First Church Plant and Training Center in Sukhothai
The Norton Family have been missionaries in Thailand since August 30, 2019. You can read their updates here!
The first church plant is going to open in the city of Sukhothai, Thailand!! This is a huge answer to prayer! We have been praying for Sukhothai for many years because the city had no Adventist church and no one to share the Gospel with its people.
Just over a year ago, God sent the Norton family as missionaries to Sukhothai. Since then, they have studied the Bible with neighbors, reached out to needy members of their community, and taken six children, ten and under, into their home.
Opening a church in Sukhothai has been one of the Nortons’ prayers for a long time. During this time, God has also been impressing them to start a discipleship training program for the Thai people. Many Thai Adventists know little about the Bible, even after being baptized, because most of the churches and materials in Thailand are for people who speak English. The Nortons want to teach them how to understand and live out the Gospel, which of course includes sharing it!
The Nortons have started developing training materials (which you can check out for free on their website!), and they are looking for someone to translate them into Thai. They want to visit churches to teach people and start a training center where people can come to learn and do outreach at the same time.
SukhothaiChurch
The outside of the new church plant building may look plain right now, but soon it will be a busy center for sharing the Gospel in Thailand!
After months of searching, the Nortons have found a building where they can start the church plant and training center. The three story building is located right in the center of town, where all the people are! They will not have to look far to find people they can reach out to! In addition to worship and training space, the building also has bunk rooms where trainees, workers, and visitors can stay. The building costs $500 a month, and the $1000 deposit the Nortons were originally quoted was cut to $500! Praise God!
With thirteen people in their household, the Nortons will already have a decent sized group for their church plant. They are praying they will soon be joined by some Adventists in the area without a nearby church and some people with whom they have been studying the Bible.
Since the Nortons only have a year of Thai under their belt, they are working on hiring native Bible Workers to help them. The Nortons will be training them during their first year of work. Please join us in praying for God to reveal whether the Bible Workers the Nortons have found will be a good fit for their ministry.
The Nortons are moving forward in faith that God will provide the funds for this new church plant. If He is leading you to take part in supporting it, click the button below!