America isn’t the only place where teachers aren’t recognized enough. The teachers here literally teach themselves the material from English textbooks and then try to communicate what they learn to the kids. They are constantly learning as they teach. They definitely deserve more recognition than they get. The kids are amazing here too. They have so much focus. The classrooms have nothing between one another while we teach and have class but the kids remain focused on their own teacher.
It’s hard to have a long term vision here because the Burmese refugees (everyone) could be kicked out by Thailand at any time. They are living in the village a little ways away from the refugee camp because the long neck villages make money off of tourism so Thailand lets them live outside the refugee camp.
I’ve learned the art of a tonal language while here in the village as well. There are names here that don’t sound like actual names but it’s all in how you say it. For example, La bleh is a different child than La bla, and Lalo is different than Lalo with a deep sounding o. There’s also La-da, Lokee, Logee, and Likey.
Around 6:30 every night we join in their time of worship, we share a short message, and then we play games. We have loved being a part of that. They worship with their whole hearts. Afterwards, the electricity comes on for the night from about 7-9 so the lights come on and they can do some homework and also watch some tv before the generator shuts off. We watched Tom and Jerry this past week and I was able to laugh with them because I understood it! I used to love watching Tom and Jerry when I went to my grandma and grandpas house but I gained a new appreciation for the no speaking part. Tom and Jerry will always remind me of Thailand.
Every morning, we wake up to their worship at 5:30 am. They sing passionately. As I listen to them worshipping, observe them carrying in fish they’ve killed with their bare hands, or watch them playing soccer, I can’t help but smile. I smile because I know that God is pleased. He’s pleased to see that they are enjoying the life he’s given them, and that they are thankful to have all they need. I think of the Garden of Eden. Their purpose was to subdue the earth and multiply. They enjoyed life and God was happy. I love the statement, “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in him.”
I’ve been meditating on Psalm 37:4 this past week.
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
I asked him to show me how he wanted me to delight in him.
Obedience. To take pleasure in Him. His desires become our desires and when we delight in him.
Psalm 16:3 says, We, the saints, are the excellent ones, and in whom is all his delight. We are his full delight. Jeremiah 9:23 and Ecclesiastes 2:26 say that He delights in steadfast love and gives joy to those he delights in. If that’s the case, He delights in these kids, He delights in my team, and He delights in my best friend across the world in Honduras. I see joy when I look at all of them. He delights in me too! He’s given me a joy that my teammates comment on daily. A new glow and joy that I’ve been encouraged in the most while on the race.
Every morning, my team starts the day with praise and worship and we just speak out adoration to Him, who He is. And one of us shares a psalm. It refocuses our mind on God, and not us. It pushes us to choose joy and to choose love.
At the end of the day, we each talk about what we were thankful for from the day. We have so much to be thankful for. We sleep in a bamboo hut with running water and have time to spend with our Heavenly Father. He is so so good. He’s given me a community of people who make me laugh and who pray for me every single day and who celebrate who I am and what God is doing in my life. He is the one who brought two guys from Holland and France into our village the other day and my teammates, Kim and Bekah, were available and bold enough to seize that opportunity to share Jesus with them. He brings us opportunities to glorify Him every single day, whether it’s just joining in a game of soccer, knowing when to give our body rest, or going all out in a time of worship.
We please him when we love others and when we love Him, when we choose love, when we choose joy.
