Tag: share Jesus

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Journey with Jesus

By: Chawesa “Goi” Thienprasert

Life is a journey.

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 

We all have free choices on how to live our lives on this earth. And I am so thankful to God that He worked in my heart to choose the right choice, the choice to have Him in my life and walk in faith with Him everyday.  I was baptized through a missionary of LCMS in Bangkok, Thailand on March 24, 1996. I was 22 years old, and have never felt that I was walking alone since then. 

God called me to work for His ministry in Bangkok, Thailand in 2005. I decided to leave my teaching job at the university to be a consultant for the Concordia Gospel Ministry which was an English program. Later with strong passion and lots of prayers, I initiated and directed the Concordia Child Care Ministry. Life in Christ does not mean life with no sufferings and difficulties. What drives me to step out of my comfort zone each day is to believe that God is always present with me. What helps move me forward through challenges at each point in my life is to have faith that God will always take care of me.

God will protect me, and He is with me wherever I go. Be brave and have faith in Christ.  Working for the ministries of the local church in Bangkok gave me numerous learning experiences, but most importantly the stronger faith God granted me through this serving time. Sometimes it is hard for me to see through my eyes that certain things or situations are good, but with faith God granted me, I believe that everything in my life is the best from Him. I know that one day when I look back into those situations, I can say, “God got it!” And yes, He did all the time! 

It has been in my prayers and my intention to start my own family with someone who has the same faith. God is great! He did it. When it was time for us to leave Thailand for our new chapter of life, for the education of our daughter, God prepared the way. God brought us to Colorado Springs in 2015, and we found our new home church, Holy Cross Lutheran Church. He also opened the door for me to start working as a teacher at Holy Cross Lutheran School in 2016.

He then called me again to serve Him, to share the truth in Jesus Christ, and His love with all the children and families here. 

Since I started working at Holy Cross Lutheran School, I felt blessed to be able to spend each day sharing my faith in Jesus Christ with all the children at the school. It reminds me of those old days when I was directing the child care ministry in Thailand. Children’s hearts are the best place for planting seeds of faith and watering them with God’s word each day. In my classroom, I love to comfort the children and make them feel secure by knowing that they are dearly loved by God. God is always with them wherever they go, at home, at school, at the park, at the zoo, everywhere.

Each moment that I am with the children, I ask God to grant me the opportunities to call out His name and pray. Prayers are consistently repeated when the children are sad, when they are mad, or when they get hurt

Every Friday in my classroom, there is a special time with God, called a prayer basket time. It is the time that each child would say a prayer to God and thank Him for everything in their lives.  My little ones learn to pray after me from the first Friday at school by using short and simple words to thank God for their families, their friends, and their teachers.  When time passes by, I am so thankful to hear more of these little ones praying by themselves and thanking God for other things in their lives, toys, ice cream, pets, time with grandparents, etc. That is a joy! 

“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4,

I am truly thankful for the beautiful Journey with Jesus in my life, and the joy in my heart that He called me to serve Him at Holy Cross Lutheran Church and School.  

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They’ve Never Heard the Stories

By: Richelle Milner

I never planned to teach preschool. I love to teach adults about God’s love and have led adult Bible studies for years. I was not looking to teach young children, but God has his own plans for us! When God called me to teach at Holy Cross Lutheran School, I really did not know how it was going to go! However, I knew without a doubt that God wanted me there, and I stopped questioning God long ago.

I learned a great deal during my first year of teaching at Holy Cross.

“I had no idea that most of the children who attend school here do not have any home church.”

Many of them have never been to church at all and would not know who Jesus is if they did not go to school here. What a joy and privilege it is to share Christ with the next generation!

It is wonderful to watch a child’s face change at their first moment of understanding. When they figure out how to add together numbers or put together sounds and read their first word, the look of pride, amazement, and joy is incredible! At the same time, we teach these kids how to interact with their world through…

    • Science
    • Social studies
    • Art
    • Social-emotional development.

Yet nothing has made teaching at the school more rewarding than getting to share Jesus and the fullness of His love with my students.

“They’ve never heard the stories from the Bible that we who have attended church all our lives tend to take for granted.”

They don’t need to analyze every little detail; they just listen and believe as each truth about God is revealed. It is good to return to that simple solid foundation of the gospel.

When we arrived at Holy Week last school year, the children were familiar with Jesus and knew Him as their loving friend.

“I was not prepared for the level of their emotion when I walked them through the crucifixion of Christ. I had to reveal what happened next immediately.”

The power and elation of His resurrection was reflected in their faces as we celebrated the truth of what God did for each one of them. What God did for each one of us.

They understood, they believed, and we celebrated God’s victory over sin and death for the rest of the school year. I will always thank God for allowing me to experience His love and care through the eyes of His precious children. I look forward to doing it again with each new group of students for as long as God calls me to teach at Holy Cross.