Life lately has been full of fellowship and so many blessings. Celebrating Thanksgiving gave me the opportunity to realize and thank God for all the ways He has blessed us. The blessings truly are countless. I have been most thankful for all of the missionaries and national Thai people that have cared for, provided for, and encouraged us in so many ways. They have gone out of their way countless times to welcome us and to help us feel at home. We have been truly blessed to be surrounded by so many wonderful people!
First of all being able to celebrate Thanksgiving in another culture was such an amazing experience. It was different from any other Thanksgiving I’ve ever had, but it was a good different. It truly was a special celebration and a great time of fellowship!
We had the Athletes in Action staff and Gary over to our house on Thursday night. We cooked some classic Thanksgiving side dishes and cut up a rotisserie chicken for the main dish. Let’s just say the rotisserie chicken here is the best chicken I’ve ever had. Others brought a traditional Myanmar dish, fruit, and chips. It was quite a feast. We ate together and watched last year’s Macys thanksgiving day parade, which was a hit with the kids! We ended the night with worship, singing and praising God! Friday night we joined all the local Cru staff for their Thanksgiving dinner. The food was amazing!! We made some new friends and also got to know our old friends more. Saturday was our final Thanksgiving. Chris, one of the teachers from the Hosea Center, hosted it at his house, and had invited some of the older kids from the center. We not only had dinner with them, but also got to hang out with them all day. We got to go see horses and run random errands with them. It was a great opportunity to get to know them more and hang out with them in a less formal environment. We played lots of games and ate really good Thai food that the kids had made. We ended the night by learning muay Thai - Thai boxing.
God has been opening up doors for us to openly share the Gospel with students in the local public school. In one of the classes teacher Sand gave us time to talk about Jesus. We decided to go full send and share the gospel. We used the four (which is one of the ways we learned to communicate the Gospel during training) and each of us shared about one of the symbols. We also drew them on the whiteboard. Teacher Sand turned it into a lesson about sacrifice and had the students come up with examples of sacrifice. We got to walk around and look at their papers to check their work. We noticed that many of the students had taken notes and drawn out the four symbols on their paper, which was really encouraging and exciting. We also got to teach students about the first Thanksgiving. We made so many hand turkeys, and encouraged them to think about what they were grateful for. It was such a fun activity and many of the students enjoyed it.
During our time at North Chiang Mai University, we have befriended some students who are from Myanmar. We bonded quickly with them due to our shared lack of knowing Thai and their knowledge of English. They have brought so much joy to our lives, and we have had so much fun with them. They are always down to play cards with us or join us in the gym for volleyball and badminton, even when it is pouring rain. We were able to play solarium, which is a card game that helps you get to know people and opens up deeper conversations. They are super open about their beliefs, which is very encouraging and we have been able to share about what we believe as well.
As always, we have been able to experience more of Thailand. The AIA staff took us to Pi Cee’s home village. It was in the mountains about an hour from where we live. We got to eat noodles at her family’s restaurant and then visit the local hot springs. We dipped our feet in the springs and they had a place to boil eggs in the water. The eggs were so yummy! We also walked to a few popular spots in her village. It was absolutely beautiful.
Close to our house, there was a carnival that we got to explore. They had a bunch of food stands as always and they had a few carnival rides. We decided to go on the Ferris wheel even though it was a little sketchy. You could see the whole carnival from the top, it was soo cool!
Some people you can be praying for:
The students at the local high school - that we can be light and that they will believe the truth of the Gospel for themselves.
Teacher Sand from the high school - pray that he won’t be stressed from all the work he has to do, and that he will ultimately place his faith in God.
The North Chiangmai University students - that we can continue to grow closer with them and that they will also come to know and believe the truth of the Gospel.
Some other things you can be praying for:
That the team would stay healthy and unified in the Holy Spirit
For us to boldly proclaim the Gospel
We are currently at the Thailand National Games, please pray that we would be lights to everyone around us and for the Spirit to work in the hearts of those around us.
Pray that I will be lead by the Spirit in all that I do
Matthew 16:15
“But what about you?’ He asked, “Who do you say I am?”
A verse from my morning quiet times. It doesn’t matter who others say Jesus is. It matters who you say He is. Not only that, but it doesn’t matter who others say I am, it only matters who God says I am.
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