Glamor and Glitz?

Yesterday we went to Los Angeles in order to get our visas to return to Thailand.

The Thai consulate is just over a mile from Hollywood, and Hollywood is where we stay because we can usually get the best hotel rates there.



One might think that it would be more expensive in a famous place like that.  But I guess none of the famous people actually live in Hollywood.  The most common businesses one sees on Hollywood Boulevard apart from restaurants are those establishments selling lingerie, sex toys and the like.




Coming from a culture like that, it is no wonder that sex seems to be the dominant theme TV and movies coming from that part of the world.

It is interesting how we imagine a place to be can be so far removed from what it is like.

I remember that for much of the time when we lived in Haiti in the 1980's and 1990's, the State Department warned against travel to that country.  And yet, where we lived, there were few problems.

Or I think of when we went to a church service in a Khmu village in northern Thailand for the first time.  I was expecting to hear traditional Khmu songs played on traditional instruments.  But when we walked into the building, the first thing we saw was a drum kit, electric guitar and electric bass.

Just last week we were meeting with missionaries who work in Burkina Faso.  They apologized for being a bit late for the meeting we were having.  As they did that, I thought of the places I've lived in and visited overseas in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, where being late is the norm. So I asked them how timeliness was viewed in the culture they worked in.  They replied that it was quite rude to show up late for something.  So much for my generic stereotypes of how Africans view time!

So it seems it is just as easy to stereotype places as it is people.

How grateful we are for modern electronic means of communication, where it is possible to find out about what places are really like, if we take the time to research them.

I need to remind myself to take the time to ask the right questions and listen carefully to the answers when I am talking with people about the places they live.  Never assume.

Our knowledge about people, places and things is extremely limited.
How thankful we are that we have a God who knows us better than we know ourselves--and loves us anyway.

O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
   You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do.
   You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD.
You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.  
   Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!
Psalm 139:1-6 (NLT)

Hidden Color

It’s not the same as where I grew up.

Nothing can quite compare with all of the amazing color displays we would see every fall in New England.

Fall colors in the back yard where I grew up

In California, many people plant exotic species to try to pick up some of that fall feel.

The Chinese Pistache tree in our front yard in Fresno, California

But this whole fall color thing is really amazing.  If I recall some of my biology properly, the colors we see in the fall are present all year round, but are masked by the chlorophyll.  Then, before the tree starts shutting down for the winter, a lot of nutrients and stuff are shuttled out of the leaves and into the tree.

First the leaves change color.

Then the leaves fall off.

(Unlike my hair, most of which fell out before the rest started turning gray.)

As a result, we get to enjoy this awesome color display each year in climates that are conducive to it.

In Thailand, we don’t get in on this phenomena.  (But we also don’t get the cold weather, either, so I guess that’s a bit of a tradeoff for us.)

I don’t suppose God had to make things as pretty as this, but He did, and I’m glad for it.

I think people can often be like these trees.  Sometimes, when we first meet people, we don't see what they are really like.  We may never see it.  Often we are wearing masks, so people won't see the real us.  We may do this intentionally or unintentionally. Sometimes our low self-esteem makes us think people won't like us if they really knew us.  Or there might be some secret that we try to hide--some event from our past (or present) that if people knew about, would really change how they felt about us.   Sometimes, we may have some character flaws that we try to keep under control (which can be a good thing, if they are damaging traits).

Often, it is during times of stress, when our true colors come out.  Good character qualities may come out when we have to rise to an occasion. Our more negative traits may show when we lose control.

Why are we so afraid to be ourselves, to show our true colors?  Do we have a lot of skeletons in our closet?  It seems like wearing a mask is often the norm in society.

One of the more interesting compliments Jesus makes about someone is in John 1:47, when Jesus approaches Nathanael for the first time.

When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false." (NIV)
 
The New Living Translation puts it: he was a man of complete integrity.  This is the only one of his disciples about whom  Jesus makes this statement.  Was he the only one who wasn't afraid to be himself?  Was it because he was the only one of the twelve who had nothing to hide?

We don't get to see the pretty colors of the trees but once a year, and that just before they fall off.

 But we can be people of integrity all year round.  How good it would be if we didn't hide parts of ourselves because we had nothing to hide.

Paul writes of a day when this will happen.

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NIV)

In heaven, there will be no more masks--no more hiding.  It will be like switching from the monotone green of summer to the brilliant blend of colors of fall.  And all of our beauty, which may have been hidden by our sin all of our lives, will shine for all to see.

Hidden power

Water can do amazing things.

When we were in Canada last September, we went to Maligne Canyon—a narrow gorge carved into the rock by water flowing down from Maligne Lake towards the Athabasca River.  Haw can water do this?



Later on, we were in Hood Canal in Washington State.  There, water trapped behind a dam in the mountains feeds into a pipe which turns generators to make electricity.



Water has this hidden source of power that enables it to do amazing things.

But I want to write about another source of hidden power in this world that can accomplish amazing things—the Spirit of God.

Last July, I found myself asking, “What should I study for my next language check?” We had just come off a busy season near the end of our first term and our team leader asked us what we were planning on studying next. I told her that I would like to prepare my first sermon in Thai. For subject matter I thought I would write about the impact of having idols, based on some of my recent scripture reading.

My language helper would be Knot, a young man who decided to follow Jesus back in February. What I did not know at the time was that he and his wife had an idol in their car. Even though they did not believe the idol had any power any more, they had not thrown it out because it was given to them as a gift from a close friend. I found out later that some of the leaders in the church had been talking with him and his wife about this.

As we were looking at various passages in scripture relating to idols while preparing for the sermon, Knot told me about the idol in his car and why he still had it (by this time I had heard about it from others as well). The next week, Knot was busy, so his wife, Goi, was helping me. We were reading from 1 Corinthians where Paul writes about how eating food sacrificed to idols can cause others to stumble. I did not mention the idol in the car. But after we finished I overheard her talking to Knot about their idol and why, even though they may not believe the idol has any power, it might be something that keeps others from coming to Christ.

The next week, as I was again studying with Knot, he told me that they got rid of the idol from their car.

Jesus said:
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. (John 16:13 ESV)

Even though others had tried to talk Knot and Goi into getting rid of the idol, it was as if they weren’t able to receive that counsel until they received it by the Holy Spirit working through the word of God

As we go about our work as missionaries, we can be tempted to rely on our own abilities and wisdom to get the work done. But we are most effective when our ministry is covered in prayer and we let God work in people’s lives. There is great power as the Holy Spirit works through the word of God.

Knot and Goi

If I had known...

Lovers Point 48
Originally uploaded by SierraSunrise

Today I walked by some apartments here in Clovis that reminded me of the first apartment we moved into in California on San Luis Ave in Mountain View.

Which got me reminiscing...

20 years ago this week, we were in Haiti, packing up our stuff and getting ready to move to California. If I had known all that would transpire in the coming years, I might have stayed. Not that the years have been bad, on the contrary, they've been good. But they have not always been easy.

The good thing is that I've been able to share those years with the women who has been my best friend, whom I married 30 years ago this week.

When we moved to California, we had about $2000 to our name, most of which we used to buy a beat up Honda Civic that Ingrid used for her job Home Health Nursing.

(Our late brother-in-law, Mike, helped us buy the car and keep it running. Mike also helped us to get all of our stuff from Florida to California. Our belongings traveled with us on a DC-3 from Haiti to West Palm Beach. From there we rented a u-haul and then brought it to a company that did business with Mike's company. We put it on a single pallet, shrink-wrapped it, and had it shipped to Mike's company in San Jose.)

Ingrid's boss was a wonderful woman named Kathy of Matched Caregivers. Kathy believed in Ingrid and helped her to excel in a new career. (I remember feeling a bit embarrassed driving our beat up car to Kathy's home in Atherton--it looked way out of place amidst all those beautifully landscaped yards.)

Since that time we've moved again...and again...and again...and again...and again...and again...and again...and yet again (and we're not finished yet).

During that time I've had a wonderful, though shortened (voluntarily), career with the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service where I had 3 great supervisors who helped me to succeed in various positions in Bakersfield and Fresno.

Now we live in Thailand (though temporarily in Clovis, CA). When we return to Thailand, we will be preparing to move halfway across that country.

It would have been easier to stay in one place. We had a nice place in Haiti, after all.

But though everything, God has been with us and has blessed us in many ways.

We've made many new friends.  We've been part of several wonderful churches. We've been able to visit some amazing places. 

And though many things in our lives may have changed, our God has not.

The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Psalm 18:2 (ESV)

Inevitable Change

We are back in Barrhead, Alberta, Canada, to spend time with Ingrid’s family.

Since my first visit here over 30 years ago, many things have changed here, though some changes are more significant than others.

As I walked around town, I notice many new names on storefronts.  The IGA has moved and enlarged and is open 24 hours.

Several years ago, the trains quit servicing the elevators, so that now the farmers have to truck their grain and canola long distances.  The elevators still stand, though under private ownership and being used by a grain trader/middleman.

The grain elevator in Barrhead, Alberta, Canada

The big change for us is the location of Ingrid’s parents.  Just after our last visit 3 years ago, they moved off the farm and into town.  So this is our first time staying with them in the new place.

The new home place

The house is not far from downtown—but neither is anything else here.  This morning I walked almost the entire perimeter in about an hour and a half.

People change, too.  How is it that some of the younger cousins now have gray hair?  This struck me particularly this morning.  I see many people about our age thinking about retirement.  Yet we, only recently made a career change.  It seems to me that making a career change in one’s 50’s helps keep one mentally young, since it is almost like we are starting out in life again.  (Though I must admit that at times I feel especially old when we struggle at trying to learn a new language.)

The old home place

As much as I like many things about the old Barrhead and the pattern of life we enjoyed here, we cannot stop change.  Some things, I admit, are better now.  My trip to the library this morning gave me the fastest internet access I have ever experienced anywhere!

Still, it would be nice to step out of the house and onto the farm.  And while that is not possible, it is possible to enjoy the company of family and friends we have not seen in a while.  We can reminisce about “old times” while enjoying the present and looking forward to what God is going to do in each of our lives in the future.

And in the midst of all this constant change, we rejoice that we have a God that does not change, whose very character defines the word “faithful”. 

We pray that even though our bodies will go through inevitable changes our faith will remain strong until the end.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:7-8 ESV)

Welcome to Canada

We had just arrived at Vancouver International Airport and Ingrid's sister was driving us to their place in Langley. As we were driving we passed a field where they were picking blueberries.

Now we haven't had fresh blueberries in 3 years and we really like them, so Lore was more than happy to turn around and inquire about buying blueberries.

 

The people picking the blueberries appeared to be Indo-Canadians and the ones we first tried to speak to hardly spoke any English.  We did find that they were not selling the blueberries there, but one of the pickers loaded our hands with some fresh berries.  They then pointed to a fellow back down the row of bushes a bit who did speak some English.

We chatted with this fellow a bit and then enjoyed the fresh berries.  While we were still back in Thailand we had talked about things we were looking forward to in Canada.  Ingrid was looking forward to being with her family.  As for me, I was thinking, "I think we will get in on the end of blueberry season."

This gift of blueberries was a nice welcome to Canada, given to us by those who have been welcomed to Canada themselves.

As Christians, we are to ones that welcome "aliens".  I think about all of those verses in the Bible that walk about welcoming the sojourners that come to our lands:

 

You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. (Exodus 22:21 ESV)

You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.  (Leviticus 19:34 ESV)

For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.  (Deuteronomy 10:17, 18)

Thus says the LORD: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.  (Jeremiah 22:3 ESV)

do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart. (Zechariah 7:10 ESV)

Most of all, we thank God that he welcomes sojourners like ourselves into the kingdom of God.

Slow Down

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.  He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.” Luke 10:30-34 (ESV) 



When people ask me if I like traveling, I typically respond, “I like being other places, but I don’t particularly like traveling.”

Usually when I am going some place, my goal is typically on my destination, not my journey.  I tend to dislike disruptions and once I hop on a bicycle or jump in a car, it is really hard for me to stop the vehicle and get out.

Yet life is so much about the journey and not so much about the destination.  If God’s goal for us was only to get to heaven, then He would likely just take us from this world as soon as we believe in Jesus.

But He doesn’t do that.  Because our planetary purpose is about the journey.  Things we often see as interruptions are ministry opportunities that God puts in our lives.  Our choice is whether we want to be like the religious leaders who walked right by the man who had been robbed on the way to Jericho, or like the Samaritan man, whose name has become synonymous for one who helps out those he encounters.

Too often, I live like the former.  One incident is deeply embedded in my brain.

Many years ago, I was assisting a co-worker with his work in Twenty-nine Palms, California.  We had begun the day early, while it was still dark, and had put in a long day.  I was on my way home to Bakersfield and I pulled into a McDonald’s in Barstow for dinner.  I normally don’t like to eat at McDonalds but I just wanted have something fast so that I could be on my way home.

As I got in line, I noticed a homeless man and I felt the Spirit stirring me to buy him a meal.  But, like the religious leaders in the story above, I chose to ignore such promptings, justifying my actions by the fact that I had already put in a long day and I wasn’t even done yet.

When I sat down with my food, I noticed that someone else had bought some food for the homeless man and was giving it to him.  And the Spirit seemed to speak to me, “you ignored me, and someone else is going to get the blessing.”

You think I would have learned from that, but still I have a tendency to rush by ministry opportunities that God puts in front of me on my way to ministries of MY own design and under MY control.

Lord, help me to “stop and smell the roses” as I walk along life’s path.  Help me to be more like the Samaritan who sees the ministry opportunities that You have placed right in front of us, that I have a propensity to totally NOT see.  And by Your grace through Christ Jesus, forgive me for all the times when I refused to see what you wanted me to see in order that I might be a channel of your love in the lives of those around me.  Forgive me my pride in thinking that somehow the ministries that I have designed are more important than the ones You have laid out before me.

You don’t know which way the wind blows

The other night I had a dream.  I usually have dreams at night, often quite vivid ones, but I seldom remember them.  But this one I did, at least the general gist of it.

I was going to do that crazy thing people have tried in recent years—using helium filled balloons to take myself on a flight.  But unlike some—who have done things like attach them to a lawn chair—I just made two large bunches and then looped them under each armpit to lift me off the ground.

The next bit was a bit weird as well.  Rather than take off into open space, I used the balloons to assist me in a form of modified rock climbing—I sort of crawled up the face of some very tall cliff using the balloons to help me up.  But then I came up on a problem.

When I got to the top I realized I had not checked to weather report, so I did not know what either the low altitude or high altitude wind directions were.  As a consequence, when I got to the top I did not want to let go of the cliff because I had no idea where I would end up when I got caught up in the wind.

I woke up at that point and the dream stayed with me.  It seemed to have real implications for my life.

Sometimes we don’t want to make a particular decision because we’re not sure what the consequences of a decision will be.  It may be that we feel God wants us to make a decision, but it feels risky because we will be giving up a lot personal control in our lives and end up having to trust God more.  (Granted, we are not omniscient and we never really know where any of our decisions will end up taking us.)

One of our key values at MB Mission is “Risk-taking Obedience”.  It seemed like we were holding to that value quite strongly a few years ago when we quit our jobs in Fresno and joined MB Mission.  “Is that really God calling us?” we asked ourselves.  And we certainly did not know either where we thought that decision might take us or where it actually would take us!

As we look back over our first term in Thailand we can see positive things like:

• God has been faithful to provide for us financially as we have followed in obedience to the call we felt we heard.
• We’ve been able to touch the lives of a lot of people with the love of Jesus who would not otherwise have had an opportunity to experience it.

But the first term has with been filled with difficulties as well

• The Thai language is really hard to learn!
• We’ve been on three teams in three locations in our first term, and have arrived at neither where our first plan was to go nor where our second plan was to go.

And now as we look to the future and what our next term will look like we see a couple of possible options, both of which have us saying to ourselves: “I’m not sure I’m up to that”,

And that’s where another core value of MB Mission comes in: Dependency on Jesus.  As we look to the future and all that might be required of us we need to decide whether we will approach it with dread or rather approach it with excitement—because it is an opportunity for the power of God to shine through our weakness.  By the grace of God we will do the latter.

²⁴ Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
²⁵ Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
²⁶ If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

John 12:24-26 (ESV)

So, God, help us to let go of the cliff and let our balloons get caught up in the wind of your spirit.  We choose to let You pick the direction by breath of Your Spirit.

In Season

June is the saddest month of the year here in Central Thailand.  That’s because June marks the end of mango season.

I don’t have many favorites in my life.
I have no favorite color
no favorite song
no favorite food
no favorite movie
no favorite sport
etc.

But I DO have a favorite person (my wife)
AND a favorite fruit (mango).  My wife’s favorite fruit is mango as well.

We sometimes joke that we moved to Thailand because of the mangos.




But the good news is that June is the beginning of longan (Dimocarpus longan Lour. ลำไย) season

Longans are usually sold in bunches like this

Insides and seed of longan

What's left after eating

We never had eaten longan before we came to Thailand, but it is probably now the second favorite fruit for both of us.  But soon even it’s season will be over.

In the US we would sometimes be almost unaware of the cyclical nature of fruit harvest because in the grocery store you can get just about anything at any time of year due to the ability to transport fruit over great distances and store the harvested fruit while maintaining a reasonable quality.

But here in Thailand where we tend to buy our fruit in open markets, we tend to be more aware of the seasons of harvest.  And we adapt our fruit eating habits to whatever is in season.  (Though certain fruits are available all year long: banana, pineapple, papaya and watermelon.)

There is a seasonal nature to our work here in Thailand as well-even tough we are not involved in Agricultural production.  Paul alludes to the cyclical nature of our kind of work in 1 Corinthians 3:6 (ESV):

   I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

We spend a lot of time planting and watering, so to speak, and aren’t always sure what the harvest will look like or if we will even be around for it.  Sometimes we get to harvest what others have planted.

Sometimes we think there is a crop coming along fine but then a storm comes up and beats the crop down.  I think of one person in our community who indicated a desire to follow Christ back in December.  But then some temptations came up and he succumbed to the temptation.  Now he seems too ashamed to be around us any more.

But while it is our responsibility to be faithful laborers. it is God who brings about the growth.  We don’t control that aspect of it.

So on one day my “sowing” might be holding a child whose parents are in prison and is pretty much neglected by his relatives.  It might be years before he can understand more fully the message of God’s love—what it means for God to send His Son and for His Son to take upon himself the sins of the whole world.

On another day I might be watering-teaching a young believer about the Bible and what certain scriptures mean to his life.

On perhaps another day we might enjoy a bit of harvest—praying with someone who is responding to the message of God’s love.

We plant.  We water.  We pray for God to make the crop grow.  And we bring in the harvest.
Like eating the seasonal fruit, we learn to enjoy each “fruit” in its season:

We enjoy planting in planting season
We enjoy watering in watering season
and we enjoy reaping in harvest season
And there’s always room for more laborers in the field.

 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." Matthew 9:38 (NIV)

It Takes a Team

For the past two weeks, a team from Heritage Bible Church has been helping us with outreach programs in Chachoengsao.

The Heritage Bible Church Team at Bethel Church

They have gone into two schools to teach English using fun and games and have put on VBS programs in two different communities.  It was the first time for MB Mission and Bethel Church to do an outreach in one of the communities and it looks like it may lead to the beginning of a regular kids club.

The team had many opportunities to share the gospel, and several children and at least one adult decided they wanted to get rid of their bad karma (which is the Thai way of referring to sin) by the blood Jesus.  We also made a connection with a believer who is new in the faith and would like to be in a discipleship relationship with another believer.

One of the greatest things this team did was to hang out with and hug kids, many of whom come from broken homes where there is not a lot of love to be had.  My heart breaks for many of these kids and I’m glad that these children were able to receive some loving attention, even if only for a brief while.

Bri giving some attentio to someone in need

The team also helped us build some bridges with two schools in the area.  One of those schools does not get a lot of attention from the outside world.  It also happens to be where many of the children from our neighborhood go who cannot afford to go to private school.

Talad Pak Khlong Cao School

Khlon Cao School

Thanks to Heritage Bible Church for sending this great group of people to come and love on our neighbors and share with them the even greater love that is found in Jesus Christ.

But this team, like us, could not do what they did by themselves.

The more obvious team members that were involved were members of our Missionary Team here in Chachoengsao: Dave, Louise and Sandy.

Then there were members of the Bethel Church that played critical roles in all this, most notably Ajan Naat, Phi Chin, Knot and Kaew.

Beyond that there are somewhat less visible members of our team-those folks in our home offices in Canada, Fresno and our local offices in Chonburi and Chachoengsao that make it possible for us to be here.

Then there are the almost invisible members of our team: those individuals and churches in the US and Canada that pray for the work here and give financially to help make it happen.
It is great to be a part of the body of Christ, and when we all work together in our various roles, great things can happen.

¹⁴ Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
¹⁵ If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
¹⁶ And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
¹⁷ If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
¹⁸ But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.
¹⁹ If they were all one part, where would the body be?
²⁰ As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
²¹ The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
²² On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
²³ and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,
²⁴ while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,
²⁵ so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.
²⁶ If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
²⁷ Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
1 Corinthians 12:14-27 (NIV)

Lost in Translation

Satar Lite sign 2
Originally uploaded by SierraSunrise

In Thailand, it is not unusual for intersections to have names. It is only recently that I noticed the sign at a particular 3 way intersection we frequently pass--usually I am too occupied with watching out for traffic (if I am moving) or the sign is blocked by big trucks (if I am stopped).

I first noticed the Latin script text of the sign. I quickly assumed it must be a name of foreign origin because there were two sounds represented that the Thai language doesn't have--a final "r" sound, and a long "i" sound followed by a final t.

So I looked at the Thai to try to figure it out:

สตาร์ ไลท์

Sounding out the Thai letters, I came up with (using letters that represent approximate American English sounds):

sahtah lie (as in the English word "lie")

figuring in the unpronounced Thai letters (which are used frequently in words borrowed from other languages and often represented with a ์ symbol), I came up with:

satar lite (as the sign reads)

Then, I applied a little bit of mental processing, I came up with:

starlight

Which I later learned was the name of a factory located near the intersection.

It is quite common in Thailand to see signs representing English words written in Thai script. Sometimes it takes a lot of effort to figure them out. Sometimes I never do get it--at least not in the limited time I have while driving past a road sign.

I remember one of my language instructors joking to me: "you're the only American in this class and you have the hardest time reading English."

Isn't it so much easier when things are presented to us in a way we can understand? It is why we work so hard at learning the Thai language--in order that we can communicate with the Thai people--through words as well as actions--how much God loves them.

It is why God sent Jesus to earth--in order that God could communicate though the life and teachings of Jesus the things He wants us to know about Him and what our response to God should be.

As Jesus said:
Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father." --John 10:37-38 (NIV)

And as Paul later adds:
For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand.--2 Corinthians 1:13 (NIV)

How thankful I am that we have a God that wants to communicate with us and who went to great lengths to do so.  I'm thankful that so many who went before us went to great effort to preserve the actions of God in world and the record of the words of God's prophets and especially Jesus.

Provision that comes to you

One of the interesting things we have found living in Ban Phrueksa in rural Chachoengsao Province, Thailand, is that you don’t have to really go anywhere to buy the essentials of life.  Traveling vendors selling goods of all kinds come into the community throughout the day.
Fresh meat, fresh produce, fish swimming in tanks in the back of a pickup, new and used pants, brooms, eggs (duck or chicken), miscellaneous hardware and household goods.  Even cooked food is sold on the street by stationary or mobile vendors (best way to get our Isaan style chicken and papaya salad is from a motorcycle with a side car modified with a grill and mini-kitchen.)
And while the prices may be a bit pricier than what you find in the market—it saves driving 6 kilometers to a convenience store and the nearest market that only functions twice a week.

Ingrid buying produce off a pickup truck

Grilling chicken on a modified motorcycle

It’s nice when something good comes to you rather than you having to go get it.
That’s one of the things that’s nice about Christianity.  It’s about God coming to us.
In most other religions, it is about how we can get to God.  What kinds of things must I do in order that God will hear me or let me approach Him?  What must I do to be a better person?
I think of so many people who are concerned about their eternal future that are trying to do good things in order that maybe, if they outweigh the bad things, they’ll be better off in some future life.  But there is no guarantee and certainly not a lot of hope.  Call it making merit, or doing good works, or whatever.  Not that there is anything wrong with doing good things, in fact, they should be done.
But with Christianity, it is about God coming to us.  It is about God sending Jesus to earth so that we can relate to Him.  And then it is about Him doing the work for us, on the cross, in order that we might be righteous in the eyes of God.  it’s not about whether we’re good enough—try as we might, we never will be—but about the fact that Jesus is good enough.
And so I do good works, not to attain salvation or to find my way to God, but as an act of love toward a God who drove His pickup into my community, offering all that I could ever need—and I don’t even have to pay for it.



⁹ This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him.
¹⁰ This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they've done to our relationship with God.
¹¹ My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other.
¹² No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!1 John 4:9-12 (MSG)

Spirit of Addiction

Betel Offering for the Spirits
Originally uploaded by SierraSunrise

Of the many offerings on the altar at the spirit house in our community is Betel chewing packs containing betel leaves, areca palm nuts (หมาก), tobacco and other ingredients that are chewed together. Which raises the questions:

Is this to keep the spirits addicted?

Or are they offerings to the spirits of addiction?

In any case it is interesting that it shows that these spirits have as much a problem with pleasure-seeking and gratifying the "flesh" as do humans.

Makes me glad that we serve a God who is above such things, who is able to help us who struggle with such things.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15-ESV)

Deception

Father and daughter rinse toothbrushes
in the canal

As I watch this father and daughter rinse their toothbrushes in the filthy canal water, it almost makes my stomach turn. Indeed, if I were to do that--and then use the toothbrush--I'm sure my stomach really would start turning.

The canals here don't have the cleanest water. They are not only a source of irrigation water, but also the dumping grounds for all kinds of waste--be it biological or otherwise.

And then I think of the pristine waters formed by the melting snow in the Sierras. Oh how refreshing that water is--such a nice cool respite on a hot summer day in the mountains. (My body is transported to Pear Lake, nestled beneath the crags of Alta Peak in Sequoia National Park. Oh, how I miss those mountain escapes.)

Pear Lake, nestled below Alta Peak

Yet, even there, danger lurks. For even though the water is crystal clear. It can be the home of some nasty parasites: giardia, among other things. And the critters I might consume in that refreshing swig of mountain waters can cause me just as much grief as the stuff in the green murk of the canal in rural Chachoengsao, Thailand. (OK--so the risk is perhaps a bit greater in the murky stuff, but you get my drift.)

So we have to be careful how we judge things. Outward appearances aren't always letting us know what is going on.

This is the challenge we face in trying to start churches here in Thailand. Who are the leaders? Maybe the ones that we at first think are the next great leaders of the church, may not always be the best choice. It's hard to know what is going on inside someone.

And we want to trust, but sometimes it is hard to trust.

Only God knows what it going on deep inside us and so we need to lean on Him to show us who the next leaders are. It might be the unlikely-looking one.

O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
   You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.
   Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
Psalm 139:1-4 (ESV)

How do we give-a lesson from Songkran

This weekend has been the celebration of Thai New Year, also known as Songkran.

The focus of much of the popular media has to do with the modern-day Songkran celebrations marked by the throwing and spraying of water.  I have written previously about that aspect of the holiday (see here).

This year is our first celebration of Songkran in our new home, Ban Phrueksa 36.  I couldn’t help but join in the water fun along with the children-many of whom attend our Kid’s Club gatherings.



One block our our subdivision put on a special party.  There was lots of food.  And beer.  (They served it with ice cubes—not sure I could handle that.)  And also they were putting together a “money tree” to be given to the nearby temple.  Everyone's contributions were put in bamboo clips which were stuck into a banana stalk to make the tree.



Later in the day, There was a parade to the temple.  There were two pickups, each carrying a money tree and passengers in the back—many with water blasters.  Another truck had the ice chests—they were still handing out beer—and they were also throwing ice water from the melting ice onto people alongside the road (felt good, actually).




Then there was the crowd drinking and dancing along the way.  All-in-all, they were having a good time as they brought their offering to the temple.



I thought it a bit ironic though that their offering at the Buddhist temple was accompanied by self-indulgence—something that Buddha taught against.

All of which gives me cause for some soul-searching—does my practice of Christianity include things Jesus taught against?

Also, the idea of giving accompanied by fanfare—so common in Thailand—made made me think of the words of Jesus:

¹ "Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
² "Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
³ But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
⁴ so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:1-4 (ESV)

In the west, where our financial matters tend to be quite private affairs, it is easy for us to not be so open about our giving—to a certain extent.  We don’t let others know what we put in the offering (either to keep from being proud or shamed, perhaps)—but we certainly want the church finance people to know so that we can get our tax deduction.

But it can be hard not to tell about our good works.  For those of us who are involved in ministry that is supported by the gifts of others, we have this need to be accountable.  Those who give want to know what we are doing with the money we receive.  How do we both report on our “good works” and let our “left hand not know what our right hand is doing” at the same time?

Then there is this whole other spin on the gift-bearing parade.  Why not celebrate your “faith” like that?
 
I think of David, when he brought the ark to Jerusalem.  This was accompanied buy much celebration, dancing, and public sacrifice. (2 Samuel 6:12-15)

So much to think about this Songkran weekend.

Jesus, give us your wisdom to practice our faith in a way that pleases you.

Welcome Home

There have likely been thousands if not millions of discussions over the years as to what constitutes “home”.  People talk about things like:

• How long do you have to live some place before if feels like home?
• What do you need to have (things/rountines/etc) at a given location before you feel it is home?
• is home based on proximity to family?

Since we have moved a lot of times among several countries over the years, this becomes pertinent to us.  We have seldom lived close to family members during out 30 years of marriage.  If you ask me where home is, I would likely say, “home is where my sweetheart is.”

Perhaps similar to this is the question of belonging in a certain area.  I usually feel if I meet people I recognize when I’m about town then it is a bit more like “my” town.  I remember randomly meeting an acquaintance in Bangkok and feeling amazed—we did not know a lot of Thai people in Bangkok outside of our neighbors—so when we met up with one in that city of over 12 million people it was quite a surprise.

Maybe another measure of “home” is whether any one misses you when you are gone.  I remember belonging to an organization once where we tried hard to build relationships and be connected, but we were not very successful.  After a while we gave up and quit.  About half a year later we met up with a member of that organization and from the discussion we realized that he did not even realize that we were no longer going to meetings!

About three months ago we moved to the subdivision we currently live in.  There is a little fellow of about three, Cartoon, who can frequently be seen riding his tiny pink bicycle up and down the road.  Once in a while, if we are out on the side walk, he will stop and visit.

Cartoon Comes to Welcome us Home

We recently got back from a two-week long trip.  We arrived at night and so it wasn’t until the next morning that I was up getting our truck loaded with stuff we would need for some activities that day.  I saw Cartoon down the road and when he noticed me, he rode his bike up to me, got off, and wrapped his arms around my leg in a big hug.

Welcome home.

Third Culture People

I was thinking about how little I know about my adopted country.  Sure, we have lived here for two years and have done lots of things and read lots of books about our new homeland.  But my knowledge is mostly facts

As we learn a new language, our goal would be to use the language as well as a native Thai speaker.  Some of those who teach the Thai language divide language learning into several stages—the last one usually occurring about 20 years into the process when you use the language almost as well as a native Thai speaker.  No matter how long you live here, you never get to use Thai just like a Thai.

Thai people embracing a
and culture I will never
fully understand

Why is this?  Why is our knowledge so limited?

Being Thai is totally ingrained in a person born in Thailand to a Thai family and then raised here.  For them, using the language is not just a matter of what they’ve studied or learned from experience, it is a part of who they are.

The subject came up the other day as we were discussing returning to our homeland for a brief period. We come to a country and try to master the language and culture but never completely fit in. Then we go back to our own culture but, since we have changed, we don’t quite fit in there either.  And so we end up being a third culture and we end up relating best to people who have had similar experiences.

You could say the same thing about your relationship to anyone because everyone is unique.  In a sense, we each have our own culture.  Try as I might, I will never completely understand my wife, nor she me, even though we love each other and spend so much time together.  Miscommunication still sometimes occurs.

Some people don’t even try.  Spats, feuds, and even wars can be brought about between people or groups because the don’t understand each other and don’t want to try.

And then there is my relationship to God.  How can I begin to understand God who is so “other” than me?
God is at the advantage here because He is our creator and so understands us even better than we understand ourselves.

¹ ​​​​​​​​O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
² ​​​​​​​​You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
³ ​​​​​​​​You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
⁴ ​​​​​​​​Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
⁵ ​​​​​​​​You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
⁶ ​​​​​​​​Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.   (Psalm 139:1-6)

Fortunately God took the initiative to try to help us understand Him.  First, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to give us a better glimpse of what he is like.  Then, if we will believe the testimony of His Son, he will place His Spirit in our lives.

¹ Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
³ Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope.
⁵ And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:1-5 (NIV)

One day I have the hope that I will understand God better, for I will see Him as He is. (1 Corinthians 13:12)
Meanwhile I live as a third culture person—a misfit, if you will—in more ways than one. 

Holiday-not, but a Holy Day

It was supposed to be our day off. It was a holiday to boot. Yet, here it was, Monday, and our house was a rather noisy place with children playing and having a good time and some youth practicing guitar.

It started on Sunday afternoon. I was chatting with some of the neighborhood kids outside our home. One of them, Jill (not her real name), mentioned that the next day was her 10^th birthday. So I said that since it was her birthday, she should have a birthday cake. And then I suggested that she could come and help make a cake.

So three kids showed up about 10:30 am and Ingrid began the cake-making instructions.

 
 
After the cake was in the oven, we had them read the creation story from a simplified Bible story book, designed for English learners. Then I taught them how to play Uno, which they caught onto quickly and had fun playing—especially after the second hand in which I had two 50 point and three 20 point cards left in my hand.



We took a break for lunch while the cake cooled, and then the three were back, plus one other, for the decorating. One of my guitar students was there (an hour early), but he seemed to enjoy the cake decorating as much, if not more so, than the others. He was pretty good at it, too.

 
 


And then the kids made themselves at home—playing with the guitars, tambourine and drum and singing some Christian songs that they had learned in kids club. (I did forbid use of the hula hoop inside.)



Eventually Ingrid carried some cake to Jill’s house while I continued with the guitar lessons. She discovered that as chaotic as our place had become that day, it was even worse at Jill’s place—maybe that’s why she likes it at our place.  And one of the participants in the day’s activities was sure to remind us that his birthday is in March.

After the guitar students left we were exhausted, but glad that we could provide some constructive activities for their day off from school.

This is what are life is often like here—things don’t always go as planned—sometimes they even go better.  And while we could have used a day off to rest, it’s always in season to show some love to our neighbors.  And the cake was good, too.

But Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” –Matthew 19:14 (NLT)

Letter from home

Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.Proverbs 25:25 (NIV)
 
In Thailand it is not unusual for utilities to remain in the name of the landlord.  Whoever moves into a new place takes over paying the bills, even though nothing is in the name of the new tenant.  Since moving here we have received a few such things.  But yesterday when I looked in the mailbox there was a big surprise:
 

It was the first personal mail we’ve received since moving to Ban Phrueksa.
 
Perhaps it’s because we seldom use the post office to send mail these days that receiving a letter seems so special.  But another thing about getting the first mail is that it makes us feel a bit settled—like this is really our home now.
 
Moving around as much as we have the past few years, it is hard to feel like there is any place that we call home any more.  We live in one place long enough to begin to develop some relationships, but just when ministry type things seem to start happening, we’re moving on again.
 
But now, Ban Phrueksa is home.  Even the Thailand Post Office knows it.

As Judy Garland said, “there’s no place like home.”

So thanks, Shelly and Rob for the Christmas letter and especially the family photo.

Juan

Am I back in California?

We had just finished an outreach program at a Children’s Day celebration at a park in Ban Phrueksa.  Louise and the TREK team kept children occupied with games and crafts and singing along with a presentation of the gospel.

Afterwards, a young fellow came up whose name is Juan.  At least, that was my first thought.  Then reality hit that this was not California and the boy's name was more likely “Day” (Wan) than “John”  (Juan) (translating from Thai instead of Spanish), but I had not heard that name before, so it caught me by surprise.

Wan had bene watching our presentation and was interested in what he saw.  He expressed interest in learning to play an instrument, perhaps guitar.  We chatted a bit and then he helped load all of our stuff into my truck and later helped unload it at our house.  I thought perhaps I might next see him for guitar instruction on Saturday.

Once we got organized, the TREK team, Louise, Ingrid and myself got into my pickup and headed off to Bethel Church.  Several people had to sit in the back of the pickup (at least there is AC in the camper shell).  When we got to the church and everyone spilled out of the back I saw, to my surprise, that Wan had come along as well.

Wan (left) prays to receive Jesus into his life

We made our way to the church, arriving just as the sermon was about to begin.  Ajan Nat was preaching.  One of the verses she shared was 2 Corinthians 5:17--where Paul writes that if anyone is in Christ, that person is a new creation.

After preaching, Nat asked it there were any who would like to trust Jesus as their Savior, and so become a new creation.  Wan, along with another first time guest (read Danae’s blog for that amazing story) went forward.
 
And so se welcome Wan into the family of God and pray that he will persevere and become active in the house church that will be starting here next week.

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17--NLT)

Dagwood

When I was a child, our family would sometimes eat at at a restaurant (I think it was Litchfield Farm Shop, later bought out by Friendly’s) where they served a sandwich called “The Dagwood”.  The sandwich took its name from Dagwood of the Blondie cartoon strip.  Dagwood makes these extremely tall sandwiches made up of all manner of whatever.  But they all have a commonality—a piece of bread on either end.

The bread is not the most consequential part of the sandwich, but the two slices to give you something to grab onto as you eat.

As I did last year, I am focusing on the first and last photos of the year I took—that may not be of the most consequential events of the year but they serve as kind of a way of to grab onto the year.




January 2 is Ozz’s birthday.  On his birthday, he and his wife, Sara, came to join us for dinner at our apartment in Bangkok.  Sara is a good friend of ours whom we have known since our early days in Fresno, California.  Ozz is studying at a seminary in Bangkok.

Jus a few days ago, Sara and Ozz again joined us for dinner—only this time it was Christmas dinner at our new place in Chachoengsao Province.  With them was their 8 month old son Elijah.  Elijah is their first child (and kind of like our first grandchild), so their lives have been filled with a lot of change.



Our lives, too, have been filled with a lot of change—first a move to Chonburi and then to Chachoengsao.  Our lives have been filled with some births as well—first the birth of a vision to work in Northeast Thailand and then (when some complications arose), birth of a vision to start a church in an isolated community in Chachoengsao Province.

But even as people are born into this world, others leave it.  And so we bid farewell to my mom in late July.



The above picture of my mom and me I took back in 2007.  It is at the location of another birth, of sorts.  The Haystack Monument in Williamstown, Massachusetts marks the location of the birth of the world missions movement in North America—something that is significant in our lives as we have become part of that.  So even though my mom is gone, there is new life rising up in her place.  Pray that God will use us to bring new life in Jesus Christ to the people of Thailand.

December 31, 2012.  It is a few minutes before midnight and the main street in Ban Phrueksa is relatively quiet—belying the fact that there are a bunch of noisy parties going on on a lot of the side streets.



We seldom stay up to bring in the New Year, but since this was our first in Ban Phrueksa, we thought we would stay up and see what happens.  So we watched the final two episodes of season I of The Mentalist and then broke open a new deck of Uno cards to keep us awake.


Just before midnight we wandered out onto the streets and son the sky came alive with fireworks.



The abruptness of that moment—from quiet to loud explosions—is kind of what our December was like.  At the beginning of the month we were not even imagining living in Chachoengsao.  And then the timing seemed right and so there was an explosion of activity with a lot of praying and then house-hunting and participating in a multitude of Christmas outreach events and then moving mixed in with all of this.

And here we are—starting a new year and kind of a new live in Ban Phrueksa, Chachoengsao, Thailand.  As I reflect back on the year and see death and new life, I am reminded of the transient nature of life on earth.  But God and His work are not transient—His work will last.

I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.  Ecclesiastes 3:14 (NIV)


I wonder what kind of sandwich we’ll have this year.