So I realize this blog is long overdue as it is the new year and we are no longer in Thailand but internet has been a struggle and things have been very busy. Last month we were in Pung Nga Thailand which is about an hour from Phuket and we were working with a ministry called Eagles Rest Foundation. This organization partners with Asian pastors who are serving and living in poverty and brings them in to their retreat center for about two weeks to provide them with rest and teaching to better equip them to serve.
I have never celebrated Christmas outside of Canada before so this was a very different Christmas than I was used to. I realized how much the symbols of Christmas I am used to have become ways I identify with the holiday. It seemed weird to have a Christmas with now snow, I am used to being worried about getting frost bite being outside and this year I was getting sun burned. It seemed weird to not see Christmas lights on the houses or Christmas trees in the windows of houses we passed by. There was no Christmas music that would play in the stores or on the radio. Most people in Thailand don’t even recognize Christmas as a holiday because most of the population is Buddhist or Muslim. However, I loved the simplicity of this Christmas. Yes, it was hard being away from home and I missed all the traditions and festivities that surround the holiday season but there was something so beautiful about looking at Christmas solely for the reason it was supposed to be celebrated- Christ’s birth. And I was richly blessed this Christmas season. I was blessed by family and friends who made donations to my trip or gave me spending money to enjoy outings on the race. I was blessed by my team who became my family for this holiday season and showed Christ like love to each other and those around us and I was blessed by our contacts who welcomed us into their home and treated us like family. They blessed me beyond what I would expect or imagine. They made sure we had a tree to decorate and presents under the tree at Christmas, they stayed up late so we could use the internet to Skype people back home, they prepared a delicious Christmas meal for us and just went out of their way to make sure we felt loved and comfortable for the holiday season.
Thailand is the first country I have traveled to where Christianity isn’t the main religion. And it was hard. It was hard to see alters and temples on every corner where people would come and pray to stone and offer sacrifices to human made sculptures. It was so easy to be overwhelmed and burdened for the people living in this country who do not know the hope of Jesus but it was also encouraging to see that even in this land surrounded by idols and darkness the light of Jesus is still shining. He is present in this place and there is hope for this country. I hope to return to Thailand one day. It is a beautiful country not only in the geography but also in the history and people of this nation and I believe God is working and moving in that place.
Thank-you for everyone who has been praying for me and who has supported me financially. My final deadline is March 1 and I need about $3000 to reach that goal. I am with a new team this month and we are in a rural village in Cambodia where most people are very poor. I hope to post a blog post about this month soon but internet is about 45 minute drive away so it might not be for a while.
