If you smile too much, people might think you're in love.

And while I'm bragging on our Small Group, let me just add that we have some great cooks too!

Usually the easiest way for me to explain is by drawing a picture. But I'm not a very good artist (my English students can attest to that), so I'll use words here instead.

We moved the chairs in the small cafe around so we could see each other while we opened up the Bible together.  This week "we" included three Thais, two Koreans, and myself, an American.  In the background, the worship team practiced, a customer ordered a sandwich, and the housekeeper swept the floor.

We started reading from Matthew chapter 5. 

"And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:  'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.'"

While this was a familiar passage to some, others had never read it before. As we looked at other verses that helped us understand each sentence more, we talked about the meaning of each group that was "blessed."  Then we took it one step further asking questions like, "How can we live out these characteristics?"

We talked about how we want to be dependent on God, loving and encouraging to our coworkers/classmates, willing to do the behind-the-scenes work with a joyful heart, pursuing righteousness, and showing mercy.  We all acknowledged that we have a long way to go in many of these areas, but encouraged each other that Christ is the one who makes these transformations possible.

One of our small group friends summed it up well when he shared,

"I am usually happy at work. I am grateful God has given me such a good job.  I try to encourage my coworkers with the gospel.  I smile a lot. Sometimes I smile so much that people at work ask if I'm in love. 'YES!' I respond.  'I'm in love with Jesus!'"

Our small group Bible study is awesome.  Praise God for bringing together such a unique group of people with a heart to learn more about Christ and live lives that reflect Him!

Our city (Bangkok) is desperate for Christ's truth, love, and mercy to be poured out into its streets.

Ministry Glimpse: Timothy House

Welcome to Timothy House, a children's home in Thailand.  "Most of the children we have come from an abusive background.  Their stories are as varied as their personalities. We show them the love of Christ. They slowly heal and return to a child like nature. Only love can heal the broken heart."

Currently 17 kids between the age of 4 and 17 call Timothy House home.  Located on the edge of a national park, Timothy House has plenty of space for these kids to play and grow.

Rodney and Phimpha love the kids as their own.  Acting as dad and mom to 17 children is a big job though.  Volunteers, donations, love, and a lot of hard work keep Timothy House running. 

Playtime after school!

Catching dinner in the fish pond out front.

Making dinner in the kitchen.

The dish washing crew!

There's always work to be done, but doing it together makes it more fun!

Every night after dinner everyone comes together for worship (led by some of the kids) and a Bible study (led by Mom).  Every Sunday church is held at the home and members of the community join for worship. 

Praise God for the heart he has given this family, for the love that overflows to these children, and for the example they set for the community!

For more information or to make a donation, please visit:

www.lovecareproject.org/wp

.

Wonderful Whirlwind ABCs (Part 2)

Here we are, continuing the whirlwind of memories from my time in the States.  Although I had a great time, I am glad to be back!

N - Not Forgetting Thai.  One of my strategies for not forgetting Thai was to review with my Thai kid's Bible story book.  It's great because the stories are familiar and the vocabulary is easy (but there are always new words to be found.)  Quiet coffee shops made for great places to do this.  On one occasion, a woman walking by noticed the letters in my book weren't the same as the letters in hers, and I got to share my story. 

O - Outdoors.  In my free time, I got in as many hikes, bike rides, and outdoor adventures as I could.  Lake Tahoe was beautiful on a sunny afternoon, and it started snowing at Frenchman's lake on my way home after a good hike.
                                              Picturesque!  (Oh wait, that would be letter P.)

Lake Tahoe, beautiful even in the winter.

P - Prayer with the ladies at Community Bible Church.  Each week I looked forward to joining the group that faithfully prays for me and many others.  It was a precious time for all of us.

Q - Quiet time.  Even in the busyness, I really enjoyed having my own room/home to sit in the quietness before the Father. Compared to the 14 sisters I lived with (and loved) in Bangkok, it was quite a change.

Zoro Snowman in China

R - Rock Climbing.  While climbing as much in as I could in Reno, I met some new and old friends.  So fun!

S - Snow.  What's that strange white stuff falling from the sky?  (Especially cold coming from 90 degree Thailand weather.)

T - Thai Students.  It was great to practice a bit of my Thai language while some new Thai friends and I made Thai food dinner for 50 people, quite a bonding experience.

Thai noodles, yumm!

U - Unexpected. While living and working overseas has been an idea in my head for many years, I never thought I would be able to say I've lived in Thailand for 2 1/2 years.  In taking some time to reflect on all God has done in and through my life and the life of my team in Thailand I am humbled and in awe of our amazing Father.

V - Vending.  Praise God that about $500 dollars was raised through the selling of the Thai goods that I brought back.  Thank you to everyone who bought items!  This money will be used to support native Thais in continuing to minister and spread God's Word to others in Thailand.

On a drive somewhere between CA and NV.

W - Worthwhile Wonderful Whirlwind - A super busy two months, made worth it by all the fun memories, great conversations, long drives through beautiful western America, and very special time with special people.

X - eXtraordinary.  While I was away, everything in Bangkok continued (of course.)  My amazing team put on an extraordinary Christmas program, sharing the real meaning of Christmas with 80+ people, many of whom had never heard the life-changing message. Also two weeks in December we had Thais preaching on Sunday!  That's definitely moving in the right direction.  Praise God!

LifePoint Bangkok Christmas Program

Y - You.  Yes, you.  Thank you to each person who made time for coffee, invited me over for dinner, or just said "Hi" at church. Thank you also to those I didn't get to visit in person, hopefully there will be another opportunity!

Z - Zipping on as God leads.  One of the questions I got the most was, "How much longer?"  My only answer is, "It's up to God."  I really enjoy the life he's given me in Thailand, and I currently don't have plans to leave.  However, there's nothing etched in stone that says I will be here for the rest of my life.  For now I'll be taking it a year at a time and continue seeking him for direction everyday.

Wonderful Whirlwind ABCs (Part 1)

whirlwind (hwûrlwnd) noun : 2. a confused rush

That's the best word to describe the past couple of months for me.  It has been a wonderful confused rush.  Really wonderful.

A Biasi family tradition is to remember a time by making a summary by choosing a word for each letter of the alphabet.  So here's my alphabet summary:

A - Ahan (Thai for "Food").  Lots of delicious, home-cooked American and Thai food. 

Grandma and me making bagels.

B - Boiling Bagels and Baking pies, cinnamon rolls, cookies, and holiday desserts.

C - China.  A quick stop in China to visit my friend Adrienne was an encouragement to us both.

Downtown Shanghai, China.

D - Decorating for Christmas.  It's been a few years since I have gotten to help put up the Christmas decorations and decorate the tree.  This year reminded me of my kid years of decorating, at almost everything I pulled out of the box, I exclaimed, "Oh, wow, it's so beautiful!  I forgot
about this one!  Look at this!"

E - Elephant, White Elephant.  Christmas at Community Bible Church wouldn't be complete without our White Elephant gift exchange.  Many laughs and another fun experience to share with a few international friends. 

Brother, me and Auntie at Christmas.

 F - Family.  The holidays were made extra special by the fact I got to spend them with my family.

G - Gathering.  Part of Thai culture is to bring small gifts back for your friends when you return from traveling.  This trip I had some special requests: beef jerky, taco seasoning, Almond Joy candies bars, sparkly lip gloss, and snow.  (Yes, I brought some snow back too...in plastic form.)

H - Hosting and Hospitality.  Each was visit special whether I was the host or I was being blessed by the wonderful hospitality of good friends.

First time gingerbread house engineers!

I - International Students.  Trips to the grocery store, mingling with 50+ people for Sunday Dinners, sharing holiday traditions like cutting down a Christmas tree and building gingerbread houses all made for great memories.

J - not Justify Just enJoy.  A relief and praise this visit was the freedom God gave me to enjoy the fact that I have two worlds.  I can enjoy my American world without feeling guilty or like I
have to justify my American home.

K - Kids' Sunday School.  When I got to share about Thailand for the kids' Sunday School class, we learned a few Thai words, about the 10-40 Window, and how the kids can be missionaries in their own city.

L - Life Care.  I got meet many people and share my testimony with the elderly people during the weekly church gathering. 

Taking turns cutting down the tree.

M - Mountains where Christmas trees live!  This was a first for the Chinese and Japanese student we brought along. 

N...

Next week part 2 


Thank you so much for your hospitality while I was in the States.  It was so good to visit with so many friends!

A Fun First

    

Turbo speaking (and me translating) Sunday morning.

One thing about translating is that you must (at least I must) become a lot more familiar with the material than you would if your only responsibility was to listen.  Some points that stood out to me...

*There are about 360,000 Christians in Thailand, that's 0.58% of the population.

*Of those believers, about 150,000 of them are in tribal villages, which means only about 0.35% of Thai-speaking Thais are Christians. 

To put this in perspective, if you walk around Bangkok and meet 300 people, statistics show that only one of those will be a true Christ-follower.   

Doesn't that put some urgency into sharing the gospel.  

And when we share it, do we share like it is a chore or like news that we had just won the lottery?  (Cause isn't eternal life even greater than that?!)

We both had a lot of fun and are already asking when the next time will be. 

Multiplication, God Style

A fun part of small group is hanging out to play games afterward!

"I really enjoyed coming to small group with you last week."  NaamFon shared with me on Sunday. 

NaamFon has been a believer for some years and is involved in another church, so I almost didn't invite her to our Bible study.  She surprised me by being very interested and insisting on going, even though we meet all the way downtown. 

"I think I will start meeting with a small group of students to study the Bible too."  NaamFon continued.

Wait.  What?  Wow! 

Is multiplication that simple?

Well, of course it is, if God is doing it.

We model what the Bible teaches, gathering together with Christ as the focus and the Bible as our life guide, and God brings the people and does the work. 

So in the next few weeks, there will be a group of students meeting at Ram 2 university even though our team is focusing on Bangkok university.  God has shared the vision and passion with a couple other people from NaamFon's church, so they will be partnering in leading this group. 

Just imagine... What if God multiplies that group in the same way, to reach out and start another group at another university.  And what if other people from our group are lead to start a group at the other Bangkok university campus. How long would it take until there was a small group meeting at all of Bangkok's 30+ universities? 

And that's just the work God is doing through our church.  Wow God!  What a blessing it is to get a glimpse into God's bigger vision for reaching Bangkok and Thailand. And what a privilege it is to be involved!

New Fuel

I opened English class with a question to get students sharing.  "Tell me something exciting you did this past week, and if nothing exciting happened, tell me why your week was boring."

"My week was boring because I had to study every day."
"Celebrating my birthday with my friends was exciting."
"Boring.  I had to work and did nothing fun."
"I went to Kyle's house and learned about the Bible."  "It was exciting because it was my first time."

Unknowingly, this last student made my day.  He made every task in my week seem more meaningful.  He reminded me that God is working through all the responsibilities.

The small group and student Bible study Kyle and I are a part of has admittedly fallen under the "chore" category occasionally.  We have both taken our turn at being discouraged about students' inconsistency, other priorities they put first, or silence when we ask questions that dare to touch their heart.  A statement like this is fuel to keep pushing forward. 

The following Sunday, this student came to church for the first time.  As David, our new pastor, introduced himself and his family, he shared part of his testimony.  "I don't remember what the pastor preached about the first time I sat in church.  But I knew God was drawing me to himself."  I pray this is part of this student's testimony someday soon.

Uarn's Journey Continued

 No-bake cooking night with friends from English class at UniteBKK.

Uarn's story started a few weeks ago.  Start here to read from the beginning. 

"I believe in God but my dad won't let me."  Uarn shared during conversation time after English class.  I put down our English worksheet.  No amount of English is more important than this. 

It just so happened (in a completely God way which means not as a coincidence), that the three people sitting closest to us were Thai Christians who had also com to English class.  Uarn knew this was a place she could find out more about this God who loves her.  She admitted, however, "It doesn't look like a church." 

As she shared her desire to "see" God, Mii opened up a Bible and pointed to a section for Uarn to read.   After reading the story to herself, she looked up in awe. 

"Have you ever read the story of Zacchaeus before?"  One of the others asked.

"No..." Uarn said contemplating what she had read with a smile on her face.  Then her smile faded.  "My dad won't let me read the Bible.  I want to be a Christian.  I believe in God, and I love God."  Passion streamed through Uarn's young voice.

"If you really believe in your heart, than you are a Christian already.  It doesn't matter what your ID card says.  God knows your heart." Mii encouraged Uarn.  She shared how Jesus sought out Zacchaeus and wanted to spend time with him even though he was a sinner, just like he wants to spend time with Uarn. 

We are praying that Uarn can keep coming to English classes and hopefully to church and small group Bible study.  How amazing it would be to see this high school student grow in her passion for God and begin planting seeds of the gospel throughout her circles of influence--with her family, friends, neighbors, schoolmates, and teachers. 

New Life Celebration

 Sunday afternoon, we gathered at the condo pool of one of our teammates. 

"There's nothing special about this water." Brandon clarified, as he gestured to the swimming pool while explaining the command and symbol of baptism.

Time was taken for prayer, committing this new life to God's work, glory, and Kingdom.

Kyle shared how great it has been to see God grow understanding, love, and passion for Christ in this new brother. 

Funny Story: A foreigner learning Thai used the wrong word once and said, "No we will drown..." instead of "baptize."

 

 No one was drowned here!

About half of the Thais who joined us aren't believers.  What an opportunity for them to see and be a part of the celebration with us.  :)

The last baptism was Bakery (right).  How cool must it have been to watch another Thai brother (left) get baptized too. 

We went to eat Swensen's Ice Cream afterward.   (We didn't make it all the way to the original shop in San Francisco, but luckily there's a Swensen's shop in almost every mall here.)

Over ice cream, we were able to explain the reason for baptism again to this friend.  Understandably, it's a strange idea, especially for people who grow up with a background of doing things to make merit.

Thanks to an awesome team and all the Thais who came to celebrate with us!

A Daughter's Faith

The prognosis was grim. The cancer was no longer shrinking, but instead, it had spread to the brain.  Many treatments had been tried, many doctors consulted.  The morphine dip was steady and consciousness was the opposite.

"Pray first and foremost for salvation," was the daughter's request, as she booked tickets to go to Northern Thailand the following day.  All the while, she kept hoping this wouldn't end up being the last visit.

The sun rose Easter morning, but it seemed clouded by a heavy reality.  The reality that the person who brought this brave daughter into this world, was struggling to stay here herself.   The morning was filled with making new visitors feel welcome, translating the Easter message, and fellowshipping over lunch.  A day of celebration, and yet of sorrow.  It was easier to just not think about it, but that wasn't really an option.

As the daughter and her husband prepared to leave, everyone in the small ground-floor shop space, aka church, gathered around them.  While visitors looked on, the Body of Christ stood together in faith, praying for the mother in the hospital, for healing, strength, understanding, openness, safety and most of all, salvation.  Tears were shed, hugs exchanged, words of encouragement spoken.  Then the couple headed out the door to the airport.

A lot of unknowns surfaced on the couple hour flight between Bangkok and the hospital in Northern Thailand.  Was her mother still conscious?  Would she be able to to hear and understand the message of Easter as it was shared once more?  Would sharing this time be any different?  What about relations with other family members?  What about the family business? Pulling up to the hospital, all those worries were momentarily set aside.  The most important part was to see Mom.

Being a surprise, their arrival brought tears of joy to Mom's eyes.  Daughter's eyes teared up just seeing her mother, though weak, alert and happy to see them.  There wasn't time for small talk.  Some important things needed to be shared.  But who was going to talk first? 

As beginning words bumped into each other, Mom finally shared how a Christian friend had come over earlier that day.  She shared the full story of Easter.  This time the message of the hope we have in Christ penetrated the depths of  Mom's heart.  It was no longer just words, it was a relationship she wanted too.  Easter morning, she decided to throw out her idols and become a Christ follower.  This was an answer to years and years of prayer.

The journey of praying for the earthly ones we love the most, to love the heavenly One we love the most is no easy task.  It gets discouraging; it gets frustrating; it can even seem useless.  But God is bigger than the biggest hurdles, stronger than the strongest chains, more persistent than the most stubborn hearts, and more loving than we can ever imagine.  


I share this daughter's story of faith in hopes that you will not loose faith in praying for your loved ones.  While Mom is still in the hospital, still has cancer, still struggling on this earth, she now has the most important thing.  She has hope and confidence that her eternal home is secure.  No one in the family could see this Easter's gift coming, and yet God had the timing planned out all along. 

Karen Celebration

 Naam, right, invited me to her home town for a celebration of the opening of a new church.  It was the biggest gathering of Karen people in their village in 10 years.  

 

We ate a lot of pork, as it is the food for special occasions.  Pigs were killed the day before we arrived.  One dish was raw pork in pig's blood, of which I wasn't very excited about.  However, I gave it a try, a little bit, and I'm alive.  Then I asked Naam, "Aren't you going to eat it too?"  "No, I'm scared."  She responded.

 

Meet Lek's dad.  Lek is another girl from the dorm where I live.  Her dad has worked at this elephant ride company for over 20 years.  He gave us a ride on his elephant, 24 year old, Jackfruit.

 Lek's mom (left), Michelle, Me, and Naam.

 Every house we visited had food to share with us.  (Even when we had just eaten.)  It is their way of being hospitable and sharing life with us.

We always ate on the floor or on a raised floor table.  Life is simple and relaxed, but all the essentials were met. 

Look past the row of heads to see the writing on the wall.  That is the church's key verse written in Karen.  I could not read a single word, but according to my book, it says "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1)

 

Here we have three single ladies.  How do you know?  From their shirts, married women wear black shirts with red horizontal stripes around the middle.  Married men wear a red shirt with vertical stripes.  Single girls wear a long white dress or colorful shirt, and single guys wear a shirt any color other than red.  The clothes are handmade by by the older women in the village.

 Everyone was buy going here and there, taking care of guests who came from 4 other provinces, and getting everything ready for the celebration.

 Paintings decorated all walls of the church.  My favorite was Adam and Eve, wearing traditional Karen dress, in a beautiful garden, with a beautiful view of the hills and valleys surrounding them.

 The married men and women from this church singing.  Almost every church had a song to share in the Karen language. 

 While this looks too western for my idea of a Karen church, the amazing thing is that it was completely funded and built by the Karen congregation, an amazing picture of how a village can come work together.

The pages of this Karen hymn book were brown and falling out but it was still being used.  Naam, having grown up going to Thia school, can speak and understand Karen easily, but we had to ask for help to find the right page because she hasn't studied reading or writing Karen language.

 

My favorite part was meeting grandmas, aunts, uncles, and cousins and beginning to see what life was like for the students I live with while they were growing up.  7 students I know come from this village of about 200 homes.  Life is simple there, but God is working, growing the church, and changing people's lives.