Missions: From Belize to Thailand
We reconnected with an old friend, Josh Bauder, last week and had the pleasure and honor of meeting his wife and daughter.
Don’t you love it when you can pick up a friendship right where you left off? When conversation and laughter flow like no time has passed. Josh's wife, Chitty, blessed us with her culinary genius and we sat around our table eating and catching up for hours. His daughter, a sweet, shy five-year-old, played contentedly with our dog and the toys we keep for our grands.
We went on a mission trip to Belize about ten years ago to help build a new orphanage for the King Children’s Home. It was a diverse group of kids and adults, and Josh went with us. For most, it was their first time out of the United States. It was hot, humid, and rained hard much of the time. Mud and bugs plagued us. As did shovels and endless piles of sand and gravel. We stayed in the capital city of Belmopan in a house loaned to the orphanage to house volunteers, and the occasional rat, a common pest in the country.
Josh, at the time, was in his late 20’s, unmarried, and on fire for Jesus. This mission trip was a practice run for his upcoming year long commitment to a mission in Thailand. We teased him that he’d fall in love, get married, and stay in Thailand. He laughed and adamantly denied that scenario, but that’s exactly what happened. Josh joined an organization that rescued kids from the slums of Thailand, housed, clothed and fed them, and paid for their education.
Some are now even in college!
He met his wife, introduced her to Jesus, married her, and now they work together adopting needy kids and guiding them down a path to a better life. The children come from the streets, from trafficking rings, from people who've discarded them like trash. Many have difficult attachment issues, horrific trauma to overcome, and physical ailments. But Josh and Chitty surround them with love, patience, and kindness. They take care of their physical needs but also teach them what it means to be part of a family, follow healthy boundaries, and prepare for a productive, meaningful, and happy life. They tackle the gritty, difficult, and heartbreaking topics that make most of us uncomfortable, let alone make part of our day-to-day. They embrace this and have made it their life’s work. They do it with quiet humbleness, fortitude, and joy.
Josh and Chitty’s ministry is called Shiloh Children. In this season of giving, please support them by following their journey at www.shilohchildren.org and sign up for their newsletter. If their mission touches your heart, please consider donating to this selfless couple who just want to make kids' lives better.
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