Thursday, February 11, 2010

Thailand team last day - 11 Feb 2010 "a wonderful and productive trip"

First, let us talk about the 10th; our last day of official works in Northern Thailand. As a team we split up again. The Taylor’s were working with local pastors and adults at the Thai Christian Fellowship in the morning (their theme was Biblical examples of counselor character and how they should behave). The Taylor’s, for the first time, were able to divide the class into four groups. The Burmese and Thai style of learning is very instructor intensive; while we like interaction in American education. The groups were very successful and they actually communicated openly about their thoughts and questions.

The rest of the team (Jim, Larry, Renda, Lois, Min and Kyu Kyu) were at Love and Care School working with the upper grade students. They were helping the students with fluoride treatments, English as a second language, and puppet skit creation and judging. (The two winning teams would present their skit to the Hway Kay Loke Orphanage later in the evening.) At noon we all ate at the Thai Christian Fellowship. Jim and Larry stayed at TCF and introduced the pastors and adults to Community Health Evangelism CHE. Jim and Larry reported that group discussion was very good and they felt very successful with their presentation. After lunch the Taylor’s moved over to the Love and Care School and helped the team with the rest of the afternoon (more fluoride treatments and taking photos).

The highlight of the day was going to Hway Kay Loke for the evening. It was supper time and a hundred+ children were ready to eat. They sang and prayed. They lined up with their bowls. They received their portions with respect. They went to eat at, we are sure, their usual locations. Then someone said, “Seconds.” Many of the children ran to the server station for the meat, which the team had purchased, for this special meal. The extra pot of rice was also popular with the boys who dove in with bowl or hands to receive an additional portion. Praise God for our supporters who enabled us to provide this special meal. But the biggest treat of the evening was still ahead. The teens from Love and Care School presented a “Traditional Karen Dance” in full/beautiful red and white costume. We will have photographs and video at the celebration dinner. One team member stated an American saying, not to be derogatory, “They really cleaned up well.” After the dance the two winning teams, from Love and Care, presented their puppet skits. Each team had written and directed their health informational skits. The little children laughed and thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment in their own language. It was a great night. The team returned to the DK Hotel for our final night in Mae Sot. We had our final Mae Sot meals at the Canadian owned local restaurant in the evening and our final breakfast at the local New Zealand owned restaurant on the following morning. (How’s that for a run-on sentence.)

We left Mae Sot with a little fearfulness about our trip home and if would arrive home on time. Would we have cancelled flights or what? It is an eight hour drive back to Bangkok. We debriefed on several themes. What was the best experience, the most unexpected, the least favorite thing, most inspirational, etc, etc? It would be unfair for the writer to characterize individual responses. However, the team would say, without any doubt or argument, “This was a wonderful and productive trip.” Let us count the ways:
1. We were able to experience, not all, but many of the ministry locations that Somchai has developed over his 30 years in Thailand. He is very worthy of our support!
2. We were able to meet young pastors who will be the backbone of the mission in years to come.
3. We were able to see the wonderful kindness/gentleness of people trapped in Refugee camps who have Christ and each other for strength.
4. We were able to teach new ideas and concepts, like CHE, to their willing/listening ears and hearts.
5. We were able to impact hundreds of children with new health ideas and lessons. We also let them know that Jesus is Lord of their life through skits and fun filled interaction. The children were able to know that because all we did was in the name of Jesus.
6. We were able to share the pain of Min and Kyu Kyu when they left relatives in two different camps. Min and Kyu Kyu were able to bring to life the real problem of the Karen and Burmese people.
7. We were able to more fully understand the difficulty of Urban Missions. Most of us said, “It was the hardest part of the trip.”
8. We were able to feel the emptiness of Buddhist idols. The opulence of the shrines of Buddha and the surrounding poverty.
9. We were able to know, as a team, that this mission is one that we would want to return to with a larger group.
10. We know any larger group should be divided to spend more days at one location with a continuity of lessons. Some ideas were: Medical, English Education, Bible Study, Counseling, Health Education, the possibilities are endless.
11. We know that Somchai would welcome individuals who could commit to longer periods of time for specific jobs. (We met a woman at our last breakfast in Mae Sot who was from Detroit who volunteers at Hway Kay Loke – we had no idea she was even there.)
12. We were able to recognize and appreciate, at a much more sensitive level, our families, our church and our Savior. We thank you – family, church, and Lord.

We are in Bangkok. We know our flight is cancelled. We know that our “fearless leader and world traveler” Jim Boyle is doing all he can to get us home in a timely manner. He just told us we are flying to Los Angeles, skipping Tokyo, and then a “Red-eye” to Dulles – but Helen Boyle is the official spokesperson for the reality of our return. Listen to her.

There are untold stories that we did not have time to write. If you have any questions about anything on our trip, please do not hesitate to ask any team members. If we left you hanging; wanting to know more, come to the Celebration Dinner on March 14th. We love you and hope to see you within the next 48 hours. (Have the snow plowed please.) --- The Thailand Team

- - - - -

Dear Family & Friends,
. . . . Their travel home has been delayed due to the weather so please keep them in your prayers as they re-route and arrive at Dulles Airport on Saturday morning at 6:24AM.
They will actually begin their journey home at 3:30PM (Thailand Time) Friday afternoon (3:30AM Friday our time). They will fly directly to Los Angeles and then on to Dulles. A special thank you to Dennis Curran and Alex Lozada for waking up in the wee hours to meet them.
Blessings, Helen Boyle

Thailand team - travel update - return posponed until Sat AM 13 Feb

Keep our Thailand team in prayer because the most recent mid-Atlantic snowstorm has postponed their return to Dulles Intl Airport until 6:30am Saturday (deferred from original Fri afternoon arrival)

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Thailand team 8-9 Feb 2010 Noh Bo Bible College + Thai Chr Fellowship / Love & Care School

The team was really tired after our trip in Noh Bo Bible College; so you did not receive an update from us on the 8th. The trip, on the 8th was a small roller coaster ride this time. We had to travel two hours to get to the College. We were greeted by Pastor Jolly who personifies his name. When the team was in Thailand in 2008 there were about 40 college students, with the requisite number of teachers and leaders. So, on the trip up we were wondering what half the team was going to do with their time. They have always worked with the younger children. Yes, you guessed it. The college started a school for the children of the village and a very small refugee camp population that we did not know about. When we arrived there were (Drum roll please) ---- 90 children waiting to be entertained and directed for games. But, our resourceful team was ready.

The children’s bag was the “Everywhere We Go” bag. Most of the children in this village school had never had a photograph of themselves. Village parents came to pick up their children and they were excited. The team was truly ready!! The current college student population was only about 20, but our team was ready for instruction with them as well. (The kid side of the team has received most of the surprises. The adult side is “business as usual.”

During lunch Somchai was talking, we were having noodles with hot sauce, that came in small packages. Somchai kept talking and did not pay attention to what he was putting into his coffee. He picked up a sugar packet, he thought, and put it in his coffee – you guessed it – it was very hot chilli powder sauce for the noodles. After he realized what he had done he said, “I like it that way.” (He was kidding – he got a new cup of coffee.)

Our team meeting debrief on the 8th was excellent. The reflection was about Somchai and how he had scheduled us into all the camps and the many church “encouragements.” Somchai told us that he had expected to receive some emphatic “No’s” about going into the camps, but as God would have it we got into every requested camp. If we had a bigger team we could have probably made it into all the camps. Maybe that is a dream for the future.

Somchai is truly a Pauline missionary with excellent relationships, contacts, and influence. His focus is not on report writing and administration. We had a chance to meet his “Silas and Barnabas”. Both individuals are younger; they are Thai citizens and have connections with authorities that Somchai would probably never have. (Paul had Roman citizenship – Somchai is Burmese not Thai.) The last time the team was here we asked, “Somchai, who will replace you when you die.” We think he now has the answer. Somchai is also hoping one day someone will come from Mountain and stay for 3-6 months. Because this is the second mission trip from MCC Somchai no longer feels like an “orphan nor a widow.”

There was a special moment for one of the team members who said, “I have received lots of hugs on mission trips in the past, but I have never been kissed. A little girl kissed me on the cheek and hugged me. I was so excited.” said Renda. This debriefing was also unusual in that we talked about our families back home; we talked about our parents and grandparents. (We think we are just a little homesick to see our loved ones even though some of the team has talked with their family every day – it is not the same as eye-to-eye and cheek-to-cheek.) We slept really well that night.

As the team is writing this it is really the 9th – the Super Bowl is over. No one here watched it on the 8th – the game started at 7:00 a.m. local time. We were eating breakfast and then going into the fields – no time for the Super Bowl. (After all – if the Ravens or the Vikings were not playing we really didn’t care.) Today’s work was local; no long distance travel. We were at Love and Care School right outside of Mae Sot and the Thai Christian Fellowship in Mae Sot. Jerry and Sylvia were at the Thai Christian Fellowship teaching Conflict Resolution, which was a follow-up from the last mission trip. This group was all adults. Half of this group were pastors. For the first time we had some lively interaction. There were questions about church conflict, couple conflict, parenting conflict, etc. The Taylor’s taught both morning and afternoon sessions.

The Love and Care School part of the team which consisted of Larry, Jim, Renda, Lois, Min and Kyu Kyu had a wonderful day. The Love and Care School is the upper school—ages (14-19 years). There were about 60 teens attending the sessions. The team said, “Kids are kids; they enjoyed everything we did. When we made a visible mistake in the skit with Jesus, the kids laughed. When were teaching English as a Second Language and asked them to give us words for clothing using any letter is the alphabet – one of the boys said, ‘U stands for underwear.’ and the rest of the class laughed.” It was a great day. “These kids are able to communicate back to us and were fun to work with. We took their photographs and they were just as excited as the younger children.”

The Love and Care School has made some very good progress in the facilities since we were last here.

The Taylor’s were transported to the Love and Care School when their sessions ended. Jim, Jerry and Sylvia talked with some of the boys who asked, “Do you remember us?” and they really did. We asked them, “Tell us what you learned about conflict when we were here last time?” They were able to tell us! Jim asked them about the water treatment lessons. They repeated the steps and specific information that was important in the process! Needless to say we were excited that they remembered our teaching. TOM – The boys asked, “Where is _____ (then made gestures with their arms)?” You mean Tom? The gesture they were making was the gesture for “SOLID” which was Tom’s favored saying on the last trip. We informed them that Tom had moved to New York but he was following our trip on internet emails and sorry he could not come this time. These boys are now 18 and 19 and will be leaving the school soon to join the world of adults. We cannot keep them young forever nor protect them from the future, but we can teach them about life skills and a relationship with Jesus Christ. AMEN! --- The Thailand Team

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Thai team 7 Feb 2010 worship w refugees behind barbed wire

In the last message we reported that the camp had five churches and the team had accepted to “preach” at three of them. Well let us tell you an interesting flexibility story.

Upon arrival the team was again asked to preach at all five churches but we politely declined citing a need to remain in teams of 2-3 persons. So at Church 1 Larry delivered the “encouragement” (that’s what they call the sermon) accompanied by Jim and Lois. Unexpectedly, Lois was put on the spot to give “encouragement” to the children (Remember what “encouragement” meant?) At Church 2, Jerry gave the encouragement accompanied by Sylvia and Renda. At Church 3, Min did the same at his location with Kyu Kyu. Somchi agreed to cover the fourth location. All these services were going on simultaneously; remember there are five churches.

The groups are heading back to the “office” meeting location on different paths (remember the camp holds over 50,000 people) and we all miraculously end up at the 5th church. Jerry’s group arrived first and we were asked to share our “testimony,” which we did. About the time we finished – Larry’s group arrived and they were asked to share their “testimony.” Next to arrive were Min and Kyu Kyu and finally Somchai. Now, you know what’s going to happen next? You guessed it – they asked, “Who is going to provide the encouragement?” Larry “drew the short straw” as they say (even though anyone of us would have told our encouragement again). The fifth church had waited for at least an hour and a half for us to arrive. They were not going to be denied hearing the Word of God from the visitors from Mountain Christian Church in America. What a lesson in patience (you may say, “Well, they are living behind barbed wire and they have nothing else to do.”); they view the “encouragement” as the high light of their week. WOW. We hope we view our own worship in the same way.

Next there were lessons to be taught. One lesson was “Teaching English as a Second Language” with kids and adults. Other lessons, for adults, were “Living with Jesus Day to Day;” followed by “The Power of Prayer.” The team was excited to teach our prepared lessons and, as usual, have a sense of flexibility. The senior leader of the Christians in the camp is 72 years of age; two years ago he sent his whole family to America stating, “I am too old to go; I am not finished my work here.” Whether it was fear of the unknown or faith in the known, it was wonderful to see him again. (Tom and Alex we know you are following these messages – Samson is still here, we have photographs of him and his new baby boy. The young woman who was to give birth any day (when you were here in 2008) and was given the “stuffed toy” by Alex is still here – she had a boy. Wish you two were here. The Mae La Camp has many gracious Christian people.)

In the “Power of Pray” class we taught A.C.T.S. Oddly, (tongue-in-cheek) the adults had never heard of this method of prayer. The process was excellent. Here are a few of the things they said for each of the letters: (remember, we are in a camp – behind barbed wire – with very limited access to the outside world.)

A (Adoration) = 1) God, you provide for me everyday. 2) The blessings of God come everyday and I respond in love. and 3) He is our Castle; He is our protector.

C (Confession) = 1) I, when I was younger, insulted God every day; now I am saved. 2) I don’t always obey the Word of God. 3) I insulted my neighbor and my brother; I am sorry.

T (Thanksgiving) = 1) I am thankful for a healthy family; for food; the life He gives to us. 2) I am thankful that the Lord forgives my sins; I am safe in this camp. 3) I am thankful that God is in this camp. 4) I am thankful to God for the ability to speak openly about my faith in Him.

S (Supplication) = 1) I would like to be like this group from Mountain Christian Church who can come to other countries and spread the news of God. 2) I want to be a witness for God and the chance to do it. 3) I want a chance and the strength to help the poor.

It was wonderful that the adults felt free to talk openly during this session. This is not the style of teaching/learning that usually happens in this part of the world.

There is much to tell about the lessons with the children but we will save that for another day.

Finally, at supper this evening we were able to talk with Somchai alone. The following are our observations:

· In the three camps that we visited Somchai has the ability, through his presence, to touch over 120,000 individuals.

· He has five churches in Mae La camp, and one each in the other two camps. He has a church in Mae Sot. He influences the Love and Care School and the Wickalow Orphanage.

· There are 17 pastors that Somchai influences in the above situations.

· Somchai has been here almost 30 years, doing his Pauline style mission work.

· Somchai had the “feel of a single parent” when he had no visitors from Mountain Christian Church, but now he “feels more empowered to minister.”

· Somchai said, “The team becomes the face of Mountain Christian Church and people around me now have a different respect for me and my ministry; even the government officials.

· This is a symbiotic relationship – Somchai and teams from Mountain Christian Church.

· It was also observed, “Just think when the camps are closed and the Christians are released from their long time of study and patience – what a blessing the world is in for – when they disperse across the globe or simply back to their homelands.”

AMEN – The Thailand Team

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Thailand team 6 Feb 2010 "Pray that one day they will be united w/o barbed wire around them nor separating them"

Our plan was to wake up by 6:30 a.m. but we were made aware, at 6:00 a.m., by loud speakers in the village that lasted for 30 minutes, that today was Election Day. Now, don’t get excited about free elections in Thailand. The elections are for the village council only. The Mayor is appointed; the Governor is appointed and the King is the Royal Family. Not so much democracy for a 6:00 a.m. wake-up call. Other than that the morning was fine. An order of scrambled eggs turns out to be an omelet with Thai spices accompanied by a “burning” feeling after the swallow.

Today was a four hour travel day back to Mae Sot. In total it was more like a three hour roller-coaster ride that makes Cedar Point feel like a kiddy ride. The hairpin turns; heights and depths of each dip with a noticeable bumpiness the whole way were a little much. Two of the team members who have never been car-sick, had their ½ gallon plastic bags ready just in case. Some of the team members have driven the whole length of the Blue Ridge/Skyline Drive; except for the lack of fall colors, the views beat anything they had ever seen.

On a more serious note, about half way back to Mae Sot the team stopped at the camp at Umpium. You will remember this is the camp were Kyu Kyu’s sister-in-law, niece and nephew are housed. They were able to meet us at the front gate and allowed to cross the road. We had taken photos of the family and stopped to give them to them. There, we encircled them and prayed for them. (As they say, “There was not a dry eye in the house.” – the team is uncertain how Min and Kyu Kyu were able to drive away after seeing their relatives go back behind the barbed wire. Pray for Min and Kyu Kyu and their family. Pray that one day they will be united with out barbed wire around them nor separating them. (We know they were able to leave because of their faith and trust in God that will one day answer their/our prayers.)

By the end of the of the four hour drive back to Mae Sot, the team had decided they would go straight to Wikalow Orphanage. The children at the orphanage now total over 180 (in 2008, our first trip, about 80 orphans lived there). Somchai told us, the persecution in Burma has increased and parents/families are sending their children across the borders to safe places. Wikalow is a safe place, but it is small, undermanned, and bursting at the seams. They need more housing and adult leaders. We hope we can make a difference in their situation as we tell their story and financial support grows for the Christian children housed there. Another new addition to the Wikalow community was armed check points on the road to the orphanage. But despite all that – the children were waiting for us to arrive. We sang songs; we photographed all of them (only 161 were willing). We will be traveling back to them later this week for games and crafts. The team commented on how obedient and cooperative the children were. It was the perfect ending after a long and tiresome day.

Tomorrow, Sunday, we will be in Mae La Refugee Camp. This camp holds over 50,000 refugees. The team will split up into three teams. Three of the team members will be preaching at three of the five Christian Churches in the camp. Min will lead and peach for one team; he needs no translator. Jerry and Larry will lead and preach for the other two teams – translators are a must – which means longer or shorter sermons. (Alex, at least we knew days ahead of time rather than minutes upon arriving at the camp.) Pray for the teams, their messages and their interactions with the people at Mae La.

By the way, it has not gone un-noticed, by the team, that you are having snow of “Epic Proportions” (as defined by the English speaking cable news networks) in the Middle Atlantic States. We have heard about some electric outages, etc. etc. For those of you who are in those areas, “We are Praying for you.” (Please have the snow removed by the time we arrive back home.)  ---  The Thailand Team 

Friday, February 5, 2010

Thailand team 5 Feb 2010 from village UpPhang

Greetings from the mountain side village of UpPhang Thailand. We are in the natural living grounds of the Mhong Tribe people (you will have to google them). The temperature here is a balmy 80 degrees with a light pleasant breeze during the day and probably 70 degrees at night. (We hear that those in Maryland are due for a big snow storm. Tell the Taylor family that the snow blower is in the shed – have fun. )

We did not write to you yesterday because it was very late and we were very tired. Our journey to the first refugee camp yesterday was three hours from Mae Sot. We have not seen, ever, the many “hair-pin” turns on mountain roads that we saw yesterday and today. (Not in West Virginia and Hawaii – we don’t think that famous street in San Francisco counts either.) What an incredible journey. If you are ever car sick, the journey to this village and refugee camps is not the journey for you. Needless to say we were glad to reach our only stop for the day – the Umpium refugee camp.

We were greeted with a lunch, Indian style on the floor, of traditional Burmese and Thai foods. As one of the team members stated, “They have pulled out all the stops and given us the best they have.” This was and is a very humbling experience. This camp had approximately 30,000 people (give or take away a 1,000 or 2,000). We also learned that this camp has Christians, Buddhists, and Muslims (any religious group) within the barbed wire. We learned that the dictatorship in Burma is currently killing or retraining all religious groups. This camp and others are growing substantially because of that persecution. One of our team members, Kyu Kyu, actually has family members in this camp – her sister-in-law and a niece and nephew. It was hard leaving them behind. They have their papers to be relocated to anywhere in the world, but they do not have the money to essentially bribe the government for their release.

Today, the 5th, we traveled to the Nu Pho refugee camp; this camp has approximately 40,000 people. They were not behind barbed wire – this camp is really close to nothing – not even a main road. Our driver was anxious about his new van on these very rough roads (he had already damaged his van on the roads in Umpium Refugee camp). We were again greeted with a lunch with the pastors and leaders of the Christians in the camp. All the people we encountered were and are incredibly kind and happy to see us. It reminds us of the stories of Paul in the New Testament when he talked about greeting the people in Christ – it brings tears to our collective eyes.

A summary of the two days activities are almost identical:

- Jerry and Min conducted two CHE Bible Studies 1) Forgiveness 2) The Attributes of God

- Sylvia and Larry conducted two CHE Christian Living Studies 1) Jesus Teachings on Love (Love your enemies) 2) How to Pray for Others.

- Renda, Lois, Kyu Kyu, and Jim lead Youth Ministry activities (what a blast!) 1) A puppet show about Hygiene. 2) Songs with the puppets and Jesus. 3) Balloon hats. 4) Photographs with each of the children in their Balloon hats. 5) Bounce-out Dodge Ball. 6) Juggle ball groups. Etc. etc. Eventually, there were sooo many kids, all the team was involved in some way with the children’s activities. The children were so excited; so were their parents.

- Each camp day was approximately 4-5 hours of teaching and activity time. The drives back to our Guest House were 2 hours going and 2 hours coming.

Today, we also traveled to a new construction site that Somchai is building within ½ mile of the Burmese border. On the border there is a small village with many children and young people. Somchai is going to build and equip a Christian Activity Center that has computers (used of course) and the regular “stuff” that youth expect today. His hope is to attract some of the Buddhist children to understand that just like the internet – God is everywhere.

When we returned to UpPhang, this evening, we reflected about the two camps we visited. The first question was difficult, “What do you think about the living conditions at the camp?” Renda and Jim put our experience into perspective when they said, “The conditions are good.” Another team member stated, “Define good.” The reply, “There is no raw sewage in the streets or pathways. The children are clothed and fed. Parents are attentive to their children. The children have a school (primitive) and a residence that is neat and clean. They have a church area to worship in.” Jim and Renda have both been to the Kenyan slums and their perspective reflected their knowledge. The rest of the team only has our Thailand experience.

It was interesting that at least two team members who walked down an alley way in Bangkok thought even the refugee camp was better than the city. (We told you Urban Ministry is difficult.) All of us agreed that we would never want to be in a place that would restrict our local travel nor allow us to work. We also recognized that the people we encountered in the last two days were happy to see American Christians. We were a breath of fresh air from a dull daily routine within a camp that does not promote hope.

But, we were with people who know, without any doubt when you hear them sing, that their hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Many of you may recall, at a time in Christian circles in America, when “Concerts of Prayer” were popular. You have never heard a real “Concert of Prayer” until you hear the many voices of people trapped in a place they do not want to be. They end everything with Amen – “Lord, Let It Be.” God bless the people we encountered today with your Grace, Mercy, and Love. AMEN. --- The Thailand Team

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Thailand team 3 Feb 2010

After eight hours in a van or Somchai’s pick-up truck we are in Mae Sot!!! We had a safe trip and learned again that traffic lines on the road are only suggestions and not the law.

First, we want to reflect on our activities on the 2nd of February. Urban missions or ministry is very difficult and the Coley’s are to be praised for their work here. They have been at the University for eight years. They said, “In those eight years we have baptized about eight people. We have averaged about one conversion a year.” That is difficult work. The team remarked that our activity level for the first four days in Thailand was slow, by our American standards. None of us felt like we would be called to such a ministry, but a favorite Bible word did come to mind – perseverance. God has blessed the Coley’s with that gift.

We also know that neither we nor they have any idea if only one of those conversions will be the next (name you favorite Christian leader) person to bring many to Christ. Greg Coley gave us a tour of the University (ranked #2 in Thailand) and the team sat in a public place and prayed for the students, the professors, the Grapevine Christian Campus Ministry, and anything else that came to our minds. We visited the Coley’s home and met their three children (we had already seen them on Sunday) but this was in their environment and it was good.

Our job at Grapevine was to serve the university students at their Souper Tuesday event. The ladies, on the team, shopped for the ingredients of Bob Taylor’s famous “Crab-balls” with Old Bay seasoning. The men went shopping for supplies that would be sent back to the Sunday kid’s activity (another Grapevine project). The leaders needed folders and other materials to keep the children’s individual “stuff” in, so it would be protected from week to week. The afternoon was spent preparing the “crab-balls” and vegetable trays and homemade dip. We helped set-up the activity center with tables and chairs.

All individuals involved for the coming evening stopped and prayed for the influx of university students and the purpose of the evening – sharing Christ in a Buddhist world. We played games, watched very short parts of “The Passion of Christ” (subtitled in English and Thai languages). Questions were asked about a God that would willingly give up His life for the benefit of the world. No other god has ever done that! The question was answered in small groups and in Thai language so the team did not know the answers given, but God knows what He is doing with each one there and the leadership of a very difficult urban mission.

After trying, and not being very successful, in flagging down taxis at 9:45 pm to go back downtown, we were able to get two taxis that were willing to make the trip without charging extra.

Next, let us tell you about today and our travel to Mae Sot. Thailand countryside is very pretty, especially as you get closer to the mountains. The rice fields are planted (the #1 export) and building seems to still be going on in Thailand. Roads are being paved and widened. Gas was 23.68 Baht a ½ liter. You can look that up and know that gas is still cheap in the U.S. We also traveled some toll roads getting out of Bangkok; the urban worl
d was left behind.

As we came closer to Mae Sot we began to encounter police and army checkpoints. Somchai said, “Most of the time they are checking for drugs or illegal’s” (like the people we will see tomorrow and the following two days). Most of you know that the refugee camps are filled, for the most part, with Christians who have fled Burma. Somchai told us today, “The dictatorship in Burma is now targeting all religious groups for destruction or retraining. Refugees are becoming greater in Thailand.” (We also learned, on our trip to the Grand Palace, that the Burmese Kings, 100’s of years ago, were always fighting with the Thai Kings and this is why any Burmese refugees are kept behind barbed-wire. They are still not trusted by the Thai people.)

Finally, we made two additional stops along the way. One was in a “Hillside Tribal” market where Somchai bought some root spices that he can only find here. The people were very friendly. The second stop was not far from Mae Sot; here was a statue/shrine of the regional spirit that watched over the area. As native people drove by they would “honk” their horns to acknowledge the presence of their protector god.

We are in a land that does not lack for many of the basics of life, but we are in a land that is stuck in idol worship and animism. Also, FYI we are at the DK Hotel where a sign in the lobby states, “No Child Sex Trade Allowed.” That’s another story. ---- The Thailand Team

Monday, February 1, 2010

Thailand team 1 Feb 2010

Well, the day began early for a couple on the team. They woke up at 4:00 a.m. and could not go back to sleep. So, they had a “hot tea party” while she read her Bible and he read more of “The Reason for God.” The team met for breakfast at8:00 a.m. Jim noted the variety of food that greeted us every morning. Renda had devotions based on Mark 8:1-10. Her theme was compassion – this evolved into a long discussion time about missions, Christianity, world religions and purpose.

We met at 10:00 a.m. to go to the Grand Palace. Believe it or not – we did not take the traditional taxi – we took a river taxi (a much cooler ride on a very hot day and about the same price). The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings established in 1782 (about the time of the founding of the United States). The Grand Palace was the Royal residence and contained the throne halls (no Royal family lives there today). When a new king is enthroned he spends the first night as ruler in the original bedchamber of the kings. This is an act of tradition showing that he is assuming his power. Also, in the complex is the renowned Temple of the Emerald Buddha (one of Greg Coley’s interns said, “It’s really the throne of Satan.”). The Emerald Buddha is really carved from a block of Jade sitting on a Thai throne. In 1434 the image was covered in plaster to hide its worth, but when the plaster began to fall off, many years later, it was mistaken for green emerald and the name stuck. (Now that you have that interesting fact we’ll turn to the team opinions of the Grand Palace.)

All the team was amazed at the opulence of the buildings. The glitters of gold and porcelain were every where. The statues were very detailed and strange (like the one that looked like a rooster (no not Renda’s rubber chicken) with the beak of an eagle and growing out of the top of the beak – an elephants trunk). There were guards in stark white uniforms; that stood at attention like the Buckingham guards. All that opulence surrounded by poverty. Thai people were admitted free to the Grand Palace, but the real kicker was many came with a gift of an egg or flowers or purchased some sacrifice to be offered on the grounds (not the same as the blood sacrifice of the Jews in the Old Testament). The team was also struck by the total pagan idol look and feeling of the grounds – while we’re sure that the Thai’s saw themselves as standing on holy ground. We talked about how today’s Christians may want to visit the Holy Land, but we know that God is every where and His Spirit is in everything, so therefore He is with us regardless of where we are. What a comforting feeling.

After a hot day in the Grand Palace (maybe Greg’s intern was right) we headed back to the hotel. We actually had difficulty finding a taxi that would take us, but our fearless leader prevailed.

We had lunch at the hotel and then four of the team decided to follow Renda’s idea about foot massages. Oh, it felt so good.

The rest of the evening was devoted to dividing up all the games, toys, and assignments for the real work of the rest of our trip. We unloaded eight bags of stuff and rearranged them into compact kits for three refugee camps, two orphanage schools and the small Bible College. More supply shopping tomorrow and “Souper Tuesday” with the Coley’s at the University. We are going to be up at 6:00 a.m. for a long day of work. It is estimated that we will not return to the hotel until 11:00 p.m. So, tomorrow night you may not have a detailed update. --- The Thailand Team