Thailand!

I realize I have yet to sit down and write about Thailand, and we've now been home for more than a month! So, here we go...

I have to begin by saying, WHAT A TRIP! We slept in nine different locations, partnered with 13 different ministries, hiked four miles to a remote mountain village, drove 38 hours through the winding mountainous roads of Northern Thailand, and saw Jesus move in power at every step of the way! We had high expectations going in, but even those were surpassed. The trip was not without its challenges, but we had an incredible team and truly gifted leaders. Our team remained unified, even in the most intense circumstances. The men on the team displayed such strength at all times. Gib showcased a dance move, "The Gib," that refugee children may still be doing. I know Team Thailand still is:

The women were a constant flow of encouragement and support, especially for this momma who left her baby back home. We'd take another trip anywhere with this group!

In the first few days, we attended a Thai church service, met the women of Hannah House, and shared our testimonies at a men's prison. One of the prisoners, a believer in his youth who had fallen away from his faith, encountered the Holy Spirit in a powerful way. He stood before his fellow prisoners to announce that God had called him back and that he was ready to obey Jesus.

Our trip into a remote Lisu village was one of the most challenging aspects of the trip, but also one of the most rewarding. Physically, it was challenging.

We hiked for several hours to get to the village:

We slept in one room on a concrete floor, and walked back from a church service in the pouring rain, with only a few flashlights to guide us.

And then we packed into the back of another truck to leave the village:

Spiritually, it was challenging. The small number of believers who live there are ostracized by the rest of the village. We could literally feel the spiritual oppression there. However, in our time there, we saw several people healed and we had the opportunity to pray for many families. We saw God move in powerful ways!

Upon returning to Chiang Mai, we visited a Buddhist temple overlooking the city. Later that evening, the women on the team had the opportunity to spend time talking with and ministering to women caught in prostitution.

We re-packed our bags and headed out again, this time to the Burmese/Thai border. We drove through 2,000 curves (no exaggeration: we saw t-shirts that boasted this fact) in the back of a pick-up to get to our first camp:

For more information on the genocide currently happening there, you can find information HERE (this link does contain images of genocide victims). In total, our team visited four refugee camps. The children in these camps stole our hearts, and we had the privilege to play with them, sing with them, pray with them, and love on them.

Along with another mom on our team, I (Lauren) came home after 10 days, while Gib stayed with the rest of the team, visiting additional refugee camps and an AIDS orphanage.

This trip has changed our lives. I wish we had space and time to recount every story! You can find more photos at http://hollib.myshowit.com/thailand2011, all taken by the talented Taylor at Taylor Jill Designs/HolliB Photograpy. Thanks to everyone who supported us financially and in prayer. Your encouragement means more than you know!

Home sweet home

Team Park has returned home! We apologize for the delay in posting anything new, but upon our return, we dealt with both jet lag and "baby lag," both of which involve erratic sleep schedules.

We are still processing our adventures in Thailand, but I will say that we were both touched deeply by our time there. It is no exaggeration to say that we will never be the same. Over the next few weeks, we'll recount some of our favorite stories and provide more details about what our trip was like.

I am happy to report that we returned to a growing, very joyful baby boy, as we knew we would. Grammy and Grandy did an amazing job taking care of him, and even Grandma and Grandpa got to drive down and spend some time with him. He was well loved while we were gone!

It's hard to believe that this little man will be six months old next week. We are enjoying every minute of being back with him!

Thanks to Taylor at Taylor Jill Designs/HolliB photography for yet another great photo!

Exciting plans

We are so excited about this news. I mean, REALLY excited!

As we've mentioned before, we are in the midst of a discipleship training school through our church. The school has been so transformative for us, and at its conclusion, teams are sent out to put into practice the things learned throughout the 10 months. Well, Team Park gets to do this in... THAILAND!

We are fortunate that Gib was able to take off from work, so the three of us will be embarking on an incredible adventure at the end of June. We'll be collaborating with a ministry in northern Thailand called Hannah House. The ladies of Hannah House will act as our translators as we work in Burmese refugee camps and minister to people in local prisons, schools and orphanages, and on the streets.

Traveling to Thailand to serve has always been a dream in our hearts, and we can hardly believe that in a matter of weeks, it will be a reality. Approximately 20 of us (including kiddos) make up Team Thailand:

The trip costs $3,000 per person, so our team total is significant. The last few weeks we've been busy planning and executing fundraising efforts. Last weekend was a car wash, which was a blast! Here you can see the Gibster working hard:

And this is one of my favorites. Baby on the hip, washing the car - that's dedication!

Levi was on hand to lend his support from the stroller:

Over the next few weeks, we'll be doing more events - a garage sale, 3-on-3 basketball tournament and a coffee house night. If you're out there and feel like donating to the cause, we won't turn you down!

Our family will also be consuming delicious Thai food in the coming weeks to prepare. I don't really need an excuse to motivate myself to do such a thing, but we have to get our systems ready, right?! Haha!

We are counting down the weeks until June. Thailand, here we come!