The final chapters of Chiang Mai

Hey everybody!

Sorry it's been so long since I've gotten a post up. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind, but everything is going great. There's a lot to report so I'll start by splitting things up a bit and covering the final few happenings in Chiang Mai.

In our last week before heading to Mae Sot we left Chiang Mai for a few days to go do some construction and agricultural work in a village four hours away. Our time there was so awesome. It was very refreshing to get away from the big city for a while and enjoy the remote tranquility of our new surroundings. There were vibrant green rice fields, beautiful mountains in the distance, and best of all, significantly cleaner air to breath. We were hosted by local families while we were there and they were a total blessing. The 'host mom' at the house I was staying at was so hospitable and cooked us up some bomb grub for breakfast and lunch everyday. Our first day there we worked with cement and laid the floor for someones soon-to-be kitchen. After that we worked packing fertilizer for a massive planting project. What they were planting, I don't know, but I'm sure it will help the village tremendously; agriculture is the backbone of most economies outside of the big cities. Our dirty work was from morning till noon everyday and in the evenings we would hang out and play games with kids from the village. By the time we arrived back in Chiang Mai we only had two days left before Mae Sot.

I found the ministries there to be very challenging, but I learned a lot and was stretched to overcome my passivity and step outside of my comfort zone. On our last trip to the red light district two of our team members had some amazing conversations with the workers there. There was a lady-boy at one of the bars that had done a YWAM DTS several years ago before making the change and going to work in the sex industry. My friend Dalton got to talk to her and speak a lot of love into her life.  She opened up about how her relationship with her family had taken a blow when she became a lady-boy. It was a perfect opportunity for Dalton to share the love of God. Nothing we do can make Him love us less. He says come as you are. By the end of the conversation she was in tears and said that she didn't want to work in the bars anymore! Though it was our last time there, there is a steady flow of YWAM teams that continue the ministry. Our friends from the Newcastle, Australia team stayed in Chiang Mai a week after us and I've heard some amazing testimonies from them of what God's been doing. Beyond the red light ministries we also got to make a lot of new friends from Chiang Mai University. Some really awesome relationships came out of it and there are three people in particular that I'm really gonna miss. It was hard to say goodbye, but I have a feeling this won't be my last time in this beautiful country.

Overall I feel like God really used our time in Chiang Mai to increase our capacity to step out and love people. You can't be passive. You can't be self conscious. You've just gotta love people like Jesus would. We've got one life to live, and we have the one thing that the world needs most - the peace that can only be found in Christ.

"By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" - John 13:35 

Chiang Mai

Time flies! I've been abroad for a little over a month now. We've been in Thailand since January 3rd. We're currently in Chiang Mai, our first of three cities. We're staying at a cafe called Wongen. It's an awesome place associated with YWAM and the owner operates a few different ministries. The umbrella organization is called Lighthouse In Action which includes Love Acts, a sex trade ministry we've been working alongside, X-Life, which focuses on remote Thai villages, and the ministry of the cafe itself, Wongeneration. Wongen is directly across the street from Chiang Mai University, hosts lots of YWAM teams and missionaries and has full time staff members that teach english. All the teams that stay here come alongside the ministries in one way or another. Our team has been focusing on the university and "friendship evangelism". It's been awesome getting to know some students and learning about their culture. We also go out to the red light district a couple nights a week to reach out to prostitutes and clients alike. It can be really hard stepping out and developing relationships sometimes, especially in the spiritual heaviness of the red light district. If we come to mind, pray that God gives us His heart for the people we come into contact with and that we have opportunities to love on people. Here's some links for more info on Lighthouse In Action.

ywamthai.org/lighthouse
facebook.com/LighthouseInActionThailand
facebook.com/WonGenKafe
facebook.com/LoveActsThailand
facebook.com/XLifeThailand

Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers!

Peace from the East,
Trevor

So Long Philippines

Today marks 18 days in the Philippines, and tomorrow we fly west to Thailand. It's been an amazing time and I don't think I've even begun to digest my experiences here. But I'll try my best to sum things up.

YWAM is a Christian outreach organization, so I'm not out here on vacation. At it's core, this trip is supposed to be about evangelism. Evangelism can be described a number of ways, but in essence it is sharing and promoting your faith. I've been raised Christian my entire life and value my personal relationship with God, but I've never been quite comfortable with "evangelizing" to non-believers. I'm a peaceful person. I don't want to seem like a religious stiff and tell other people what they have to believe. But as I look back at this trip so far, I'm beginning to see that evangelism is not like that at all. The core of the Christian faith is Jesus Christ, and if you look to the life of Christ you see humility, service, sacrifice and love. Hardly the type of things that ignite a heated religious debate. On this trip I haven't shouted on a soap box or preached a fiery sermon, but I have had the opportunity to share the love of God through service. Just as He has loved us, so He calls us to love one another.

"Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." - Matthew 22:37-40

I hope that as this trip continues I have more opportunities to talk to non-Christians about my faith and to share what God has done in my life. But if I don't, it's alright. We can exemplify the love of Jesus without ever saying a word. I am blessed to know my maker, my redeemer, and my best friend. Love as He has loved, that others may know Him too. 

So long to the Philippines and hello to what ventures await us in Thailand!

Update from the Philippines

Greetings from the Philippines!

It was a long journey here but we made it here safe and sound. We departed from LAX on December 13^th and flew twelve hours non-stop to Seoul, South Korea. After a quick refuel it was off to Bangkok for a long layover and then at long last, touchdown in Manila, Philippines. We’re staying outside of metro Manila in the sub-district of Tay Tay, Rizal. We settled in on Saturday and awoke the next morning to help run a church service. Members from our team shared testimonies from their lives, a brief message, and I got to lead the congregation in some musical worship. Sharing testimonies and messages in different churches and communities has been a fairly typical activity.

A few days after arriving we ventured off into the country for the village of Santa Niño. We raised funds before leaving to purchase 1,100 lemon trees to plant in the mountains there. The trees bare a small lemon much different from what we’re used to in the states, but their use is very common in Pilipino cooking. It was a steep hike and hot weather but in our three days there we were able to plant about 600 of the trees. One of the local pastors said it will be a year before they harvest. When they do they’ll help provide work for local farmers and the majority of the proceeds will help support Destiny’s Promise orphanage in Tay Tay, Rival.

We’ve been working at the orphanage for the last few days and will be till the end of our time in the Philippines (We leave for Thailand January 3^rd). There’s 26 kids here ranging from 1 to 13. Each day we’re assigned two or three kids to work with and tutor for a couple hours out of the day. It’s been amazing working with the kids. It can be a challenge to deal with all their energy and to keep everyone getting along, but it’s very rewarding. As a youngest child I’ve never had to look out for anyone or be much of a help, so I think this concentrated time spent with the kids is very valuable for me. I think kids must be part of the cure for selfishness. It really pulls you outside of yourself having a group of kids to look over. Many of them have been through sever abuse, neglect, and living on the streets. Despite these broken earthly families it’s comforting to know that they all share the same Heavenly Father. A Father who loves us perfectly as we are. A father who always chooses for our highest good and would never dream of leaving us. God is teaching me how to love and giving me a glimpse of His Father Heart. We can get so complicated in our thinking of God, but I think sometimes that more than anything He just wants to hold His children close, and let them know how much they’re loved. I hope He continues to move my heart for the things that move His.

Please continue to pray for good health, energy, a daily renewal and God’s love and strength and His supernatural guidance for each and every day. 

Excited to give y'all the next update!

- Trevor

Finance update

Well, I'm scheduled to leave for the Philippines tomorrow morning. As of right now, I'm still short on outreach funds upwards of $2,000. I'd be lying if I said I'm not a little anxious, but I have faith. God provided more than that within the last couple hours before my tuition deadline, He can do it again. Yesterday a couple on the Nepal/India outreach team received $4,300 an hour before leaving for the airport. Out of all the DTS schools the leaders here at YWAM L.A. have run in the past several years, no student has ever been unable to go because of finances. All this to say, God is good. Right now all I can do is trust Him and continue to try and get the word out as much as possible. If yourself or anyone you know wishes to send support you do it quick and easy at ywamla.org/donatepay

Beyond that, please continue to keep myself and all the other students waiting on funds in your prayers. Our prayers move the heart of God. He loves it when we intercede. Nothing is too difficult for Him. I already had a few hundred dollars come in yesterday. He sees my need.

The deadline for our team (two other students going to Philippines don't have all their money) is 7:30am tomorrow morning. I'm excited to see how God is gonna work.

Every Seed Is Designed

The teaching theme this week is our original design. What is original design? It's discovering who God has created us to be. The image He had in mind since before time. The dream He dreamed as He formed our hearts and destined our purpose. He spoke the universe into creation, and so also were each one of us spoken forth.

We've all heard it said in church that no two people are the same. God makes each one of us unique and special. While we accept this as common truth, I think it's hard to grasp that fully in our day to day thinking. Imagine, in the entire history of the world, from creation to now, and reaching on until the end of this Earth, never once has God churned out a replica. He doesn't copy and paste. His creativity is so vast, that were the world to stretch out for all eternity and the number of souls be endless, still He would make all things with new calling a purpose.

Think of a human life as a seed. Some seeds are crushed before life ever comes to bear. Some seeds die the second they sprout life above soil. And some seeds grow into a mighty tree that bears fruit and lives a long life. So often I think we feel like a seed that never sprouts into it's full potential, never bears good fruit, and never stands tall in the glory of what it was designed to truly be. But how can we limit the potential impact of a human life given the scope of human history?

Martin Luther, Martin Luther King Jr, Albert Einstein, Mother Teresa, Billy Graham, The Beatles...
Examples of individuals who lived so vibrantly, thought so vividly, and created so uniquely that the impact extends into every generation that follows. You began as a seed, but God has a plan for a mighty tree that bears good fruit. It has deep roots and stands tall. All who see it gaze in wonder. They study the branches, examine the leaves, taste the fruit, and realize that there are forests full of trees but this one is special and beautiful.

I hope I break through the ground and sprout life for all to see. I hope people see the product of my growth and are delighted. I hope that what I blossom will be blown by the winds of time, thus carrying the seed of my life to distant lands and future generations. I sit today feeling like a beautiful seed, bursting with potential, designed to thrive and produce life.

I don't know how you feel about you, or about the masses of people you see all around you, but I hope you catch the revelation of how precious every life is. You wouldn't discount a seed because it wasn't planted in good soil or hadn't yet grown into a tree. In the same way I hope we can all embrace the fact that every life is unique, precious and important.

On the days you feel buried in the dirt, remind yourself that you've still got time. You will grow into something beautiful and tall. Focus on your roots. Let them grow deep and strong. The rest will come.


God didn't copy and paste you.
You have an original design.
You have a destiny.
Find it and embrace it with every breath.

The Story So Far

As some of you may know, I relocated to San Diego in March of this year. I had planned on attending San Diego City College this Fall but was unable to get into the classes I needed. It came as a great disappointment initially, but as it turns out God had something else in store for this season of my life.


For the past six weeks I've been in Los Angeles doing a Discipleship Training School (DTS) through Youth With A Mission (YWAM). YWAM is a Christian, volunteer organization that focuses on equipping people for international aid work and evangelism. God has been continually touching lives in our school, and the story of how I ended up here is an awesome testimony of His goodness in and of itself. I made the decision to come to YWAM L.A. less than a week before classes started on the recommendation of a friend who is here doing a leadership training school. I hadn't raised any of the necessary funds but I came anyways. The school leaders assured me that if this was where God wanted me to be that the money would come through, and sure enough it did. After three weeks my tuition was due for the first three months, and within the final hour before the deadline almost three thousand dollars was donated! What impressed me most was that almost all of it came from people I didn't even know. It was a huge blessing and confirmation. God clearly wanted to remove any doubts I had about the significance of my being here.


With my position secured for the three months of teaching here in L.A., I began looking forward to the outreach phase. Three days after my finance miracle I learned that myself and eleven others will be traveling to the Philippines and Thailand! The first month of outreach will be spent in the Philippines, YWAM is just beginning to develop contacts there and we are the very first team to go. All I know at this point is that we're going to be working at an orphanage. After that we'll be working in Thailand for two months. We'll begin in the city of Chiang Mai ministering to prostitutes in the red light district and sharing The Gospel on college campuses. After that we will travel to Mae Sot to work with children in local schools, hospitals, and a Burmese refugee camp. I'm incredibly excited and honored to be a part of this mission. It's an amazing opportunity to serve and I'm sure God will greatly build my character through this time. But I know I won't be able to take this step without support.


First and foremost, I could always use the support of prayer. Those who stay and pray play just as important a role as those who go. Of course you can always pray for our health and safety, and most importantly that we demonstrate His love in everything that we do. We could also prayer that everyone on our team raises enough money to go. I'm among the majority of students who still need to raise financial support. The cost of the trip is $3,800. I know that these are tight times and not everyone will be able be a financial supporter, but If God puts it on your heart to contribute, any amount is a huge blessing. Checks for toward this mission can be sent to the base -

11141 Osborne St. 
Lake View Terrace, CA 91342 


I'll be sending out letters when I get back in March to let y'all know how things went. If you'd like to receive one let me know. I'm sure there will be many great stories to share.