Beyond my Ability

Last week, during a break between rainstorms, we took Ingrid’s sister and niece on a drive into the mountains near here.  For the first 16 kilometers, the road generally follows the course of the Ngao River.  It has a fair number of very steep, but relatively short sections.  I’ve been bicycling that portion quite a bit lately for exercise.

But as we turned off the main road, I noticed that our path was becoming quite steep for sustained distances.  As we entered the first such section of road I said that, in regard to my bicycling, this was “beyond my ability”.

I’ve heard that there are those who ride their bicycles all the way to the top—to a small park called Pa Tang.  But I couldn’t see myself ever doing that.  Some parts even seemed a challenge for our truck.

But the other day I decided to try to attempt at least the first grade.  As I thought, it was quite hard.  I think I was pedaling about 5 km/h (3 mph).  The threatening clouds had me thinking maybe I should head back before I got to the top of that first grade.  But then a smidgen of sunlight would break through the clouds and I would keep going. And then, after what seemed like forever (but was probably only 10 minutes), the road leveled off at the base of this hill that protrudes awkwardly from the landscape.

The hill at the beginning of the road to Pa Tang with the first steep grade marked.

Suddenly what seemed so impossible now is doable.  (Who knows, maybe one day I’ll even get to the top—there are only about 12 more kilometers of the remaining 13 that are as steep or steeper than that.)

Our work in Thailand is often like this.  Sometime it seems impossible.  Truth be told, it even IS beyond our ability.  But it IS NOT beyond God’s ability.

I think of a recent occurrence here in Wiang Kaen.  Samyo is a young Khmu man who was born and raised in the US.  He was on an Action Team that spent about 2 weeks in our area.  The locals would tell you that his Khmu language skills are not that great.  But one Sunday morning he preached in Khmu in one of the churches.  God gave him Khmu words to speak that he didn’t think he knew.  People listened with rapt attention.  Some people decided that they want to believe in Jesus.  Praise God that Samyo did not let his lack of ability keep him from speaking that day!

One day, Jesus was chatting with a wealthy person who wanted to know how he could have eternal life.  After giving him some advice, which the rich person was loathe to follow, Jesus said to his disciples, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24)

Get through an eye of a needle!  I have trouble getting into the pants I bought last year!

The disciples must have been on the same wavelength as me, for they said to Jesus, “Who then can be saved?” to which Jesus responded, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)

Some things are, in fact, beyond my ability, but they aren’t beyond God’s ability.  The challenge for me is to walk the same path Jesus is walking so that I can see the impossible take place.

A New Word

God.

How can we describe God?

How can we talk about God to a people who don’t even have a word for God?

I mean the kind of God who isn’t just a minor being like us, but that we can’t see.

Not the kind of god that can be confined to a building.

Not the kind of god created by a craftsman.

But the God who created the craftsman everything else in this world and who is over everything in the universe.

THAT kind of God.

We had the opportunity to introduce God to some school children last week during an English camp at Wannasorn Wittaya school in Wiang Kaen.  Many of these children have no sense of God in the way that we would.  An Action Team of six people helped us with this (Kelly, Samyo, Samson, Josh, Kim and Lorren).  Ingrid’s sister and niece (Ruth and Kaira) also helped out.

One of the ways we teach English is by telling stories.   Listening to and retelling stories gives people a chance to see how words connect together to convey ideas.   This is especially important in a country where children are taught lots of words but cannot think for themselves to create a new sentence.

The story we taught this last week was the creation story.  It’s a good teaching story because it has a nice pattern (Day 1, Day 2, etc) that help the children be able to put it back together.  AND it also tells them about a different kind of God than ones they have heard about.

Christina taught the creation story.  She was helped by Samyo and Lauren from the team.

Samyo, Christina and Lorren telling The Story

We also taught using music, since music helps people retain words.  Samson and Kim did a great job getting the kids singing and dancing to English words.

Kim and Samson following the lyrics

Ingrid and Ruth helped the children do crafts.  The children learned new words and got to practice using them in sentences (e.g. “May I have some scissors, please?”).  Pat, our office administrator in Wiang Kaen, also helped out.

Ruth, Pat and Ingrid helping with crafts

Children also were able to practice English in the context of playing games.  Josh and Kaira took the lead here with some help from Boonsert, a intern from Laos who knows a little bit of English (along with Lao, Khmu, Korean and some Thai).

Kaira and Josh supervising games

At the end of camp, we had a closing ceremony.  Even the teachers couldn’t help but join in as they danced to the lyrics of the Chaa Chaa song.



In the end, about 180 school children, along with their teachers, got to have fun while learning English.

And they learned a new word.

God.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:1