Gluai is married to Saranya and has a young son. About three years ago when I first met Gluai, he was wearing a bandage on his head due to a motorcycle accident. He had been driving while intoxicated and drove off the road and tumbled down the mountain.
Gluai (third from right) and his family are experiencing
Christ's transformation as Gluai grows in his new faith.
I met Gluai when students from Southeast Asia Nazarene Bible College (SEANBC) in Chiang Mai, Thailand, had gone with me to several communities where there were no churches or Christian witness. We went looking for God's direction on where to start a church. Walking through the communities, we would stop and ask people what life was like for them, what problems they faced, and about their spiritual beliefs.
At first, Gluai's village was not on our list of places to visit. Then Michai Jabo, assistant administrative officer at SEANBC, and I felt the Lord guide us to visit Phabujom. Each week, we took several students with us to Phabujom to establish friendships with people in the village. It was in one of those early visits that I first met Gluai. But he was not at all interested in us or in what we had to say.
After several months of our visits to the village, Gluai told us that because we didn’t come telling them what they should believe, and because we didn’t use the scare tactics of “if you don’t believe you will spend eternity in hell,” he was ready to talk to us and hear what we had to say.
For many months Gluai has joined some of our conversations each Saturday evening. Often he will ask questions regarding particular situations that he faced. Initially wearing a cross on a necklace was a great help to him. When he didn’t wear it at night he had terrible nightmares of attacks by spirits. Another question was about how he should respond to his drinking buddies. We addressed his concerns and what God’s Word had to say about them. We prayed for Gluai and his family.
We prayed that God would deliver him from his desire for alcohol and from his fear of spirits. God has answered those prayers and continues to work in his life and heart. A few weeks ago when he came to our meeting it was not with a question but a testimony. Gluai now felt his life had meaning and value. He now is happy to take responsibility for his family. Previously he often found himself in conflict with his parents. He said that now he loves his father and mother and does not despise their instruction.
God has been doing a work in Gluai’s heart and life. Pray for him and his family. Pray that Gluai will be faithful to follow this new road that God has been showing him.
-- Kent and Kathleen Pelton have served as missionaries in Thailand since 2000. Kent is director of Southeast Asia Nazarene Bible College. Kathleen provides an administrative role for the Southeast Asia Field administration.