August 19, 2005

Dear Friends and Family in Christ,

What do you do when a young believer from upcountry gets a burden for his family and village and needs your help to grow in Christ and reach out to others? The believer also needs to improve his English to qualify to receive further ministry training. That’s the situation that our colleague and brother, Wiriya Tipvarakankoon, was going through when he and Leith met last year to pray and work at upgrading his English.

Wiriya had been selected to receive further seminary training abroad so that he could serve on the faculty of Bangkok Institute of Theology (BIT). A significant obstacle for many potential scholars is the TOEFL exam. Wiriya had been rejected once before from a seminary in the United States even after completing an intensive TOEFL preparation course. One can imagine how focused he was as he prepared to retake the TOEFL. Then Yao, a taxi driver whom Wiriya had just led to Christ, began growing in Christ and saw God do amazing things in the lives of his family and neighbors from his village six hours from Bangkok. Wiriya felt the pull for time in both directions. We prayed over Matthew 6:33 “Seek first the Kingdom of God…and all these things will be yours as well….” Wiriya continued to invest his time with Yao while doing what he could to prepare for the TOEFL exam, committing the results and his future to the Lord.

We hope you can catch Wiriya’s excitement when he wrote recently, “Thank you for your prayers…we know that every step coming to Princeton is a miracle for us. We realize that we have come here not by our own ability but by God’s grace and plan for us in order that we might be equipped to better serve in His kingdom. Although we have come here without knowing anyone personally, God had provided a missionary couple who served in Thailand for many years to greet us at the airport and to help us settle in. There are many international students here and a strong sense of community in our apartment complex. We often share things with each other. Our first day here, a Chinese student gave us an air conditioner because he was leaving. And now I have a car from an Indian student. He said he had received many things from God through many people and since he now has a new car he felt God wanted him to give it to some international student. That was I! We have seen God continually answer our prayers, providing for both our needs and even our desires. We praise the Lord!”

We praise God for being so faithful to Wiriya and his family. We also thank God for what he is doing in our family. Karin, a sophomore at DePaul University, is healing nicely from a broken ankle she incurred while playing rugby this past spring. A big player landed on top of our petite Karin and something had to give! This summer Karin has seen God miraculously provide for her housing and work needs. She is learning much working at a law firm doing extensive research and writing. Seeing God personally provide for her has encouraged Karin’s faith. Joy is preparing for her final year at DePaul and this summer is doing her Army ROTC training in Washington state. Mark and Lani have been in Chicago for a month this summer, being graciously hosted and cared for by our dear friends. Mark is preparing for life after high school graduation next June, checking into college and work options. Besides Mark and Lani having a great time renewing relationships with friends, serving at vacation Bible school, and attending church camp, Lani is also having a wonderful time with Carol’s parents and cousin at an intergenerational Elder Hostel program. Although we miss the children, we have enjoyed our “empty nest” and the time has been full with many opportunities to participate in ministry together.

Would you please join us in praying for Wiriya, his wife Tu, and their daughter Roong as they adjust to and study at Princeton? Studying in one’s second language is a challenge especially at this academic level.

Please pray that God would continue to work in the lives of some our friends who do not know Jesus yet—Nui, Ooi, Mic, and Sri

Thank you for your partnership with us and your interest and concern for our lives and for those we love here. Thank you for supporting us through your prayers and financial gifts.

Warmly in Christ,

Leith and Carol Fujii

The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 12