Sunset Over the Mekong River
Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 2, 2019
Monday, October 22, 2018
Old but not irrelevant
The glory of young men is their strength, gray hair is the splendor if the old. Proverbs 20:29 (NIV)
Our home culture glorifies youth. As people "mature" they are considered less and less relevant. In old days, white hair was considered a sign of wisdom. By one's age, one earned the right to be heard. Not so much anymore. The opinions of the experienced are considered "old-fashioned", "out-of-date", or "irrelevant. Old people are often considered a burden.
One of the nice things about Thai culture (though it is disappearing) is that there is still status connected with age. It's refreshing. (see more on that here.) We are in our sixties and we are stilled deemed worthy of offering something of value.
It's even more rewarding with the youth. There are some young people at church that actually like hanging out with us. Granted, we try to make it worthwhile. We regularly teach some guitar and music. Since this month is school break, we tried to have some extra activities for the young people. Earlier last week, Ingrid invited some of the girls over to make muffins. A few days later we took some people to a park about an hours drive away.
Along the way, they learned some Bible and some English. We learned some Thai and learned more about Thai culture.
Of course, staying relevant in the lives of these young people takes effort takes some effort on our part. We have to invest time and energy into the task. It also takes a measure of humility. We only hope that as the teens mature, they will remain interested in what we have to offer. Meanwhile, we thank God for the opportunity to have a positive influence in their lives.
Our home culture glorifies youth. As people "mature" they are considered less and less relevant. In old days, white hair was considered a sign of wisdom. By one's age, one earned the right to be heard. Not so much anymore. The opinions of the experienced are considered "old-fashioned", "out-of-date", or "irrelevant. Old people are often considered a burden.
One of the nice things about Thai culture (though it is disappearing) is that there is still status connected with age. It's refreshing. (see more on that here.) We are in our sixties and we are stilled deemed worthy of offering something of value.
It's even more rewarding with the youth. There are some young people at church that actually like hanging out with us. Granted, we try to make it worthwhile. We regularly teach some guitar and music. Since this month is school break, we tried to have some extra activities for the young people. Earlier last week, Ingrid invited some of the girls over to make muffins. A few days later we took some people to a park about an hours drive away.
 |
| Making Muffins |
 |
| Visit to a park with interesting rock formations |
Along the way, they learned some Bible and some English. We learned some Thai and learned more about Thai culture.
Of course, staying relevant in the lives of these young people takes effort takes some effort on our part. We have to invest time and energy into the task. It also takes a measure of humility. We only hope that as the teens mature, they will remain interested in what we have to offer. Meanwhile, we thank God for the opportunity to have a positive influence in their lives.
Monday, April 23, 2018
Last Day of Green
Summer here in Thailand falls in the Spring. The hottest time of the year here is March through May—It's when the temperatures begin to rise, but the cooling rains of rainy season have not shown up yet.
This is also the season of summer vacation for the local schools. The last day of the school year is in late March and the new year begins in early May.
This year is special for several girls in our church. Four of them are graduating elementary school (grade 6) and moving to high school.
It was fun when they showed up for music practice on the last day of their classes. This was their last day to wear their green uniforms. Next year they get to don the light colored blouses and dark skirts/pants of high school.
It's a bit of a scary time for for these new high school students. The local high school has about 3000 students that come from all over. There are 150 teachers! The faith of these girls might be tested a bit. We're thankful that there is a Christian teacher in the school who is willing to look out for them, encourage them, and advocate for them.
Meanwhile, we've had some opportunities for fun activities during the school break.
We're grateful for the time we have to encourage the young people and teach them and even learn from them at this stage in their lives. (They're not usually shy about correcting our Thai.) We pray that they will have the courage to live out their faith in Jesus as they enter high school and that their lives might be a testimony to what they believe.
Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.
Luke 18:16 NLT
This is also the season of summer vacation for the local schools. The last day of the school year is in late March and the new year begins in early May.
This year is special for several girls in our church. Four of them are graduating elementary school (grade 6) and moving to high school.
It was fun when they showed up for music practice on the last day of their classes. This was their last day to wear their green uniforms. Next year they get to don the light colored blouses and dark skirts/pants of high school.
 |
| Music practice on the last day of classes |
It's a bit of a scary time for for these new high school students. The local high school has about 3000 students that come from all over. There are 150 teachers! The faith of these girls might be tested a bit. We're thankful that there is a Christian teacher in the school who is willing to look out for them, encourage them, and advocate for them.
Meanwhile, we've had some opportunities for fun activities during the school break.
 |
| Making "pigs ears" cookies |
 |
| Intense Game of Bingo |
 |
| Celebrating Birthdays |
We're grateful for the time we have to encourage the young people and teach them and even learn from them at this stage in their lives. (They're not usually shy about correcting our Thai.) We pray that they will have the courage to live out their faith in Jesus as they enter high school and that their lives might be a testimony to what they believe.
Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.
Luke 18:16 NLT
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Sadness and Joy
We only had a small group at our house on Saturday for English club, but it was still good to meet together.
The tone was a bit muted as the King of Thailand died only two days earlier. We took the opportunity to remember the life of the King. The youth had more questions than usual and the conversation led to talk about different traditions regarding death and funerals between our home countries and theirs.
One things we found interesting was that they were surprised we use the same words "die" and "death" for everyone. Here in Thailand they use a special language when they talk about the King and it was hard for them to grasp that we don't.
Earlier in the day we had found out it was Kook's birthday. So while Ingrid was playing games with the youth I went out to get a birthday cake. Nice to live in a place where you can go out, get a cake custom decorated, and be back home in 20 minutes! So the tone of the gathering eventually changed to one of celebration.
At the end of our time together, there was a bit of sadness. Since this was our last gathering before we head out on MINA we realized we would not see Gomeen and Kaeo until after we get back. (Kook lives next door, so we will still see her around, but the others live in a village 12 km away.)
We are grateful for the opportunity to share God's love and stories about Jesus to these young people. I'm not sure who benefits more from our meeting together. They learn some English and learn about God. We, on the other hand, are made to feel that just because we are "old" doesn't mean we are irrelevant.
Thank you, God, for putting these wonderful people in our lives.
Be happy with those who are happy, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:15 NLT
The tone was a bit muted as the King of Thailand died only two days earlier. We took the opportunity to remember the life of the King. The youth had more questions than usual and the conversation led to talk about different traditions regarding death and funerals between our home countries and theirs.
One things we found interesting was that they were surprised we use the same words "die" and "death" for everyone. Here in Thailand they use a special language when they talk about the King and it was hard for them to grasp that we don't.
Earlier in the day we had found out it was Kook's birthday. So while Ingrid was playing games with the youth I went out to get a birthday cake. Nice to live in a place where you can go out, get a cake custom decorated, and be back home in 20 minutes! So the tone of the gathering eventually changed to one of celebration.
At the end of our time together, there was a bit of sadness. Since this was our last gathering before we head out on MINA we realized we would not see Gomeen and Kaeo until after we get back. (Kook lives next door, so we will still see her around, but the others live in a village 12 km away.)
We are grateful for the opportunity to share God's love and stories about Jesus to these young people. I'm not sure who benefits more from our meeting together. They learn some English and learn about God. We, on the other hand, are made to feel that just because we are "old" doesn't mean we are irrelevant.
Thank you, God, for putting these wonderful people in our lives.
Be happy with those who are happy, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:15 NLT
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