Regional Student Convention (Chiang Mai, Thailand)

My last ministry trip was one to be remembered, thats for sure.

So we stayed in Chiang Mai city for this trip but we did move out of the IGo building across the city to a motel. For the first two days we helped Echo cafe paint and do some construction in their new coffee shop. Echo cafe is a GTO organization where the Esh family serves the Lord faithfully through teaching English, building relationships with Thai, and working with children and university students. They were moving their cafe to a new location since they were outgrowing their current one. We had a wonderful time doing manual labor and just using our hands. We had many good times.

The master

slapping it on

building cabinets

Friday was our one and only day off. So we used it up to the fullest. We slept in that morning than headed up the mountain to just enjoy the country and breath fresh air. We stayed up their till somewhere in the afternoon and then headed back into the city to go to Night Safari. This is a really gigantic and amazing zoo. We stayed their all evening. It was quite the party!!! they had many animals that I had never seen before and they also had an incredible lion show that would of sent shivers through you.

view of the mountain

us girls

the boys

trying to mimic couple pics

trying to mimic girls taking pics

the team of 6

Saturday was also a fairly relaxed day but we did spend time getting things around the the student convention which I should explain to you what it is exactly.
So the ACE schools have conventions where their students can come together for a week of competition, performance, and also evenings spent sitting under a Godly speaker. The schools came from four different countries for the regionals: Vietnam, India, Myanmar, and Thailand. We had over 300 students entered for the year 2017. Their were four different categories that the students could compete in: Arts, Music, Platform, and Athletics. Their was many different divisions in these four categories that they could enter in.
We IGo studennts were volunteer staff and our title was “24/7 team”. Our job was to be the gophers and to pick up any loose ends so that the whole event could run smoothly. We were also encouraged to interact and build relationships with the students.
Saturday evening we had supper and our first meeting with the whole RSC staff. They explained what RSC was and what our job descriptions were.
Sunday after we went to a church service their in the city, we found ourselves busy running around with our heads cut off trying to set everything up while at the same time registering the few schools that were arriving. But this was just prep for the real deal that started on Monday. We had a total of 40 something schools register on Monday. The students also turned in all of their art, photos, science projects, woods and metal works and we had to organize it all. We also started the table tennis and chess competitions. Things were rolling!!!
Tuesday and Wednesday were music and platform days. We as 24/7 staff were assigned as room coordinators. This means we were to keep the contestants running through smoothly and collect the forms from the judges after every performance and keeping the judges happy. The highlight of these days is we got to see some absolutely talented kids come through our rooms. Their was singing, instrument playing, bands, preaching, acting, ect. I greatly enjoyed this.
Thursday was Athletics day. We had a university stadium rented for a day that we could do all of our races and events on. It was a fairly relaxing day. Than Friday was awards were we finished awarding the winners and then the winning schools.
Every night we had a speaker who preached some very moving sermons to these kids. Most of these children, while they go to christian schools, do not come out of christian families and come from a wide range of religions. This week of convention is always a very impacting time in their lives.
We as staff never got much more than five hours of sleep since we had to stay up at night tallying the judges papers and getting scores. But all in all we had a very encouraging and upbuilding time working with the RSC staff and building relationships with the children and parents.
We left friday evening feeling like we had done something worthwhile and prayed that maybe some seeds were sown in the childrens lives.

The many awards

Mrs Renita collecting art

selfie time

24/7 staff

over 500 people

awards day

24/7 with Pastor Ray and Rick

Judging room

We run the race that is set before us

3rd term classes

Once again, my blog post is so late it is about pointless to even post this last post. But for those few souls who wonder what my last term of classes were like and what I did for my last trip, I will give you a very quick peek into it all.

 

Classes 3rd term

Discovering Our God II – Val Yoder

Local Church Evangelism – Rick Rhodes

Biblical Theology of Missions – Collier Berkshire

1 Corinthians – Duane Weber

     These classes were probably the best set of classes yet. In Val Yoders class we just went deeper into understanding the greatness of our God, embracing the struggle so that we can come realization of who God truly is. Developing deep conviction through searching out truth and asking God to show us and lead us. Also we looked into valid arguments for why the Bible is true, why there is a creator, and much more. At the end of this class I came out with a deeper need to know what I believe and why so that I can answer with confidence and assurance.

Local Church Evangelism was a very practical class that we could very much apply with returning home soon. The thing in Ricks teaching that stood out to me the most was to pick someone that you disciple and work with that person. Your efforts will multiply in the end. But instead of trying to reach hundreds of people and not really impacting any, you can truly impact a few peoples lives and in turn they impact a few peoples lives and in the end a whole community is changed. A chain reaction.

Biblical Theology of Missions is probably the most impacting class that I have ever taken in my life. It was a class that explained the purpose of missions. We as humans were created for worship. To bring honor and glorify God is the ultimate goal for us here on earth. One of the ways that we can do this is sharing the great news of God to the lost souls. But the thing that impacted me the most, is that often when I read the Bible I look for the blessings that God gives to me when normally right underneath that blessing God states the reason for giving us that blessing and that is so He will receive the honor and glory through it. I was challenged to stop reading the Bible looking for myself but to instead look for God and His agenda.

In 1 Corinthians we looked at all the different issues that the Corinthian church was facing such as: Marriage, divorce, head covering, food offered to idols, offense, ect. It was a very challenging class.

Laos Trip

October 17 – 27, 2017

My Dear Readers,

I am so sorry for writing this so late. So this blog post is gonna take you back in time about six/seven weeks to when I went on my second ministry trip to Laos.

Laos was a beautiful country with very beautiful people. Mountains, rivers, and dirt roads seem to sum it up well. To me the country was very similar to Thailand in many aspects but yet it still had its own special touch of culture and way of life. I greatly appreciated their simple way of life and the friendliness of the people.

Laos is a big tourist attraction for trekkers. Often people from Europe and the U.S. come into Thailand and then drive into the surrounding countries getting their Visa on arrival. This is how many backpackers enter into Laos. Because of this we had the opportunity to talk to lots of tourists. We had some amazing experiences with talking to different tourists that God brought into our path; we were given the opportunity to show them Christ.

So we took a van into Laos. It was a long winding drive through the mountains of Thailand until we reached the Thailand/Laos border. We stayed in a border hostel that night until the next morning when we would cross. The border hostel was great fun, we played rook, played rook, played rook, and….played rook. We did get to explore the little town a little bit and ate at a little Mexican restaurant where the little cook guy claimed up and down that the beans were legit Mexican beans imported from Mexico (mhmm, yea, sure).

On our way to the border we stopped at the white temple which is fairly famous in Thailand. It was fairly impressive from a distance but as you got close all of the images and idols began to stand out. Everything was grotesque and evil. Their were lots of skulls, monsters, dragons, and science fiction looking statues. Suddenly it all was unimpressive.

 

The next morning we took another van through the border and to our destination. We did not have  contact on this trip so we were on our own.

 

The Laos border in view

The crew

 

The town we were in was medium size with lots of surrounding villages. We rented bikes and took off exploring the surrounding country. We spent time praying for the people, handing out balloons and candy to kids, and just figuring out the area. Our prayer was to find some Christians, but by the second day we were getting very discouraged. It seemed like their was none around and the place seemed very oppressive.

Then Caleb, our leader, ran into a lady one night and they started talking. This lady informed him that she had seen people like us before (Mennonites) and she was curious what we were. When she heard that we were Christians, she informed us that there had been a Christian who had come to their town years ago. There was one man in the city who became a Christian and joined the missionary in starting a restaurant in their area. The convert was married and had a family. Suddenly, one day, the town found out the missionary was sent home and the convert had disappeared. To this day no one knows what happened to the convert. His wife eventually quit waiting on his return and remarried. Caleb then asked the lady if there were any other Christians in the surrounding area. She replied, that if there were any Christians they would not make themselves known because of the heavy persecution.

Our hearts were heavy, knowing that we would probably not find any Christians but we continued to pray for those that may be believers in the area.

The same lady that our leader, Caleb, had talked to earlier, also told him that there was a village about 2 hr. drive away that had not seen foreigners. So Sunday we decided to head in and find this village. We also decided as a group, to fast that day and just spend much time praying and lifting up the people in Laos to Him. We started out around 8:00 in the morning. The road was the bumpiest, most rockiest, and pot-hole-ish, dirt road I have ever driven. We drove for 2 hr and looked at our map, only to discover that we were only half way there. By the time we arrived to this town, we could not feel our rears anymore. When we arrived, we were hit with the stark realization that we must drive the whole way back. We only found one English-speaking person there. So after passing out candy and balloons, we started the bumpy ride back home. On the way back, it seemed like our leader was in a hurry (i don’t know why) but the ride got a little dangerous:)…but we SURVIVED.

Sunday was a very hard day; but at the same time we saw so much answered prayer in the following days from fasting and praying.

a village

long boats

praying over a village

the kids in this village were crazy

no caption…

handing our balloons

helping farmers cut rice

a waterfall we visited

handing out candy

rubber trees

riding through the rubber trees

hanging out with village kids

 

Our team came to a unanimous agreement that we had done about all we could do in this town, with the language barrier and all. So we decided to bus to a bigger city, that we were going to fly out of, and see where the Lord would lead us.

The whole day Monday we were busing. During the trip, we prayed that the Lord would just guide us and lead us to the places that we should go and the to the people that we should meet.

The Lord answered these prayers in wonderful ways, but I cannot mention here on this blog for security reasons. So if you wish to hear more, ask me later.

We did lots of exploring the city, but also praying for the monks and spending time at the many temples and monasteries, praying for the monks. We also had the amazing opportunity to teach a group of young people english through conversation. There is a place in the city where whoever wants to can come for two hours in the evening and just sit down and have conversation with foreigners and english speaking people. It is a program designed to help students become more fluent with English conversation. This was a highlight for the whole team and we all made some good friends there.

 

This trip definitely strengthened my prayer life and helped me realize anew just how great God is. His plan is greater than any plan we can ever have. Yet He chooses to work through us weak and needy humans. I hope to not take this experience for granted and also to not forget just how many people are lost and searching for truth. We as Christians have the truth to give to the world and it is our responsibility to fulfill that calling to give God all the honor and glory He deserves.

Your truly,

Hannah Knepp

2nd Term completed

As of October 13 we completed 2nd term classes. This term had a heavier work load, so I was kept very busy. The term went by insanely fast but yet it seemed it had its moments where it crept by. The classes I enjoyed greatly but I personally had a harder time of just throwing myself wholeheartedly into them like I did last term. But they were still good in so many ways.

First class: Discovering Our God – Val Yoder

For this class we had to read “The Knowledge of the Holy” by A. W. Toazer. This book was very stretching and impacting for me. This class was mainly focusing on the attributes of God and how our view of Him affects so much of our lives. I feel like I have a greater understanding in knowing that we can never fully understand Him. He is so interested in us and yet He is so great that we become nothing in comparison.

Second class: Acts – Duane Weber

Very simply put we went through the book of Acts. I was greatly encouraged by looking at the early church and the dedication they had to following Jesus commands. The apostles lived a very bold life and suffered much for Christ. For this class we all had to share our life stories. The reason for this assignment is Duane feels like we, the church of today is the continuation of Acts. Sharing our life stories was so encouraging and just brought us as a group much closer.

Third class: Tentmaking  – Rick Rhodes

Paul was a tentmaker. This is what we spent a lot of time looking at, business as missions. We looked at the pros and cons of tent making. Rick also brought in four different tentmakers who told us about their missions and their reasons for it and sharing their stories. This was probably my favorite class. Instead of a test at the end we all had to pick a closed country we wanted to go to as a missionary and pick a job that would be allowed in. We even had to search out all the legal work: visas, laws for businesses, ect. We had to study the culture and figure out a plan for integrating ourselves in the culture. Then write a paper with a well laid out plan. It was very interesting doing this project and also exciting seeing all the opportunities available through tent making.

Fourth class: Kingdom Theology – Merle Burkholder

This class touched mainly on how we are to live in the earthly world with a heavenly mindset. We focused mainly on relating to the poor but we did also look at nonresistance and government. It was good to just be reminded of these things again.

Hopefully, this catches everyone back up with the happenings in my life. On tuesday, I am headed out on a trip to Laos. If you think about it you can pray for our team.

First Term Completed

Sorry Folks,
It has been a way too long since my last update. So I will try to fill you in on what has been happening on my side of the world.
First term ended five weeks ago. Test week is always a full week with studying and term papers, cramming in this last minute Bible Memory that you got behind on, and such like. The Saturday after classes are finished we have orientation on our ministry Trips. We find out were we are going, what we will be doing, what we should not do, what to expect, ect. Then we meet with out teams and decide what our team goals are and pray about our trip. Sunday is a normal day. Then Monday is a solitude day where we spend time just praying, reading the Bible, working on our mentoring assignments and so forth. Then Tues is the day where we all say Goodbye and pray over the teams and send them on there way. It is a very exciting time and you can just feel the anticipation crackling in the air.

Tues night found my team of five headed out for China. Our goal for this trip was to find nomads and just interact with them as much as possible. We had a guide that we met in Chengdu. From there we had a lot of traveling up bumpy mountain roads in a crammed little van. We spent 14 hours straight in that thing one time.

We explored Ghanza and stayed at a hostel their for a couple of days trying to adjust to the altitude change. The altitude change was something I had never experienced before and it really threw me for a loop. You literally just wear out fast and it feels like you cannot breathe when your walking up a hill or climbing a mountain. The highest elevation that we were at was 14,000 ft. and some of the mountains that surrounded us were 18,000 to 21,0000 ft. It was so majestic and absolutely breathtaking 😉

While in Ghanza, we spent one whole day just exploring the city. Their was one really neat experience we had with some village ladies. We were walking down the street when we came upon a group of ladies moving dirt and large rocks for a house that was being fixed. Anyways, we stopped to watch for a little then someone got the bright idea to see if we could help them. So through lots of signs and wonders they got the idea that we wanted to help them work. We had so much fun and they spent a lot of time laughing at us weak, and wimpy foreigners. In their religion they were very careful not to kill any bugs or critters for fear of demons and also the fact that they believed these bugs could be a relative of theirs in the next life. Anyways, their was one time a lady pointed out a bug right close to me, which caused me to jump and yelp, and I fought an extreme urge to squash the thing. She very carefully picked it up and carried it to a safe place. Another time I saw one lady carrying a spider somewhere safe as well. The spider got out of control and took off up her arm. She screamed and shook him off and them immediately bent over and picked it up again to carry to the side. After a while, we motioned to them that we were going to leave and they immediately made us sit down and gave us apples, tons of bread and tea. They just kept feeding and feeding us, we were trying to think of some way to thank them so we sang a song for them and immediately all the cell phones got whipped out and they videoed the whole thing. After lots of hugs and chinese goodbyes (tashi-delek) we were on our way down the road.

So beautiful

Hauling dirt

Some monks we got to hang out with

Prayer flags

Praying over the city

These people though…

In one picture above and the one below, you will notice a bunch of colorful flags strung out on a line. These were called prayer flags. They were everywhere. The people believed that if they write their prayers on these flags and then hang them up, when the wind blows over them it carries the prayers to the spirits. You could see these flags everywhere!!! After a while they just seemed to shatter the peaceful scenery. Every mountain, hillside and house had them strung up.

After our time in Ghana we headed to Maniganga, two hour drive away. We had a little hiccup on our way there. We were almost to Maniganga when our driver started acting a little mysterious. He was stopping vehicles passing us and asking them something but we could never figure out if this was just normal culture or strange. So we decided it was all normal and they were just a very social people:) We could see the town in the distance when suddenly the driver just whips the car off the road and into a very bumpy field with very big potholes. We bumped along with our heads almost hitting the ceiling, just laughing and assuming that this guy knew a short cut, when suddenly he whips the car around and flys back the way we had just come. Now our heads were hitting the ceiling and everything else (VERY HARD). Instantly you could sense fear in the car. The girl beside me was actually getting hurt really bad and it started getting a little emotional for her. The driver flew back onto the main road and just as fast flew back off on the other side and went back into a isolated courtyard surrounded by buildings. And we stopped and waited. Suddenly, a cop car came flying in behind us and came up to the car. He pulled the driver out of the car and started hollering at him. Nothing was making sense. At one point we were asked to get out and then as we started doing that were promptly told to get back in, so we did. Anyways, to make the story short, another cop shows upland they started hitting the driver very brutally. I think this is the point where I started freaking out. I never seen a human get hurt out of such anger in real life. Then the cops got his wallet took everything out of it and threw the wallet on the ground, jumped in their car and left. The driver came back to the car and climbed in holding his head. When we asked to get out he very emphatically told us to stay put. He then took us up the road to Maniganga and stopped and the police check which he had been trying to avoid earlier. Now everyone was calm and the cops smiled at us and checked our passports and told us to have a good day and waved us into Maniganga. I guess the driver was illegal. So ya, that was adventurous. (When I told my brother Nathan this story he told me it was about time I got out of my little bubble and in the real world 🙂
Mangiganga was a very small town but so much fun. The people there did not see many foreigners so they would holler at us, stare at us from a foot away, and touch us. I greatly enjoyed this! We stayed there for one night and the next met up with our guide and headed out into the mountains.

In the mountains there was beauty like I had never experienced before in my life. Words literally will not be able to describe it and pictures do no justice. There was bright green ground cover and colorful little flowers all around us, and then you would look up and see jagged snow covered mountains surrounding you entirely. We were worshiping the creator of the world in a heavenly sanctuary.
The weather was very pleasant during the day, no need of a sweater. At night it was very could and we would put on any layers we possibly could. We hiked for three days and slept in tents for two nights.

We were able to interact with a few different nomads. They would invite us into there tents and feed us all kinds of yak products: yak meat, yak butter, yak milk tea, Sampa, and a dessert made of moldy yak cheese, sugar, and yak butter. Most of these things I could stomach but the dessert thing I just. could. not. stomach. I took one bight and just about lost everything else in my stomach. The yak meat tasted wild and was not fully cooked and was often tough, covered in dirt and hair. But after a day hiking without much food it looked tempting. Sampa is a common tibetan food made with flour and yak butter. Sometimes they pour tea in it. You then mix it together into a ball. It has the texture of playdough and a similar flavor. I actually liked Sampa but their were others who could not eat much of it.

Their was one Nomad family that we spent a lot of time with; this was my biggest highlight form the whole trip. They made us some of the best food I had my whole time in China. They were so friendly and just accepted us in their home like we were family. They made southern hospitality look like nothing! They seemed like a very close family and their family structure was so biblical. It was so easy to forget that they were not believers because they acted so Christian. But then you would see them perform religious rituals in from of images and start chanting with their prayer beads; it was then I would be struck with the stark reality that these people were lost and and living in a dark world. I then would feel helpless knowing that we could not communicate with them except through our actions. I have never been so impacted with the fact that their are so many in the world who have know idea who Jesus is and yet so often I become complacent in my life, acting like I have control of my own life. Jesus has done so much for me and now what can I do for Him.

Even the rocks cry out…

yaks and more yaks

Innocence

Noodle time

The bond is deep

those smiles!!!

I wil never forget them

We hiked back into Maniganga and spent a day their. One of the girls on our team had a really neat experience hanging out with some nuns and they showed us around their monastery. There was one room that was filled with hundreds of little idols and candles. You step out of the room into a beautiful flower garden with a mountain backdrop. It was such a stark contrast.

the nuns

idols

After this we backtracked all the way to ChengDu where we then flew back home.

First Week

Lets just say I was not planning on quite the trip that I received on the way over here. Sunday afternoon I set out to the memphis airport, where I was to start the flights to Thailand. In memphis my plane was delayed due to bad weather. When I go to charlotte NC I just missed my flight there so they booked me on the next flight out saying I should arrive in New York in time to catch my flight to Guangzhou China. This would of all worked out had the flight crew showed up when they were suppose to. But no, they waited three hrs after scheduled departure time to come take us to New York. So ya, I missed my New York flight.
Lets just say:) upon my arrival in New York I was quite distraught. Probably due to my major lack of sleep, the fact that I am a people person and having so much alone time was killing me, and I simply just wanted my mom! Oh ya, I know right. Hannah, your 21 for crying out loud:)
*side note: their was a side to the whole situation that I think my mom found slightly humorous (thanks mom). Mainly, because all I ever do is talk about adventure, traveling, and independence, and here I am calling her every ten minutes trying to choke out through tears that I just wanna come home to her.
Anyways, a kind lady spotted me coming out of the plane which Im sure was due to the fact that I looked like the most scared person she ever saw. On the serious side this lady was the kindest person I ever met. She let me use her phone, gave me a voucher to a nice hotel, and gave me like a gazillion food vouchers. She truly was an answer to my prayers though. She was so sympathetic, probably due to the fact their was a constant stream of tears coming from eyes the whole time she talked to me. I know! It was bad! and humbling. She was mother away from home for a little.
After only a few more hiccups, in 24 hrs I was on a plane headed over the big pond to Guangzhou, China. In china I had an 11 hr layover in which I spent doing homework assignments for the instructors at Igo. I then got my flight to Chiang Mai with only a slight delay due to weather…again.
So…you would think after all that went wrong that nothing else could go wrong…well you wrong. My luggage didn’t arrive with me! Ya, It was to be expected and I truly was expecting it because of everything else so it didn’t even shock me. Whats even funnier is that they took my carryon from me which has extra sets of clothing and things for such a time as this. So all I arrived with was a small little back pack with my laptop, Bible, and what dignity I had left:)
Everyone here has been beyond kind to me though. Giving me things to live with till my stuff arrived which was within 24 hrs. I am not settled in and getting to know this amazing group of students. Their are 14 males and 10 females and 2 interns. I have not had much jet lag at all which is a blessing from God.
my classes:
1.The Christian Family -taught by Jim Weaver(a guest speaker)
This class has already impacted me in that as children we are directly commanded by God to honor our parents. When we do this instead of blaming them for mistakes, or failures in our lives, we then come to find that there will be blessing and security in the Lord. Also, It was just a reminder to pursue your relationship with your parents and do not be scared to tell them what they do for you and what the mean to you.

2.World Religions -taught by Gaylord Barkman (pastor of IGo church)
Right now we are studying Buddhism and Animism quite extensively. The most inspiring thing for me so far was to hear the testimonies of two thai natives here who were converted from buddhism. They just encouraged us to be bold and clear with sharing our testimonies and asking for the Holy Spirit to lead you.

3.Ephesians – taught by Rick Rhodes (administrator)
Ephesians has been a very convicting class. It is just reminding me over and over again that there is nothing in ourselves that saves us. Only through Jesus Christ are we worth anything and because of the great love that He showed us, than what more can I do but serve Him faithfully with my whole heart.

4. Tesol II – taught by Dru Lattin
This class is teaching us how to teach english to non english speaking people. Since teaching English is one of the best ways to get into a closed country and also create relationships with your students, it is good to have a basic knowledge of how to do it if the need should arise on our ministry trips. Often on our ministry trips to other countries we will be asked to teach English so this class enables us to teach effectively.

It has been a good week but also a stretching one. I am ready for the weekend and a day of rest. I just want to thank those of you who are praying for me. It has meant a lot to me. – Yours Truly
My fellow study buddies.

NOLA (the city of jazz)

It is about two weeks before I will be heading to Thailand. So until my departure I have some free time on my hands which I cannot spend in idleness. I have had friends come visit me and I have also been doing some traveling here in the states. I have recently had the privilege of revisiting New Orleans, Louisiana.
Their is a Love/Hate relationship that I have for the city. I love the culture, art, personality, outspoken people, and food. But I do not like the debauchery, witchcraft, drinking, and LGBT movement that is so greatly emphasized in this city.
Every time that I have been there we have spent the majority of our time in french quarters which is the tourist attraction of New Orleans. Their is so much history and in the city and I learn a little more of it with every visit, but I shall not bore those of you who do not value history sessions:)
This last visit was probably the most fun I have had there and the most relaxed that I have been. It is just a known fact that a trip is not defined by the actual city you are visiting, but instead by the people you are with and meet. My travel buddy this time had all the same interests as me and was just as fanatical about it. We visited art galleries, took a gazillion pictures, and sat and listened to a lot of street jazz artists.
Speaking of Jazz, I became interested in this genre a few years ago when I got ahold of my mothers very very old records and started listening to them. It was here that I fell in love with the andrews sisters, frank sinatra, bing cosby, Louis armstrong ect. So, I first set out to New Orleans to see where the major part of jazz began and still is. But I came to discover that the Jazz played there today is more the modern jazz which consists of more of a blues sound. I never did discover any of the more (what I call) classical jazz. But so be it, jazz is jazz and it is raw, new, and different every time. It involves compromise and improvising and being in tune with your fellow band players. So it is definitely something to experience.
Just as a piece of advice there is one street that is perfectly fine to avoid even though it is considered the most famous street in french quarters, and that is ‘Bourbon Street’. I normally step on the street when I go only to remember why I was going to avoid it the next time. Other than that I love the place and would advise anyone to visit that enjoys art, cajun food, and jazz.

It doesn’t get more weird

Her face just hit me

Love Her

#mood

These boys were the best ever

His wink was mesmerizing

The lady of the sea

The Layout

The organization that I will be apart of is IGo (Institute for Global Opportunities). It is based in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
The main purpose for the institute is so North American Christians can come out of the american culture and homes and put their classes into practice and show the love of Christ to people groups who have maybe never heard of Christ or have a distorted picture of christianity.

Why Chiang Mai? you may ask. Well, Chaing Mai is one of the larger cities with an international airport which makes it a great launching pad for sending students all over Asia. Also, Thailand does allow the freedom of religion which makes it possible to run a bible institute like this.

                                                             IGo’s Mission Statement
The purpose of IGo is to provide students with a cross-cultural setting in which mission work, Biblical teaching and personal discipleship can take place simultaneously. Therefore, our goals are four-fold:
1. To nurture and equip missionaries with a theology and practice that brings a faith that works in love to build the church of Jesus Christ
2. To plant and nurture churches in the uttermost parts of the world with this same theological perspective.
3. To send IGo faculty to Asian churches and conferences to instruct local leaders and students in the doctrines of Scripture as held and practiced by Anabaptism.
4. To provide Asian students and missionaries a setting in which to strengthen their doctrinal foundation and to develop their personal spiritual lives while living and interacting with other cultures.

     The institute is set up with two semesters and I will be attending the second one which is August 20 – December 8. Within a semester there is three terms. Each term consists of three weeks of classes and about ten days in another country.

During your time at the Institute you are expected to be involved in a mentoring/discipleship program. The MDP involves intensive interaction with a mentoring team and experiences that take you deeper in your relationship with God. It is a walk with God alone and also with a close group of believers. Their is solitude and group sharing to help you work through experiences in life both pleasant and painful.

Each term you will have four classes which are based on a wide range of subjects: Bible Classes, Mission building, Personal development, and Theology. Each class will be 1hr in length and will have 1hr out-of-class homework for each class. This means about 120 minutes of study per class per day. So to put it simply their is normally 8hrs of study per day.

Daily Schedule
7:00 Breakfast
7:30 Class A
8:35 Chapel
9:20 Study Period
10:15 Class B
11:15 Break
11:25 Class C
12:30 Lunch (thai food yum!!!)
1:15 Class D
2:20 Thai culture class (tues & thurs)
5:30 Supper
6:30 Ministry – Monday, Friday
Recreation – Tuesday, Thursday
Open Evening – Wednesday
9:30 Dorm Time
10:30 Lights Out

Ministry Evenings are another big element of your time their. Two nights a week you are involved with a local ministry such as: street ministry, Ransom (a mission for prostitutes), Teaching English, working with street children, etc.

Prayer is such a big part of your time their due to the intensive program and also the ever present evil threatening a good work. So your prayers are very much appreciated as I am planning to go in August. – Yours Truly:)

My Purpose

Hello,

My name is Hannah Marie Knepp. The purpose for this blog is to keep those who are interested, updated on my upcoming travels overseas. What you can expect to see is a weekly update on any interesting news and also a few reports on my classes I will be taking at an Asian Bible School. I will be living in Thailand and taking ministry trips every three weeks. Although the ministry trips into other countries are what people will find most exciting, there is a possibility that I will be omitting information to protect those we will be interacting with, therefore you may not get the full picture. Also I would like to mention, I am not a talented writer even though I do enjoy writing, so please do not over criticize:).

-Yours Truly