Cross-Cultural Projects — A Student’s Perspective
“I don’t know how to explain it, but I feel so much joy. My heart is so happy. I have believed that God existed and longed to know Him, but I didn’t know how or have anyone to guide me.” - Tdang Kwaa
Tdang Kwaa, a first-year Thai student at Khon Kaen University, said these words just five days after meeting some Cross-Cultural Project (CCP) students visiting Thailand this summer. She was eating in the cafeteria when some CCP students invited her to a badminton game the next day. Although she was very shy, she agreed to join in. She developed a sweet friendship with the CCP girls during and after the game.
Emma Rhodes, one of the CCP students, grew up in Georgia in a ministry family. Her role in ministry had primarily been from the sidelines as an observer. As her exposure to Campus Outreach at George Washington University increased, so did her call to be personally involved. After two weeks on the Summer Leadership Project, Emma spent six weeks with the Cross-Cultural Project (CCP) in Khon Kaen. She was one of the Americans who approached Tdang Kwaa at lunch.
The ministry team saw her again in the cafeteria the next day, and they planned to meet at a cafe that afternoon. As they got to know each other, Emma shared how being a Christian has changed her life. Tdang Kwaa explained that even though her parents were both Buddhist, her grandma was a Christian and had taken her to church while she was in middle school. She always enjoyed the sermons and desired to know God, but her parents discouraged her. Emma invited Tdang Kwaa to attend church that week and encouraged her to read a chapter in a booklet called “Knowing God.” They planned to discuss it before the service on Sunday.
Tdang Kwaa arrived at church having read the entire booklet! Emma reviewed that God has provided a way for her to know Him because of His great love for her through the gift of Jesus, and Tdang Kwaa accepted Christ that morning. Emma said, “I’ve spent so much time on the sidelines watching God work. Getting to be a ‘player on the field’ in ministry was the most fulfilling thing I had ever done.”
Tdang Kwaa’s interaction with the CCP changed her life forever. She meets regularly with Ice, a CO Khon Kaen staff member, and is growing in her relationship with God. Emma returned to campus this week and says that the CCP experience has also changed her. “I am in awe of how God is moving in a web of ways in places we least expect! The God who worked in Tdang Kwaa is the same God working on my campus in DC. This summer changed my approach to ministry! I can now approach people with hope and joy — not fear. God is so big. Nothing is impossible with Him.”