This is my little fish that I caught with a big pole.  (He got thrown back.)

 

And my big fish that I caught with a little pole.  (He got fried and eaten later in the day.)

 

Nid's little fish that she caught with the little pole.  (Can you see it? Look closely under her left hand against her arm.)  

 

We used crumbled bread mixed with butter, worms, and shrimp as bate.

 

And then the waiting...at least the scenery was pretty, and I brought my Thai flashcards study too.

 

Pastor and son joined us on our fishing adventure and caught some nice fish.

 

 

 Our catch of the day--15 fish all together between the 9 of us!

 

Dinner later that night...we fried 13 fish like this, leaving two even bigger ones to be frozen for a future meal.

A Monk's Retreat

 

Driving away from Bangkok, the busy, quick-moving roads began to get smaller, narrower, less crowded.  Small shack shops replaced the tall, concrete buildings.  People in work clothes and field boots replaced the skirts, ties, and polished black shoes. Babies skillfully wrapped around their mothers so work can continue replaced the children in strollers out for an afternoon walk in the park. 

Turning up a deserted dirt road, we passed a shrine and monk burial ground then came to a cluster of trees and spread out buildings.  It was eerily quiet, not even the sound of the breeze blowing through the trees or birds chattering to themselves could be heard.  The rumble of our car was very out of place and the ring of my phone even more so.  The space was open, with one central building for ceremonies and daily cooperate prayers.

As we walked down a small dirt road, we came to one of the monk's quarters.  My friend's uncle stayed here for the past week, pacing along the roofed path in an effort to clear his mind of everything.

 

  

Now before everything becomes too abstract, let me put a face to my friend's uncle.  Three weeks out of the month, he is a "regular person," living in Bangkok with his two sons, in a simple house and a quiet neighborhood.  He spends one week each month away from everything at this monk's retreat, gaining merit for himself and his family. 

It was an honor to be invited to travel here.  My friend commented on the idea of inviting a Christian to visit this Buddhist place.  Through our conversations, I learned a lot and hopefully so did they.

And one picture to finish out the trip, the uncle's friend...Mr. Snake.  Supposedly he is friendly and even likes to sleep with the uncle.  I'm glad he already has a friend, because I don't know if I would be a welcoming.  :)

The way it's supposed to work

"I just feel like I'm supposed to be here."  S, an English student, said as she joined us for worship on Tuesday. 

"That is God knocking on your heart."  L responded.

With the instructions to sit in small groups and pray for each other, L initiated, "Let's pray that S keeps learning more and more about Jesus." 

(S just sat in the group with us and smiled appreciatively.)


                             *************
L spent most of the night with S, talking to her, explaining things, and introducing her to other girls who came to know Jesus here at the dorm.  I was so encouraged to see S join us for Tuesday night worship and then on top of that, to see L stepping up to befriend her.

Firsts

 

Baking at BJD with students from English class.

"I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I've never done this before.  How do I by the ticket?  Where are we getting off?"

You would think Z and I were going to Disneyland with all the anticipation billowing around her.  We both smiled as we bought her first skytrain ticket ever and walked up the stairs to wait for the next train.  This every-day mode of transportation for some, was a compete novelty for my 19 year old friend from northern Thailand.

----

"I don't swim.  Really, I don't swim.  I've tried before...I don't know about this..."

As the smell of chlorine drifted past and sweat dripped down our backs, the cool pool became more and more tempting.  O, a university student we met on campus a few weeks ago, wasn't about to make this decision quickly though.  She obviously wanted to learn to swim but had many hesitations.  "When I was a kid, my dad tried to teach me.  Then a friend tried again when I was older. I just can't do it." After a lot of reassurance and proof that the shallow end of the pool really wasn't very deep, she put on her swimsuit.

-----

"Is it really that easy?  Just mix all this together, pour in a pan, and wait an hour?"  I could do that on my own!"

C, a new student from English class, stuck around after the lesson to help us make brownies for a friend's birthday.  She was astounded by the ease of the recipe and the delicious results afterward.  It was her first time making brownies and her first time tasting them fresh from the oven (the best part!) 


With all of these firsts, comes great opportunity to deepen relationships, build trust, and create memories.

Did you know...?

The full ceremonial name of Bangkok is:

"The city of angels, the great city, the eternal jewel city, the impregnable city of God Indra, the grand capital of the world endowed with nine precious gems, the happy city, abounding in an enormous Royal Palace that resembles the heavenly abode where reigns the reincarnated god, a city given by Indra and built by Vishnukarma." (กรุงเทพมหานคร อมรรัตนโกสินทร์ มหินทรายุทธยา มหาดิลกภพ นพรัตนราชธานีบุรีรมย์ อุดมราชนิเวศน์มหาสถาน อมรพิมานอวตารสถิต สักกะทัตติยะวิษณุกรรมประสิทธิ์). 

Thailand's king is the longest reigning monarch in the world.  He assumed his kingship on June 6, 1946.

Bangkok receives about 60 inches of rain per year.

The average monthly income per person in Bangkok is 7,716 Baht (about $257).

Thailand's population is about 66.5 million, around 10 million living in Bangkok. 

Thailand has a literacy rate of about 94%.

76 provinces make up Thailand.

75 different languages are used throughout Thailand, Thai being the official language.

Thailand covers about 198,456 square miles in Southeast Asia (about the size of Nevada and Utah put together.)

Much of Thailand is fertile agricultural land.  Its top three exports are rice, sugar, and rubber.

Siam was the previous name of Thailand.

Thailand borders Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and the Gulf of Thailand.

Facts from Operation World and Bangkok Bangkok. 

Girl's Night

"I thank God for healing my relationship with my mom.  We used to fight all the time, but now we are getting along."

"Praise God for teaching me more about him this past year, causing me to love him and know his love for me more."

"I am grateful for God showing his love for my family and me when my cousins died in the car accident this past year.  I wanted to be angry at God, but he kept reminding me how gracious he is." 

"Thank you God for providing in ways far beyond my imagination, beyond anyone could have provided or even imagined providing."

"I am thankful for God giving me strength in my studies and work and being patient with me as he teaches me over and over to trust and rely on him."

As each girl took a turn sharing what she was grateful for in this past year, my thankfulness to the Lord welled inside me even more.  What an amazing God we have! 

After a time of praise and thanksgiving, we moved on to the part of girl's night that is meant to build community and remind the girls of how beautiful they are...facials and nails!

When I told N she could pick any color she wanted for my nails, I had to agree when she pulled out the hot pink.  They came out better than I expected, but my nails probably won't be seeing this color again for a while. 

The Circle of Reaching Out

 "About 9 months ago, I was sitting where you were, in the grass, studying my books.  These people came up to me, just wanting to be my friend, like I'm doing to you now.  Can I tell you what has happened in my life since then?"

On the day I met them, they invited me to English class, their nights of worship, to eat dinner together and just hang out.  They said they were Christians, but I didn't really know what that meant.  I agreed to check out an English class, I needed to improve my English anyway.  

At first I was skeptical, but it didn't take long to realize that these people were genuine, different.  They actually cared about me, and they also cared about their God, Jesus Christ.  They talked about him regularly, spending whole evenings worshiping, praying, and studying the Bible.  I was curious...Who was this god that was so important to them?  I respected them because they respected my Buddhist views.  They didn't pressure me to believe in their God, but allowed me to come alongside them and observe. 

I moved into the dorm last May because I needed to live closer to the university.  To be honest, everything was a little overwhelming at first, but I soon began to enjoy the community I had become a part of.  It was unlike anything I have ever experienced before.

A few months ago, I noticed I was singing worship songs along my friends.  I began appreciating it when they would pray for me and wanting to know more and more about the God they had dedicated their lives to.

A couple weeks ago, their God became my God.  I am filled with more peace and joy than I have ever known.  I know he is the one and only true God.  I am freed from my futile efforts to gain enough merit and please the spirits.  

I now enjoy sitting up on the fifth floor, reading my Bible each morning and going to campus to meet other students like you and like me 9 months ago, when I didn't know Jesus.  I still have so much to learn, but I look forward to it.  And I look forward to seeing more people come to know God for themselves.

"So, would you be interested in joining us for English class or just come play some games in the coffee shop for a while?"

J is a student at the dorm where I live, House of One Heart (BJD).  He told his story to a few students at the university while we were walking around for outreach there. The students he was talking with came back to the dorm coffee shop and hangout for a few hours.  They joined us for dinner and stayed a little while into our night of worship.  The next day they joined us for English class. 

Thank you for praying for these and the other students here in Thailand.