One of the first things we learned at training camp last May was that we have to lay down our expectations constantly of what we think this Race will be like. Die to our expectations of where we will sleep, what we will eat, what ministry looks like, what kind of access to communication we have. Anything and everything.
Well, there was one aspect of the Race that I didn't expect to have expectations about. And my expectations were completely flipped on its head.
Never did I expect to drive in a foreign country. At least not on this trip.
It all started before we got to Thailand, and I was informed that our contact had a vehicle that we could possibly drive, but it was a stick shift. Since I know how to drive stick shift, I offered up myself to the possibility of driving, as did my team mate Emily Chan.
We arrive in beautiful, Phuket, Thailand. Now Thai traffic isn't quite as horrendous as other countries we have visited so far. The Philippines is probably at the top of the list for most insane place to drive so far. But there is definitely a fair share of chaos on the roads in Bangkok and in Phuket. Motorcycles, crazy hills, lots of big cars and trucks.
Remember that part about not having expectations? Oops.
When I heard about the possibly driving in Thailand, I thought, “Oh, it's probably just a car, and maybe we'll drive it every once in a while to the beach or something for our day off.”
Nope.
Emily and I were very surprised to find out when we arrived that we would be commandeering not a car, not even a normal truck, but trucks that have a full pick up bed, complete with bench seats and huge metal roof covering it all. We're talking big, heavy duty trucks outfitted to carry around 15 people each.
And we would be driving every day.
And we had to conquer the “Hill of Insanity” that led us down into Patong and Bangla Road.
And I had to learn to drive on the left side of the road.
I had to learn to turn into the correct lane when making right and left hand turns.
I had to learn where the turn signal was. Turns out, the people around me don't accept the windshield wipers going off as an acceptable form of a turn signal. (AKA, the turn signal is on the right side of the steering wheel here, and the windshield wipers on the left)
Now, I am happy to say that Emily and I both survived, as did everyone we drove. I eventually got used to driving over the crazy hill with a loaded down truck, pushing up the hill in first and second gear , and avoiding all of the notoriously crazy motorcycle drivers.
God definitely stretched my faith through driving on the streets of Phuket, though, and I mean that seriously. Every time I got in that truck I prayed for the strength and confidence to drive a truck load of people I love, in a strange country, on unfamiliar roads. And God definitely showed up.
He filled me with a vision one day. Comparing my life to the seemingly impossible trek up the hill in the truck. Pushing through the hard times. Pushing through discouragement, exhaustion. Pushing uphill, even if I'm crawling at an incredibly slow pace. And at the top, sweaty, out of breath, He reveals His heart. A beautiful scene of His passion and love is displayed before my eyes. His wind and breath of life flows through me, around me, and I can run down into His wild love.
While driving got easier towards the end of the month, the lesson God laid on my heart about the terrifying drive up the hill has stuck to my heart. Giving me encouragement to push through the difficulties of life, push to the top, knowing that God gives me the strength to go forward. Enables me to take every step and gives me grace when I mess up. He still fills me with His life and love. And I can fly into that love forever.
