Insanity

The dirty skies of Bangkok (normally it is not THIS bad)

Yesterday I had to go see a  doctor to see if I am healthy enough to renew my work permit here in Thailand.  Among the conditions that are not acceptable for a work permit:

• TB in the infectious state
• Alcohol additction
• Drug addiction
• Stage 3 Syphilis
• Severe manifestations of elephantiasis
• Insanity

I’m glad he didn’t question me too hard on the last item.  I could see it now, “So you quit a nice job in order to take on a new one with much less pay and harder work.  You then moved out of a nice house in the suburbs and into a city where the air is toxic to breathe and it is so warm and humid all the time that you work up a sweat going upstairs in an elevator.  You must be insane.”

In my darker moments I sometimes wonder the same thing.  I remember when we started this adventure that I laid it all on the line—willing to even give up my life so that others may hear the good news of the gospel.  But somehow, subjecting my body to extreme physical conditions doesn’t seem to have the same glory attached to it as being a martyr for the gospel. 

I’ve been reading a book by a Thai author who paints a very dark picture of Bangkok and what people endure in this city because, as bad as it is, it offers more than they had in NE Thailand.  As I read it I find myself wondering if I want to agree with him or not, because if it is really that bad, then why did I purposely come here?

But it is all a matter of perspective.  We quit our jobs and moved out of our nice house in order to follow our Lord to a place where we can bring hope to a people who live in a culture devoid of such hope, which makes their spiritual environment far worse than  their physical one.  The joy we see we the eyes of people who come out of darkness and into light far outweighs any environmental conditions we may have to endure.  And if we do endure these conditions to better reach those who also must endure them, then it becomes not only an acceptable cost of doing business but a pathway to joy.

Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. 1 Corinthians 3:18-19a (NLT)

Terryville Tunnel

Not far from where I used to live, there is a mile-long train tunnel called the Terryville Tunnel.


One night when I was a teenager, some friends and myself decided to go visit the tunnel.  It was quite dark, no lights anywhere around.  We entered the tunnel with our flashlights and walked to about the halfway point—which we estimated by when the dark gray openings (which we could barely see) on either end of the tunnel were about the same size.  It was a strange feeling to be in such a dark place where the light was not much brighter than the dark.  Kind of like this image I made here—see if you can even see the light colored spot.

Last night I wake up and was not able to sleep for a bit.  So I decided to pray for Isaan, that part of Thailand where we may one day bring the light of the good news of Jesus.  As I prayed, the image of our night-time visit to the tunnel came to mind.  This is a part of the Thailand where in most places no one has heard the the name of Jesus and in in a few places there are only a handful that have found hope in Him.  It is a dark place where even the bright places aren’t very bright. This makes me think of the words of Jesus, “If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!” Matthew 6:23 (ESV)

How grateful we are that God provided a way out of darkness: the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned (Matthew 4:16-ESV)

Sunrise over Isaan

Welcome to Isaan

Driving the Friendship Highway (Highway 2) east out of Saraburi you come to a crack in a narrow ridge of mountains (a feature that I presume gives rise to the name of the nearby community, Pak Chong=”mouth of the hole”).  This seemed an appropriate location for someone to put a dam, so there is a very nice lake here.  But as you pass through this gap in the hills, you enter the elevated portion of Northeast Thailand called the Khorat Plateau.  This is known as the Isaan Region (variously spelled in English, Isarn, Isan or Esarn). 

Map Showing the Isaan Region of Thailand
CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51258

Lake at Gateway to Isaan

Gateway to Isaan

Isaan is an area that is more Lao than Thai.  The language (Isaan) is more similar to Lao than Thai as is the food and culture.  While most people can speak Thai (it is taught in schools and heard and seen in mass media), the older people all speak Isaan.

Social Issues

Over 30% of Thai citizens live in the Isaan, but it remains the neglected and poorest part of the country.  For that reason, many people have left Isaan to work in Bangkok or other cities, or work overseas.  It is the goal of many parents to have a child marry a foreigner, for it offers them a way up.  I heard somewhere that there are about 100,000 Isaan people are married to foreigners and living overseas.  Another 20,000 foreigners are married to Isaan people (primarily foreign men and Isaan women) and live in the Isaan.  It seems most villages have at least one foreigner living there-though they often don’t speak the language.

(Our little corner of Bangkok is almost like little Isaan.  The streets are filled with vendors selling all kinds of cooked food—much of it Isaan style food cooked by people who have migrated to the city to improve their economic outlook.)

The cities have a lot of problems common to cities throughout the world.  Drug and alcohol abuse.  Infidelity. (Infidelity is a problem throughout the country. A Bangkok Post commentator (originally at http://m.bangkokpost.com/opinion/271595, but link is not longer valid) referenced a survey in which just over 50% of both men and women reported cheating on their partner.) Incomes that are not on par with the standard of living or, more likely, not on par with a desired lifestyle. While in the past women might have been sold into prostitution, these days women enter the trade because they can earn for more money than they can with a "normal" job.  So it is not surprising that there are a significant number of people that are HIV positive.  In one province for which there is data, 16.66% of children under the age of 2 are HIV positive.(data originally from http://www.unescap.org/esid/psis/population/database/thailanddata/northeast/NakhonRatchasima.htm, but link is no longer valid)

There are a couple of reasons for Isaan being economically depressed. One is that it is a bit remote. It is not on the way to any place in particular except Lao, which is also much poorer than Thailand. There are not many resources there to cause factories to locate there. Agriculture is the dominant industry, but the area is also dry. It is the driest part of Thailand and there is no irrigation water in much of the area.  As a result they can only grow one crop a year, unlike the 2 or 3 crops that are grown throughout most of the rest of the country.

Isaan Produce-Note the Red Chilies!

Hog Farm

Sugar Cane Truck

Photogenic Cow

Religion

The Isaan is strongly Buddhist.  The temple remains the center of community life.

There are few or no Christians in most towns and villages. Some of the cities might have several churches but they are generally quite small.  (For more detail, you can view the map at http://e-star.ws/harvest/christian-presence-map.html)

Sakon Nakhon Baptist Church

Living Water Community Church in Borabue

At this point it looks like we will be moving to the Isaan in the near future.  There would be many opportunities for us to use our technical skills and abilities as we start building communities of faith.  Pray that the light of Jesus would shine brightly through us.

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 (NIV)