Dear Friends,

After a one-year furlough based in Minnesota, we arrived back in Penang (Malaysia) on August 5th. Four days later, Rachael Caldwell, an 11th grade student whose parents minister in Cambodia, arrived to board with us and within a week of our return, the kids began the new school year at Dalat, Jessica as an 11th grader and Joshua as a 6th grader. Our oldest daughter, Hannah, is now a sophomore at Calvin College in Michigan so it was the first time for us to be driven to the airport by one of our children! We are very thankful for God's provision of our new home close to the school and, too, for the children's smooth transition back to Dalat.

Despite the familiarity of our surroundings, we've returned with new job descriptions. We have been appointed to work with Bill Young, coordinator of the Office of International Evangelism of the Worldwide Ministries Division of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), to facilitate outreach in Southeast Asia with a particular focus on restricted access countries. Having ministered in Malaysia and Thailand since 1984, we recognized that we had a lot to learn about our new area of emphasis.

One of the evening services included a firsthand testimony of a pastor who heads up numerous churches that are experiencing God's miraculous and transforming power. He and his family were just evacuated three days prior to the consultation. His description of the struggle he faced in making the decision to leave was unforgettable. Foremost on his mind was the thought that if he was not willing to be persecuted or die for his faith how could he lead his church.

Paul spent two weeks traveling through the region with Bill Young and Cody Watson from Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship. In Cambodia, they were able to meet Savana Thach. Unlike many of his neighbors and family members Savana survived the killing fields and is now a member of Eastminster Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Over the past four years he has brought several teams from his church to minister in a village several hours from Phnom Penh. Paul and Bill met with Savana and the team from the church for several days as they were preparing for an outreach trip into a village four hours from the capital city. Previous trips to the village had focused on relationship building and community development. Plans for this trip included a mobile medical clinic and the showing of the Jesus video in Khmer.

Soon after we returned to Penang, Carol was invited to join the steering committee for an interdenominational, international church plant here in Penang. Although there are not a few English worship services available on the island, no one has specifically reached out to the large number of expatriates resident here. We have held three services thus far in a local hotel (meeting bimonthly) and plan to move to weekly services in January. In addition, Carol facilitates two small groups (a combination of Scripture meditation and group spiritual direction) weekly in order to provide an avenue for learning to practice silence, meditation, and group spiritual direction.

We are so very thankful for the opportunities God has extended to us to participate in the furtherance of His Kingdom. We are keenly aware that we can do nothing apart from Jesus and, therefore, covet your prayers for wisdom, discernment, and hearts of obedience as we partner with you for the glory of God.

With thanksgiving,

Paul and Carol Friesen