Our Christmas & New Years letter

Dear Friends, You can now klick on this, and find our Christmas and New Years letter.
“Now may the Lord of Peace Himself
continually grant you peace
in every circumstance.
The Lord be with you all.”
2 Thess 3:16
Ingvar & Anna

In Mondolkiri

Last Thursday we left the windless city of Chiang Mai and came yesterday to the windy rural town of Mondolkiri, Cambodia, on the Ho Chi Minh trail, along the border to Vietnam. This is a very beautiful place and ...... we enjoy the wind.

First we had the birthday party for Mika. He turned 3. Nice to be with Mariam and her family again.

Today we were at a Christmas party for all Christians. Nice to be with the locals. Many young people came and Mariam said: Many non-Christians were there. Everyone seemed very happy.

A Christian leader (Barnabas M) from Phnom Penh was there. We worked with him for some 20 years ago. One goal I have is: Best to depart as a friends. One day we will meet again.

In The Local Cultural Society - the extended family is very important. To mix the joint family, the work and the faith ... .. is positive. Good for Mariam & Phil occasionally to have part of thir joint family here.

In The Global Cultural Society - the individualistic power is important.

The Kingdom of God helps us, wherever we are, to have value and capacity in ourselves + at the same time belonging together. We need each other.

This morning the boys came to our room. Nice. Ingvar

Under the Juniper tree.

Anna and I are now 2 ½ day in (or should we say under) the new Juniper Tree in Pranburi, south of Hua Hin. The SPM annual meeting is here this year. This is a wonderful place we can recommend. http://www.juniper-tree.org/dolphin-bay.html The name Juniper Tree comes from 1 Kings 19:4 -

Today we will go back up to Bangkok and Anna home to Chiang Mai this evening. I will stay in Bangkok to Monday evening and be involved in the some Flood work.

Today is The 1st Sunday of Advent. The title on this Sunday, according to a Swedish Church calendar is “A year of grace." I like that. Everywhere we go we see the need for God's kind of grace. Not only the human kind of grace, which can be more like “blindness”, but the true Grace of God. This Grace is not head knowledge but ... .. activated in practice for ourselves and for others.

These days we have a Norwegian Pastor who leads us in bible studies. He is good and gives us a big portion of new and fresh grace from God himself.

Under the Juniper Tree (or broom tree) Elijah had an heavenly encounter and had food that strengthen him for 40 days and 40 night. God’s touch and food is indeed powerful. Ingvar

God shall help her, just at the break of dawn. PS 46:5

The 21st of Nov my final day of visa: There was a call at 7.30 am. Anna, your visa is approved and the documents are on its way, against all odds.

All the clowds of rumors and advice on overstay and pay the fine of 500 bhat/day suddenly just blew away. I had told my Father, please, you know how I feel about overstaying, paying fine etc, it doesn't feel good even if it has become a system approved.

We prayed for favor, received the last number in the line at the Immigration and we were the last out of the building in the afternoon, but with the new visa in hand. Glory!!

It is such a good feeling to have a proper visa, work permit and just feeling welcomed in a nation.

Imagine all the Thanks Father!! coming form my heart yesterday.

Love Anna

I'll make darkness light and crooked places straight.......

How important is it not, to have a goal, a vision to run towards. If we don't, life is like living in a fog. Having very general goals tends to give us too much space, like a very broad road with no markings to help you know where on the road you should be.

The ministry with Tree of Life drove into a foggy season for a while due to certain circumstances and it was difficult to know how to proceed. The enormous needs are still there, the means and volunteers are there but we couldn't see light for the fog.

Today I have been back in Thailand for 7 weeks and it is not until this last week I feel the fog has lifted so much that I can see where to put my foot down. It feels like I have been standing on one leg for a long time.

Some years ago a good old friend gave me this verse from Isaiah 42:16 which I didn't like, so I put it away on the shelf, until God brought it down to me a few days ago.

'' I will bring the blind by a way they did not know (Who wants to call themselves blind? that is not fun and takes humility to admit. And to lead a blind on unknown ways, must be difficult but not too hard for the Shepherd),

I will lead them in paths they have not know, (much of our wanderings with Tree of Life has been pioneering new things and new ways of working, but the staff and rod of the Shepherd was there to guide and correct ),

I will make darkness light (Yes He did, the fog lifted)

and crooked places straight''(level=Swedish transl.) (Yes that is our prayer just NOW!) In other words, we are absolute dependent on the Shepherd, we must follow Him closely, because He only knows the path we are on.

We just decided upon new suitable and more central premises for the ministry, giving us the opportunity to have an open door to impact the society, which is part of our dream. And having everything under the same roof. Meetinghall, prayer rooms, office and even a place for child care, when the parents come for ministry.Wonderful. I'll place some photos as soon as we've moved in.

With Love

Anna

Hand-in-Hand

I have just returned from 19 days working in different projects in India and in Pakistan.

So good to be in the Communities. I enjoy being with the ordinary people in their daily life.... in their society.

So good to be with the Church members. I am always blessed to be in the midst of the Church members. And the Body of Christ is growing these days. The believers are dedicated and ministers, as the Body of Christ.

So good to be in partnership with different National organizations. To see the national organizations rising up as a tool for transformation in the communities and churches, it is encouraging.

And so good to meet and work with all the wonderful leaders. More and more I feel blessed to connect and stand side by side with the national leaders. They have a hard work and ….. very open for partnering as leaders.

I see everywhere and open door of Cooperation with communities, churches, organizations and leaders. We work seriously on developing the partnership and cooperation with these groups in Good Governance, administration and implementation. No one of us wants to be a blind donor, but to be active in full partnership. Ingvar

Evaluation .... so many are thankful.

Evaluation of the earlier work is really exiting. Everyone is so grateful. Anders H. and I have had 3 fruitful days with EFICOR, who we since 2005 have had two major disaster projects with. After the Tsunami December 26, 2004, we were engaged in relief and rehabilitation in India and in Thailand. Yesterday Anders and I visited MGR Thitu village in Tamil Nadu. What a change since I visited MGR Thitu village in January 2005 and in September 2005.
So good we got involved. Two EFICOR leader said: This work was very much worth doing even if it was a hard work. And I agree 100%.

Did you know that the word Tsunami comes from the Japanese word 津 波, tsunami = "Harbor wave".

Everyone we met so far, has a unique story and ..... I'm glad we can be part of it. Ingvar