Here's what you're in for in this blog post:

A trip to summer camp and the beach with our college students

A 3-day Retreat with all our staff

A Small Gourp

A surgery

A sermon

Plans for the US this summer

New kids at Faithful Heart

Small Group is growing!

We have had a full couple of weeks and are feeling very grateful and very tired.  We were especially thankful for a few days off for the Thai New Year Celebration.  Riding home from work the day before on my scooter, I saw out of the corner of my eye a group of young boys who were looking a little too intently at me approaching.  With a quick dash, a large bucket of water was heaved in my direction.  

They timed it perfectly. 

I hit a wall of water at 80 kilometers an hour.  I was so impressed, I even raised my hand to cheer.  

Shouts of 'we got the farang' (white guy) in Thai could be heard in celebration.

Welcome to Song Kran---a city wide water fight.

This season is usually a busy one for us, but we are beginning to look forward to it more and more. 

 This year had several special first experiences:

It was the first time some of our college students flew in a plane.

It was the also the first time some of them had ever been to the ocean:

It was the first time they had been to summer camp:

A really BIG thank you to everyone of you who made this trip possible for our college students! 

It really was a special experience for them.  After we got back from our trip with the college students, it was time to get everything ready for our annual Staff retreat.  And this year was special too, we were able to take all our hard-working house parents to a guesthouse for 3 days of rest, learning, and laughing together.  It is one of our favorite events of the year.

Many of you can probably relate, but the month of April has vanished without a trace.  It is strange how a full schedule, even of good, pleasant things can eventually wear you down.  Audrey and I often need a date night and are extra grateful for Aunt Amy, Papa Dave and Nana Sher who can give us some time to ourselves. 

 We continue to enjoy the time with our small group on Tuesday nights.  We had a special guest, Pastor Tommy from South Carolina, share his story of a difficult childhood and his struggle to heal from those wounds.  It connected with many of our Thai friends.  

I believe stories are one of our most powerful tools.  

And I never tire of hearing how encountering Jesus has changed people.  

Please keep my Dad in your prayers.  He is having surgery this Saturday to remove a kidney stone.  We have so enjoyed having them here and so have a lot of other folks. We are eager to see them blessing many more lives for years to come.  

Please keep me in your prayers too, as I am filling in for my Dad to preach this Sunday.  

If you are so inclined, it should be available to stream online sometime next week.  

We are getting so excited for our visit to the US this summer!  I have not seen the Colorado mountains in the summer for far too long.  

Our plans are to be in Ohio and Pennsylvania June 13-19th.  

Then in Colorado June 19th through July 18.  

We would love to connect with everyone wherever we can!  

One more thing:

Please continue to pray for Faithful Heart Foundation and all our kids.  We have 5 new kids in just the last month!  We are super excited about them joining our family, and they will need people like you to help support them.  We are interviewing a new boy this afternoon too!  Would you pray about investing in these young people?  If you could meet them, I know you would love them like we do.  

Blessings in hope---not of our political party, not in money, but in the One who transforms and redeems the mess of our lives into something beautiful!  In Jesus!  

We love and miss you!  

Matt, Audrey, & Fuzzy Ez