Justin Trill (Thailand) shared with us about what some of the many blessings and trials of getting established on the field as a new missionary has looked like over the course of his family’s first six months in Bangkok.

1. Was arriving in Thailand with numerous bags and totes in tow all that you expected it to be? With Covid still being in full swing when we arrived in Thailand, this actually made the process of getting all of our bags and totes super easy. We were a part of the final flight for the evening so everyone was really helpful since they saw we also had a toddler in tow. Several guys stepped in to help us get our bags onto carts and get us to our hotel vans to get us to our quarantine hotel. I don’t think Becka even touched a bag once arriving in Thailand, which was super nice! 

2. What, during your early days of living in Thailand, caught you by surprise? I think our biggest surprise when we finally got out of quarantine was the lack of huge crowds. Bangkok is a mega city and typically very crowded on any public transportation and on the roads. But, because of Covid, a lot of people were working from home or back home in other provinces which made things very different from any other time we have visited. Covid hit hard about a month after we arrived which was really strange to get used to again from leaving the US – which was starting to open back up just before we left.

3. What helped you the most in transitioning to a new culture once you arrived? We have such an awesome team in Thailand, and they really helped make the transition process much easier. We are so thankful for all of them and how they helped us get set up with housing, a vehicle, phones, etc. It took us about two weeks to get settled into our own place after getting out of quarantine which was great for us in establishing a routine quickly, especially with a toddler. 

4. What did you see happen that only God could have done? The Lord provided a house for us in a great location that fit exactly into our budget before we even arrived on the field. This house originally was at the top of our budget, so we began to pray that if it was the Lord’s will that he would give us clear direction on what to do as it was in a great location. He did give us a clear answer by allowing the price to be lowered to fit well within our budget, and we had missionary friends for neighbors for the first six months which was awesome!

5. What have you found to be the most challenging thus far on the field? Trying to navigate ministry during Covid. We had no idea what to expect when we arrived as to what the situation would become once we landed on the field. We had both done short-term trips, and Becka was a single missionary there, so we thought we had a clear picture as to what we would be able to do once arriving. We were thrown for a loop when they began shutting everything down, and we were forced to do most ministry online. We also did our language school online – which is very difficult when learning a tonal language. 

6. What has ministry looked like for you up to this point? One of our main priorities is language school. Without the language we have no future ministry, so we have been putting a lot of time into that for both of us. So far it has all been online which has been tough but manageable. I was able to help out with music for Sunday services, which at the beginning were pre-recorded. We also were able to help out with teaching English classes online via Zoom for eight weeks in the late summer. Also, we are in the beginning stages of starting up a kids English program that we hope to start up soon as the Covid restrictions ease and we get back to Thailand with our updated Visas.

7. What best piece of advice did you receive that you would like to pass along to someone considering going or preparing to go to the mission field? Don’t wait to start “ministry” ’til you get to the field. Start serving now in whatever capacity you can in your local church. People need Jesus both in the US and on the foreign field. Evangelism and ministry doesn’t automatically come to you once you step foot on the foreign field. Also…pay off your debt before deputation!