About: Our place in Baptist mission history

 It is privilege enough that God has allowed us to be part of His work. A second privilege is to have been part of Baptist mission history which goes back more than 200 years.

While not really the first missionary from the US, Adoniram Judson is often credited with starting the Protestant mission effort in the US. Judson left the US as a Congregationalist heading to India, but wound up a Baptist in Burma (now often called Myanmar).  He began mission work that grew to include many missionaries and many churches throughout Burma. This work continued unbroken until World War II.  The turmoil of the world at war was a major disruption to mission efforts but after the war, work began to pick up again around the world and continued after the Korean War and beyond until now.

When we arrived in Thailand in 1982 we joined a number of veteran missionaries that had arrived in the 50s and 60s.  Prior to World War II Baptist churches had already been started among the ethnic Chinese mainly in the Bangkok area and there were Baptist churches among the Karen people in Northern Thailand.  The veteran missionaries we met in 1982 had spent the last several decades helping those existing churches grow and expand their influence into wider areas and among other people groups. Along the way, theological education, general education, hospitals, agricultural and economic development, etc. all got started and continue today. That generation of missionaries started, helped start or influenced many organizations like the Church of Christ in Thailand (CCT), The 12^th District of the CCT (Baptist related ethnic Chinese Churches), The 16^th District of the CCT (Karen Churches in the Kwai River, Kanchanaburi area), The Thailand Karen Baptist Convention, The Lahu Baptist Churches, The Akha Churches of Thailand and more. Since the days of Judson, the mission philosophy had always been to lead people to Christ to start independent and self-sustaining churches and institutions that would remain if and when missionaries were no longer around. We often heard the “mission mantra” of “work yourself out of a job” as the ultimate goal.

We were and continue to be amazed at what that generation of missionaries had accomplished and felt totally inadequate to be joining them and trying to continue what they had started. And we were inadequate. Our only hope was that God might lead us to be of some use in some way. We were also amazed that as inadequate as we were, the veteran missionaries at the time were all extremely gracious, helpful and proved to be great mentors. Some of those that helped us in the early years were Bob and Pat Coats, Edy McCarty, Paul and Winnie Dodge, Dick and Marney Gregory, Roger & Gen Getz, Dick and Charlotte Worley, and Phil and Nancy Gage in the Bangkok area. Up north in Chiang Mai Rupert and Dee Nelson, Dick and Marlene Mann, Ed and Norma Lee Hudspith were all helpful and in the Sanklaburi area Ben and Doris Dickerson, Phil and Melba McDaniel were an early influence as well as Dr. Bina Sawyer in Mae Sariang. Others as well will come out in the stories and blog posts I'm sure. In addition, there are too many Thai, Chinese, Karen, Lahu and more to list here.

The American Baptists and Presbyterians were among some of the earlier mission groups to return to Thailand after the war and some work was done jointly like in the Kwai River area and the Bangkok Christian Guest House. In the 1970s other Baptist organizations wanted to join the mission efforts and assist what the American Baptists had going. First the Australian Baptists came in 1974, then the Swedish Baptists in 1976.  With their arrival, the Thailand Baptist Missionary Fellowship (TBMF) began. When we arrived in 1982 and throughout our time in Thailand, in the view of the Thai and other ethnic people we worked with, the TBMF was really seen as “the mission” as much or more so than the American Baptists, Australian Baptists, Swedish Baptists, etc. Prior to e-mail and the instant communication it represented, some might say the TBMF was self-governing. Certainly Marcia and I felt subject to the TBMF when we first arrived and they directed our work. As we left Thailand in 2006, TBMF was comprised of seven Baptist mission organizations from 6 countries. Now each of the mission organizations supervise their missionaries directly and work has spread in multiple directions through numerous local, Thai based organizations and foundations.

As we arrived in 1982, we were sometimes seen as the beginning of the next wave of missionaries. Others that came near the same time as we did from the American Baptists include Marshall & June Peters, Kim Brown, Rebecca Cutlip, Merle and Faye Brown and Lauren Bethell. Our Thai language school time and general orientation overlapped so we’ve always felt an extra connection with these fellow newcomers (now not so new). 

If we did start the next wave, it was a small one.  But it was the beginning of a time that led to lot of changes in the mission landscape. Of course computers and e-mail brought a lot of change. Denominations have fallen out of favor and support of their mission programs has likewise suffered. Lack of trust in institutions in general has led to more independent missions and missionaries leading to practically all mission organizations now requiring everyone to raise their own support  (as opposed to being supported by an organization). When we arrived in Thailand, our work was designed to support and be at the direction of the Karen Baptist Churches now much of the missionary work has moved on from the original churches and their organizations to wide range of things.

While some of the changes were painful personally, it was an amazing time to be in Thailand and to be a missionary with International Ministries and TBMF. We’re so grateful to so many that made it possible and thank God for letting us be a part of the mission story in Thailand. It was a great way to spend a career.