A classic tale of a day in the life of Catie Rogers.
What the heck am I doing in Thailand?!
Life here is so different from anything I ever expected. We live at a church with our host family. We call them Mom and Dad. They are some of the funniest people I have ever met. They will never miss an opportunity to laugh at/ with you even when you do something really stupid (like hit your head on the same beam for 3 days straight). They would never let us go hungry, even if we are trying to dodge a meal. Whenever Mom brings out our meals she yells “EAT EAT EAT FAT FAT FAT”. Doing life with there family is a huge part of what ministry looks like.
Week one we started out by harvesting rice. To start, we walked into the fields and cut down the rice hay from the ground. We tried our best but we were actually the worst at cutting down the rice stalks, so we were demoted. Our new job was to cary the rice hay that was already cut, then beat it so the rice would fall out, and finally scoop up the loose rice into bags to be shipped off. Just like that we became pro’s at harvesting rice.
Week two we got to visit the men and women who were infected by leprosy. We talked to them about their lives and learned how they ended up living in the leprosy colony. We were aloud to pray for them and encourage them in there faith. Some of them even come to church, so it is nice to connect with them after. This past Sunday, I was given the privilege to give the teaching. It was not the best teaching, but it was a very humbling experience.
Now we are helping the men and women who own the cassava fields (potato looking thing). We get to help them with there harvest. They can not do all of the work that needs to be done because of the leprosy. Some of them don’t have hands, some are blind and deaf, and some have fake feet. Helping them wherever they need help is what we do. It may look like cutting down trees with just a knife, or even just loading the cassavas into a truck. No matter what we are doing they are so grateful for the help (even if sometimes they are better than us).
I’ve been learning a lot about what it means to be supporting my ministry hosts whatever we are doing, and coming behind them in ministry. My team and I would love prayer for or last month in Thailand. Please feel free to comment and reply your thoughts and questions!!!!
SIDE NOTE: For thanksgiving I made my team and family buckeyes. It felt like I was at home again!! (Also being bald rocks 10/10 would recommend shaving your hair off)
