Dear Friends,

Well, all kinds of excitement to share this month. My trip to the Baptist World Alliance 100th Congress in Birmingham, England was a wonderful blessing. The theme of the conference was "Jesus Christ, the Living Water." And I truly felt that my spirit was filled with the thirst-quenching water of our Lord. I really enjoyed catching up with old friends, and meeting new friends. And it was such a joy to worship Jesus with more than 12,000 believers from around the world. Imagine singing, "Crown Him with Many Crowns" in such a crowd!

The last day, Graham Kendrick led worship. What fun it was to sing "Shine, Jesus, Shine" with the songwriter, himself! The speakers were also outstanding. They included such folks as Tony Campolo, Regina Claas, Paul Msiza, Henry Blackaby, Rick Warren and former U.S. president, Jimmy Carter. Also, Karen Smith, Nitaya Jayeu and I had the opportunity to speak about the New Life Center in a focus group about human trafficking, led by Lauran Bethell. For those who may not know, Lauran was the co-founder and first director of the New Life Center. She is currently an International Ministries Global Service Missionary, serving as a consultant to ministries that address the exploitation and abuse of women and children. She is based in Prague. It was also a special treat to find that Lauran Bethell was the recipient of the Baptist World Alliance Human Rights Award, which was presented to her by the former recipient, Jimmy Carter! Carter praised Lauran as a "living example of what Jesus has asked us to do." Lauran dedicated the award to "all those women who taught me about the resilience of the human spirit and the hope in Jesus Christ." What a tremendous and well-deserved honor for Lauran and a proud moment for all American Baptists.

So I returned home safely from England, despite terrorists bombing the London transport system, and a tornado which struck Birmingham while we were there, breaking windows in a church where conference delegates were staying. Needless to say, I was relieved to settle back into my nice, safe home in Chiang Mai. But I had been back less than two weeks when more drama struck. Starting on Sunday, August 14, and on into Monday the 15th, Chiang Mai experienced a major flood. (Other affected areas include Mae Hong Son, Phayao, and Chiang Rai.) Heavy rains throughout the north on Friday and Saturday caused waters to run down into the Ping River. As the river began to swell, dams upriver were at risk of breaking. So the authorities had to open the floodgates to release the pressure on the dams. In Chiang Mai, the river rose 16 feet. Fortunately, my home is on high ground near the mountain, so it was not flooded. But, the repercussions are devastating for many families and businesses.

For those who are familiar with Chiang Mai, I offer the following details. The Chiang Mai International School, Prince Royal School and McGilvary Seminary were flooded. (Thank God it happened on Sunday, when the students were home.) The entire Night Bazaar area was wiped out, including a huge loss at the Galare Guest House. The Thailand Baptist Missionary Fellowship (TBMF) office had about 6-8 inches of water. Alex Rodgers, the Volunteer and Tour Coordinator for TBMF has lost everything from the first floor of his house. Both (IM missionary) Kim Brown's house, and The House of Love were under more than three feet of water. Thirty children and staff had to be evacuated from the House of Love. The Free Burma Rangers were out in boats, assisting those who needed to leave, and bringing food and water to those who were stranded on the second floor of their houses. Yesterday, I also helped to bring food to some folks who were stranded in their homes. We drove in as close as we could, and waded the rest of the way. We were glad to meet up with just one eel, and no snakes in the waist-high water!!

In addition to other damage, the New Life Center experienced a loss at our emergency house which is located near the river. The occupants were safely evacuated to another location. But it is unclear whether the house will be livable or not. Computers and office files were rescued by administrative staff member, Fairy. But most of the furniture on the first floor is destroyed. And we had just finished building a special kitchen onto the back of the house, which was to serve as the location for our new vocational training module in baking. But the waters got up to waist-height yesterday morning, and the walls are stained with brown river sediment. I went over to the emergency house today as the waters had settled to below the door lintel. This revealed about two inches of slimy river muck covering every available surface. The yard is pretty swampy, but we were able to start cleaning the house. There were 6 of us cleaning all morning. Some New Life Center residents then came over to help in the afternoon. But even with 17 of us working the rest of the day, we still had not finished cleaning. Within the week, we will assess whether we need to move or repaint and start over.

Praise God that in all of northern Thailand, there have been reports of only 6 flood-related deaths. The death count could easily have been much worse. Nevertheless, it will take a long time for many to recover from the massive financial losses they have experienced. So we pray that the Christian community in Chiang Mai can pull together and serve as a light of hope and mercy to all those who have suffered in the flood. Please continue to keep all of the flood victims in your prayers.

Your Sister in Christ,

Kit