Psalm 103:1-5

Snapshots of Dani's Visit!

About fifteen days ago I counted down the hours until my friend Dani was to arrive at Chiang Mai International Airport. I was super excited for her visit and had a really great time while she was here! This is the friend who when I was about nine invited me to a "ball" at my house, the start of a fantastic friendship which has been a huge blessing to me for the last fourteen years. This is the friend who has understood, encouraged, and laughed with me during some good times and bad. In our younger days, we would get a Wal-mart cake and just eat it off the platter with our two forks. We would play dress-up and run around the forest barefoot in winter pretending to be orphans. We took road trips together, travelled to Europe together, and spent countless holidays together. Now we are all grown up, she is married, and we live on different continents but she is the type of friend that when we get together things are just the same as they were when we were young. The twelve days she spent here created so many new memories. I'll always remember when we...

Travelled to Holland...well the Holland in the Royal Flora anyway

Took a bazillion pictures at the Huai Nam Dang National Forest

Sipped lattes at Coffee in Love

Spent the morning in Chinatown...in Thailand

Took a short road trip with Khruu Ooy including a stop at the WWII Memorial Bridge

Shared some of my favorite foods

Drank chocolate milk at one of the four auto mechanic shops we spent time at

Climbed up the waterfall and weren't sure how to get down

Visited temples

Consumed several Starbucks beverages (thanks for that!)

Rode that elephant

Spent time with my roommates

Allowed fish to eat our feet

Braved flying through the jungle on zip lines

Shopped at Walking Street

Thank you for visiting friend! I had a wonderful time, I'm thankful for the laughs, the conversations, and the memories.

Children of Light

Our school this year is super small...which I love. One of my favorite things about the smallness of the school is the close knit group of students that has been created. We have thirteen students and it isn't uncommon to see sweet scenes such as the following:

The fifth grade boy racing a first grade girl...

The fourth grade girl giving a piggy-back ride to a first grade girl...

Brother and sister laughing together...

Girls from every grade being silly together...



The whole school chasing some poor frogs around the pond area...

These pictures represent to me something beautiful...life lived together. Not caring about the distinctions of age, or economic class, or religion. One of my prayers for these precious students is "for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord." Ephesians 5:8-10

I pray that in living life together with us they may desire to come out of the darkness that claims their country, into the Light of our loving Father. I pray that together we would all learn what is pleasing to the Lord that we may glorify Him.

In His Steps

Have you ever read the book In His Steps by Charles M. Sheldon? It is the story of the courageous people of a church who take the pledge to not make any decision or take any action for a year without first asking, "What would Jesus do?" And yes, I know the WWJD craze that swept through Christian circles years ago. But seriously, what would happen if the businessmen, teachers, engineers, construction workers in churches seriously made this pledge and stuck to it? One of the main premises of this book is the idea that following Christ should cost something. The idea that many Christians live a life of faith as long as it is convenient to them, as long as it turns a blind eye to their pet sins or somewhat questionable lifestyles or business practices. The question of: if following Christ became inconvenient, if it became painful, if it caused physical material loss...what would you choose? Would you choose to walk away? Or would you choose to walk in His steps?

Sheldon uses 1 Peter 2:21 as the basis for his book. The thought that Jesus is our example and that in doing the right thing He often chose the hard thing, the thing which people did not understand, or the thing for which He was ridiculed. Should our lives not reflect His, as He is our example? "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps."

The following two quotes from the book have given me much to think about.

"The bishop found his heart sinking within him as he faced this fact: that men would give money who would not think of giving themselves. And the money they gave did not represent any real sacrifice because they did not miss it. They gave what was easiest to give, what hurt them the least. Where did the sacrifice come in? Was this following Jesus? Was this going with Him all the way?"

"...If our definition of being a Christian is simply to enjoy the privileges of worship, be generous at no expense to ourselves, have a good easy time surrounded by pleasant friends and by comfortable things, live respectably, and at the same time avoid the world's great stress of sin and trouble because it is too painful, if this is our definition of Christianity, then surely we are a long way from following the steps of Him who trod the way with tears of anguish for a lost humanity; who sweat as it were great drops of blood; who cried out on the upreared cross, 'My God! My God! Why hast thou forsaken me'?"

The call to follow in Christ's steps is not an easy one, and when I truly examine my own life I see the selfish desire to give, but not to the point where I lack. To serve, but not to the point of exhaustion. To go, but not go to the "worst" places. To love, but not to the point where it breaks my heart. To surrender my will but clench just a little thread of desire in my closed fist. I see how pitiful my efforts really are...and yet I'm reminded that the mighty God who created the universe and holds it together, daily reaches down into my life and meets with me in a personal way. His word says, "The God of peace...equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever." (Hebrews 13:21) What a relief that it is God who equips and works in us, we just have to step out in obedience to His call to follow in His steps.

I've had to ask myself the following questions this week. Is this step/action/word/choice following the pattern of Jesus or it is at its root selfish? Am I considering the consequences to myself more highly than the heart of Jesus? Am I half-heartedly doing what I know appears right when I know in my heart that God is asking for much more? Do I hesitate to act because I'm concerned for my comfort? Am I like Lot's wife looking back at all I've left not quite willing to face the uncertain future?

Walking daily in Christ's steps requires a brutal honest look at ourselves. It entails absolute, swift obedience. It demands total surrender. It necessitates risk. It bears a high cost. BUT "We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord's dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and merciful." (James 5:11)

On Beauty in the Ordinary

Today struck me with the beautifulness of life. Kind of. It's a Wednesday which means it I am at school earlier than I need to be because one of my roommates has monitoring duty. That happens on Mondays and Wednesdays, I love those days. They allow me to grab my Bible, journal, and prayer list and head to "my" bench (which I discovered today I'm pretty sure I share with a mouse). The space that has heard my prayers for the people I love, the space that has seen my tears, and the place where I gaze into the sky knowing that my God is out there and is listening. As I pray I see the huge green trees, the blue sky sometimes angry sometimes calm, and the rooftops of the nearby houses that remind me I'm not in the States anymore. I hear the children chattering in a language I don't claim as my own. I walk down the stairs to pray with our team to the beat of Thai music from the community loudspeaker. I sing praise songs in two languages. As I'm walking back to my bench for the remaining fifteen minutes or so until the official start of the school day, I pause to be still for the national anthem/king's song that is played over the loudspeakers every morning. All motion stops for those minutes and then the hustle and bustle starts up again.

As I travel to the cafeteria for snack time I stop for a conversation with one of the Thai teachers. A conversation switching between Thai and English sharing hearts across cultures. In the cafeteria I discover our cook frying chicken and she asks if I'd like to help. I wash my hands and then pick up slimy raw chicken pieces and roll them in bread crumbs. Khruu Ooy comes in and sits for awhile asking Joy to make som tam with lunch. As Khruu Ooy speeds off on the motorcycle to buy the ingredients for the papaya salad I'm summoned to a meeting. A meeting with a generous Australian woman who has come to teach us some of her plentiful knowledge gathered from decades of teaching children just learning English.

Upstairs in the heat of our teacher room our boss creates some visuals for class which he is now teaching. As he struggles with our finicky laminater, paper cutter that doesn't cut straight, and the everlasting problem of the necessary fan blowing papers in every direction we laugh. It's terrible but we laugh, and good man that he is, he laughs with us. At one point he comments on how the laminater sounds like a whole colony of insects being slaughtered. The day is not yet over. There is still dinner with a Thai friend, some more lesson planning/preparation for tomorrow, and blessed sleep on the horizon.

Today...is beautiful. Beautiful because of the unfamiliar becoming familiar. Beautiful because of friendships created through intentionality and hard work. Beautiful because of the peace in the lack of comfort. Beautiful because of shared struggles. Beautiful because God in His grace has redeemed us and called us His own. Beautiful God has brought us together here to learn how to love Him and love each other. Beautiful.

Funny Story

After eating lunch at school everyone does their own dishes. Teaching responsibility: yes... making less work for our cook: yes... sanitary: maybe not. However, my girls often end up playing in the water more than they wash their dishes, such was the case today. I teasingly told one of my girls to "move it" because she was playing with bubbles and we were all waiting behind her to wash our dishes. Amy (the 2nd grade teacher) started singing, "I like to move it move it." My little first grader started singing "I like to move it move it" while bobbing her head. Too funny.

Bringing Light

"The brave who focus on all things good and all things beauty and all things true, even in the small, who give thanks for it and discover joy even in the here and now, they are the change agents who bring fullest Light to the all the world.”

~One Thousand Gifts, A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp

May the joy

on their faces

bring you joy

and encourage you.

They are already changing the world one smile at a time.