Towels wipe away sweat as gym members cool down after a workout. Some stretch while others arrange benches and boxes for that evening’s church service. It’s an unconventional setting—a CrossFit-style gym—but it’s also home to a growing group of believers and seekers who gather weekly for worship and to hear God’s Word.
IMB missionaries Nathan and Stephanie Crandall serve in Chiang Rai, Thailand. Nathan initially joined the gym to manage stress and high blood pressure from his intense language study. After his first workout, he humorously told Stephanie, “It’s horrible. I go, I die, I sweat. You should come too!”
They soon realized the gym’s close-knit community was a perfect place to share the gospel and plant a church. The gym owner, a Christian, had opened the gym hoping to start a church. The Crandalls stepped into that role, holding services on Wednesday evenings after workouts. The gym helped Nathan’s health and language skills and became a place to share the gospel.
Your generous gifts through the Cooperative Program support missionaries like the Crandalls as they invest in communities and spread the gospel in spiritually lost places.
Pray that the Lord would continue to open doors for Nathan and Stephanie to share the gospel in Thailand.