What does a city in Thailand have in common with Collierville, Tennessee? At first glance, most would say, “Very little, if anything.” However, a man visiting the Collierville church of Christ proved the two cities have a great deal in common.
The Voice of Truth International (VOTI) is a magazine of religious articles published quarterly. It is distributed in many countries around the world. The magazine is also translated into several languages for use in non-English speaking countries. Recently, a visitor arrived for Sunday services with a copy of VOTI in his hand. The gentleman retired several years ago and moved to the country of his wife’s birth, Thailand. When he attended a local church of Christ there, he discovered that no one in the congregation spoke or read English. However, when members realized he spoke English, a brother retrieved a couple copies of VOTI to give him.
Later, this Christian man read through the magazine and recognized something from home. At the end of one of the articles, he noted the biographical information indicated the writer of the article resided in Collierville, Tennessee, a city near his hometown. Collierville also happens to be next door to the town where a congregation of the Lord’s church produces a radio broadcast this man is able to hear in Thailand. The gentlemen determined to visit Collierville the next time he travelled home to visit his grandchildren. He did just that this past Sunday. With a copy of The Voice of Truth International in hand, brought all the way from Thailand, this brother in Christ worshipped with the Collierville church of Christ Sunday morning, and he wanted to see if the author of the article still attended there.
The value of literature to teach non-Christians and to edify the saved is not always evident, but it is not in vain (Deuteronomy 32:2; Isaiah 55:11). This event demonstrates two great points. First, distributors of Christian literature may never know all the impacts made by their efforts (Luke 8:11-15; 1 Corinthians 3:6-9). In this case, a Christian on foreign soil found edification (2 Corinthians 12:19) from literature in his own language (1 Corinthians 1:18; 1 Thessalonians 2:13), even though he was unable to easily communicate with fellow Christians in Thailand (1 Corinthians 14:6-19). Thai Christians had the resources and the interest to reach out with the Word to visitors to their congregation (1 Thessalonians 1:8). Second, two seemingly unrelated cities across the world from each other have a great deal in common – Christians. God’s people can find a home and a Christian family no matter where they travel when they find the Lord’s church (Romans 16:16; 2 Corinthians 13:13).
[Editor’s Note: The article that led a Christian living in Thailand to Collierville, Tennessee was written by my daughter, Rebecca Rushmore, and published several years ago. She was present when the brother from Thailand visited, but had he come a couple of weeks earlier or a couple of weeks later, Rebecca would not have been present that Sunday morning in Collierville, Tennessee. It appears that God’s providence may have been involved in the background to facilitate spiritual uplifting of a brother in a foreign land surrounded by unknown tongues (to him) through copies of VOTI and further encouragement upon meeting the author of one of the articles halfway around the world from where he lives. Truly, it’s a small, small world! ~ Louis Rushmore, Editor]
