Thailand Journey-January 2010

Wow, what an amazing but yet humbling week in Chachoengsao, Thailand. The week was busy, with a lot of culture and things to process in such a short period time. I came away feeling very blessed spiritually from the experience. I felt materially wealthy compared to a majority of the Thai people that I came in contact with.

Our group of five left Wichita, Kansas at 6:30 am on Thursday, January 21^st and didn’t arrive in Bangkok, Thailand until Friday night at around 11:45 pm. Our total travel time was about 25 hours. We lost time because Thailand is 13 hours ahead of our time here in Kansas. Let’s say that is a very long time to travel.

From the airport we headed back to the Davis’s house, which is in the rural part of Chachoengsao and about 45 minutes away. We were finally glad to get some good sleeping time. Jet lag was minimal but I did sleep until about 10:00 am that next morning.

I got the chance to meet Som and May. They were both part-time house keepers for the Davis’s. Also had a chance to experience Thai food such as Papaya salad, Pan Thai, sticky rice, and lots and lots of rice. I also enjoyed all the fresh fruits of pineapple, mango, rose apples, rambutan, and bananas.

The afternoon we had a chance to drive around the canal that was about five minutes away from the Davis’s house. We also went to where the Bethel Church is located. A very poor area and the conditions were unthinkable ways of living to us Americans.

It was very common to see shacks that were not fully enclosed and made out of whatever material that was available. No running water, kids not fully clothed, people using the bathroom wherever they were, and trash was thrown everywhere and left outside. It saddened me to see such poverty.

During some of the evenings we would walk over to the open market in the mubaan (which is similar to what we call a neighborhood). The outdoor market had vendors serving Thai dishes, fresh fruits, veggies, meats, and a few misc. items. Never knew that skinned chickens could be such a bright yellow.

Sunday was church and testimony day for me. Anyone who knows me very well understands that public speaking is not one of my strengths and one of my biggest fears.

My testimony was translated in Thai by one of the missionaries and it went amazingly well. God showed me that morning to trust in him and he equipped me with the confidence and calmness that I never knew I had.

Sunday evening we went to an engagement party of Sarah and Awt. Sarah is an American girl who teaches English in a Thai school and Awt who is native Thai. Their party was a combination of Thai and American celebration. Our time also included eating Thai food, a time of worship and praise time, and playing some fun games in Bang Saen.

During the week, we spent a lot of time painting both inside and outside of the Bethel church. I poured out a lot of sweat and burned a lot of energy in the process but it was a great cause and I felt blessed to help out for such a good cause.

On one evening, we had a chance to go to the ice factory where there are many Burmese refugees. We were able to give small gifts to the children who lived there. They were so excited to receive a generic Hotwheel car, a piece of candy, etc.

It’s very hard to comprehend how the factory owner’s house was the most elegant and expensive home I had seen in the area and yet the Burmese were living in a concrete apartment about the size of a typical bathroom in America. They are being taken advantage of and the wages they make are barely enough to pay for their room and food, but they would rather be taken advantage of then being severely beaten in Burma.

One afternoon we went to the city of Chachoengsao. The city seemed westernized and the outer part had it was typical shops, schools, homes and the center part of the city was older and not kept up as nice. You can tell by the way someone presents themselves and what they wear what status they have in society.

We also visited Wat Sathon which is a Buddist Temple. There are thousands of Thai people that come from miles away to pay respect to Buddha. They do this by bowing down in front of the idol Buddha and by providing gifts such as flowers and money. They believe by doing good deeds and offering things to Buddha that they will receive merit and good luck.

Thailand is about 95% Buddhism and so believers will build on their property two houses, a Buddha house and a spirit house. The believers will put gifts at the Buddha house everyday to give good luck and gain merit. The thought behind the spirit houses are that if you build a nice miniature house for the spirits then they would live there instead of in your main house. You also see children with strings around there wrists and ankles because they believe that spirits can enter through these areas in young children. Some also will put powder on there kid’s faces to keep evil spirits out.

Here are some overall observations that I saw on my trip. Thai people have very kind hearts. Once you become friends they treat you like family and they will do anything to protect you. They have very little possessions but are very willing to share even if that means having a little less. The kids are sometimes neglected and run around without any supervision. Motorcycles are the most common form of transportation and that they can be crazy drivers too. If you buy a drink they always give you a straw to drink with. Trash cans are not very common and people do not pick up their trash. They don’t use toilet paper, but they use what we call toilet paper as napkins. They have one of the highest rates of rabies because there are so many abandoned dogs. You also see tons of geckos and hope they don’t end up in your shower or food.

These are the places I saw and things I did throughout the week, but this is what I wrote at the end of the week that I learned from God during my week at Thailand. This is what I wrote:

“I am at a loss for words when I see human suffering. Sometimes I cry out to God for these situations or conditions that people have to endure. My heart hurts along with the lost and those who are suffering. I know that it is God’s fight and we must be his vessels to create light in such a dark world. Even if that means one soul at a time is won. God calls us to speak so that the lost can hear. One scripture that stayed with me the whole time I was there was:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6.

“For most of my life I’ve had to rely mostly on myself. I learned that when you trusted someone that in return they would only hurt you. I couldn’t even trust God because I blamed him for a lot of my difficulties I went through in life. I relied only on myself because it was the only thing that felt safe for me. In the last year and a half I’ve had to let go and slowly let God have control back. Since then he’s taken someone who thought they would never accomplish much in life and made my life more than I could ever imagined. He has given me love and compassion for people. Thailand was a trip of trusting God and it made me realize that He has so many plans to use me in the future. Now I can’t wait to continue to see God’s calling for me and I know I can trust that God will put me where he needs me.”

My trip from Thailand has not only blessed me greatly but has made me see how much I have in life compared to so many people in the world. It has helped me learn not only to trust in myself but to completely trust in God. And when you do what seemed impossible, the possibilities of what he can do in your life is beyond anything you can imagine. I am so grateful for the chance to go to Thailand. I will never forget my experiences with the people and the things I learned during the time I spent there.