Jesus in Vietnam Ministries

KEEPING OUR YOUTH HOME
One of the problems churches in small towns in Vietnam struggle with is losing young men and women after high school as they move to the big city (Saigon) to find jobs. A few weeks ago we discovered that Minh Anh (18 years old), our AWANA director, and Hoa (16 years old), one of our youth leaders, were going to leave for Saigon for work to help support their families. We were very concerned for two reasons; first, they would very likely be drawn away from the church, and second, not being “street smart”, these two young girls might easily be taken advantage of. We sat down and talked with Minh Anh and Hoa about a way to provide them a job in Binh Chau. These girls love to cook so we came up with the idea for them to operate a food cart (picture above) where they could cook/sell fried food snacks, which are very popular with the young kids here. We (the church) supplied them with the food cart and initial set items required. While these items remain the possession of the church, the girls will operate the business and share the profits. Plus, 4 more girls from the church will help out after school as needed and be paid on an hourly basis. God has given us a successful first week of operation. Please pray God will bless them with lots of business and provide this as an avenue to provide jobs for our youth here in Binh Chau. We can envision several of these around Binh Chau all operated by our church youth. The girls decided to wear their VBS t-shirts as part of their uniform so their customers will know they are from the Binh Chau church. Please pray God will give them many opportunities to share the love of Jesus with their customers.

YOUTH BEACH DAY
We recently took about 50 kids to the beach (picture above) for the day (middle/high school age) as a reward for all their hard work and willingness to serve in the church. We enjoyed a great time of worship, fellowship, eating, and fun/games on the beach.

SUOI BANG MOTORCYCLE
Mr. Ba Quang happily rides away (picture above) on the used motorcycle we recently purchased for Suoi Bang. We are looking for 2 more to purchase so we can have enough to get church members to/from church in Suoi Bang. Narrow dirt roads and rainy conditions make these motorcycles a necessity in this spread out farming community. We thank God for providing the funds and thank you that contributed to these much needed motorcycles.

TU SONG’S HOUSE REMODEL
We were able to start remodeling Tu Song’s house recently (picture above) due largely to a generous donation from her children’s sponsor. There is no one more deserving of this in the Binh Chau church than Tu Song. She has such a servant’s heart, does any task without complaint, and always does it with a smile on her face. Last year we were able to remodel Thao/Mai’s house. It’s quite amazing that you can do a major house make over for $1500-2000 and make such a drastic improvement in their living conditions. We thank God for blessing His faithful servants.

SCHOOL REGISTRATIONS
Kim has been very busy getting all the kids registered for the coming school year. We will have over 70 kids in school this year thanks to all of you who sponsor them. Most likely, these kids would not have an opportunity for an education without your support. Thank you and to God be the glory!

BUILDING UPDATE
We have met twice with the contractor and are now waiting for a response on him concerning estimated costs. Getting permission to construct another building is a complicated and ever changing scenario with Caesar. Please keep praying God will give us favor with Caesar and wisdom in all decisions to be made. The good news is, when IT DOES HAPPEN, God will get all the praise/glory.

PRAISE REPORTS
Cam on Chua! Praise God as we have received a generous donation that will now allow us to purchase a used van to safely (and more efficiently) transport the kids to/from church. What an answer to prayer! Please pray God will lead us to the right vehicle to purchase.

**Pastor Truong has accepted our offer to serve in the Binh Chau church. Pastor Truong, his wife Thuy, and their 6 month old son, Phuoc just arrived this weekend. We thank God for this answer to prayer and we thank all of you who have been praying. Please pray God will use Truong (and his wife, Thuy) mightily to expand His kingdom here in Binh Chau and the surrounding hamlets. More details in next month’s newsletter.

**We thank God as He continues to give us opportunities to witness to our neighbors across the street. One of the mothers asked if we could help her son (24 year old Thuan) pass his college English exams. We have been having sessions with him. Please pray God will give us a opportunity to share Jesus with him.

**We shared the Gospel with 10 year old Tuan who prayed to receive Christ. He then went and told his family he is now a child of God. He said he wanted to pray for his family and the WHOLE country of Vietnam that they would know Jesus and get to go to heaven.