Talk about an amazing Thanksgiving weekend! On Thursday we woke up and finished digging up a fish pond for the orphanage we are partnering with this month. Then we had an spectacular Thai Thanksgiving lunch, where we ate cashew chicken, mixed veggies, curry sauce, and white rice. Then later that night we headed to a friend's house, where we celebrated a more traditional American Thanksgiving with all the fixin's. We even got the chance to watch an NFL game, which we thoroughly enjoyed despite it being a taped game from a year ago. So our Thursday was filled with food, food, and more food, which got us primed and ready to dispel all our energy on our Friday of fun, fun, fun.
So the following day we got up early and headed into the town of Chiang Mai to rent scooters and cruise the city for the day. We looked like a gang of geeky tourists, cause I'd hate to say it, but you don't look very manly on a scooter. Despite our automotive accommodations and attire, we had an awesome day racing up a mountain outside of the city to a campground for lunch and a buddhist temple to sightsee. The windy roads, highly elevation, and gusty winds all added to the excitement of our adventurous day. All the while I was determined to make this a day where the kingdom of God was brought and His presence would follow us everywhere we went.
Throughout our time I was able to find people to pray for at the temple and the mall we visited. And I was able to pray for healing and have a chance to prophecy over them. I didn't see any instantaneous miracles or salvation, but I was able to show them Christ's love and have Him speak to them through me. I even got the chance to pray and bless a couple from Sweden who work as missionaries in Japan. It was so amazing to see the God encounters the Lord provided throughout the day.
As the day winded down we ended up heading to a burrito joint for chunky salsa chips and gigantic California burritos, ironically all made by Burmese refugees (I have no clue where they got their Mexican culinary skills!). Then as we were heading out I realized there was a change in plans. Instead of going home first, we were going to visit the red light district to do a prayer walk. It was a time where we knew we needed to be covered in prayer, because we were about to encounter spiritual warfare.
During our walk, some of the guys struck up a conversation with a ladyboy and were able to share the gospel with him. As I was waiting for them to finish I was standing near a row of chairs where they do massages. One of the workers kept trying to get me to buy a 30 minute foot massage, but I told her I didn't have any money on me. So she ended up just letting me sit down in the comfy leather chair and I began to converse with her. I asked her if she had any pain in her body and she said that her left forearm was hurting her. So I prayed the first time and nothing really happened. Then I prayed the second time and I began to feel a strong heat sensation, and she told me that she could feel it too. I finished praying and she said that her pain was completely gone. I think it totally took her by surprise, cause she was so used to having massages alleviate pain and not the Holy Spirit. It was such an awesome experience to show Jesus to someone in a way they never expected.
I couldn't of asked for a more exciting, adventurous, and Spirit-filled day! Well, now it's time to wrap this up, cause I'm about to go enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving meal with 60 amazing Thai orphan girls! It will be their first Thanksgiving ever, so bring on the Football, savor the Food, enjoy the Family, and don't forget the Fun!
P.S. ~ What would Thanksgiving be like if I didn't include some of the stuff that I'm thankful for? Well, being on the World Race definitely causes you to be grateful for a few things. So here's a list of some of the luxuries I've missed since being away from home and have too often taken for granted.
1. Hot showers
2. Ice
3. Air Conditioning
4. A Drier
5. The IHOP Prayer Room
6. Taxi Drivers Who Speak English
7. And Of Course, Chick-fil-A
