Royal Flora

Saturday some of our team took a trip to the Royal Flora Gardens. The Royal Flora is in the foothills of mountains that border Chiang Mai. A tram takes visitors to various stops around the garden where people can walk around, enjoy the scenery, and take pictures. They have gardens decorated to represent various countries around the world, a huge temple up on a hill, different greenhouses, and various other attractions. As always I'm amazed by the beauty of the land in Thailand, it points me to our artistic creator God who has blessed us with such beauty.

Some photos of the day...

What I Learned from the Laminating Machine

I learned that the constant high pitched squeal of the laminator makes my roommate want to do this...

But seriously, today, while laminating sticker sheets for my students' desks to encourage better listening and careful work I made a mistake...I thought. I thought if I just cut off an unused part of the laminating sheet I could save a half a sheet (laminating film is quite the commodity over here). About a half a second later when the paper was all jammed into the whining machine my heart dropped. In trying to save a half a sheet of paper I had ruined the machine. After a confession of my mistake to my kind roommates and my efforts at yanking an extremely hot piece of plastic out of the unyielding jaws of the laminator, I finally succeeded in righting my wrong and I breathed easy once again.

As this happened for some reason my mind made the connection between my obstinate laminator and my obstinate self. Sometimes (or most times if I'm honest) I think I know what is good for my life, I think I know what is best, I think I know how I can serve in the way the Lord desires. And then it comes crashing down around me what I thought would be good actually ends up causing more problems. Mostly because it is centered around myself instead of the Lord. When will I learn to wait on the Lord? When will I learn to follow at His pace? When will I learn to trust that He is faithful, that He loves me, and that His plan is good? I would like this lesson to only appear once (too late for that) and I would like to master it in about an hour (too late for that too). Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. God takes His time in growing us because He cares how we turn out, and possibly because we struggle a bit in the process. We are His workmanship, the clay in His hands. It is our purpose to submit to His design, to be willing, to be still.

Maybe if I learn to trust and obey I'll make it through the "laminator" of life and end up on the other side useful for the purpose I was created for. I'm so thankful that the Lord's grace covers my sin, my efforts, my mistakes, and my "successes." I'm thankful that it is through His strength and ability I am made into a vessel for His use.

Week at a Glance

This week in Thailand...

...We agreed to help out a friend, which entailed teaching for an English camp at a nearby school to about 140 students. It was nice to have a change of pace to break up a sometimes monotonous routine. The school was hospitable and the day was smooth. In fact they took such good care of us they even dug a bee stinger out of my foot when I happened to get stung. During the day we met a man who was there living and working at the school for several months. As we tried to explain to him what we did and why, he asked us, "Are you guys like modern day nuns?" The half-funny half-sad thing was he was serious. He didn't really understand how we would think there was such a thing as the Lord's call on our lives, much less obey it.

...We had our weekly Monday night dinner with a special meal and boxed birthday cake (all the way from the States) for one of my dear roommate's birthdays. My boss's wife works hard every week to make us delicious American dinners, which we greatly appreciate.

...One morning as I walked into my stuffy classroom I was greeted by a humongous creepy spider. *Just for the record I am one of those girls who would ask her dad to kill crunchy bugs that happened to interrupt her life. Thank you dad!* I tried to be brave, because sometimes I can be, but this spider was too much for me. So I did what any good teacher would do...I asked the fifth grade boy to help me kill the spider. And by "help" what I mean is that I watched him chase it around the room, stomp on it several times, and when it refused to die...catch it with his hands. Only later did I wonder if it might be poisonous or dangerous.

...One afternoon our school cook, Phii Joy, brought me a bowl after school. As I gave her a curious look she told me that she had made som tam (spicy papaya salad, one of our favorites) exactly the way we English teachers liked it. What a thoughtful lady. She also made guidteaw for lunch on Friday. Rice noodles in broth with pork, garlic, dried chili peppers, and a random assortment of sauces. Oddly enough it is becoming quite the comfort food, which was great Friday because we were all struggling a bit with various levels of sickness.

...As I visited with one of my student's mothers after school, she shared with me about her husband's and her ministry here in Thailand. It was really neat to hear about. As she was talking she shared that there were still several things up in the air and things that they didn't really know how they were going to work out. She said she had been encouraged on Friday when her child brought home our craft project from Moses and the Red Sea on which their little hands had written "God will make a way." Even though her child didn't understand the words it was an encouragement to her to remember that God does provide.

...I spent three hours in a hospital waiting room which was gloomy and too small for the number of people. I had driven my dear friend Khruu Ooy to the hospital after she had suddenly gotten quite ill at school. I have to admit that I felt quite a bit of accomplishment that I knew how to get to the faraway hospital (unfortunately I'd been there before) and then back home after I had dropped her off at her husband's house in the city. For those of you who know my sense of direction and the moat area in the city of Chiang Mai you will understand the feat that this was. For a little while I didn't feel like a foreigner or outsider (odd considering I was sitting in a room in which no one shared my skin, hair, or eye color.)

...Last night my roommate suggested we put Nutella on cereal. It is our usual practice when lesson planning at night after the time we have to ceased to be genuinely productive to think of what snack we can make to get us going. Pretty much anything with Nutella is always an option (for those of you who don't know Nutella is a chocolaty hazelnut mixture with a consistency sort of close to peanut butter.) I have to confess one time we actually ate Tim Tams (a chocolate wafer cookie thing from Australia) with Nutella on top only several minutes later followed by a piece of chocolate candy with Nutella on it. Anyway this time we decided on cereal minus the Nutella. I have to say cereal is one of my favorite things in the world. Thanks to the sweet friends who brought cereal for us all the way from the States!

...Today, the first Saturday in a long time that we haven't had anything to do, we broke out our scrub brushes, soap, and laundry buckets (which thankfully haven't seen much use since our generous landlady gave us a washing machine) to clean our house. This is an endeavor that always produces a lot of sweat, but the results are worth it. In an effort to keep our kitchen clean we are having dinner tonight delivered for about $3.13 per person.

So there it is...a glimpse of this thing I call my life. Never quite predictable, not always easy, but with, oh, so much to laugh about and be thankful for.

Repeat

Well, it's universal...kids say surprising things. Here are some of the highlights from today...

It started off this morning with one of my little girls as we lined up in the hallway to go to class. She asked me in Thai, "Teacher, for Christmas, what are you going to give your children?" (Meaning my little band of five and six years olds.) My thoughts...1) What! It's only August and 2) Most Thai people don't even celebrate Christmas...where did that come from? Although our kids did start randomly humming/singing Christmas carols at least a month ago.

During English class I asked my kids if they knew what today was. After they replied "Tuesday," which is normally a pretty good answer, I told them that it was Miss Brittany's birthday. They didn't understand in English and instead of just saying the word in Thai I decided to sing a bit of "Happy Birthday" which was actually just as effective, they caught on quickly. Brittany told me later that they went up to her during break time, sang "Happy Birthday," and gave her hugs.

My kids have been struggling to pass a math facts speed test for a couple weeks now. The first student passed last week and this week another of my students finally passed. The other students sat a little sullen as they failed, yet again, to complete the test in the allotted time. I could see the disappointment on their faces, yet out of their sadness one of the little girls looks at the two students who passed the test and says to each of them in a sweet voice speaking in English "Good job. Good job." I was so proud of her.

My kids have been struggling with how to be good friends, with including everyone and being kind to each other. I have a hard time combating this as I can only talk with them a little about it. We had a discussion as were lining up for lunch because we were having some problems in the classroom. As we were eating I heard them start talking about it again. I turned around from the table I was at to look at them so I could focus on what they were saying because I was concerned the conversation of ten minutes ago had been forgotten. So as I watched them, sure they were about to start fighting, I saw them all put their hands in the middle of the table on top of each other's after the fashion of a sports team about to yell "break." They said something in Thai and threw their hands into the air broad smiles on their faces. They showed such unity which I was quite thankful for.

After lunch as my kids were once again lining up in the hallway, one of my little girls was filling my water bottle for me, as she came back another of my students said (in English) "Thank you, dear." You can always tell what you say a lot when your kids start to repeat it. I got another taste of that a couple minutes later when we were upstairs going to computer class. Walking into the class I realized that I had left my computer vocabulary flashcards downstairs. I did say out loud, "Oh, darn." (I know, what a terrible example). One of my students was at that time walking behind me and said, "Oh, darn." It was then that I remembered, they will repeat, even when they don't understand. I don't know why the repeat button was turned on today, but it sure was.

Just thought I'd share a couple of stories from the day, moments that made me smile and laugh out loud. I never cease to be amazed at what my kids say in Thai or English. I'm thankful they are becoming confident enough in English to speak it on their own initiative and in different situations. I'm also thankful for their character development, I pray they continue to grow in love, selflessness, and encouragement for each other.

Friendship

Yesterday was a bit of a sad day for me. Sad for several reasons actually but all having to do with friendship. The feelings of sadness began to wash over me in the morning and just continued throughout the day. It was a quiet day at school, I just had four of my kids. During phonics as we were working through a sheet coloring only the pictures that began with the letter d, I noticed one of my little girls looked on the verge of tears. I gave the other girls instructions and took this particular little girl out in the hallway where I asked if she was okay and she proceeded to burst into sobs...not tears...sobs. She gasped out that one of the other little girls had taken her pink pencil, it shook her world. As I wiped her tears away and told her it would be okay, I saw myself in her. She was trying so hard to hold in her hurt and never had any intention of telling her friend about the hurt she had caused. After a little while, we walked back into our classroom where I gave some more instructions and then took the other little girl into the hallway. I proceeded to talk to her about the situation, after which she ran in and swapped pencils with my broken hearted girl. As I looked at them both sitting side by side not quite at peace with each other, wisdom from a dear friend came to me. I never really learned how to communicate with others effectively about feelings and hurts...it is something that only recently I've been learning because of this very loving friend. We've had some practice hurting each other, stewing while trying to hide the pain, then sitting down and talking through it, usually involving tears. The amazing thing is that after our conversations our friendship is so much stronger and we are able to keep moving on together. It would be quite unhealthy if we just stuffed our feelings down inside and weren't able to communicate them with each other.

Because of what I've been learning I tried to help my girls begin to learn how to communicate with each other after they had been hurt. It is just a beginning but hopefully they will learn how to lovingly and gently use unfortunately painful situations to strengthen and build their friendships instead of letting them be torn down.

The sadness came when thinking about these beautiful friendships and the truth that because of life circumstances and callings, friends who you depend on being near end up far away. To me, goodbyes are one of the most difficult things about life, and they break my heart.

The following song by Watermark fits perfectly with some some people I am so thankful to have in my life. Cherish friendships like these as long as the Lord sees fit to bless you with them.

"Something brought you to my mind today
I thought about the funny ways you make me laugh
And yet I feel like it's okay to cry with you
Something about just being with you
When I leave I feel like I've been near God
And that's the way it ought to be...

CHORUS:
'Cause you've been more than a friend to me
You fight off my enemies
'Cause you've spoken Truth over my life
And you'll never know what it means to me
Just to know you've been on your knees for me
Oh, you have blessed my life
More than you'll ever know, yeah, yeah, yeah
More than you'll ever know, yeah, yeah, yeah

You had faith, when I had none
You prayed God would bring me a brand new song
When I didn't think I could find the strength to sing
And all the while I'm hoping that I'll
Do the kind of praying for you that you've done for me
And that's the way it ought to be...

You have carried me
You have taken upon a burden that wasn't your own
And may the blessing return to you
A hundredfold, oh yeah...
A hundredfold, oh yeah..."

"More Than You'll Ever Know" by Watermark

Unmoving

You know, this week it hit me again. Hit me hard. So hard that I was ashamed, ashamed to have needed to be reminded.

Reminded of the cross... and what exactly Christ's blood bought. I sometimes think, "Sure, we're saved." "Yeah, God has given us grace." "Of course it's great that we don't have to pay the price for our sin." WHAT! What am I thinking?!? How cheaply do I view the agony and blood of Jesus Christ?

"We are not servants to the penalty for our sin, but that guilt and penalty have been removed at the cross." When I truly think about it, I deserve to suffer. I deserve to feel terrible for the countless times I sin. But I don't have to, because Christ did all that suffering for me. Why? Why, would He do that?

Because... I am so depraved that there is no way, ever, that I could make up for my sins. No matter what rituals I complete, what sacrifices I make, or what merit making things I attempt I can never succeed. God knew that so HE sent righteousness to me to meet this need. Righteousness in the form of His son.

"The Spirit of God and the absence of an attitude of defeat go hand in hand." Am I sinful? Yes. Do I sometimes live in the flesh? Yes. On the cross, did Jesus condemn sin in the flesh? Yes. Does that mean that I am not bound to my flesh and the defeat it brings? Yes.

"We do not fulfill the law by walking in the Spirit instead of the flesh, but God fulfills the law in us when we walk after the Spirit of God." I was amazed yet again, by the craziness of this. I can't save myself...I don't even have to try. When we believe in Christ and the work He did on the cross we receive righteousness and a new life. We don't have to walk a life of flesh, we are not bound to it. The way that we do live, in view of the truth, shows others the Spirit of God.

You know, all this amazes me. That God would do this for sinful people... Why would He care to send us righteousness? Why does He want to redeem us? What are His motives?

I can only think of one...

Love.

One of my favorites songs has the words: "When did love become unmoving? When did love become unconsuming?" (You Can Have Me by Sidewalk Prophets)

When did it?

This week I had to think about that...love of this magnitude...why I am unmoved? Do I really think that God desires to save me because of all I would do for Him? Or because I would understand the depth of His love and respond appropriately? No. He knew I wouldn't understand, He knew I would never do amazing things for Him, He knew I would never love Him as He deserved. It didn't matter though, because He loved me that much. He loves you that much too. Do you believe that? Are you moved? Are you consumed?

* Quotes from King James Version Bible Commentary on Romans 8

Days of Our Lives

It's been awhile since I've posted anything, I've been working on a few posts that just are not ready for public consumption yet. In the meantime, I thought I'd show you some pictures of what my students have been up to recently and share a couple stories about what has been going on in our 1st Grade Classroom.

Science...an excuse to play in mud...right? Well, we were learning but there was a little bit of playing involved. What's it worth being a kid if you can't get a little messy?

Story of the Day: Every morning when we troop in from assembly where my sweet students sing the national anthem extremely loudly and often off key we start the day with milk box in hand. We always pray the same little prayer and the students pray it with me. Today as we finished with, "...And thank you for each other." My little boy looks at me and says, while doing the motions, "head and shoulders?" As if asking if that is what we were saying. Oddly enough it did kinda sound the same as "each other."While I think it is a wonderful thing to thank God for our heads and shoulders I explained to the class that we were saying thank you for everyone in our room. I proceeded to say "Thank you God for _______" inserting every one's names. After I had finished one of my little girls blurted out, "Thank you God, Miss Emily!" It made my heart smile.

Today I had my "counselling" class, a required Thai government class which I teach more like Sunday School. We talked about how God loves us when we are good or bad, a point which was a little bit hard to get across. Today in a mix of English and Thai with some help from my class we got the point across that God loves us very much no matter what we do. The one who actually most clearly understood and said correctly in Thai was one of my little girls who comes from a Buddhist background. I never cease to be amazed with how God works.

I wanted to share this picture of my class taken just after we made our beautiful "God Loves Me!" necklaces. The looks on their faces in this picture are good snapshots of their personalities. I'd like to say that my sole male student is doing our Bible verse hand motion for Jesus Christ but I'm pretty sure he's just karate chopping something. I wouldn't have it any other way. Please continue to pray for understanding for the kids as we are really trying to intentionally and clearly share the Gospel with them.

So, as the middle of the term draws near, the numbers of mosquitoes increase, and the heat actually subsides a bit we keep on keeping on. I continue learning how to love others, teach my students, and seek after God each day.