By a SEND worker in Thailand — Not very long before Christmas 2019, I was chatting at church with a teacher who I heard could possibly give me a language refresher course. Though she wasn’t able to help me, she did something that eventually proved even more important. She introduced me to her niece, Yingtai*.

Yingtai moved to Thailand just a few weeks before me to study English at a local university. Besides Yingtai and I both being new to Thailand, we had another thing in common: she was from the same province in another Asian country that I had most recently lived in!

Because this was Yingtai’s first time to ever visit a church, I asked her if she wanted to go out to lunch to talk about her experience. Over lunch we chatted about how she didn’t understand very much of the service—she doesn’t speak much English, and almost no Thai. Even though I could tell she wasn’t ready to accept Jesus at that time, I took the opportunity to share the gospel with her.

The following week, I sat with her during the church service and translated for her. I gave her a Bible and offered to help her understand it, and I also invited her to two Christmas outreach parties that I was involved with. She was excited to attend the parties because she had never celebrated Christmas before. The carols and gifts were the most intriguing to her, and this gave me the opportunity to share with her that Jesus was the greatest gift of all.

After Christmas, I didn’t see much of Yingtai. She was busy with her studies and wasn’t coming to church regularly. Though this time, I kept praying for her and asking others to pray as well.

Then COVID-19 hit, and we were all required to stay at home. Because of this isolation, Yingtai was bored. I asked if she would like to study English with me online, and she agreed even after I told her that we would use the Bible as a part of our English study.

As we met online one day, we went through Psalm 91. Yingtai asked me what she should do—she had something burdening her heart that she had never shared with anyone before. I told her that God already knew what it was and that she could talk to him about it. I went on to say that if she wanted the peace and protection that God promises, she needed to open her heart to Jesus.

After this conversation, I didn’t hear from her much, but I kept praying. I also shared Bible verses with her and sent her an evangelistic video in her heart language.

Just over three weeks later, I received a message from her. She said that she realized her shortcomings and asked me if God could help her overcome them. I shared the gospel with her again and asked if she was ready to accept Jesus. She said, “maybe.”

We continued to talk—she asked questions and I tried to make sure she really understood everything. And, praise God, Yingtai accepted Jesus!

I am still sending her verses each day and praying for her, but I am looking forward to a time when we can meet together in person for discipleship and mentoring. Please pray for Yingtai and me as we begin this journey together!