A lot has happened this past week. It has been really interesting to spend the holidays away from home with a new group of people and in a new culture. Christmas was a lot different here in Thailand, for one thing it is manly Buddhist in the village we are in and no one goes to church on Christmas Eve. However our contact had some of their friends over and we had a small worship service at the church next door. They even gave us a chance to sing some Christmas songs for them. It was kind of funny to have 13 guys singing a melody of Christmas songs to the locals here. We were really out of key but knew that it was alright because no one understood what we were singing anyways. They were just glad to see us there. I was able to focus more on the true meaning of Christmas, and the birth of Christ. Not having to worry about all the stresses we so often add to Christmas at home.
On our day off last week we had a chance to ride some elephants in one of the nearby towns. It was so much fun. At first it was the most uncomfortable ride ever sitting on top of the elephant swaying all over the place but once I figured out how to just go with it, it was not that bad. It’s amazing the strength of those animals; I could just feel it the entire time I was on top of it.
For ministry this week we have been working at a school about 200 yards down the road from us. Some of the guys have been helping teach English, but many of us have helped cleaning and painting the school grounds. Apparently the Thai Princess is supposed to visit the school on the day we leave. Needless to say we are all hoping we get a chance to meet her, before heading back to Bangkok. We have also helped some of the neighbor harvesting tapioca. It’s hard work but good to feel like we are actually making a difference helping out the people here, since the language barrier makes it very difficult to do some of the same relational ministries that we have been doing.
New Years Eve was much more like home. During the day we helped in the tapioca fields but that evening we went to one of the neighbor’s houses for dinner and some games with the kids in the village. Then we came back for a worship service at the Church. Our contact this month works with YWAM and they had invited many of their friends from YWAM to come and visit for New Years. I have not counted but I think there were about 40 people staying here for New Years. It was lots of fun, we had a bbq, and some of us had found some fireworks that we shot off at midnight.
I hope everyone has a blessed New Years. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.
Drew
