These are some experiences we wrote about 3 months ago, but it never got to the blogpage, so here it is.



The majority of the people in our territory speak Mandarin, but our studies are mostly with non-Chinese speaking people. The ‘English’ territory is more like an international field. We have calls and studies with 8 different language groups. Our trunk, or ‘boot,’ depending on which version of English you prefer, is full of different language Bibles and literature. It’s unbelievable to be in a missionary assmt and using English in our mtgs and on our studies. At least for now anyway, so we’re enjoying it while it lasts. But, we’ll begin to learn Behasa Melayu, or Malay very soon. That’s the local language here of the population. That will really come in handy in the field, although there is no literature yet in Malay. We’ll have to use Indonesian for now, which is similar to Malay.

I have one study with a man from Myanmar who works at a gas station near our place. He speaks very little English, so our studies consisit of lots of pictures and the enjoy Life brochure. He is a Protestant, so we've been trying to help him see that Jesus and Jehovah are not the same person, not so easy with the language barrier.


With some of the studies who had a question about the 144,000 during a gathering at a friends home. All work, no play...just kidding!







At the end of December we went to Singapore, for our first visa chop. That was so encouraging. We stayed with one of the first sisters to come into the truth there in the 60’s. This was at her house, they made sushi and sashimi for us, yummy!!



Seeing the bro/sis zeal in spite of the ban, and their joy, as well as the increase was a great boost for us.










Then the next day was the pioneer seminar, followed by our C.A. Then the following week we were host cong, for the DO/CO. So it was a very busy month.






Here's our CO & DO.

Another Nepalese man, named Bhola,(not the Ebola virus) is also making great progress. He studies with another bro in our group, and has been attending all the mtgs he can. His company has sort of laid everyone off, which means he will only make half of his salary. So he only makes enough each month to pay off the interest on the debt he owes for coming here. And he has two children, staying with the grandparents, since his wife died not long ago. And the kids keep asking him why aren’t you sending us any money. Its really heart wrenching. But he loves the truth. He told us a few weeks ago, that he lost so much coming to Malaysia, but now he has gained the most precious thing, the truth. And his one ‘ambition’ is to give his whole life to Jehovah. He too is already preaching on his own, and makes RV’s. Last week he told me he had a friend that wants to study the Bible. So he made arrangements to take me to his hostel and introduce me. I go to pick him up, and he comes out with his mtg bag and a tie on. All set and ready to go. We arrive at his friends place, and he invites us in. It looks like a prison, with about 20 bunkbeds in one small room. We make our way into the ‘family room,’ two beds and a TV. (Thats the pic above)So we sit down and he asks us to wait, he’ll be right back. A few minutes later, everyone in the hostel, all 16 guys who work the night shift(others are already at work) pile into the room and sit on the floor in a semi-circle, waiting for something, a sermon perhaps. Before I could say anything Bhola begins. He spoke non-stop for about 15 mins in Nepali. I sat there in awe, watching this Bible student preach. All the while praying to Jah that he tells them the right things. Every so often he would mix in an English word, like pastor, church, JW’s, paradise, etc. So I think he was on the right track. Anyway he finishes his enthusiastic delivery and stops and turns and looks at me and smiles, as if to say, ok I warmed them up, now its your turn. How can I follow that? Especially since most speak hardly any English, and all I can say is Nomastay and Rungy-Chungy. Well, I asked them all a few questions about the Bible, and Bhola translated. We read a few scriptures and made arrangements to come back the following week for our first study. Sue came with me, and we had a great study with 8 of the guys. Now we're down to one. His name is Himalay(not Mt Everest), and the rest of the men in his hostel no longer want me to come. But he still wants to study. In fact he was begging me on the phone to not forget about him. That he only wants Jehovah for his God. So we've made arrangements to pick him up and then study somewhere else.

A few weeks ago, Sue met a woman, named Premla, house to house. She invited her in and had a really nice call with her. The next week she invites us back to have ‘dosa,’ which is an Indian breakfast dish. Sort of like crepes, but lighter and fluffier. You have it along with coconut chutney. It was delicious. There were only 2 plates set on the table, so everyone sat around the table to watch us eat. They had to check and see whether we could eat with our hands or not. I think we passed that test, but then Sue mentioned something about eating beef, but Indians don’t eat beef, because cows are holy animals. Ooops. After the meal, we sat down with her whole family, her father and mother, and 2 sisters and we had a wonderful Bible discussion.

This month we split our English book study into 3 groups. Our attendance was about 30 at each book study, so it was time to split. At our book study group, the first night we had 25! 8 pubs and the rest Bible studies. Most of the studies are Ibans, from Sarawak on Borneo. They all speak Malay, so our book study is a mixture of English and Malay. We’re hoping that this will become a Malay group sometime this year. But now we definitely need to learn Malay, but it looks like we’re on our own with that now.









An update with Binod. Unfortunately his boss has now decided that he doesn’t want him anymore. He canceled his visa and is sending him back to Nepal a year early then he signed the contract for. Just after he asked to join the TMS, and we were getting ready to go over the qualifications with him. But he recognizes this as a test from Satan, and he’s determined to keep up his spiritual progress back in his home village. We’ll definitely miss his zeal, but we know that Jah will take good care of him.

We'll be updating real soon, lots more pics to come, so stay tuned....