Good morning/evening everyone! It is about 7am on Wednesday morning in Chiang Mai, which means it is 7pm Tuesday evening in Kansas. That really is weird to think about, isn’t it? If you think that is strange, wrap your mind around this: it is the year 2551 in Thailand. They do not use the calendar that we use, they base their calendar off the life of Buddha, and thus it is the year 2551. I feel like Michael J. Fox leaping forward in time. Come to think of it, I do see a resemblance in Mike Lane to Christopher Lloyd….
I would like to take this opportunity one more time to thank you all for your prayers. We have been blessed with good health, good spirits, and lots of energy this entire trip and I know that is an answer to prayer.
Funny how the little things are sometimes the best things. Last Friday evening, Payap church had a dinner celebration to welcome us. Instead of just feeding us, they decided to make it a fun event where everyone helped make the dinner. This was sort of a bonding exercise so we could all get to know each other better, and learn about different foods while we were cooking. We made some stir-fry and some soup that was amazing! Then for dessert, Knox led the cooking, and we were asked to give an American cooking demonstration. We knew about this ahead of time, so we were prepared. Naturally, we could not really bring a bunch of stuff with us from America, so we were somewhat limited in what we could cook for them. Also, we realized that much of the foods that we enjoy in America are actually foods from other countries, not America. We decided to make S’mores with them, since it was sort of an American tradition, and we could make them together. More bonding. We had to bring the Graham crackers with us, as they do not have those here in Thailand. We were able to purchase the Marshmallows and chocolate here in Thailand, and got Thai charcoal (different than what we use in America). The S’mores were a gigantic hit – they loved roasting the Marshmallows, as they had never done that. They absolutely loved the Graham crackers, with many of them coming back just to get another cracker!
I guess my point here is that a little thing like a S’more has done more to close the gap between Knox and Payap than months and years of talking. The chance to do things hand in hand with the members of Payap church has really changed lives. Gary Chapman, in his book The Five Love Languages, talks about Quality Time and Acts of Service as two of the love languages. We definitely see these in action here on this trip.
Mike led a discussion last night with the members of Payap and Knox that was probably the best 1-hour of discussion we have had to date with them. We broke out into small groups, did some icebreaker activities, and then learned how to say a Bible verse in both Thai and English. Sounds easy, and maybe a bit hokey, but it was really neat to see Thai’s learning to say English words and Americans trying to say Thai words, all to the glory of God. The discussion that followed was all centered on the 5 love languages and how we can use them together in our Evangelistic efforts. The small groups really helped the Thai’s become less shy and to open up and speak more freely. It is kind of a cultural difference, Thai people are much more reserved and quiet, so speaking out in a large group is very intimidating for them.
In closing, I would just say that I feel the partnership becoming stronger and stronger each day. I believe that this partnership is a very good thing for Payap church and for Knox church, as we both take the gospel to the ends of the Earth. Weird to think about the end of the Earth for Payap being Overland Park, Kansas, isn’t it? Perhaps we should take time to remember that from time to time, instead of always tending to think of our location as the center of things.
We miss you all, and can’t wait to see you all again soon.
God bless.
Joe
