MERRY CHRISTMAS

 May you experience the Lord's awesome presence, love, protection and care during this Jesus filled festival season.

I pray for 2017 to be filled with His beauty and love!

I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for all your prayers, love, friendship and support through 2016. Honestly, I would not be able to be here in Thailand or even as a missionary, if it wasn't for God putting our paths together.

Some of the many highlights in 2016

 SHE WILL GIVE BIRTH TO A SON, YOU SHALL GIVE HIM THE NAME JESUS, BECAUSE HE WILL SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS. MATTHEW 1:21

 

Hi Everybody,

Here is just a little bit of news from Thailand.

We pray that you are having a great time and for a wonderful time during the festival season. Jono and Sara will be leaving this Saturday to Nepal for a month where they will be doing a course on Bible Story Telling and spend the Christmas and New year in Katmandu. I will stay in Chiang Mai because of the loads of teams that will be arriving. I am stuck behind my computer day and night to coordinate the teams that will be coming to Thailand.We have never had so many teams coming at the same time and the next 3 months will be extremely busy. We are just so overwhelmed that the Lord keep on sending so many young people to come and be part of extending His Kingdom.
I did managed to visit a few more outreach venues where we send our teams and received feedback from them about the what the teams are doing there as well as beautiful testimonies of people getting introduced to Jesus.


Jono, as the evangelistic coordinator of Chiang Mai has arranged an outreach (carnival) last week at a Buddhist School and we were privileged to hand out more than a hundred Bibles and also other evangelistic tools. The carnival was honestly a great success and the Buddhists teachers and principal

asked if we can do it again soon. The school is actually linked to a temple and there were even monks that accepted the Bibles as well.

 I said with the last newsletter that I will let you know about my new website (RIDE2ALLNATIONS) and I will most probably announce (release) it this week. The website has been done by someone in South Africa and I am very happy with it. There will be a few more pages in the future but this website will be used for the motorbike ministry that I am about to start to reach the locals and tourist again. My motorbike ministry will be in conjunction with what I have been doing for the last 3 years.

Please have a look at my website and please let me know what you think about it and I am open to any suggestions to improve it. Her is the link: http://www.ride2allnations.com

I want to thank everyone for your prayers, love and support. We love you all and thank God for what he is about to do in your life's. 

November Newsletter

Hi Everyone,

We are all facing challenges each day. Some harder and more painful than others but we can do all things through Him who that strengthens us. I pray that you will continue to put your trust in the Lord and that you will allow Him to do amazing things through your life for the sake of His Kingdom!

The nation of Thailand is in mourning because their king died in October and we are experiencing a black cloud over this country. We all have a lot of uncertainty in our minds for the future, as Thailand is the only Asian country where there is religious freedom. Everybody is supposed to wear black or white and churches are not allowed to have "happy" or loud music. Many western TV channels have been blocked and the history of their king is being shown over and over in place of the normal programs. 

The next three months, are the most hectic, time of the year here. Teams from all over the world are coming to Thailand and the preparation and coordination of the teams, is enormous! I will have to do orientations for every team and the e-mails and correspondence, this generates, is mind blowing but let me not bore you with the nitty-gritty.



It was my privilege to visit some of our ministries that we are dealing with as well as teams that were out in the harvest field. Some places were very muddy and sometimes the rain kept me humble on my motorcycle.

I am still in the process of planning for my Mongolia outreach and I will need your prayers as there are a lot of hurdles regarding traveling through China. I'm trying to bypass travel agents because they ask a ridiculous amount of money and I really need God's wisdom and favor. I nearly have all that I need for the trip and the bike is equipped to do the ride but I would be much more comfortable on the Africa Twin (that I am believing for) due to the fact that it has traction control (safety), ABS breaking system that can be switched off and on (for off-roading) and more powerful, which will empower me to do the off-road trips faster and easier.

I know that this outreach will not be easy and that I will have to go to and through difficult terrain but nothing is a sacrifice too big to reach the lost souls that have never had the opportunity of hearing about Jesus's sacrifice for all of us!
(The photos are not mine but examples to let you see the Mongolia yurt's and the terrain that I/we will be traveling)

Jono is having some tough times and need your prayers as well please. He arranged and finalized a few city outreaches and Bible distributions at different venues and all had to be cancelled due to the death of the king. He will not be allowed to do this during the remainder of 2016. He and Sara will be going to Nepal for December as they will attend a school "Story Telling" and will then go to the mountain villages on outreach. The 2 lovebirds are having a blast and their lips are normally sealed together when I see them...lol.

I am in the process of creating a new website that will replace Travelmissions and Adventure Evangelism and I will notify everyone as soon as it has been launched. It is called: Ride2allnations.

Thank you for you prayers, love and support and we pray that the Lord will enlighten and enrich your month and that He will guide and use you for His Kingdom's sake and that you will put a smile on His face. Remember: Prov 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise. We will continue to pray for you all.


PRAYER LIST
Continue to pray for the Thai people and nation that the eyes of their understanding will be enlightened.
For continual provision for evangelistic tools, so teams can be more effective.
For all of us to be able to cope with the rain and hot and humid weather.
For the provision of an African Twin motorbike to enable me to reach places, that are not easily accessible with other transport.
For the provision and guidance for the preparation of the Mongolia outreach.
For the Christian Thai's to be bold in proclaiming the Gospel.
Praise and thanks for the privilege to be part of reaching the unreached and also for all His provision and protection.

We now have Pay Pal working on the side tab and our bank details in South Africa is:

Account Name: New Hope Ministries International
Bank: Absa Bank
Account no: 9106492455
Branch: Parow
Bank Code: 632005
Swift Code: ABSA ZAJJ

He who provides for this life and do not care about eternity, is wise for a moment but a fool forever - John Tillotson

Hi Everyone,

I know it has been a while since I have send a news letter but as you all know, I have been in the States as well as South Africa for Jono's and Sara's wedding. I can't believe that it is more than a month since my return to Chiang Mai. It was a lovely time in Seattle as I met Sara's family and all their friends. They all love Jesus and they are really amazing people. I realized that I have not lost a son but rather gained a daughter and a wonderful family. A dear friend of mine blessed me to go with to Alaska for 6 days after the wedding and it was such an awesome experience. This has been my hearts desire for many years.

It was also such a privilege to spend some time with the 2 honeymooners and all our friends in South Africa, but I had a very busy schedule, due to the limited time (I was only in SA for 3 weeks). We were also blessed to go hunting and all 3 of us have a turn at shooting Impalas but I have to admit, to my shame, that Sara was the best shot.

Friends helped us to sell our old car (which has been such a blessing through the years) and the trailer that were given to us many years ago. The proceeds from these sales made it possible for me to buy a motorcycle. As you all know, I am planning a outreach trip, through China and then into Mongolia. I will be using the motorcycle to do a zik-zak trip through Mongolia, to the unreached Mongolians who live a nomad lifestyle in their yurts, in the Gobi desert and the green-lands.

This bike is a Honda CB500X and it's fine, but I really trust the Lord for an Honda Africa Twin 1000cc automatic, which is a much more of a off-road bike than my present one. It is great to practice during my preparation time on the 500 and I have been able to add a few things on the bike.

The outreach will be for about a month in Mongolia and the only possible time is during July and August 2017 due to weather. Others will join the outreach, as well as a translator and we will make sure to have every possible evangelistic tool available in Mongolian with us.

I am still coordinating teams and hosts in Thailand but I will do some short term outreach trips in Thailand during some quiet times. My heart is also to reach out to the backpackers and motorcyclists wherever I have the opportunities and to join in some trips with some motorcycle groups. I'm waiting for some off-road tires to reach some villages because of the rainy and muddy season that we have at present.

It is so incredible to see the Bible distribution and the effect that teams are having and we will continue to give Jesus the glory for what He is busy doing in Thailand.

Jono and Sara
They have moved to a small, but lovely 2 bedroom house. It is about 7 minutes from where I am living. Jono is still busy with arranging evangelistic meetings with the Thai's and the church and Sara is busy finishing her masters in linguistics for Bible translation.

Well this was a more personal message and I would like to thank everybody for their love, support and prayers during these last 3 months.

PRAYER LIST
Continue to pray for the Thai's that the eyes of their understanding will be enlightened.
For continual provision for evangelistic tools for teams to be more effective.
For all of us to be able to cope with the rain and hot and humid weather.
For an Africa Twin to be able to reach places that is not easy accessible with other transport.
For the provision and guidance for the preparation of the Mongolia outreach.
For the christian Thai's to be bold in proclaiming the Gospel.
Thanksgiving for the privilege to be part of reaching the unreached and also for all His provision and protection.

We now have PayPal working on the side tab and our bank details in South Africa is:

Account Name: New Hope Ministries International
Bank: Absa bank
Account no: 9106492455
Branch: Parow
Bank Code: 632005
Swift Code: ABSA ZAJJ

March News letter

Hi everyone,

I trust that you all had a great Easter and that all is well with you!

It has been a very busy 2 months since I wrote last. I have been to Austria and back and now we are facing some crazy weather problems in Chiang Mai.

Well, let me first share about my trip to Vienna. It was a wonderful time with the students and staff at YWAM Vienna and they asked me to mainly share stories as I was speaking on Missions. As most of you know, I'm not a preacher but I love teaching and telling stories. I had to tell stories every single day for 5 days. My throat started to become very sore, it could be from so much talking or the cold or both, but I had many people praying for me and it helped me until I had to leave. Thank you Jesus. My time there was great and it was so nice just to be in a colder place again and I had one free day that I could go do some sight-seeing.


We are facing immense heat in Chiang Mai and it is the hottest time in more than 50 years. It's an average of 40-42 Celsius. I'm sure everybody knows how much I "love" the heat!!! If I could have my way then I will rather live in the snow. If that was not enough, we are facing the worst time of air pollution again. This is caused by man-made forest fires from every nation around Thailand as well as Thailand burning everything in nature. The haze pollution in Chiang Mai has now exceeded the safety limit of 120 micro-grams per cubic meter to a staggering 288 today. There has been already 64 000 people hospitalized a month ago and I don't know what the present stats are! The government said: "people living in these areas must wear face masks and avoiding leaving home" ....what? ...rather enforce the laws to stop the fires!!!


There have been quite a few teams from South Africa, US and Australia these past 2 months and we had amazing feedback about Thai's that became followers of Jesus. Many teams are also helping to build a mission house and school for a particular Thai evangelist and others are working in the red light area and also in a couple of orphanages. Some of the teams gave us feedback about how many children and adults are reading the comic Bibles that we supply to every team. So much so that the Bibles became full of wear and tear! The teams also told us that many people committed their lives to Jesus when they watched the DVDs of Thai people's testimonies that we give to them. These testimonies are 24 different stories that are dramatized about how Thai's met Jesus and then they will have a chat to the real people in concern. To be honest, all glory is to Him and humbly I thank Him for giving me the opportunity to be part in such a small way for His Kingdom's sake.


We are a month away from leaving Thailand for Seattle where Jono and Sara will get married and then it is time to visit my beloved country, SA! Lately I'm going through some serious withdrawal symptoms and would love to be for a few months in South Africa. Unfortunately this trip will be a little longer than 3 weeks but I'm praying for some special "off-time" in the near future!


Jono is currently doing one day outreaches and getting people to join and they are working with the Thai churches to be in unity to be part of these outreaches. We had a festival, Songkran festival, or also called the water festival, for the last week. This is when everybody is throwing water at each other. This was a great time like every year to be participating and handing DVDs that are totally covered with a plastic. Jono led the charge in handing out Evangelistic DVDs.


WHAT IS NEXT:

MAY

Preparation for Jono and Sara's wedding in Seattle, USA.

JUNE

Wedding Bells!!!

Visiting South Africa and ceremony in Cape Town

JULY

Will spend the month in South Africa.

AUGUST
Planning and preparing motorcycle outreaches and still coordinate teams...

PRAYER LIST

Agree that the Lord will help us to be part of bringing in the lost souls of whom there are so many!

For an off-road motorcycle to be used for outreaches.

Thank Him for the Evangelistic material that He has provided and for the amazing results

For our protection against the terrible pollution and related sicknesses.


For a off-road motorcycle (See other below) Photo - doing some test driving on different bikes.

OTHER

I’m busy planning a motorcycle outreach to zig-zag through Mongolia and other remote places in Asia. We will be visiting nomads and isolated people that will be very difficult to reach by any other means than on off-road bikes and show them the Jesus movie in their language and we will be using Christian translators etc. I will share more on this in future!
 

We now have PayPal working on the side tab and our bank details in South Africa is:

Account Name: New Hope Ministries International
Bank: Absa bank
Account no: 9106492455
Branch: Parow
Bank Code: 632005
Swift Code: ABSA ZAJJ


Thank you for love, care and prayers.


God bless
Len and Jono

Hi Everyone,

Firstly, I would like to start by wishing you all a wonderful 2016. May this year be the year that the Lord will guide you to greater heights for His Kingdom, a deeper relationship with Him and everyone around you and that you will see yourself how the Father sees you. I pray that you will be the hands and feet of Christ and that you will see the world through the eyes of Jesus.

This year kicked off with a mighty bang as YWAM and church teams were coming continuously and I had to do orientation upon orientation. There are now 5 to 6 people who either stayed behind in Thailand or who have came back to be part of missions here during the last 11 months. This excites my heart enormously and makes up for the little time I had for myself and when I wanted to feel sorry for myself....lol.





The week between Christmas and New Year was quite interesting as I was privileged to teach every day at a YWAM base, even on New Years day. I taught mainly Chinese Christians that had come to Chiang Mai to be trained in missions. Every time that I have the honor of teaching the Chinese Christians has truly been an awesome experience and especially to see the passion and love that they have for God.


On a personal note: Jono is engaged!!! Jono and Sara met in Nepal in the Immigration office. She has been living in Nepal for quite a while too. She happened to be at Immigration applying for a visa for Thailand where she was moving to. I was privileged to be part of the engagement on Christmas Day as I was "present" on Face-time (Skype) when Jono proposed. Sara's grand dad gave his mother's ring to Jono a week before Christmas. They live in Seattle, USA. Well, maybe I must tell you also about when he ask the dad for his blessing. They went to a Starbucks and suddenly the dad asked Jono if he loves Jesus. He replied, "With all my heart sir". Then he asked Jono if he loves his daughter, to which he replied "With all my heart sir". Sara's dad suddenly wept and then Jono did too and there were 2 grown men crying together in the middle of Starbucks.

Jono also had some opportunities to share in churches and meetings whilst in Seattle. I can't say too much about the wedding day but it seems that they will get married in June in Seattle, have a weeks honeymoon there and will then go to South Africa and spend a couple of weeks there before returning to Chiang Mai.

 
WHAT’S NEXT?

JANUARY

Still a very busy time with receiving and hosting teams, orientations etc.

FEBRUARY

I have been invited to be a speaker at a YWAM base in Vienna, Austria and will be teaching on The Nature and Character of God and Evangelism.

MAY

Jono’s preparation for the wedding in Seattle, USA.

JUNE

Wedding Bells!!!

Visiting South Africa and ceremony in Cape Town

JULY

Will spend the month in South Africa.

We now have PayPal working on the side tab and our bank details in South Africa is:

Account Name: New Hope Ministries International
Bank: Absa bank
Account no: 9106492455
Branch: Parow
Bank Code: 632005
Swift Code: ABSA ZAJJ

 

God bless

Len and Jono