The Chronicles of Jonny

The Best Thanksgiving Ever!

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 13:52:32 -0500

Today was an unusual Thanksgiving, but in a good way. I didn’t have any turkey, I’m not complaining, and I didn’t spend the day with any family members either. But today I really was able to be thankful for all that God has blessed me with and how amazing this life is when you are a believer. I’m in the Philippines as I write this and Thanksgiving here is just another Thursday. No turkey and no football games, just another day. Me and some of the other members of our Media Light team were in some of the poorest areas of Manila to capture the story Joann Luciano and the ministry she started called Sidewalk Ministries. I have been able to spend time with Joann and her team on several occasions and every time I come back I’m amazed at how many thousands of lives this ministry is impacting on a weekly basis. Sidewalk is a ministry that is focused on leading children into a relationship with Christ. Then identifying young people of promise and helping them through school in order to break the cycle of poverty in their families

    I am not writing this as an infomercial for Joann and Sidewalk Ministries (although I can’t think of a ministry that is doing more for kids in a more impactful way) but rather to say that being in such a poor and destitute area of Manila today really got me thinking. I’m so thankful for all that God has done in my life. I’m thankful to be a child of God and I can think of no greater title or honor than to be a son of God. That sounds really cheesy and churchy but it’s true. Today I was able to see kids hearing that possibly for the first time and it made me realize how amazing it is that God allowed me to be a part of His family. I really don’t have anything to complain about. Being a missionary I don’t receive a salary and all of my financial needs are dependent upon other people’s generosity so it’s easy to get the “whoa is me” mentality, but I can’t complain because God has always provided. I am thankful for such faithful friends and partners that have supported me on this journey. It was humbling today to see so many content and happy children who by “western” standards don’t really have a lot to be thankful for and yet seemed more happy than a lot of kids I meet that have the newest toys and video games to keep them entertained. Sorry, that was a soapbox and I’ll get off of it. I’m thankful for a ministry family here in Asia. I got to spend Thanksgiving day with some of the best people in the world, serving on the mission field together and for that I am thankful. I’m blessed to be part of such a great ministry team that I get to share life with as we do ministry all over Asia.

    Okay, I’m begining to ramble so I’ll bring this plane to the hangar. There are so many reasons why this was one of the best Thanksgiving days ever. I guess the main reason is that I got to see people being thankful that didn’t know today was a “the designated day” you were supposed to express your thanks. There were kids that were thankful that someone cared enough about them and showed up to their run-down area to tell them bible stories. There were young people that I met today that were thankful because they were being sponsored to go to school and therefore their entire destiny is being rewritten. There was a woman named Joann that was thankful because every week she gets to go back to the same hopeless part of town and give kids hope all over again.

Last month I spent time teaching, training, and helping out in...

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 14:53:39 -0400

Last month I spent time teaching, training, and helping out in any way that was needed with some of our ministry partners in Manila, Philippines. During my time there I was able to spend some time with Joann Luciano and the amazing ministry team that she has built there to reach the children in the Manila slums. This is just a short video I put together highlighting the work. enjoy.

A long time coming.....

Thu, 19 May 2011 01:52:46 -0400

Has it really been 6 months since I last posted an update? Wow! Ok, so my goal this summer is to be more consistent with my posts. Here is a short filler on what you missed over the last 6 months, sorry for the delay:

December: First Christmas in Thailand…awesome!

January: Went to the beach and experienced the southern part of Thailand…beautiful!

February: Some of my missionary co-workers got married…happy for them :)

March: Really started to dig in and learn Thai…the hardest language ever!

April: Went to Myanmar and worked with and trained Christian leaders there….humbling

May: Coming home to the U.S. to visit friends, family, and partners….overjoyed!

Well, that was my life and now I’m back in the U.S.A. for a few weeks. Stay tuned because it’s gonna be fun.

Here is a short video update from Thailand. Happy Thanksgiving!

Fri, 19 Nov 2010 12:47:24 -0500

Here is a short video update from Thailand. Happy Thanksgiving!

Things have been incredible in Thailand thus far. As a...

Thu, 07 Oct 2010 14:11:06 -0400

Things have been incredible in Thailand thus far. As a missionary in Asia one of my primary responsibilities is working with a leadership training institute called Media Light. It is an intensive training program for future change agents in Asia. This video is just an update from our initial retreat with the students. Thanks for following.

To my missions partners and ministry team...

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 16:17:04 -0400

I just wanted to say THANK YOU!!!! to everyone so far that has decided to join together with me in my future missions endeavor to Thailand. In case you have not heard I moving to Chiang Rai, Thailand to serve as a full-time missionary with Emerge Missions. Some of you have wandered to this sight in order to sign up to become part of my partnership network. For that I am so thankful. If you are wondering how to become a monthly partner then just follow these easy steps:

1. Click on the DONATE button on the right side of the screen.

2. You will be directed to another website called “Just Give”

3. Fill out the amount you would like to commit and then check the box that says “make this a recurring donation.” and then type in “Jonny” in the box that says Designate My Donation.

4. Then just take 5 minutes create a giving account and following the quick steps.

Thank you so much for your interest and passion to support ministry to Asia. If you have any questions or concerns then please don’t hesitate to contact me via email at jonnymoore@gmail.com

if you would rather send in your tax deductible donation by check through the mail then you can send them to this address:

make checks payable to

Emerge Missions
3444 Hampreston Way NW
Kennesaw, GA 30144

In the memo line of the check just designate it to: Jonny

Stay tuned for more updates

What if all dogs don't go to heaven?

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:37:00 -0500

What if all dogs don't go to heaven?:

Rest assured, there are people that will take care of your loving pets after the rapture. I’m glad we’ve got this issued settled.

Here is another video from Thailand. If you have a weak stomach...

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 12:48:55 -0500

Here is another video from Thailand. If you have a weak stomach then you might not want to watch…or maybe you do? Sorry for the delay in posting but I’ll have another video next week.

Disclaimer: Please do not attempt any of this without parental...

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 11:58:00 -0500

Disclaimer: Please do not attempt any of this without parental guidance. I am a trained professional and have had years of training in order tame these wild beasts.

A perfect Saturday

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 11:30:13 -0500

I had the weekend off and was able to take advantage of the amazing surroundings here in Thailand. I went with a group of friends and hiked to the coolest waterfall ever. Here’s a pic….

Quick Update

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:11:16 -0500

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the lack of updates. I have a few awesome videos coming in the next few days. My internet connection is spotty at times so it’s kinda hard to upload videos, but I’ll have some great ones soon. I actually had the awesome experience a couple of weeks ago to ride elephants. So much fun. This past weekend I was high in the mountains of northern Thailand. It had to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to. I attended church in an Akha village and it was so cool. The people were amazing and we had such a good time. Thanks for the prayers and I will do my best to keep everyone posted. Sorry for the lack of communication.

jonny

3 Weeks down!

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:28:40 -0500

Well it’s hard to believe that I have been away from the U.S. for a little over 3 weeks now. I’m glad to hear that everyone home is doing well and enjoying the frigid temperatures. It is dry and consistently in the 80s here in Thailand. For those of that have been able to follow over the past few weeks I just wanted to say thanks and I will try to keep the videos and pics coming more regularly.

Over the past few weeks I have been able to take part in an amazing teaching, training, learning, and outreach process called Media Light Institute. This has been a real time of growth for me, I feel that a lot of the contacts and friends that I have met are people that God has put in my life for a purpose. Even the media training that I am participating in has been unreal. I just can’t say enough about how I feel that God has me right where He wants me for this time in my life. I look forward to gaining the skills and knowledge that I can over the next 3 months and be better prepared for even more ministry when I get home.

Here is my youtube channel

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 01:05:43 -0500

Here is my youtube channel

Tonight after dinner we went to the local market and tasted some...

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 10:49:37 -0500

Tonight after dinner we went to the local market and tasted some Thai grub worms. They popped in my mouth after I took a bite. Crazy sensation!

So the journey begins....

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:21:49 -0500

As many of you know I am living in Thailand for the next 3 months. So far my experience here has been absolutely incredible! In fact it’s been so amazing that I forgot to call my mother the first day and a half that I was here. I think I am officially the worst son in the world. Apparently it’s not proper “good son” etiquette to leave home for three months to a foreign land and not call your mother immediately after landing safely at your destination.

Also, my response when asked, “why didn’t you call?” didn’t earn me any brownie points.

I replied, “what? I posted on my facebook that I got in safely.”

I guess that mothers like to hear that type of thing first hand. Oh well, sorry mom. I’ll try to do better next time I leave the country for an extended period of time. Thus far my time here in Thailand has been epic. Quick recap….

Getting to Thailand: The journey here was brutal. 3 days of total travel. 4 flights. 6 of hours sleep. 8 child portioned meals and 267 bags of free airline peanuts (to hold me over until they would bring the next tiny meal). But I finally made it.

Day 1: Arrived at the Chiang Rai airport with the most gruesome case of jet lag ever. Ate at the coolest little local Thai restaurant. I say local because there are a lot of tourists here and we seemed to be the only white people in the place. The food was insanely spicy and delicious. Then went fishing for a bit with a collapsible fishing rod and bread. Needless to say we did not catch anything using white bread as bait. Maybe fish in Thailand are a bit more health conscious and will only eat wheat, rye, or whole grain organic breads? After the fishing debacle it was time to ride scooters. This was a lot of fun until a ravenous rabies smitten dog tried to attack me. The crazy thing about this dog was that it was wearing a Virginia Tech Hokies doggie sweater. Who knew that wild beasts were so fashion savvy? This rabid dog caused me to wreck my scooter into a concrete wall. Luckily I was able to spare my scooter severe damage due to my superb coordination and motor skills. Unluckily I was not able to come away from the incident completely unscathed. I cut and bruised my leg up a little. All in all though day one was quite enjoyable.

Day 2: Still recovering from jet lag and my rabies dog wound, but able to remain fairly active. Played a wicked game of Thai scrabble. Ate more amazing food. Got lost on the way to the village where we were trying to ride elephants. Didn’t make it to the elephants on time so we went for a hike and climbed a really cool waterfall. Now when I say cool I don’t mean it as “neat” or “swell.” I mean “frigid” or “deathly cold.” The water was so cold but we had so much fun. I actually can’t feel my fingers as I am typing this, that’s how cold it was. On the hike home we ran out of daylight so we had to walk home in the dark. Good thing I am an outdoorsman and always prepared. I was able to light my path and see three inches in front of me with my cell phone light. After the waterfall and hike we capped an amazing day off with an even more amazing thai massage. The most amazing thing about it was the price….$6. I felt kind of bad because I feel like I was ripping off the masseuse. I can’t even get a happy meal in the U.S. for $6. So yeah, it was a great day.

Videos soon to follow….