Yep had tried everything to quit drinking. Nothing worked. He lived on the outskirts of a small town in Northeast Thailand with his niece.
During the pandemic, believers from a local church came to check on her. She had a skin condition. They shared the gospel. When she wanted to learn more, they kept coming. Week after week they held Bible study in front of Yep’s house. At first he was not interested. Over time the Lord opened his heart. He and his niece both put their faith in Christ, and Yep was baptized.
The change was plain to the whole community. He finally stopped drinking. He was happier and more at peace. “His whole countenance changed,” said Shirley Mackin, an IMB missionary who helped lead those studies.
Yep’s neighbor Sam noticed. He wanted to understand what had caused it. Every week, when the believers set up chairs in the dirt road to sing and read Scripture, Sam listened in secret from inside his house. He never came out to talk. Still, as he listened, God began to open his heart.
Then Yep moved to a different neighborhood. He took with him the calendar with a picture of Jesus that had hung outside his house since he first believed. Sam’s first thought was sharp and lonely: “God has left the neighborhood! Where can I find him again?”
At last he went to Yep’s church and told the group he wanted to find God again. The believers explained that God had never left him, and they told him how he could put his faith in Christ. Sam was baptized in March 2025. He keeps growing. Though they are no longer neighbors, Sam and Yep are closer than ever. They study the Bible together almost every night.
Sam is still a new believer, yet he has already become a faithful church member, eager to share the gospel. Each week after worship the church goes into the community, and Sam leads the way. “He’s such a positive example because he’s not ashamed of the gospel,” Mackin said. “He’s really made a big difference in the church.”
Names in the original report were changed for security. The pattern remains clear: ordinary believers who kept showing up, a niece who wanted more of Jesus, a man whose face and habits changed, a neighbor who overheard praise from behind a wall, a fear that God had moved away — and the good news that He had not.
If you have been watching someone else’s life change and wondering whether God is still near you — even if you feel He left when a friend moved, a season ended, or the chairs in the road went quiet — Sam’s question is welcome here. God has not abandoned the neighborhood of your heart. Ask Him. Find people who will open Scripture with you. And if Jesus has already turned your countenance and given you a gospel you are not ashamed of, you are welcome to share your story.
Adapted from “Neighbors in Thailand come to faith in Christ” by Stella McMillan, International Mission Board (23 Oct 2025). Licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. Original article. Except where otherwise noted, IMB site content is CC BY-NC 4.0 (Legal Permissions).