Written by Rich Grangard after recently visiting South East Asia with a team from CMM.

Pattaya, Thailand

Our team had a brief stop near Bangkok to minister in a church that has a vision to become a training and sending center for many ministers to go all over Thailand. It seemed almost everything we shared and people we prayed over hit the mark, but perhaps that was just a sign of how hungry the people were! After a word of knowledge about a painful right ankle, one of the guys there raised his hand – after prayer he was completely healed! He testified that he’d had problems with his ankle for one year, and gave thanks to God for His goodness.

Cambodia

The girl in the photo, along with three of her siblings, lost both parents and their grandma was incapable of taking care of her four grandchildren. They barely had any food to eat, and the tiny shelter they lived in leaked water. Pastor Soly and his wife currently have 36 Cambodian kids in their care whose lives would look entirely different had this precious couple not stepped in to love and provide for them.

We spent time teaching the kids about the dangers of trafficking by using a curriculum we are providing and translating into several languages for the purpose of shutting down the supply side of trafficking. We made an amazing connection with SEAPC, an organization which trains teachers and works in all the schools in one of the provinces in Cambodia. If all goes well, they will have access to ALL the schools in the entire country, and they are very keen for us to help them provide anti-trafficking training to teachers and kids alike.

During a one-day pastors’ conference at Soly’s facility, we spoke and ministered to 50-60 pastors from the region. Many of them have very little resources yet they have a desire to know God more and be a blessing to their mainly Buddhist neighbors. We challenged them that their God is One who meets all their needs and is able to make them into givers and not only people who receive.

One of the men there had followed a pastor on his motor bike to come to the meeting, but was not a believer. He had not slept for three days and was extremely tired, but when he came to the meeting the tiredness left and he became completely alert. As we prayed for people, I laid hands on his eyes and the man supernaturally saw the color purple and realized God was real. Although we had no idea who he was and what was going on, he got up and testified in front of all of us that he now was ready to get to know Jesus!

Vietnam

Joshua is a pastor, pioneer and innovator. Last year, he hosted the very first public worship festival in Vietnam’s history — 1,000 people attended from various denominations and 2 million people were reached through social media. In May this year, Joshua is planning for the second of its kind. We pray with our Vietnamese brothers and sisters for spiritual breakthrough and for the Holy Spirit to touch people’s lives. Here’s the Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/cmf.vn/

Joshua has also developed a business franchise exporting bedding products with God’s help. With no prior knowledge of this type of business, he has reinvented machinery to become the first factory in Vietnam to use electricity instead of fuel, and he uses all recycled materials in his products. In the process, God has brought Joshua and his family from poverty to wealth, and their church and ministry has flourished.

Chiang Mai, Thailand