This past week of ministry was so busy and taught me a lot, so the weekend yesterday was very appreciated! Even in our two off days, God was at work and taught me so much in different ways, so I thought I’d share!
On Saturday we had team time in the morning and shared our testimonies with each other, and then we split up to decide what to do for the day. Some of us talked about going to the Ancient City, which the missionaries who run Place of Grace had told us about. They said it’s set up like Disney World, but instead of rides, it’s architecture and monuments from throughout Thailand and throughout Thai history. I wanted to go, but I felt exhausted from such a busy week and wanted to save my personal spending money for the next weekend, since we’re planning to go to the beach. (I caved and went to the ATM so I’m set now but ag the time I was frustrated.) But my team was just so kind and reassuring and encouraged me to go, so we jumped in a Grab (Thai Uber) and were off.
We pulled up to the Ancient City and bought our tickets. Each ticket included the price of a bike to take the tour! The park was shaped like ancient Siam and was huge. There’s no way we even saw half of it. All of the bikes were clustered together like carts at IKEA, all old and simple, in faded reds and blues and plain metal. I loved them.
We jumped on and started pedaling through the park, and any doubts I had about coming fell away with the exhilaration of biking around with my team into the sunny, humid Thailand afternoon and flying past ancient Thai statues. Some had been moved from their original locations, so we saw entire second century temple from a completely different spot in Thailand. And even the replicas were ornate and incredible, with such precise and detailed carving! I was amazed at all the attention and care that went into each building. Most of them were Buddhist-related, and it was interesting to see how intertwined that religion has been in Thai culture for so long. Even now only about 1% of the population here knows Jesus.
We flew by these beautiful buildings on our bikes, then jumped off and ran across bridges to temple replicas suspended over water. We climbed dark staircases and looked out at the Ancient City. We lived in a time machine, walked through history.
At one point, I was telling some of my teammates that I was sad the photos we took the previous weekend feeding elephants had gone missing. We shrugged it off and kept exploring, but as we were getting on our bikes to leave the park, I paused.
“Hang on, there’s an elephant there,” I told my teammates.
We all stopped and stared. Across the river where the royal boat replicas were displayed, an elephant calmly swished its tail. It wasn’t in a cage or an enclosure— it was just living its life right there, and I was in awe that I got to live my life just across the river.
“Let’s go!”
We hopped on our bikes and raced over to the bridge over the river. Across we went, and we saw the elephant’s trainer sitting and watching her. He didn’t pay us any mind as we went up to her. She wasn’t really paying attention to us, either, but as I got closer she turned around and I put my hand on her trunk. She was muddy, rough, wrinkly, and insanely enormous, and so incredibly peaceful. To exist in the same space blew my mind, and I couldn’t believe that I almost didn’t go to the Ancient City at all.
It’s so simple, so small, so seemingly coincidental, but it’s moments like that where I know God’s looking out for me. Not having photos with elephants is not the end of the world, but even in such a silly and unimportant matter, He provided. How much more does He provide when nothing else is going our way? How much more does He show us when we only take the time to watch?
So far, He’s showing me that every day is an adventure with Him. He’s showing me that I don’t have to feel or act a certain way to be seen and known by those around me— this community sees me just as I am and accepts me just like that, just like Jesus does. He’s showing me that my identity is that of His daughter and that’s enough. He has a plan. But more than anything He does for us, He seeks a relationship with us, and it’s in the little things that God shows His vast love— because His love is too enormous to understand in its entirety. He breaks it up for us in small pieces that we can understand, until all we can do is share it.
In this last week, I’m listening and watching for what He’s doing. I want to live this week so boldly and share His story so powerfully, with the joy that comes not from us but from Him. This week, I’m making crafts for the kids to put together, taping cardboard, playing with them, talking to the people we run into around our mission base and in the markets, and worshipping with my teammates. This week’s our last, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be powerful. This week is God’s that He gave us, and it is good.
