Association of Free Churches in Thailand
SupportAssociation of Free Churches in Thailand
SupportPresident
Dwight has a B.S. degree from Bethel University in Arden Hills, MN.
An MBA in Technology Management from Phoenix University.
He was ordained as a minister of the Gospel by the Church of Brook Hills in Birmingham AL on December 9, 2009.
Vice President
Pastor Somak was ordained as a minister of the Gospel by the Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand on October 18, 2014.
Graduated with a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree from the Thai Theological Seminary.
Vice President - Training
Pastor Rajirot was ordained as a minister of the Gospel by the Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand on October 18, 2014 .
She graduated with a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree from the Thai Theological Seminary.
Director of Operations
Amornsak has a B.S. degree from Phitsanulok University.
He has a MBA in Management from Phetchabun University.
He graduated with a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree from the Thai Theological Seminary.
The remarkable growth of the Association of Free Churches in Thailand (AFT) can be understood as a powerful case study in mission, built on three foundational pillars: an indigenous core, strategic adaptation, and a data-driven catalyst.
Foundation
The movement was sparked by the radical faith of Somsak and his wife Rajiroat. After their conversion in 1984, they sacrificed their businesses— a life insurance agency—to pursue ministry. Isolated from formal church structures, they developed a purely biblical methodology, drawing their practices directly from the Gospels and Acts. This created a culturally authentic, Thai-led movement that grew organically, starting with a house church that blossomed into the Free in Jesus Christ Church Association (FJCCA).
In 2016, the leader of the FJCCA, Pastor Somsak received a transformative vision from the Holy Spirit, called “Vision 2020”: In this vision he was called to form 1,000 new churches and 10,000 new believers in Jesus by the end of 2020. Their initial plan for obtaining this goal was to use the conventional strategy. To hold four large Christmas outreaches every year for the next four years. However the very first year they were going to do this, a national tragedy occurred, King Rama 9 of Thailand died which forced its cancellation. This obstacle became an opportunity. It forced them re-strategize, they shifted to 17 smaller, decentralized village events instead of one large event. The astounding success of this pivot—resulting in 700 new believers and 17 churches in two months—revealed that their most effective strategy was not attracting crowds but going directly to the people.
This Spirit-led strategy was soon validated by empirical data. Dwight Martin, a dual Thai-US citizen born to missionaries, had spent a decade building the Harvest Church Database through his eSTAR Foundation . His research mapped out a stark need—that 95% of Thai villages lacked a Christian presence. Around this same time he read Luke 4:43 which states "I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other villages also, because that is why I was sent.'" From this verse he realized that Jesus' primary purpose was for the villages. This deeply moved him and sought a partner to help reach the villages of Thailand. In Somsak, he found a leader whose grassroots strategy was already addressing the very problem his data had uncovered. The 2017 partnership merged Somsak’s relational ministry with Dwight’s technical and strategic skills. This fusion created a powerful, data-driven discipleship model that allowed the AFT to not only meet but dramatically exceed the goals of Vision 2020.
The year culminated in a triumphant milestone: the FJCCA planted an incredible 1,087 house churches, welcoming 11,883 new believers into the faith, with 5,885 of them being baptized.
Having dramatically surpassed the goals of Vision 2020, the leaders were inspired to set an audacious new vision for 2021: 800 more house churches.
It was then that Dwight Martin presented a God-given strategy. Using data from the Harvest Thai Church Database, he revealed that Phichit Province was a field ripe for harvest, with over 800 unreached villages.
He proposed a revolutionary plan that had never been done before in Thailand: instead of scattered growth, they would concentrate their efforts with laser focus, aiming to bring the Gospel to every last village in in one province - Phichit province. The leaders embraced this vision with unified passion.
In December the Association of Free Churches in Thailand was formed and Dwight was asked to serve as its first president. The FJCCA became a member organization under the AFT
To reach Phichit, initially the AFT teams employed their proven method of holding small village evangelism events after asking permission from the village head.
The COVID-19 pandemic suddenly closed that door, as village leaders denied them entry. However what appeared to a debilitating obstacle became a divine opportunity.
After prayer, Pastor Rajiroat received inspired guidance from the Holy Spirit. The new strategy would be simple, personal, and Biblical: teams of two would go village by village, walking down every road and lane distributing masks and hand sanitizer while sharing their faith with those that were willing to hear.
Biblical in its approach and stunningly successful in its results, this new method became a defining turning point. The AFT church planters embraced it completely as the undeniable path forward. (Though now we don't have to distribute masks and hand sanitizer!)
The team's service-oriented outreach sparked a stunning response, leading to the complete transformation of the province by the end of 2022. Phichit’s ranking dramatically shifted from the 70th least-reached province in Thailand to the 4th most-reached for Christ.
Village Churches: A house church was established in all 888 villages. District Churches: 12 district churches were planted to support the new believers.
Following the comprehensive success in Phichit, work immediately began in Phetchabun and Nakorn Sawan provinces.
Methodology Implementation: Standardized the "Data-Driven Discipleship" model as the core AFT operational strategy:
Phetchabun Completion: Executed the strategic plan to establish a house church in all 1,562 villages and a district church in all 11 districts of Phetchabun.
New Expansion: Broadened the operational scope by launching church planting efforts in Chaiyaphum, Phitsanulok, and Khon Kaen province.
Nakhon Sawan Completion: Completed the provincial objective by forming a village church in all 1,119 villages and establishing 12 district churches.
Phitsanulok Completion: Progressing towards the strategic goal of full coverage in Phitsanulok Province by year-end.
New Expansion: Broadened the operational scope by launching church planting efforts in Kampaeng Phet and Lopburi provinces.
FJCCA Training Center: Launching a critical new asset in October 2025 with the official opening of the training center in Chon Daen.
Khon Kaen Objective: Complete the strategic objective of forming a village church in every village of Khon Kaen and establishing a district church in all districts.
Chaiyaphum Objective: Finalize all operations in Chaiyaphum Province, ensuring full coverage with village and district churches.
Kamphaeng Phet Objective: Achieve the mission goal of completing church planting efforts across all of Kamphaeng Phet Province.
Lopburi Objective: Achieve the mission goal of completing church planting efforts across all of Lopburi Province.
New Expansion: Initiate the next phase of expansion by launching church planting operations in Uthai Thani province.
You're going to love this! Listen as we unpack the heart and methodology behind AFT's incredible church planting work.
It’s a truly inspiring story!
