Thailand is a country of beauty and full of pleasant, accommodating people.
Below the beauty however, just below the surface, lay a spirit of spiritual blindness.
On the day that we took our temple tour the beautifully ornate temples erected for a man that claimed to have achieved god status took me back.
Buddhism is the “national” religion in Thailand and it permeates their very being.
On every corner there are “spirit houses”.
These houses are usually built to house spirits that could either bless or destroy ones business or peace in ones home.
Driving through town you cannot help but see these houses on the corner of business properties or on the rooftop of apartment buildings.
Entering into the Nana bar district there is even a spirit house erected so the bar girls can leave offerings for a good night at work.
Left on the tables are offerings such as burning incense, sodas, food, and even toys.
If people walking down the street pass a Buddha they will bow to the statue and some even leave offerings along their way.
Every morning the monks come out seeking “offerings” from those most committed.
Monks are not allowed to eat after midday so they go out early in the morning to collect food from followers.
No matter the time of day, when a monk passes by, some will sit down on the curb and wait to be blessed by him.
Thai men are expected to become a monk during some point in their lives.
The Thai people have proven to be devout.
I spent the evening with a lady boy last night that was quick to inform me he was Buddhist after I asked if he had ever heard of Jesus.
The devout will go weekly, some even daily, to pray and meditate hoping to achieve nirvana.
If one achieves it however, they must continue to make offerings, visit the temple, and provide for the monks in order to maintain their status.
There is a different kind of believer found in Thailand however, and the numbers are growing.
This past Sunday I was privileged to attend a worship service with Thai believers at Center 2, where I spend my weekdays.
We opened the service with singing; there was a special testimony, and then a sermon.
To close we had a time of decision in which two of the women who have been living and working at the Well came forth and asked to publicly accept Christ.
The schedule didn’t look much different than any service I would attend in the states.
In spite of the fact that pretty much every word was spoken in Thai, and I am the worst at attempting to retain this difficult language, I felt the Spirit settle in with us.
I was moved listening to these wonderful, beautiful, soulful, & devout people sing, with all they had, offerings of praise to The God of the Universe.
I watched in pride as I saw a woman stand with dignity before a group of people she has known only a few short months and tell of the life she has lived and been freed from since Jesus found her.
Even though I didn’t understand what she said her story was written on her face.
My spirit resounded lyrics from Jennifer Knapp’s song
Hold Me:
I am weak, I am poor, I am broken, Lord but I’m yours.
Hold me now!
Her story was fundamentally no different than any other believer in the room or really even than any other believer period.
We have all been the harlot who has been rescued from our life of sin.
We have all come from broken and wounded places.
I think that one thing the Thai believers have that the rest of us forget sometimes is how much we have been forgiven.
They remember everyday how much the cross cost.
They are surrounded by people who have yet to accept the gift they are blessed to have.
They remember what it looks like to be lost because this culture has lostness in its veins.
Deception litters the landscape and the devil has hotspots all over the city.
In the face of adversity, they have managed to stay passionate about being with and sharing the God who saved them from themselves.
I pray that I will be able to keep the power of Christ’s sacrifice on the forefront of my mind.
I pray that I too will burn to share my freedom with those I know who are still enslaved.
God is good.
He loves me in spite of my weakness, my poverty, and my brokenness.
I am His and that gives me worth, that makes me an heir, and that gives me the responsibility to seek out those who God has chosen to bring into my life.
