Here are some cool and fun facts about Thailand:
1. The head is considered the most honorable part of the body. Therefore touching a person`s head, reaching over it or pointing at a persons face is great insult.
2. The foot is considered to be “dirty“ by the Thai. It is the lowest part of the body. Never point your foot especially the bottom of the foot at someone, refer to it or draw attention to it unnecessarily. Never move anything with your foot or step over someone if they are sitting on the floor. Sit cross-legged or fold your legs to the side when sitting on the floor. Do not sit with your legs extended out in front of you. Always remove your shoes before entering the house.
3. Buddhist monks are forbidden to touch or be touched by a women, or to accept anyting from the hand of one. If a women touches a monk he has to go through a two week cleansing process.
4. Hand holding between a man and a woman is acceptable but no other public displays of affection are approopiate in Thai culture. You may see members of the same sex holding hands etc. This usually does not imply homosexual feelings but rather is a sign of friendship.
So Thailand is completely different from Canada or the USA. Their culture and beliefs are too. 94% of Thai`s are Buddhist. Every man from a Buddhist family is expected to become a monk at some point. We went to tour some of the temples in Bangkok and pray over them. You will see a lot of people on the floor praying to the gods. They always remove their shoes and are very quiet. They also give a lot of offerings of flowers, candles and incense sticks. By doing this they are declaring that the buddha, the teaching and the Order are their refuge. There are about 200,000 monks in Thailand alone. I felt a sense of heavyness walking around the temples as I realized that a lot of people are bowing to false gods.
As Christians this is hard to see and accept. Even we tend to give into false gods (sex, lust, alcohol, drugs) and more. Walking the red light district last night made me realize that a lot of these false gods are out there. So much temptation and sin in this world. It made me realize that this month is going to be about praying over these people, and also alot of freedom for people.
Continue to pray for me and my team as this month is very heavy working in the red light district. Alot of prayer is needed to uphold us in this month. I know God has us in his hands so we are safe. I am excited for what God is doing and what he will continue to do this month.
