SHANE AND KAYTI SALMON
BANGKOK, THAILAND
APRIL – MAY 2023
Opportunities For Fellowship: April and May were full of opportunities for fellowship at BenTai Baptist Church. We had a wonderful Easter service with two baptisms, two ladies joining the church, and with saved and unsaved friends attending! Judah especially loves April because we celebrate his birthday on the 11th. This year he turned 7! He also loves that right after his birthday, all of Thailand takes time off to celebrate Songkran, the Thai New Year. We were able to take two opportunities to spend time with our church, one at our house, and one joining in with Bangjak Baptist, my parents’ church. In May we took a church outing to a 54-story museum and observation tower in our area. Again, we were thankful for extra time with saved and unsaved friends. We thank God for these fun opportunities to spend time with the people the Lord has brought our way.
A Joy To See Volunteers Serve: We have continued to see the Lord bless the English outreaches at BTBC. In April, Adam and Ayla Cottrell, who serve with us at BenTai Baptist, started a new English class for juniors and seniors in high school. In May, we hosted an all-day English event for kids ages 5-10, then kicked off our newest sessions of Kids’ English the following Sunday.
Our First Missions Intern: From the end of January until early May, we were able to have our first intern at BTBC, a college senior named Gabriel Long. His name may be familiar to you because his parents are BBFI missionaries currently serving in Madagascar. From the time he arrived, Gabriel jumped right in, serving anywhere and everywhere needed. In addition to helping with various needs around the church, he taught in the children’s English classes, worked with Adam Cottrell in the new high school English class, served in the Medical Missions Outreach clinics, gave his testimony at the church, and even led as a counselor at the annual Southeast Asia missionary kids camp that we taken part in every year. On top of all that, he also took two months of Thai language classes. We are thankful for our time with Gabriel and for his heart to serve. Please be praying for him as he has now graduated from college and is looking for a church internship on his road to become a missionary himself.