This month, we have had the privilege to come alongside and partner with the Rhema Bible Training Center. Being that they opened the center just two weeks ago, promotion for the center is their primary priority. One of the ways they decided to do so was to pass out flyers in their neck of the woods and they asked us if we could help with that. We were more than happy to do so and I got to be part of the first crew.
As instructed, my team (Britt, Tandi, Ace, Dyer and I) made our way to a little mall area that was one bus stop away from the learning center. It was the ideal spot because there was a huge bank and a couple of other offices nearby, and the employees of that bank would be heading to that mall for lunch. Being that the corporate world is the school’s main target, we began handing out the flyers to as many of them as possible. We decided to divide and conquer. Britt and T decided to stay inside the mall. Ace, Dyer and I ventured out and found a spot that was a few feet away from the bank and we stood there on the side walk and waited until the people started to come out.
And boy, they came out! We got to pass out a lot of flyers. And you know? It was a fun experience; if you don’t count the multiple times people gave us the side eye, or the times when they acted like they were on their phones to avoid us. Some would literally hold their purses or notebook to their faces to avoid us, while others would spot us from afar, would keep their head straight and not look at us at all. We even had this older lady who stopped and started speaking angrily at us in Thai while waving the flyer we just gave us in our faces. We just looked at her and kept on telling her: “We’re sorry! We don’t speak Thai! But English Learning Center! English Class! Call for info!” She ended up taking the flyer and walking away. It was the strangest encounter ever. However, all jokes aside, I couldn’t help but feel like this was payback for all the times I walked right past the people who hand out fliers in the streets of Manhattan and paying them no mind. Nothing like being and walking in someone else’s shoes to fully understand exactly what they may be going through. So, I just want to say I will try my very best to at least acknowledge people who passes out flyers in the street now, even if it is to say: “No, thank you!”
But I digress. Back to the story. Once the crowd died down, we ended up walking back home to rest and to take a break from the unbearable Thai heat. Then we made our way back to Rhema a few hours later because our hosts (David, Stacy and Lauren) wanted to treat us to dinner. As soon as we got there and entered in the building, we were greeted by an extremely happy Lauren: “Our phone has been ringing non-stop all afternoon long! What did you guys do!”
“What must they mean by that?” I thought, a bit confused.
She must have read my mind because she explained: “Because people have been calling us all afternoon to ask more about the English class and they’ve been committing to come starting next Monday!”
I was extremely thrilled to hear that because I honestly didn’t think much would come out of what we did earlier. Thus, it was just a pleasant surprise to hear that God totally blessed our efforts this morning. Again, this was just a testament of the #favor He’s been showing us all month long (if you don’t know what I am talking about, read about it here). And Lauren’s phone did ring a couple of times more while we were having dinner. At one point, in the middle of dinner, she recalled out loud: “Man! Stacy and I did it a few days ago and we got nothing! No one came! No one called! It was awful! So, what is it about you girls that worked!?!?” We laughed and credited it back to Jesus. And she expressed how happy and grateful she was for our help. Stacy and David were just as overjoyed as she was! Especially after what they went through to get the flyers ready for us the afternoon and night before.
David explained to us that the day before they discovered that all the flyers they originally had printed for us quoted the wrong prices for the English class. They corrected the prices on their computer and tried to print out new ones while they were at the office. When they did, the newly printed flyers were not the best copies because the printer was out of toner. The only area that was clear was the new prices. When they asked one of their co-workers if there was any toner, she said no. And they also knew that even if they tried, they would not get one in time to print out new copies for us. They therefore decided to take all the flyers home with this goal: spending almost their entire evening cutting the pricing area from the new flyers and gluing it in the old flyers. Tedious! Yes. They were falling asleep all through it too. David admitted that at point he even grunted to Stacy: “Man! I don’t think I’m gluing these ones right. They will be stuck together tomorrow for sure!”
“And they sure did!” Stacy added. “Some of them did get stuck together when we woke up the next morning and I had to throw them away.”
But they kept on going until they completed all 100 plus flyers. They were all ready to go for us when we got there the next morning. Once they were done sharing that story, it made sense why the phone calls were such a sweet treat from God for them.
It would have been so easy for David and Stacy to ignore what they felt like was the Holy Spirit’s tug at their heart to update the prices on the flyers the way they did because it was tedious and grunt work. Had they done so, I believe our conversation around the table would have been around something totally different. Thus, this is just to encourage myself and to anyone reading this to really listen to the Holy Spirit when He is trying to speak to me, and when He pushes me to do the challenging thing. Banal or not, we must do it regardless of what our flesh may want to tell us. He will for sure look favorably on us for doing so and will use it for His glory. He will lead us to places we would never think imaginable because it is Him working through us.
You’re awesome for reading: thanxies for reading!
Just a few things:
- If anyone of you is interested in traveling abroad, teaching English, being part of/learning the Thai culture and bring the kingdom of God to it, the Rhema English Learning center is looking for more helpers. Please prayerfully consider partnering up with them. Click here to find out more about them.
- I spent my third ministry month in Myanmar. Stay tuned for a blog post about what God has been doing here!
- I am $4,409 away from being fully funded y’all. THANK YOU SO MUCH to all of you have donated so far! If you have been following my journey and you have been feeling led to donate and support me financially, but have not gotten I need to have the entire by the end of this month. It is not too late, please click on the “Donate!” button above and help me stay on the race by donating the amount you feel like the Lord is asking you to give. Every little dollar does count and will make an enormous difference. Many thanks in advance!
