The Top Ten Things I Am Thankful For

To the faithful servants of God who are partnering with the Rutledge family as we serve here in Thailand at Akha Outreach Foundation; grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good and His mercies are new every morning. It is such a blessing to be known by Him and used by Him for His glory. I truly am blessed to be able to partner with you to serve the Akha through our work here at Akha Outreach Foundation. Thank you for your willingness to give, your willingness to pray, and above all your willingness to be used by God.

God is at work in so many ways, and His blessings are countless. I am not able to share with you all that God has been doing here, so I have decided create a top ten list. So please sit back and enjoy:

Garuna enjoying a northern Thai delicacy, deep fried termites. Yummy!!!!

Top Ten Things I am Thankful For:

10. This past December I celebrated my 34 birthday. Yes I know I am getting old, I am reminded of this everyday after playing Soccer with the children. I can’t run as fast as I used to, and I’m slower getting out of bed each morning. But we are not focusing on how old I am, after all this is a list of things I am thankful for. Shortly after the New Year it downed on me that I have been out of college now for just over ten years. I finished school in December 1996 and since that time I have been busy looking for a job. At least that is what I tell people. In reality I have been blessed with the opportunity to be a missionary for the Lord for the past ten years. I have been able to serve Him at Idaho State University with Campus Crusade for Christ. I have traveled to many places around the world with the JESUS Film, and for the past four years I have been blessed to serve Him with my work here at Akha Outreach Foundation. It is amazing that the number one thing I never wanted to do was become a missionary, and now that is all I’ve been doing for the past ten years, and it is what I want to spend the rest of my life doing; serving the Lord wherever He sends me. God has been so faithful over the past ten years, and I am so grateful for the chance to be used by Him.

9. This past Monday, our Bible school here at Akha Outreach Foundation started for its sixth year. Akha Bible Institute welcomed nine new Bible students this year. We are thankful for their willingness to come and study the Word of God and are eager to see how God in going to work in and through their lives while they are here. Please remember them in your prayers as they begin their pursuit of knowledge through the Word of God.

8. On May 16^th, we started our new school year for all of the orphans. I now know how hard it is to get everything ready for children as they begin the new school year. You have to buy uniforms, books, pay school fees, lunch fees, get hair cuts, and all needed school supplies passed out. For all you parents out there, I feel your pain. It is a lot of hard work and now I understand why parents love the first week after school starts, because it gives them time to rest and catch up on some much needed sleep. But if you think it is hard for 1 or 2 children, you should see the craziness of 82 children getting ready for school. It was a challenge, but through God’s grace we were able to get all the children registered and started for the new school year. We are thankful for the eight different schools and the opportunity they offer for our children to further their education. With our children divided up in eight different schools, it is a challenge getting them to and from the schools, but we are still thankful for the opportunity our orphans get to go to school.

7. Continuing on with the subject of the children at Akha Outreach Foundation. This past month we welcomed seven new orphans to House of Joy. We are thankful for these lives that God has brought to live here and has entrusted them to us, to raise for His glory. Of the seven, there were two girls and five boys. This brings the total of children now living here at House of Joy to 82. I can honestly say there is not a day that I am bored. There is always something that needs to be done. Also with the start of the new school year, I have been asked to take direction of the children’s ministry here at Akha Outreach Foundation. This means that I am responsible for providing direction and guidance for the 82 children of House of Joy and all the staff that work with them. This is an awesome responsibility, and the thought of leading and aiding close to 100 people scares me. But the directors have placed their faith in me, and with the help the wonderful staff team, my beautiful wife, and our wonderful Lord and Savior, I am certain that we will secede in shepherding the hearts of all the lives God has entrusted to us, for His glory.

6. Onto number six of our top ten list. Starting in June, Thailand begins the rainy season which last around six months. There are many reasons why we are thankful for the rain. The main is it provides relief from the heat that has been burning us up for the past few months. There is hot, and then there is Thailand hot. The rain helps cool the air and makes it livable again. The rains also bring water which is needed in the planting and growing of rice our main source of food. So we are thankful for the six months of rain that are coming.

5. Number five on the list is a new spot I’ve added to my Blog. If you look in the right column you will see a small list of items under the heading “Wish List”. This is a list of items that are not available here in Thailand and are things that we miss from time to time. We aren’t saying that you need to go out and buy everything on the list and send it to us. But our desire was to help answer the question we often get asked; “what are some things miss while you are away from the States.” I love living here and I love serving here, but I do miss some goodies from the States as well. These are little things, but when you haven’t had them for a long while, they are a real blessing. I just received a care package from parents. Actually it contained presents for Garuna and Bratana, but they didn’t forget me and included some of my Dad’s homemade raspberry jam. It makes the morning toast taste so much better, trust me. It is nice to get a little something from the home front from time to time to remind you that you aren’t forgotten. We added the five items on the wish list on the Blog to aide those who want to know what we would like from the States. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 117 Chiang Rai Thailand 57000. Just in case you needed it.

4. Fourth on our list is truly a gift from God and one that I am so grateful for. In April I started my fourth year working here at Akha Outreach Foundation. When I first came here in 2003, I wasn’t sure how I would be able to help, and for how long I would be here. But God has been so faithful and has blessed me with the chance to serve here in many ways over the past four years. I am also trusting Him to keep me here and use me for His glory as long as He sees fit. For now I am so grateful for God bringing me here and providing all I have needed to keep me and my family here for His service.

3. We have now reached our top three. Number three is the three beautiful women God has blessed me with.
Maam is a wonderful wife, an amazing Mom, and a first class cook, as all of us here at the foundation can verify. She rises at 5 AM each morning to go to the kitchen and prepare breakfast for everyone on the facility. After breakfast is prepared she returns home to get Garuna and Bratana up and feed. She is then busy cleaning the house and watching the girls until lunch time when she goes to the kitchen again. Her afternoon is always full and dinner prep comes around at 3:30 PM. After dinner is ready, she comes home and prepares dinner for our family. She is the first up each morning and the last to bed, but she always has a smile on her face and a spring in her step. I try to help her out the best I can, but she is an amazing woman and the three roles she assumes, she does extraordinary. The second wonderful woman in my life is my first born daughter Garuna. She is an amazing little girl and everyday I am amazed at her vocabulary. She is only two but she can converse freely in three languages. She is the inspiration for this top ten list; each night before bed we practice counting to ten in English, Thai, and Akha. This brings us to our third wonderful woman in my life, the youngest but for sure not the smallest. Bratana Joy is now 5 months old and is wearing the same size clothes as her older sister. When she was born, she was skinny and tall. Weighing only 3.2 Kg. By her two month check up she was 6 Kg and at her four month check up she was up to 9 Kg. Now she is 10 Kg only two Kg lighter then Garuna. She is a happy baby and lives up to her middle name Joy. Always smiling and loves her big sister. I am truly blessed with these three lovely ladies in my life and that is why they make number three on our top ten list of things to be thankful for.

2. Number two on our list is the celebration of Garuna’s second birthday which took place on the 16^th of May. It is amazing how fast they grow up and Garuna seems to change everyday. It is awesome to watch her converse freely in English, Thai and Akha. And it was a huge blessing once she was potty trained. Actually she was using the bathroom on her own two months before her second birthday, and it only took her about a week to master it. It is a huge relief for Mom and Dads time and pocket book. Now we only have to buy diapers for one child. We had a small celebration with some of the other staff and their children and Garuna enjoyed the cake Daddy made for her. She is a real blessing and we are so thankful for her. Her favorite present was the picture Bible we bought for her. She and Mommy read it every night before she goes to sleep. She is a great gift from God and we are thankful for her and her sister.

1. Now it is time for number one. Thank you for being patient and reading up to this point. Our number one on the top ten things to be thankful for is you. It is true that you are a big part of the Rutledge Family and our ministry here. Your prayers and faithful support are what makes it possible for us to live and work here. Our service to the Akha can only be possible through your service to us. And for this we are truly thankful. Thank you for your prayers, your financial gifts, and your words of encouragement. Your faithfulness has amazed me and has propelled you to the top of our top ten list. Thank you so much and we pray that God will continue to bless you abundantly and you continue to allow Him to work in and through you.

Will this is the end of the Top Ten Things I Am Thankful For. I pray that you have enjoyed reading through it, and I pray that is has encouraged you and reminded you of God’s faithfulness. God is truly good, and it is such a blessing to be used by Him in order to show His glory. I know that His blessings are new each morning, and I look forward to sharing with you more of His wondrous works in our next Blog. Until then, could you please remember me, my family, the staff, and all the children, Bible students, and churches God has entrusted to our care. As I assume this role of leadership, I know that only through His hand of guidance will I be able to secede and so I pray that daily I will seek Him first and continually give Him all the glory. Thank you for your prayers and support and please feel free to email me. I would love to hear how God is working in your life and if there is anyway I could help you.

God bless and keep you.

Serving together for His Glory

Dan, Maam, Garuna, and Bratana Rutledge.