“When I became a born-again Christian, the first thing I wanted to do was to preach, to become a pastor, to serve God with my whole heart,” said Major Bruce Keobounhom, who until that moment had been a Buddhist monk for 13 years. And that’s exactly what he did, evangelizing fellow refugees daily as he pursued God’s path for his life—one which would lead him to his wife, Major Betty, and eventually from a refugee camp in Thailand to the United States.
As the Keobounhoms built their new life after arriving in the U.S., following the Lord’s call first to local ministries and then to officership, they did not forget those still residing in Southeast Asia who had not heard the Good News of Jesus Christ.
“Since we became Christians we always wanted to go back to bring the Gospel to Thailand or Laos,” said Major Bruce, who along with his wife is a native of Laos. “We were born again over there, and we prayed to go back.”
In 2019, the Keobounhoms were granted their hearts’ desire and returned to Thailand as research and development officers in hopes of opening the Salvation Army’s work there. Immediately upon their arrival the majors began reaching out to the community alongside a second set of officers appointed to the area and began the process of registering The Salvation Army to be officially recognized by the Thai government.
“There is joy and happiness having the opportunity to evangelize and bring people to the Kingdom,” said Major Betty. “Even in Thailand, we need to tell people about Jesus.”
Working with a local church, the Keobounhoms made connections in the community for service and God blessed their efforts. Despite not yet being officially registered with the government, as representatives of The Salvation Army they were allowed access to prisons and detention centers to minister and to schools to teach personal safety and share the Gospel. They made a concentrated effort to reach the remote communities in the nearby mountains, bringing food and other necessities along with the Word.
“We are thankful for God’s work,” said Major Bruce. “When we speak about the love of Christ, the Savior, forgiveness, people accept Him right away. They know He is real and their idols are not.”
As they worked in the community, a congregation began to form which met in the officers’ home and rapidly grew. Leaders emerged, and they were able to establish music ministry and daily activities in the community, despite not having an official corps location. In a few short years the ministry yielded new soldiers and adherents, and two couples were accepted to go to the officer training school in Singapore.
Looking forward, the Keobounhoms plan to split their golden years between the U.S. and Thailand. Though they have retired and will not be serving overseas as reinforcement personnel with The Salvation Army, their mission remains to help expand its work in Thailand, reaching as many people as possible with the life-changing Good News they heard and accepted long ago.
“We want the Army to be working everywhere in Thailand. They need the Army. In the Army we love people, we help people, we build people up,” concluded Major Bruce. “We will serve until our last breath.”
