What is Sari Wichai? Sari Wichai is the OLD name of the Kingdom that was centred around the modern city of Surat Thani in Southern Thailand. But it’s also the NEW name for a Christian centre of worship, peace, rest, hospitality, play and welcome in Surat Thani.
Servants workers Adi & Shelley Leason (and their 4 boys) are partners with Pastor Chariyot Wansong and his wife Gayle (and their 2 boys) in this exciting venture.
They are negotiating to buy 11.5 hectares of pristine forest very near the city to develop Sari Wichai.
Most Thais associate Christian worship with a formal experience in a small plain rented building often with loud music. “It seems so foreign and more like entertainment than worship to Thais”, says Chariyot. “We Thais are used to worshiping in a place of beauty and peace. We can taste butter in most churches but we long to taste noodles and sticky rice!”
The Wansongs and Leasons want to take the form of the Buddhist Wat and apply it to the practice of authentic Church Planting. “There is little sacred-secular divide in Thai society”, says Adi. “The spiritual is in all things. The Wat is a haven for the homeless, a welcome for the lonely, a place for celebration and often where skills can be demonstrated. So coming to church at Sari Wichai will be a relaxed, peaceful beautiful experience.
People can come for breakfast, worship, take a nap, be together as a family, maybe gather coconuts, fish in the river or kill a snake. There will always be delicious food.
Complex negotiations for the land are underway. An access road needs to be made and an area cleared and built up with landfill for the first Sala (open, wall-less Thai meeting place) for worship. “As soon as we have the land”, says Adi, “our dreams for Sari Wichai can begin to take shape.”
Join in making this dream for an authentic Thai worship centre through your prayers and giving. Let’s see the new Sari Wichai become a centre of joy, healing and release for many Thais.
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