood heard about their vision for a school and found a Thai landlord who was willing to rent, at an amazing price, a huge property that had once been an old mechanic shop. The shop already had two large rooms, bathrooms, a kitchen, and lots of space to expand. We were all amazed when the landlord, although not yet a believer, even laid new concrete on the whole property, paying for the cost from his own pocket!

Suddenly, people with specialized skills started coming out of the woodwork: electricians, drywallers, plumbers, construction workers. A crew from Bang Chalong Church moved onto the property to build a room to be used for worship on Sundays and school during the week. When they opened their doors and invited the community to come celebrate, so many people came and heard the Gospel!

That Sunday, I sat with the workers who had only just finished the final touches of the building project late the night before. I saw their hands, cut and bandaged from weeks of hard labor. God spoke to me in that moment, saying, Do you see these marks? These are the visible marks of love, mirroring the marks on my own body. Those who are planting this church also have invisible marks—scars of hurt and loss and sacrifice and surrender. These scars are a testimony of their great love for this community, and my love is even greater!

Pray for the Khlong 9 Church, and for the many church plants just like it in Thailand. God is on the move, and we are blessed to follow him as he leads us in his mission field.