It is hard to believe that I am mid-month 5 of the World Race in Thailand.
Thailand is a country that most World Racers anticipate: the excitement of the street food, the beauty of the beaches, the ministry opportunities in the Red Light District, and the need for the Gospel in a country flooded with Buddhism and temples to false idols.
I fell in love with this country two years ago on a mission trip to Phuket- serving in the Red Light District. It is such an equally beautiful and broken country that travelers quickly find a home with the friendly Thai people and colorful culture.
Although, there is one word that can shift atmospheres and experiences:
Expectations.
They are a dangerous thing on the World Race, and something I try to abandon at the beginning of each month, ready to receive what the Lord has for me and my team.
In Thailand, our team has found ourselves very far from many of the legendary aspects of Thai culture that Racers anticipate.
We are in a province in northeastern Thailand, Mahasarakham, where two, large Thai universities are located. It is a small city void of the cliche elephant riding, magnificent temples, floating markets, lush mountains, and breath-taking beaches.
This is where expectations can be a problem.
I am grateful that the previous four months of the Race I learned that tourism is a perk NOT a privilege of the World Race. There is an emphasis in ‘World Race culture’ of our weekly ‘adventure day’ where we are encouraged to go out, experience the culture, ride an elephant, eat crazy street food, or visit a temple.
I absolutely love that the World Race has allowed space for us to experience God’s created world and sees it as valuable as we do mission work, serving in all these countries often in broken places. Enjoying cultures and countries should go hand-in-hand with missions to widen our worldview and how our faith interacts with it..
But, it can be easy to forget the balance of holding these two things in each hand with equal weight..
This month my team is working with YWAM- Youth With A Mission- which is a large Christian missions organization. We are living and working at their base in Mahasarakham doing a variety of work. Some days we are on the university campuses, talking with students and sharing the Gospel. Other days we are running youth programs or preaching at a local church. Other days we are helping at an English Camp, teaching English, leading games, providing crafts, and sharing Bible stories. We are also supporting and encouraging the year-round Thai YWAM staff.
Is this the ministry I was expecting to do in Thailand? No, and that is why expectations are dangerous. Because this work matters too! Yeah, it is a lot less flashy than building relationships with women trapped in the sex trade industry, but it still matters. It is still Kingdom Work.
Something huge I have learned in my five months on the field is that comparison is a thief of joy. I see pictures of other teams riding elephants and walking around the Red Light District- and I CHOOSE not to let comparison steal my joy.
The LORD has asked my team to be right here- in this city in Thailand!
As I was processing through all of this, I was reminded of why I fell in love with Thailand two years ago. It wasn’t the beaches, or the exciting tourism- although those things are awesome- it was the kindness of the Thai people, the hospitality of the culture, their desperate need for the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the passion of the mighty but few Thai Christians you encounter.
That is why I love this country and that is why I won’t let the lies of comparison or the power of expectations stop me from seeing what the Lord has for me this month.
The Lord gave me the word ‘patience’ for this month. Patience in His timing, in the fruit of our team’s ministry, in His purpose for why we are at this location, and in my community. I have prayed this passage of Scripture over my month in Thailand- and I am excited to see the Lord move in mighty ways here.
Isaiah 55:10-12-
‘As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so in my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace;the mountains and hills will burst into song before you and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.’
I don’t want to live anywhere but inside the center of God’s will- because look, look at the beauty of patience in His timing for His purposes, even in the most unlikely of places.
On an Adventure Day, at the top of a nine floor temple in a near-by city Khon Kaen.
Look at these really cool elephants I found! I wonder who I could talk to about riding them…hmmm. (This picture is purely for humor)
