This is a summary of my time in Thailand and some of my thoughts 🙂
Month 8: Wiang Pa Pao, Thailand
Ministry: Sending Hope International http://sendinghopeinternational.org/
Team 113 (1 Corinthians 13)- Rachel, Grace T., Grace C., AT, LB, Mason, Luke
What each day of the week looked like:
Sundays: Church service 9:30
For the church service we would teach a lesson by acting out a Bible story and then sing songs. Grace Chase taught a lesson on Esther, and on our last Sunday I taught a lesson on how to love like the Good Samaritan. Also on the last Sunday Mason, Grace Chase, and I sang and played three songs…“Blessed be Your Name,” “Revelation Song,” and “Oceans” (Oceans was actually a request from the girls). Mason played drums, Chase sang alto and held the lyric/chord paper, and I played guitar and sang melody. It was such an amazing opportunity to sing about our Jesus for the girls at the orphanage in Thailand.
One Sunday we took the girls to the pool after church which was a BLAST… we taught them various pool games such as Marco Polo. We also did movie nights on Sunday evenings where the girls would come into our guest house and we would play a movie for them and make them popcorn…they loved this, it meant so much to them. Also on our last Sunday here we hosted a sleepover for the girls in our guest house…they loved this so much!! We were all sound asleep by 9:00. Also, one Sunday we went to a hill tribe village in the mountains to administer medical treatment and play with the kids. We also prayed for all the sick people there. It was heartbreaking to see their living conditions, but encouraging to know where their hope comes from.
Mondays-Thursdays: English classes 9:00-11:00, game at 4:00, worship at 7:00
Grace T. and I taught the older girls. We started out with 8 girls, and then since it’s summer break here, most of the girls went back to their villages to visit before school started again, so we ended our time with only 3 girls- Moo Moo, Cream, and Ern…gosh I love them.
For game time we did a lot of water fights because it was so hot out and the girls loved it, we also taught them four-square, played some volleyball, basketball, taught them line-dancing, and more.
For the evening worship, the girls would sing many songs in Thai, and then we would teach them several songs in English. Some of the songs we taught include Bind Us Together, This Little Light, Our God Is An Awesome God, and Peace Like a River. We would also give a lesson to the girls that was translated to them from one of the staff members named Mana…Mason taught one evening on Abraham, Luke taught on identity, and I think the last evening we all shared and thanked everyone for their love and kindness.
Friday & Saturday- Off days…for our first off day we went to the Boa Tong waterfall with all the girls and the people from Ohio. It was a long trip, but so worth it. Our other off days were spent using wifi at a restaurant in town and resting.
Challenges of the month:
Very hot outside (most days were over 100 degrees), being in the middle of nowhere after living in the city the previous month in Malaysia, not having easy access to wifi which made it hard to post blogs and updates to people back home
Awesomeness:
Miriam saying “you” when she wanted something- meeting and getting to work with people from Ohio who were helping out with the Trail to Life Camp the first week we were there- going to the huge waterfall with all the girls- eating delicious Thai food cooked by the ladies at the orphanage- teaching Jesus Loves Me to May on ukulele- Mason, Grace Chase, and I playing and singing for the Sunday service- eating all our meals with the girls- water gun fights, and seeing the mischievous look on the little girls’ faces when they blasted me with water- water balloon fights- movie nights with popcorn for the girls…this included all the Harry Potter movies and The Hobbit, all in the Thai language!!- hosting a sleepover for all the girls, complete with Lays potato chips and Oreos- teaching the older girls how to make the big paper snowflake decoration- memorizing Psalm 121:1&2 with the older girls…this was challenging for them since they didn’t speak English, but they did a great job!!!- having our feet washed by the girls after the Trail to Life Camp, it was an emotional and spiritual time for us all
Sounds to remember:
The girls outside playing and riding their bikes, movies on the television, the girls singing all their songs like “Deep deep oh deep deep down, deep down in my heart…,” the girls playing guitar, we were out in the middle of nowhere so it was very quiet for the most part…thank you Lord for the peaceful silence and rest
Favorite Verses of the Month:
Psalm 121:1&2- I will lift my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made Heaven and Earth.
1 Corinthians 13…LOVE
Psalm 19…currently memorizing this. I love how it talks about the skies proclaiming the name of Jesus.
Thank you for all your prayers!!! It was a very hard and emotional time to leave the girls at Sending Hope since we spent so much time with them all month, but God has been faithful and provided comfort for my team and I.
I really want to go back to Sending Hope someday to visit, but if it doesn’t work out, I take comfort in the fact that we will see each other again someday in Heaven with Jesus. How awesome is that!! Do you know for sure that you’ll be with Jesus someday? Do you have a relationship with him? If not, he is calling for you today!! Just confess your sin to him, and ask him to save you and come into your life…trust in Him and what he has done for you…he loves you so much and wants you to be with him forever. If you have any questions about this, please let me know!! He’s the best friend I’ve ever had, and he can be your best friend as well 🙂
God bless!!! -Rachel
