April - May 2007

WE CAME, WE SAW, WE MADE AN IMPRESSION...
The month of April was so jam-packed with events that this report is coming to you late! From parades, to graduation; from One Way celebrations to Lighthouse progress, it has been the most exciting month to date!
Finally, momentum is beginning to build. Out of a difficult situation has come, at long last, some movement forward. With the recent hardships with the Lighthouse, the contractors abandoned the project, leaving us missionaries to come up with some much needed solutions. But God, being ever faithful, has given us favor all around and we are getting more work done than we have in months. Everyone of us in the ministry has been helping paint, move dirt to get ready for paving the parking lot, and we are finishing off the rooms and getting them ready to rent. El Shaddai II is still waiting on the go-ahead to move in, but the transformer is up, power is in, and all the rooms are being metered correctly. Out of devastating disappointment is emerging new hope that God can salvage this project that was once given us as a simple vision. Please pray for the Lighthouse’s continuing progress!
In One Way news, we had our One Year celebration with dramas, multimedia, and a PARTAY! Please pray for us as we believe God for over 100 souls by Christmas! Nothing is impossible for God, and we are getting ourselves ready for harvest!
Victory Bible College Thailand had it’s graduation this month, and I am finally finished Bible School, receiving my Bachelor of Theology diploma. I have made a four-year commitment to the ministry, as has Sawang, and we will faithfully serve here and wait on God for the next instructions.
Probably the most interesting part of the month, just because of it’s sheer hilarity, was the ministry being invited to join the Sriracha Parade. We hooked our portable stage onto the jeep, the band rocked for Jesus, representatives from English School, One Way, Lighthouse, and others handed out flyers and candy. Some of us girls dressed up as Thai Princesses and waved to the slightly confused yet delighted crowd! I even won a prize as best dressed in the parade! Thank you Jesus! Well, that’s about it for this month, but keep in touch! We miss you!
Together in Christ, Sawang & Lee-Anne

AS A NEW day dawns in Asia, so it brings new challenges, and new opportunities to lay down our lives for the Kingdom of God. Nobody said it would be easy, but boy, the benefits are out of this world!!

As rock music breaks out, I have to remind myself again where I am. In the midst of an oppressive Buddhist nation, the voices of young people are being raised in worship to the One, True God. I look around me and watch as they dance & sing praises to God in a language I am struggling to grasp. This is the new One Way Youth Church & it’s where I find myself helping minister to the youth of Sriracha, Thailand. This ministry is reaching out with cool music, the power of the Holy Spirit, and a fun place for people to hang out with friends that can impart LIFE to them on a weekly basis. With little else to occupy the youth of Thailand except drugs and a dead end future, we are bringing hope to those who have been cast off by society. My fiancee, Sawang, is a leader in this church and I have never seen someone so dedicated to serving these skaters, punks, and the down-and-outers as he is. As well as being an editor for our Continuum TV show, he spends a lot of time with these youth, who then start coming to One Way where we get them saved, plugged in, discipled, and trained up in their giftings. One Way is planning an aggressive new thrust into the community and by summer we expect to see many more souls won for the Kingdom of God.

We are continuing to see progress with the Lighthouse, and the El Shaddai children are doing well, but anxious to get settled into their new home! Recently several of the children got baptized along with some of our One Way and Thai church members--it was an exciting day as we are seeing our Thai churches continue to experience explosive growth and expansion! Thank you for your continued support and prayers, they are bearing much fruit for the Kingdom of God!

How You Can Help!
- Pray for breakthrough with the Lighthouse, & El Shaddai Children
- Pray for Sawang & I in both ministry and as we prepare for marriage.
- Pray for One Way
- Become a monthly sponsor to me or the ministry by contacting me on gottawearshades@hotmail.com or contact UK Missions Director Alex Coetzee on vcimissionsuk@yahoo.com

WED 21 FEB 2007

So lately me and Sawang have been just working away in the ministry, trying to fit everything we need to do into the day, which is seldom successful but an adventure to try anyway.

Sawang is an editor for Continuum TV, which airs in Canada on the miracle channel, and I work on the website for the ministry, which is www.continuummedia.com. This is very new for me, not having trained in this field, but God' s grace is on this project and I am working towards rebuilding the site with a fresh look and some video, audio and flash embedded into the site. Pretty exciting stuff, all so that people can catch hold of the vision we have to see Asia won for the gospel of Jesus!!!

We're getting married in October of this year, and are hoping to get to Canada at christmastime so everyone can meet him and get to understand what an awesome man of God I am marrying!!

We appreciate your prayers, and your comments, check out the website and let me know what you think!!! I am not opposed to new ideas either, just FYI!

february

Hi once again friends and family! I can’t believe a month has gone by already since we last spoke! It has been busy busy these last few weeks and I want to tell you where we are in the ministry to date:

First of all, I want to thank everyone for their continued interest in what is happening with the Lighthouse. (This is the building that will house the El Shaddai 2 Children’s Home on the bottom floor and rent apartments for the remaining floors. The profits from that will be able to support the Children’s Home.) As you may remember from last month’s letter, the bank we are with has become corrupt with the new government in power, and has taken 30% of our funds needed to complete the building. We are trying now to refinance the mortgage with another bank. With our money currently tied up, some creditors came on Tuesday to take their windows and aluminum etc back because everything has been stalled while we are waiting for this release. All the staff in our ministry went out to intercede over the building, and now the creditors have agreed to wait a bit longer. Now that we have exhausted all our options we are trusting in God’s miracle working power to provide a way forward. Please stand with us in prayer and faith that God will indeed make a way where there has seemed to be no way.

I also wanted to make a personal announcement for all who haven’t yet heard: Sawang proposed on 15th January so now we are officially engaged! The wedding is in October here in Thailand and you are all most welcome to join us! We have our own website now (aww how cute) and it’s sawangandleeanne.blogspot.com.

I have updated the Ministry’s website, check it out at www.continuummedia.com for all that is happening in the ministry these days. Please pray for skill and creativity on my part to communicate our vision effectively through the web, because we need both givers and go-ers to do all that God has called us to do in Asia!!

So I want to say thank-you to everyone who has sown gifts and monthly support in order for me to serve here, so we can work with Victory Asia to see breakthrough!

If you would like to become a monthly sponsor to me, or if you want to sow financially into the ministry in Asia, please contact me on gottawearshades@hotmail.com Or Alex Coetzee on vcimissionsuk@yahoo.com.

24 January 2007

This is my first blog on this, as I am normally on Bebo, but now that me and Sawang are getting married, we want everyone to get to know us and grow with us as time goes on!

he's not here at the minute, he's in the jungle with Pastor Al and the VBCI students on the annual North Trip! After 8 months apart you would think I would be fine saying goodbye to him for 2 weeks--but I've been a mess! I'm so pathetic sometimes! I guess this is what it means to be in love...

January 2007

Hello friends and family! As my call in Victory UK has brought me to serve on the mission field once again, I am excited to represent you on the frontlines of the ministry in Asia, and what a battle we have before us! The following is an excerpt from Pastor Al’s latest newsletter to our intercessors, just to keep you up to date on the El Shaddai Children’s Home situation:

The effects of the September military coup in Thailand have landed in our front yard. Four days ago the interim government ruled to confiscate 30% of all incoming foreign investment, resulting in an all time record drop in the stock market and panic in the economy.

Our new Lighthouse building in Thailand was scheduled to be complete in October: housing the El Shaddai Children’s home, our international Bible college students and single missionaries. The income from the 52 apartments will be sufficient to pay the mortgage over ten years and provide maintenance and security. This is a big project for us but it provides the El Shaddai Family a free place to live.

Through October and November the (government) bank that holds this mortgage stalled the release of the final construction money “because the building is incomplete.” The only logic found in this reasoning is the well-known corrupt plan to force a new developer into foreclosure so some well-positioned bank official can buy the property for 60% of its value.

My family all maxed our personal lines of credit, we jumped all the hoops, and last week received approval for the final payment. A small amount of money was released and the bank manager will not take our calls.

Here’s what we need; prayer that will hold a steady shield of defense against greed and corruption, and then breakthrough to a release of favor and a solution.

The solution to a problem always makes us bigger than we were before the problem came – we anticipate big solutions, through holding steady.

We love you and bless you, Al & Terry Purvis

Right now I am living at the Lighthouse, and though it is incomplete, the attitude of our leaders through this situation is an amazing example of sacrifice and faith. It is an honor to be part of such a ministry, who will do whatever it takes to see the kingdom of God advance in Asia!

So I want to say thank-you to everyone who has sown gifts and monthly support in order for me to serve here, so we as Victory UK can work with Victory Asia to see breakthrough!


If you would like to become a monthly sponsor to me, or if you want to sow financially into the ministry in Asia, please contact me on gottawearshades@hotmail.com Or Alex Coetzee on vcimissionsuk@yahoo.com.