About a week ago, I was standing onstage before a group of about 150 Thai students. To my left was a Buddhist ladyboy; to my right a Muslim girl. These university students, majoring in English, were tasked with leading English camp. We came alongside them as native-speaker-backup. Honestly, it was pretty weird. I spent a lot of time showing the difference between fifTEEN (15) and fifTEE (50) and trying to correct pronunciation. The camp lasted about 3 days. The days were long but not particularly hard. I spent lots of time sitting, waiting, watching the Thai teachers, eating insanely spicy food, and wondering…What am I doing here?
Thai University Student Teacher. The shirt says: “I’m in English Major”
If I made a list for you of MISSIONARY THINGS WE DID, it would seem rather unimpressive. I was able to share something about Jesus for about 2 minutes with a few girls and taught a song with scripture to the kids. No mass salvations or healings. No deep conversations. No getting to share much of the gospel. Heck, we didn’t even get to teach that much English!
Yet, I’m walking away from this experience humbled and thankful. On day 2 of the camp, our ministry contact asked us how we were doing. I was quiet for a few minutes thinking before I responded, “I’m starting to see that many of the things that look like great ministry and the things that have long-term impact are often not the same.” My focus shifted from TELL EVERYONE THE GOSPEL to:
- Be a positive memory/experience for these university students. Put drops in the bucket for establishing trust and relationship between Joe & Sarah (the missionaries we are with) and the university students. Care.
- Give tidbits of truth that the Holy Spirit can use later. That may be simply mentioning that I serve Jesus Christ, the son of God, or teaching a catchy song with scripture. Care.
- Pray for & encourage the people who are here long term. Care.
Joe said, “That’s a good way to look at it. There’s not a lot of flashy ministry here in Thailand. I could get everybody to say the “sinners prayer” today and they would be back to burning incense for Buddha tomorrow. The work here is slow.” Furthermore, our contacts have some tight ropes to walk on relationally: share too much and they won’t be invited back. It is slow work that requires diligence into subtleties of Thai culture and relations.
Buddhist altar about 2 minutes away from us. People come throughout the day, offering incense, fruit, and fanta. They bow and pray before the man-made statue.
The day after coming back from English camp, I sat down with some Muslim friends I met on the beach and talked about prophecy, God providing a covering for our sin, and how to know whether or not scripture is truly from God. We really enjoyed conversing with each other. Again, I was struck with how God was shifting my perspective. I spoke unapologetically, but I did not speak from fear. There was no bullying them or trying to trick them into believing something. Instead, we sat as learners, all wanting to know the truth about who God is and what that means for humanity. Not CHANGE THEIR MINDS NOW, but instead:
- Have an honest and thoughtful conversation about faith. Share my experiences and show them around the Bible a bit. Care.
- Get to know them as people. Hear about their experiences with religion growing up. Ask (not trick) questions. Care.
- Present who Christ said he was and share, to the degree they are willing to listen, why I believe him. Care.
Ministry this month is odd. I’m actually super thankful that I’m not raising support this month, because I haven’t many stories to get you jazzed up about. Instead I am trudging through a pretty overcast spiritual atmosphere alongside my teammates and sisters. I’m trying to find Jesus each day, and be patient and confident in his plans even when it doesn’t look or feel like much.
The reality is: life is ministry. It’s not something to turn on or off. Sure, some days we have really exciting stories about how God breaks through. Many days we live simple lives of quiet obedience. We love our neighbors as ourselves (or we try to…). I could call it “dishes ministry” or “conversation ministry” or “teaching ministry” if I wanted. And I think it’s good that we step out in new “‘ministry” ways, be it feeding the poor, praying for the sick, or sitting with someone who needs a friend, but even better when this “ministry” perspective just becomes daily life.
So, thank you. Thank you for walking with me in this journey of perspectives. Thank you for encouraging me, supporting me financially, praying for me, and loving me tremendously. God chose each of you (whether first time reader or longtime supporter) to be involved with me in this strange beautiful year, and I am immensely grateful.
From Thailand with Love,
Natalie
4 Muslims & 3 Christians (Our contact & 2 of his children) in a Buddhist temple.
