Sawadee
Time is flying by much too fast and now less than a month remains before we head home. Yet, the Lord has provided us with some unfinished business that we are looking forward to accomplishing with the energy and strength He promises to provide in spite of the extreme heat and increasingly high levels of air pollution.
Yes, the temperatures are a bit overwhelming for Minnesotans and range from mid-90's to over 100 every day. Although the nights do drop into the 60's we find it uncomfortable to leave the windows open because of the smoke in the air coming from the rice and corn fields being burned in preparation for next season's planting and forest fires set ablaze to allow next year's mushrooms to flourish. The Air Quality Index is currently at 156 and climbing with a score of 100 being unhealthy. In contrast, Minneapolis today had an AQI reading of 50, so cold is not always so bad.
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View from our apartment in January
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| View from our apartment in February (starting to see some pollution) |
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| View from our apartment in March (air quality getting worse and worse) |
Highlights this past month have included completing our one month Thai language class, which we are hopeful to build upon even after returning home in preparation for our next season in Thailand. Another highlight has been developing new friends and acquaintances around our apartment complex that include some condo residents and staff. We have also developed some relationships among several restaurant owners and workers, various families at the different churches we've attended, other missionaries with exciting ministries, and street vendors (especially those selling fresh fruit).
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Thai language class with our two teachers and another student from India
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Moriah's favorite eating place for lunch on days we had Thai class
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Menu in Thai, but no problem after starting to learn the language (Yeah, right!)
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Here's what we got, their specialty (blue from the anchan wild herbal flower)
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| Picking pork off the bone with chop sticks is an art form |
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Enjoying Moriah's favorite dish- it is really tasty and only about $1.30 per serving
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| Thai style barbecue chicken another favorite along with their papaya salad |
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Lyndell and Moriah attended a Valentine's Day party sponsored by Campus Outreach missionaries to help foster new relationships with the university students. A program was presented relating to the love of God demonstrated in sending His Son Jesus Christ to pay the penalty for our sins.
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| Valentine's Day party for university students |
We also made the short 9 mile trip (by Songthaew) up the nearby mountain to tour the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a sacred site for many Thai people. Hundreds of first year students make a pilgrimage up to the top of this mountain at the start of each new school year at Chiang Mai University as sort of an initiation to their college career.
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| Ready to climb the 309 steps to view the temple at 5,500 feet elevation |
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Large stupa at the top of the climb
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| Guardian of the temple |
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| Another guardian dragon |
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| Statue of Hindu god Ganesh with that of the Buddha |
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| Reminds us of what our entrance way looks like at our home during family holiday gatherings |
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| Young hill tribe girl wearing traditional clothing |
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| Emerald Buddha |
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| Wouldn't that be a great way to travel? |
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| New meaning to "white elephant"- actually a legend behind this one (ask me sometime) |
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Gary had the opportunity to travel with the president of the Operation Mobilization Fellowship (OMF) Hmong churches to a province west of Chiang Mai near the Burma border. The trip took over 6 hours by car traveling along a narrow and very windy road to reach the mountain villages they visited. Upon arriving he was asked to speak to over 70 students at a Christian hostel, ages 7-18, regarding the importance of education and doing their best as unto the Lord. The following day he preached at a small home church with about 20 adults in attendance, encouraging them to remain steadfast and immovable in their work for the Lord. Upon hearing that Gary was traveling to their village, one of the ladies of the church had offered to slaughter her pig to serve as a special dinner treat after the worship service. They had been expecting Lyndell and Moriah as well, however, they had to stay behind because Moriah had developed a high fever and diarrhea.
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Meeting with some key Christian Hmong leaders working with hill tribes
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Famous herbal Christian doctor from Karen people group among the hill tribes
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| Dr. Joe from Texas and Director of Barefoot Doctors Program |
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| Teaching session for Barefoot Doctors from Burma |
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| These fish do a great job on the calluses |
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| Moriah really did want to do this |
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| Frequent trip to market for delicious fresh fruit |
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Results of a successful trip to the fruit market-Yummm!
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| Answer to prayer as student found Gary's iPhone after leaving it on a songthaew |
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| Oh no! Now where exactly did I park my motorcycle? |
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| Great restaurant where you actually need a reservation since it is so popular |
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| Sipping "real" coffee at a shop where we've treated ourselves a couple times |
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However, Moriah would prefer Thai ice milk tea
Finally, Gary concluded his time of teaching this week to a group of 12 developing "medics" from Shan state in Burma. This was done at a camp outside of Chiang Mai and sponsored by the Free Burma Rangers: http://www.freeburmarangers.org. Ample time was permitted to share the gospel over the course of the days spent with the students who were all Buddhist. The "star" student was presented an extraction kit to take back to his village in a remote area of Burma which has no easy access to medical or dental care.
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Road through mango trees to teaching location
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Students sleeping in hammocks among mango trees
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Lecture on prevention of dental disease
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| Explanation of different instruments for tooth extraction |
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| Student volunteer as patient to have painful infected lower molar removed |
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| Making sure all is going well as student removes tooth |
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| Another student volunteers to be a patient |
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| Shan students |
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| My "star" student who received extraction kit understood English |
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| Student hugging me had tooth removed; my translator in white shirt |
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| Setting of Free Burma Ranger (FBR) ranch for teaching |
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Yesterday we made the 10 hour roundtrip to the Burma border to renew our travel visas and now we are preparing for our upcoming short-term ministry trip to a village in the jungle of central Cambodia. Please pray that we will be able to endure the high heat and humidity in order to be able to carry out the ministry plans we hope to do there including dental care, gospel presentation and a Bible school program for the children.
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Whew! Good thing for the owner of this red car we came by when we did!
Seriously, for the lives of those precious people who have yet to receive salvation through faith in Jesus Christ it is vital that they hear the gospel. Please pray we are faithful to the small part we are privileged to be a part of while hear in Thailand.
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