Kanya and Phonesay’s message to you

Below is an update from Kanya and Phonesay, whose story you may remember from the summer. The couple from Laos share what life has been like since then, and their deep thanks for your letters of encouragement.

You may remember Kanya* and Phonesay*, whose story of faith in the underground church we shared earlier this year. Since Open Doors local partners visited them in their home hidden deep within the forests of Laos, having been exiled from their village, life has changed significantly.

By the grace of God, Phonesay was able to secure a steady job that is enabling him to better provide for his family. They have since relocated to another province in southern Laos and live on the compound where Phonesay works.

“This is a huge blessing from God, because I was the only employee allowed to have this arrangement,” he shares.

Their new location provides better access to work opportunities and essential resources than the isolated community they previously called home, yet the move has also brought new challenges. Kanya and Phonesay are now the only Christian family in their immediate community. Such a change might have brought a fresh sense of loneliness, as can often be the case for underground believers in places like Laos. However, when local partners visited the family, they didn’t bring just their encouragement – but yours, too.

One faith, one body

We recently gave you the opportunity to send your own messages to Kanya and Phonesay, having shared their journey from quiet life in their village to being chased out for their faith in Jesus. Your letters were transformative for this family.

“Thank you so much for taking the time to write these letters for us,” Kanya says. “You don’t know how much this means to us – these are a great encouragement to our family as we continue to face challenges in our lives.”

They share further thanks in this video recorded specially for you.

Wonderfully, Kanya and Phonesay are able to worship with their children at a local church where they sing, read the Bible and learn in greater safety than before. Thank you for blessing them with the encouragement and reminder of their church family standing with them, despite the storms of persecution they face.

*Names changed for security reasons