Everybody Loves a Freebie

We were looking for a place for a meeting that had both coffee and food. There is one place that we like, but it is usually closed when we want to go there, and this day was no different. So as we drove past that coffee shop, I remembered seeing a place on Google maps not too far from there which had the English name "Coffee Slow & Steak Sloth."  The Thai name listed on Google maps (เชื่องช้า-สโลว์บาร์ (กาแฟสด)) translates "Slowly Slow Bar (Fresh Coffee)." Google maps also showed a photo of the front of the restaurant which said "Coffee & Steak." Armed with this information, we decided to try it, but had no idea what to expect.

The Wooden Plates Were Marked With Another Version of the English Name:
Steak-Sloth Slow-Coffee

The main dining area was open on three sides. On the one wall, they had placed some rustic signs, some in Thai and some in English.

Rustic Signs on the Wall

I was particularly drawn to one old sign for a garage. I'm not sure what one would have had to pay for, because the following services were listed as free:

    -  Beer & Ice
    -  Flats Fixed
    -  Oil Change
    -  Advice



Everybody likes a freebie. I think of all the advertising where they have the word, "Free!" in big letters to get your attention, but then you have to get close and read the fine print to find out if what they are offering is actually worth your effort. One sign I've noticed in various places around Kamalasai has the word, "free," (in Thai). The sign is posted by a well drilling outfit and goes onto say that if they don't find water when drilling for a well, you don't have to pay. It does not say whether they may refuse to drill a well it the local groundwater map does not show any groundwater. Or if you have to pay if they find water, but the water is too salty to use for anything. I'd be sure to ask about those things if I were to call them.

Well Drilling - No Charge if it Comes up Dry
In other words, "nothing" is free

At Christmas, we celebrate the ultimate freebie. God saw that we humans weren't good at much besides making things worse. Even when our intentions were good, we often ended up missing the mark. Our sins and karma kept catching up with us. So God decided we needed a Christmas present, long before the word Christmas was ever coined. This Christmas present had two aspects to it. First of all, God thought we could use a better idea of what he is like. Secondly, God wanted us to have a way to be free from the power of sin.

Matthew, quoting Isaiah 7:14, writes
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
    and they shall call his name Immanuel”   (which means, God with us).
(Matthew 1:23 ESV)

God with us. If we want to know what God is like, we just have to look at the life of Jesus. Jesus said, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." (John 14:9 ESV)

About thirty years ago, someone came up with the idea of Christians wearing rubber bracelets inscribed with WWJD, meaning What Would Jesus Do. The idea was that if we wanted to know how to behave in any situation, we should look at the life of Jesus. This was actually a great idea, except that people were a bit selective in how they applied it. We looked at Jesus through our personal and cultural filters and made our decisions based on that. After all, we wouldn't want behaving like Jesus to cause us too much inconvenience or make us change our behavior too awful much.

But when Jesus came, it was a great inconvenience to Him. Here he was, a participant in creating the universe with God the Father, and now He has to put all that God-power aside for 30 years while he comes to earth as a newborn child and grows up until he is mature enough to be received as a teacher by human standards. And he had to deal with all the issues that come with having a human body. One of our famous Christmas carols talks about the baby Jesus that somehow "no crying he makes." Really! Somehow I don't quite believe that. After all, he was a normal baby that needed to nurse at his mother's breast. And while in one circumstance, Jesus quoted Old Testament scripture about man not living by bread alone, He did actually eat bread and fish. And I'm sure His mother made him eat his vegetables, too.

In coming to earth, Jesus was able to show us and teach us what God is like. He modeled for us the perfect way to live. He taught us about the Kingdom of God and what it takes to be a citizen of that Kingdom. But just as important was what he accomplished at the end of his earthly life, which leads us to the next point.

The second part of Christmas had to do with freedom from sin. The angel Gabriel, while explaining to Joseph what was going on with his fiancee, said to him,

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.
(Matthew 1:21 ESV)

Jesus put it this way, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." (John 8:34-36 ESV)

Pau mentions that this freedom means not being considered someone's slave, but instead, we are like their children. In this case, we are childen of God.

Therefore, you are no longer a slave but a son or daughter, and if you are his child, then you are also an heir through God.
(Galatians 4:7 CEB)

A bonus that come with this freedom from sin is another great freebie, eternal life. Paul puts it like this.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 6:23 ESV)

Jesus made this gift possible for us by offering up his life as a sacrifice for our sin and karma. Jesus endured a brutal death so that we might have an abundant life. "I came to give life," Jesus said, "life that is full and good." (John 10:10 ETRV)

So, this Christmas, if you want to give me a gift card for beer, tire repairs or oil change, that's great. But the best Christmas gift ever is eternal life in heave that we have because Jesus came to dwell with us on earth that first Christmas day. It's the ultimate freebie.

A Christmas Symbol

What is the symbol of Christmas? A Christmas tree? Santa Claus? A snowman? A stocking? A manger scene? An angel?

On the first Christmas there were shepherds abiding in the field—at least that's how the King James Bible puts it. Some modern translations render it like this: "there were shepherds living the fields." (Luke 2:8) Anyway, there are a bunch of men hanging out, perhaps sipping wine out of goatskins telling stories of heroic sheep rescues from lions and bears and such. Or maybe they're telling of close encounters with vipers. But then the darkness is suddenly broken. An angel appears, and the glory of the Lord shines around them. It's an awesome light, enough to scare a bunch of men, toughened by years of protecting sheep from the hazards of the wild. This angel tells these men that a Savior has been born and is lying in a trough filled with hay in nearby Bethlehem. "Go check it out for yourselves," the angel suggests.

Glorious Light.

Meanwhile, in a country far to the east, a group of nerds is hanging out together. Rather than trying to impress each other with their acts of bravery, perhaps they are sipping wine out of goatskins while playing brain games to see who is the smartest. When, suddenly, up in they sky they see a star shining perhaps a bit more brightly than usual. This is not your ordinary star. Or perhaps it is just an ordinary star with extraordinary meaning. Somehow they knew that the appearance of this star meant that a new king of the Jews had been born.

Starry Light.

About a month after the Savior-King is born, Joseph and Mary bring Jesus into Jerusalem to present him at the temple. While they are there, they run into an old man named Simeon. God told Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Messiah—the Christ. And then Simeon sees baby Jesus and God tells him that this infant is the One. Simeon breaks out in praise:

Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
  according to your word;
for my eyes have seen your salvation
that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
  and for glory to your people Israel.
Luke 2:29-32

The Savior-King is also Messiah/Christ

Light of revelation to the Gentiles.

About 30 years go by, and we don't hear much more about the light. But then John the Baptist makes his appearance, followed by Jesus. After Jesus is baptized by John and passes his wilderness exam, He begins his ministry with an announcement. He quotes the prophet Isaiah, written some 750 years earlier.

The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
  the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
  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 4:15, 16

A Light that dispels the darkness.

Later on, Jesus tells us more about who He is. He says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12 ESV)

A life-giving Light.

By believing in Jesus, the light of the world, people become children of light. Jesus said, "While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.” (John 12:36 NRSV)

Eventually Jesus ascended to heaven, but He didn't want people to be without light. He called on his followers to take on His role of being light to the world. He said to his disciples, “You are the light of the world," (Matthew 5:14 ESV)

The apostle Paul reiterated this, "that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world." (Philippians 2:15 ESV) And again he says, "For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness." (1 Thessalonians 5:5 ESV)

And the way we are to light up the world is by loving people. The apostle John writes, "Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling." (1 John 2:10 ESV)

Light, then, seems to be an appropriate symbol for Christmas, and love the demonstration of that light. I'm not saying we throw out the Christmas tree or cease putting up longer and longer strings of lights (though it might be environmentally friendly to do so). But if we decorate our houses and fail to love one another, we miss putting up the true symbol of Christmas. For the mark of Christmas is not so much what shines out of our windows, but rather what radiates from our hearts.

It Takes a Bunch of Villages

Last week, we drove down to Chonburi to meet with some people there. We took our usual route on a levee road on the south side of the Chi River in Maha Sarakham Province, but it was a bit slow going at first because of the flooding.

Video of Driving the Levee Road to Maha Sarakham

Ended up on a Detour on a "Drier" Road

On the way home, we figured we would take an alternate route to avoid driving along the flooded levee road. But it took us an hour to get through the city of Maha Sarakham because the Chi River decided to take a shortcut through town.

Driving Through Maha Sarakham

Many parts of Thailand have experienced flooding this year. While this is typical to a degree, this year has been worse than normal. A combination of factors has brought flooding into the area where we are ministering. Normal end-of-rainy-season high water levels and some late season storms coming off the South China Sea caused higher than normal flood levels. Also, water was released from several reservoirs to prevent dam failure. This has raised water levels in three large rivers in the southern part of the Isaan Region, and brought flooding to the Chi River that borders Kalasin where we work.

By Hdamm - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4140784
In the map above, we live along the Pao River, just north of the "S" in Maha Sarakham

We live in the southern part of Kalasin Province, so not only are we affected by Chi River floods, but also by floods along the Pao River, which flows through our town. There has been significant damage to the rice crops due to flooding from the Pao River. While water levels in the Pao River have dropped about a meter from the highest levels, many rice paddies are still under water. The timing is especially bad, because right now the grain heads should be ripening.

Flooded Road With Rice Paddy on the Right

This Lake is a Rice Paddy That Would be Almost Ready to Harvest

In addition to normal floods, this last week, a levee failed along the Chi River and caused water to inundate areas that don't usually flood, including villages where we work.

Flooded Rice Paddies Near Ban Sa-ad

One of Our Church Member's Houses--the Water Was Even Deeper the Next Day

They hope to finish repairing the levee breach this week and then they can begin the process of pumping water back into the Chi River. However, in the meantime, water levels have continued to rise. The government will offer some financial assistance to help with rice crop losses, but it will not cover all of the losses experienced by villagers.

Our small church decided this would be an opportunity to demonstrate God's love to our neighbors. Our team leader came up early for a planned trip so that we could plan how to assist. We consulted with village leaders on how we could help as well. We purchased rice and other dry goods and prepared food bags to hand out.

Packing Dry Goods

Bagging Rice

We ended up handing out the food on Sunday morning. Instead of our worshiping with music and Bible study, we used our time to bless those in need. As we read in scripture: Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (1 John 3:18 ESV)

One of the village heads helped us bring the bags into the village because the water was too deep to drive in with our pickup truck.

Road Into Ban Sa-ad Village - Trucks With Higher Clearance Could Make it Part Way

Bags Ready to Give Away

Unloading the Bags

We weren't the only ones providing assistance. Other groups and individuals pitched in. It was great to see so many people coming together to provide assistance. Some groups put together bags similar to ours. Others contributed bottled water (the public water systems ad power had been shut down). Still others donated fresh meat and vegetables.

Some of the Bags Brought by Others

Others Contributed Bottled Water

After we delivered our supplies, we were given a tour of some of the areas by boat.

Starting Out on Our Boat Tour  Down the Road Past the Temple

One Woman Didn't Want to Leave Her Home Even Though it Was Under Three Feet of Water. Her Dogs Had a Small Place to Perch

This Man Was Dragging His Boat Down the Road

It will be several weeks before there is any sense of normality. And the lost rice crop will continue to affect the lives for some time, so we will continue join with others to offer assistance where we can.

Good Words

  

My mother-in-law had just died, and we were discussing who would write the eulogy. I had written a blog about this and also the first draft of the official obituary, so my name came up (I declined). Vaguely, I remembered that the meaning of eulogy was something like praise. And I recognized some Greek roots in the word. So I decided to look up the etymology of the word.

The Online Dictionary of Etymology has this:

mid-15c., from Latin eulogium, from Greek eulogia "praise; good or fine language" (in New Testament, "blessing"), from eu "well" (see eu-) + -logia "speaking" (see -logy).

The Strong's Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary has this:

(G2127) εὐλογέω (eulogeō) - from a compound of (G2095) (eu) and (G3056) (logos); to speak well of, i.e. (religiously) to bless (thank or invoke a benediction upon, prosper) :- bless, praise

Or, to put it another way, eulogy means good words.

As we were discussing the life of my mother-in-law after she died, one of the good words that came up was that she never spoke ill of anyone. In other words, one of the good words about her was that she was a woman of good words. What a great legacy. The same can not be said of me.

It's interesting that we typically reserve the eulogy until after someone dies. If we have something nice to say about someone, why wait until they cannot hear? I did once write some good words for my sister's husband while he was still with us and could appreciate them.

We can have a profound positive impact on others when we are people of good words. The Apostle Paul wrote, "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Colossians 4:6 NIV) We all appreciate grace-filled conversations that build us up and encourage us.

Several years ago, I told the story of Kung Nang, who had to overcome words that discouraged her as she learned to play guitar. These days she is a member of the worship band in her church. The power of good words.

James wrote, "With the tongue we praise (eulogumen - ευλογουμεν) our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise (eulogia - ευλογια) and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. (James 3:9-10 NIV). We have a choice to make, we can use our words to eulogize someone, or we can use our words to curse them. Which will it be?

I'm not well known for my construction skills. If you put a hammer in my had it is more often a tool of destruction than of construction. Our words are like a hammer—we can use them to build up or to tear down.

As I write this, we have just received a message from someone noting the power of hurtful words. I, myself, have been the source of hurtful words in the past. But this should not be what characterizes us as believers. A piece of advice we tossed around as children (though we didn't always follow it ourselves) was, "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it." Let us choose to eulogize the living—to be people of good words.


Following is the use of eulogy in the New Testament

Unless marked with asterisks, italicized words are from Strong's Greek 2127: eulogeō = bless, speak well of
All verses from the Lexam English Bible translation.

Matthew 14:19
And he commanded the crowds to recline for a meal on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks. And after breaking them, he gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.

Matthew 21:9
And the crowds who went ahead of him and the ones who followed were shouting, saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

Matthew 25:34
Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world!

Matthew 23:39
For I tell you, you will never see me from now on until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

Matthew 26:26
Now while they were eating Jesus took bread and, after giving thanks, he broke it, and giving it to the disciples, he said, “Take, eat, this is my body.”

Mark 6:41
And taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves and gave them to his disciples so that they could set them before them. And he distributed the two fish to them all.

Mark 8:7
And they had a few small fish, and after giving thanks for them, he said to set these before them also.

Mark 10:16
And after taking them into his arms, he blessed them, placing his hands on them.

Mark 11:9
And those who went ahead and those who were following were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Mark 11:10
Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

Mark 14:22
And while they were eating, he took bread and, after giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to them and said, “Take it, this is my body.”

Mark 14:61
But he was silent and did not reply anything. Again the high priest asked him and said to him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed* One?”

Luke 1:42
And she cried out with a loud shout and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

Luke 1:64
And his mouth and his tongue were opened immediately, and he began to speak, praising God.

Luke 1:68
“Blessed* be the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited to help and has redeemed his people,

Luke 2:28
he took him in his arms and praised God and said,

Luke 6:28
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

Luke 9:16
And taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them and began giving them to the disciples to set before the crowd.

Luke 13:35
Behold, your house has been left to you! And I tell you, you will never see me until the time will come when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

Luke 19:38
saying, “Blessed is the king, the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Luke 24:30
And it happened that when he reclined at the table with them, he took the bread and gave thanks, and after breaking it, he gave it to them.

Luke 24:50
And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands, he blessed them.

Luke 24:51
And it happened that while he was blessing them, he parted from them and was taken up into heaven.

Luke 24:53
And they were continually in the temple courts praising God.

John 12:13
took the branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and began crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord, even the king of Israel!”

Acts 3:26
God, after he had raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning each of you back from your wickedness!”

Romans 1:25
who exchanged the truth of God with a lie, and worshiped and served the creation rather than the Creator, who is blessed* for eternity. Amen.

Romans 9:5
to whom belong the patriarchs, and from whom is the Christ according to human descent, who is God over all, blessed* forever! Amen.

Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute, bless and do not curse them.

Romans 15:29
and I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing** of Christ.

Romans 16:18
For such people do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own stomach, and by smooth speech and flattery** they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.

1 Corinthians 4:12
and we toil, working with our own hands. When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure;

1 Corinthians 10:16
The cup of blessing** which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?

1 Corinthians 14:16
For otherwise, if you praise in your spirit, how will the one who fills the place of the outsider say the “amen” at your thanksgiving, because he does not know what you are saying?

2 Corinthians 1:3
Blessed* is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

2 Corinthians 9:5
Therefore I considered it necessary to urge the brothers that they should go on ahead to you and make arrangements in advance for your generous gift** that was promised previously, so this would be prepared as a generous gift** and not as grudgingly granted.

2 Corinthians 9:6
Now the point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully** will also reap bountifully**.

2 Corinthians 11:31
The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed* forever, knows that I am not lying.

Galatians 3:9
So then, the ones who have faith are blessed together with Abraham who believed.

Galatians 3:14
in order that the blessing** of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Ephesians 1:3
Blessed* is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing** in the heavenly places in Christ,

Hebrews 6:7
For ground that drinks the rain that comes often upon it, and brings forth vegetation usable to those people for whose sake it is also cultivated, shares a blessing** from God.

Hebrews 6:14
saying, “Surely I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply you.”

Hebrews 7:1
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,

Hebrews 7:6
But the one who did not trace his descent from them collected tithes from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.

Hebrews 7:7
Now without any dispute the inferior is blessed by the more prominent.

Hebrews 11:20
By faith also Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things that were going to happen.

Hebrews 11:21
By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

Hebrews 12:17
For you know that also afterwards, when he wanted to inherit the blessing**, he was rejected, because he did not find an occasion for repentance, although he sought it with tears.

James 3:9
With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.

James 3:10
From the same mouth come blessing** and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so!

1 Peter 1:3
Blessed* be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1 Peter 3:9
not repaying evil for evil or insult for insult, but on the other hand blessing others, because for this reason you were called, so that you could inherit a blessing.**
Revelation 5:12
saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise**!”

Revelation 5:13
And I heard every creature that is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and in the sea and everything in them saying, “To the one who is seated on the throne and to the Lamb be praise** and honor and glory and power forever and ever.”

Revelation 7:12
saying, “Amen! Praise** and glory, and wisdom and thanksgiving, and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen!”

* Strong's Greek 2128: εὐλογητός eulogētos = to bless, well spoken of, worthy of praise

** Strong's Greek 2129: εὐλογία: eulogia = commendation, blessing

Change of Address

On Saturday, September 17, 2022, as family members lovingly watched over her, Betty Engler changed her permanent residence from Barrhead, Alberta, Canada to Paradise.

Betty Engler 1930-2022

Betty has changed addresses many times in her life. She was born on the island of Rügen off the northern coast of Germany in August, 1930. A couple of years later, her family moved to Groß Zastrow, near Greifswald, on the mainland.

The House on Rügen

In 1950, Betty married Werner Engler and moved back to Rügen, but only stayed there until 1952 when they moved back to the Greifswald area. They were only there a few months when they decided to sneak out out of what had become communist East Germany. In West Germany, after a brief stay in a refugee camp, the Englers lived in Lünern for a while but later settled in Lerche.

The House in Lerche

In 1963, Betty and Werner, along with their four children, moved to Alberta, Canada, living on a farm in the community of Freedom, near the town of Barrhead. It was during this season that I became a part of the Engler family.

Farmstead in Freedom, Alberta

The Englers lived on the farm until about 10 years ago, when they moved to a house in the town of Barrhead. However, for the past two years, Betty has been staying at Shepherd's Care in Barrhead.

The House in Barrhead

It seems Providential that we are here in Canada at this significant point in our parent's lives.

For some time, I had been feeling weary from our work, and have desparately been in need of a break. We planned to make a trip to Canada to visit Ingrid's parents. But there was a lot of uncertainty about when the best time would be. Our preference would have been earlier, but circumstances on the Canadian side caused us to plan a trip for September.

Our idea was to be here to help Ingrid's dad move into some senior housing in Barrhead, and then help get his house ready to sell. After that, we planned to get a few days of actual vacation in the mountains. On our first Sunday here, Betty came out of Shepherd's Care to have dinner with all the family that had gathered. However, she wasn't doing very well. Early the next morning, she was sent to the ER. and later that day she was admitted to the hospital. After a 92-year run. it looked like Betty was getting ready to change addresses for the last time.

As word got out, many family members gathered to help Ingrid's dad move to his new address and to be with her mom as she moved to hers. While her body may eventually lay in Manola Cemetery, Betty lives on with Jesus in Paradise and in the hearts of all who knew her.

Betty with her Husband, Three of her Daughters and one of her Sons

Dad's New Apartment

Many years ago, before I was married, I heard advice something like this: if you want to know what your wife will be like in the future, look at her mother. When I was thinking about marrying Ingrid, I followed this counsel. I saw in Ingrid's mom an intelligent, multi-talented, hard-working woman. I figured if Ingrid turned out like that, that would be awesome. And the sparkle I once saw in Betty's eyes, I continue to see in her daughter, my wife.

Betty's smile and laughter will no longer grace our dinner tables. But the physical challenges she faced in the past few years are now vanquished.

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.  For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.  When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
     “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
     “O death, where is your victory?
       O death, where is your sting?”
           1 Corinthians 15:51-55

When the Rooster Crows on the Manure Pile

Weather forecasting is an interesting science. In Thailand, we live close by the provincial meterological station. I've never gone in there, but we do look at the weather forecasts, though I'm not sure why.

We moved to Kamalasai in the dry season. One really doesn't need to look a a weather forecast in dry season, because it doesn't rain. And the temperatures are relatively similar each day. But as rainy season approached, I started to look at the forecasts more. For many days on end, there would be a probablility of precipitation between 30 and 35 percent. One would figure that it would rain about once every three days—but it didn't.

Later I figured that the forecasters must just be good statiticians, because as long as you predict a number between 1 and 99 percent, you're never wrong, you're just playing the odds. You just might not want to bring these people along as consultants when you go to the casino.

But then this happened: they predicted a 100% chance of preciptation for a certain portion of one afternoon, but then they changed their mind and lowered it before the time came. This has happened on more than one occasion. Are they allowed to do that? I mean, I think that if you predict a 100% chance of something, then you are committed to the outcome.

My wife told me an old German saying that seems to be a good weather forecasting tool:

Kräht der Hahn auf dem Mist, ändert sich das Wetter oder bleibt, wie es ist

Which roughly translates: When the rooster crows in the manure pile, the weather will change — or stay the same.

We're fortunate that we have a weather forecaster that lives across the street from us. This cockerel belongs to the proprietor of a coffin maker, and it hangs out in front of shop all day and all night, every day. It may not have a manure pile, but this prognosticator of precipitation starts his forecast about 3 am each day: the weather will either change or stay the same.

This Storm Passed us by to the North

This Storm Passed us by to the South - with Lots of Thunder

This Storm Finally Brought us Rain

Online Dating

Whenever I hear people talking about the dating scene these days, it seems that so many people meet their significant others though online dating sites or other online activities. For someone my age, this system can be hard to understand.

Except that I met my wife this way as well.

Kind of.

Back in the early Late 1970's and  early 1980's there wasn't an internet to speak of, at least not like what we think of these days. But we did have computers. I know, hard to believe that dinosaurs coexisted with computers. Just a few days after I graduated, I attended the Urbana missions conference. Included with our conference admission was a job search through and organization called InterCristo. InterCristo was an organization that did computer matches of people looking to work in Christian ministry with organizations looking for workers. (InterCristo has since been acquired by Salem Web Network which runs the Christianjobs.com website.)

What was nice about this is that many of the organizations in out InterCristo report had booths at the conference, so that we could meet with representatives of different organizations. One of the organizations on the list was called Emmanuel International. I talked with some of their reps at the site. A few weeks later, someone from that organization was in Massachusetts, so I went to chat with them more. I applied to Emmanuel International and was accepted, so that fall I ended up at their office and training facility in Ontario. While I was hanging out there, a day or so before the training was to begin, Ingrid walked in the door.

(Ingrid's route there was a bit different. She had met representatives of Emmanuel International at a missions conference at a Bible school.)

And the rest is history. I met my wife through a computer matching service—though we never really dated. And they did a good job, because we're still together and like being together. Technology may have changed, but our love remains the same.

Emmanuel International Office in Ontario

Elastic

I reached into my desk to grab a rubber band, and found a little plastic bag with assorted sizes and colors. Most of the elastic bands were red and the same size and a little weary from age.

Red Rubber Bands

I remember buying these red ones during our first year in Bangkok. I was needing to get some rubber bands, and our Thai skills at that point were very limited. I had to look up the term in our phonetic dictionary so I would know how to ask for them. Turns out the word for rubber, yang (ยาง), is used not just for the product itself but for things made from it.

I figured that the best place to buy them would be at a dry goods store not too far from our apartment building. The street just north of us was lined with small shops and the street itself was a bustling market in the evenings..

Market Street Near Our Apartment
Surely There is a Place that Sells Rubber Bands Near Here

When I walked into the store, there appeared to be a discussion among the proprietor and his children as to would would be the one to have to talk with the foreigner. The teenage daughter lost, perhaps because she had the best English skills, and so came to help me. I had no idea how rubber bands were sold, as there were none on display. My experience in the US was that they would be in plastic bags either of the same size or assorted sizes.

I was wrong.

Turns out rubber bands were sold by the kilogram, and I can't imagine how many that would be, but it must be a lot and I only needed a couple. We had learned the word for a tenth of a kilogram in language school, so I figured I would  just ask for that. How many is that? Enough to last us our entire stay in Thailand, so it seems, since we are still using the same stock 11 years later.

Why such high demand for rubber bands? Turns out that everything in Thailand seems to be packaged in plastic bags and the bags are sealed not with twist ties, but with rubber bands. Part of this is due to the fact that rubber is produced locally and there is usually more latex than meets demand, so the price is cheap. The Thai people are very adept at tying plastic bags with rubber bands and they have a technique they use, which is hard to learn from watching because they do it so fast. Later that year we participated in helping package food for flood victims in Bangkok, so we got to try our hand at it (we weren't very adept).

Showing Off my Lack of Skills Tying With Rubber Bands

Rice and Lots of Red Rubber Bands

Even though rubber bands are used extensively to package food, when you shop for rubber bands, you want to make sure you don't ask for "hygienic rubber." Hygienic rubber is used to cover certain parts of the anatomy during certain activities.

As I mentioned before, rubber is produced locally. However, rubber trees are not native to Southeast Asia, though they are planted extensively in the region. Rubber trees, also known as Para Rubber,  (Hevea brasiliensis) are native to the Amazon rain forest. There are already several native trees that go by the name yang (rubber). These are all species of  Dipterocarpus, known in English as dipterocarp trees or resin trees. Dipterocarps have resin that can be used for wood lacquers and waterproofing boats, among other things.

Resin Trees (ยางนา Dipterocarpus alatus). Dipterocarp Trees are among the tallest locally

Dipterocarp Seeds have wings and you can throw them in the air to watch them helicopter

Para rubber trees, on the other hand, are called yang para (ยางพารา). They are grown in plantations, which end up having a tightly closed canopy when they mature. In some parts of Thailand, these are the only shady forests you can find.

Dirt Road Through the Rubber Plantation

The trees are tapped by etching into the bark on one half of the tree trunk. The latex is collected in black plastic cups—it takes about two days for the cup to fill.



With time, the scar from the tapping takes up a good portion of the trunk. The tap is then switched to the other side.



When the cups are full, a chemical is added to make the latex turn firm. The cups are emptied onto the ground for later collection.

Rubber Latex Gel

The latex with the added chemicals has a very strong odor. The smell is particularly strong at the places where farmers sell their latex to others who will haul it to a processing plant. The small reminds me of the odor that comes off trucks that would haul treated sewage from treatment centers to farm fields.

Rubber Latex Collection Point

Growing rubber trees is not a really lucrative business. Many years, the income barely covers expenses. The government is constantly researching new ways to use the latex in order to increase demand and hence the income for rubber farms. Many people, though, are turning their rubber trees into charcoal and planting something else instead.

Turning Trees into Charcoal

Another challenge related to rubber, is what to do with waste rubber bands. At lot of rubber and plastic trash ends up in storms drains that flow to the rivers that then flow to the ocean. I remember being at the coast following a major storm; there was a wall of debris at the high tide level. Much of the debris was organic in nature (logs and stumps, etc.) but what we mostly saw were plastic bags, plastic straws and rubber bands.

Drinking Straws Washed up on the Beach

Rubber and latex are things we tend to take for granted, without realizing what is involved in getting these materials to market in the forms we use everyday. So, next time you grab for a simple rubber band, or slide on a latex glove, give thanks for the farmers that labor so that you night have that simple convenience.