Nu Poe Outreach Highlights

Last week we were invited by one of the pastors to come along and help at a discipleship training course… little did we realize until after we agreed that he wanted us to help teach! Well, here is how the week went, beginning with a typical day:
○ 0600- Awaken

○ 0630- Bucket Cold Water Shower (brrrr)

○ 0730- Breakfast of yellow Indian curry, grease sticks (similar to donuts, but w/o the sugar), & of course, rice
○ 0830- Mingling with students from surrounding villages, practicing English
○ 0900- Worship
○ 0930- Lori's testimony & encouragement
○ 1015- Anders' teaching James 1 (definitely weren't my words- it all flowed too seamlessly)

○ 1200- Lunch of vegetable dishes & chopped chicken w/ chopped bones
○ 1300- Dennis spoke on Ephesians 1-3

○ 1500- Class dismissed
○ 1600- Checked out hydroelectric power generators & solar panels most homes in the area are using for electricity

○ 1700- Woke Lori up from her nap to teach Sunday School on Daniel in the lion's den
○ 1750- Local kids showing us their beetle collection rolled in the cuffs of their pants!

○ 1800- Feast of fried salted minnows

○ 1830- Enjoyed the beautiful views and sunset

From Aug '09 Web

○ 1900- Darkness without electricity in this remote village means sleep

Photos!

Here's the photos! Scroll down & check out the slideshow on the right hand sidebar of the blog or click here!

Trip to Nu Poe

We headed to Nu Poe camp today to help and teach at a refugee camp and village. We have teamed up with a couple others from the Christian Outreach Center (our church) and set out on a very, very long journey. The drive is about 11hrs from Chiang Mai and the terrain is probably the wildest, bumpiest, windiest, motion sickening & slowest that we've ever been on. In addition, we are in the middle of "wet season" here in Thailand, so there are rivers of water flowing down formerly paved roads. They have created such deep ruts on one stretch the driver had to constantly swerve from one side of the road to another, whilst still managing to hit many ruts along the way! At the end of one 70mile stretch, there is sign reporting 1,219 curves in the road as it follows the contours of the mountainside! I would believe it as we could only travel between 12-18MPH!

Even though it was the wildest ride we have ever experienced, it was quite possibly one of the most scenic and beautiful with breath-taking views of the untouched mountainous jungle and small Thai villages.

After an arduous 11hr trip, we finally we arrived around 8pm, Anders completely dead asleep from the Benedryl, he had to take for the motion sickness, made him too drowsy to stay awake! It was funny to watch him bump all over the back of the pickup truck while never waking.

They had been so kind as to round up bedding from all around the village to make beds beds for us on the bamboo floor complete with mosquito nets! As there is no electricity in the village, we found our way around by candlelight!

Many pictures to follow...in about 12 hours.

This Week @ The Camps

This week we're headed to the refugee camps to help teach classes! Check back at the end of the week for a full report! Pray that hearts and lives will be changed for His glory!

Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. ~John 15:5, NLT

Sacrifice

Hours ago, the question was posed to me in a very personal way, how much am I willing to sacrifice for God's call? The call to come here to Thailand, to a foreign land, a place where I would hardly even want to visit, let alone live- is not easy.

How much does God call his followers to sacrifice? The security of a job with benefits? A steady income? Our friends? Our health? Our spouse? Our kids?

If we are to truly follow Him, He calls us to lay it ALL down at the cross (i.e.- give Him control over everything we hold dear)! Now this doesn't mean it will be taken away, but if it should, will we still be lifting our eyes to heaven in thanksgiving and focused on Jesus?

If we hold the Bible to be the true inspired Word of God, what does He have to say about sacrifice? Matthew 19 might be one of the most difficult chapters in the Bible to grasp.

This commentary from BibleGateway on Matthew 19 spoke greatly to me. I tried re-writing, but couldn't have said it better:

Sacrifice and Reward

Jesus had promised a man treasure in heaven if he followed him (v. 21; compare 6:20); the man preferred to keep his treasure on earth (19:22). The well-to-do young man of 19:16-22 was like many "First World" Christians today. We want God to affirm that we are religious enough without costing us anything more than we have already been offering him. We trust only tentatively the value of heaven's kingdom and hence are prepared to sacrifice only little for it; but one who is not sufficiently convinced of the gospel's truth to sacrifice everything (compare 13:44-46) will not prove worthy of it. This is not to say that we are justified by our merit-we must receive the kingdom like a child (19:13-15). But genuine, saving faith is practically shown not by merely reciting a prayer but by living consistently with what we profess.

Jesus promises to more than make up for our sacrifices; do we believe him enough to sacrifice whatever our calling demands? As Craig Blomberg (1992:301) comments: "This entire episode should challenge First-World Christians, virtually all of whom are among the wealthiest people in the history of the world, to radical changes in their personal and institutional spending."

The Powerful Can Scarcely Enter the Kingdom at All (19:23-24)

Jesus apparently employs a common figure of speech when he speaks of a camel passing through a needle's eye (see Abrahams 1924:208; Dalman 1929:230). As much as we want Jesus to have said something else, he said that the rich and powerful could barely enter the kingdom at all. This statement shocked the sensibilities of the disciples even more than verse 10 had; they share the values of Jesus' enemies (Rhoads and Michie 1982:91-92; Mt 16:23). Presumably because many of their contemporaries viewed wealth as a mark of God's blessing (for example, Ep. Arist. 204-5; m. Qiddusin 4:14), the disciples may have assumed that Jesus' standard for people who were not rich was even stricter. If not the rich, who then can be saved? (19:25). Yet because God alone is good (v. 17), salvation by merely human means is impossible for anyone.

Jesus Promises the Kingdom to Whoever Follows Him (19:25-30)

The disciples emphasize that they have forsaken all to follow Jesus, and he does not dispute their claim (vv. 27-28; 4:22). Nevertheless, even once we have committed our lives to him, we must watch and pray to be ready for still other tests. Faced with loss of possessions, the rich young man walked away (19:22); faced with possible death, Jesus' disciples would later abandon him and flee (26:56).

Because families may oppose Christ's call to discipleship, a true disciple must be prepared to abandon not only possessions but also family (19:29; compare 8:21-22; 10:21, 34-37) for Christ's name (compare 5:11; 10:22; 24:9). Jesus himself (12:46-50; 13:55-57) and probably many in Matthew's Jewish Christian audience had suffered rejection by their families, a pain felt much more severely in that culture than in ours.

The modern Christian emphasis on family values is important, but we must beware lest family become idolatry: for instance, parental opposition or concern for our children is not an adequate excuse to reject God's call to the mission field. In response to such sacrifices God multiplies our resources (19:29) precisely because in the kingdom we find a new and larger family than the one we have left behind, and as a family true believers share their resources with one another (Acts 2:44-45; 4:32-35; Kee 1977:109-10; Tannehill 1975:147-52). This assumes that the church will live like the community of God's kingdom, that his will may be done on earth as it is in heaven. While such words may have encouraged early faith missionaries (Trocma) 1975:203; Rhoads and Michie 1982:92), they just as readily address a persecuted church (Heb 10:34).

Specifically to these twelve who forsook their livelihoods to follow Jesus' call, Jesus promises that they will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Mt 19:28). That Jesus would reward his loyal followers would not have surprised them; they seem to have expected as much (16:16, 21-22; 20:20-22). Thus when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne (19:28; compare 25:31; for "glory," 24:30) those who have followed him in his humble estate will rule (a common sense of "judge"; compare, for example, Judg 4:4; 10:3; 12:7-14; 15:20; 1 Macc 9:73) Israel's twelve tribes. Indeed, Jesus probably chose exactly twelve disciples with such a connection in mind; see comment on 10:1.

In Matthew's context the lesson extends beyond the Twelve (5:19; 20:23): those who sacrifice now and become least in this age will inherit the place of honor in the coming age (19:30-20:16; 19:30 and 20:16 function as an inclusio, bracketing the enclosed parable). The disciples' reward in the kingdom will be commensurate with their sacrifice.

cited from The Bible Gateway, quoted from Intervarsity Press at: http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Matt/Sacrifice-Reward

Meetings, but a Fender-Bender

We had two back to back lunch meetings today. The first was visiting our Thai friends, the language tutors, who were returning our nine-cookie "easy bake oven". Boy Lori was excited to see that again! She even tried to seduce me with freshly baked goods, but I sadly had to resist, given the 26 American pounds I'm glad to be losing! We also visited the Linguistics Dept. and Bible translation teams who are currently working to reach the unreached.

So, as if our life wasn't exciting enough already, we figured a little fender-bender would be entertaining. No, this wasn't planned, no it wasn't our fault and nobody was injured, thank the Lord!
Negotiations.

It was a <5mph collision into the bumper of our friend's truck. In Thailand, when there are accidents and foreigners are involved, the general rule of thumb is to settle the damages immediately and leave quickly before others arrive and expect a bribe themselves. Because, when foreigners are at the scene of an accident, whether or not they were involved, they are usually considered at fault, by default... because they are thought to have more money.

The Damage.

The driver spoke some English, admitted fault and offered to go have it fixed that day. After speaking with our Thai friends at the church, we thought best to accept the driver's $13 bribe, and fix it ourselves to avoid further complications with police, etc. Talk about a different culture!!

Settled!

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. ~Matt 6:33-34 (NIV)

A Refreshing Experience

As there seems to be a shifting clog somewhere in the mysterious network of drain lines somewhere in the house- we're unable to take warm showers in the primary bathroom...

Now I don't mind the cold shower all that much and find them quite refreshing, but Lori on the other hand, finds them quite miserable. So this afternoon she relayed how she took care of that problem. No, it wasn't through re-routing of the plumbing, as I would have done, but instead through prayer- something I sadly didn't think of.

Trepid, as she stepped foot into the shower she prayed for a better-than-tepid shower. She turned on the water and it... still felt cold. Saddened for a moment that God didn't answer her prayer, she thought for a moment then prayed again, "God, could you please allow me not to feel cold?" Guess what? Sure as shower, Lori exclaimed that she didn't shiver or shake or feel any discomfort from the "less than modern convenience"! Praise God we can ask Him for His help, even in the small things.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD. ~Isaiah 55:8 (NIV)

Sometimes He doesn't answer our prayers when we want or how we want. But maybe, if we re-consider what we are asking and ask according to His will and His ways, which we can only know by reading His word, He would be happy to oblige!

An Italian Anniversary Dinner

Thank you to our kind parents who provided a gift enabling us to go out on a nice Italian date!

Our meal was complete with lasagna, pizza margharita, and a toast... with garlic toast!

Two Anniversaries- Marriage & The Blog...

We are having a lovely anniversary... sick with food poisoning from the train ride, homeless, and staying at a hostel with screaming children! Despite those things, we are glad for we have the Lord and each other! He has surely carried us with patience, healing, and excellent housing prospects!

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. ~Proverbs 4:23 NLT

Finally Arrived!

Two flights, a taxi-cab ride (including a mistaken side-trip to the bus station), a 17hr train ride (14hr standard ride + 3hrs for striking an intoxicated pedestrian), and a songtao ride to the church (as we didn't have a home to return), we safely arrived back in Northern Thailand early Friday morning (even with all our luggage)!

Thank you all for covering us with your prayers. Please pray for that man who was hit. The Holy Spirit prompted me to go and help. Thank the Lord, I obeyed. I arrived at the scene just in time to avoid absolute catastrophe from the First Responders about to paralyze the man with their "technique" or rather lack of training.

You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. ~Psalm 16:11 NLT

Life is 10% Occurence & 90% Response

We are currently in Taipei, Taiwan at a neat little lounge with internet and showers awaiting our flight back to Thailand! We didn't pack our toiletries or towel in our carry-on, so just dried ourselves off with a t-shirt and hairdryer. =O Thankfully they had complimentary soap!

What an adventure we've already seen!
Anders' Dad & Mom drove us to LAX where we unloaded our luggage three times at three different terminals! We purchased our tickets through Delta, they put us on Air China Airlines, and we finally (third time's a charm) found out we weren't flying on Delta, nor Air China, but China Airlines... goodness.

After saying our tearful good-byes and thinking we were finally on our way...
We spent two and one-half hours at the check in counter trying to understand why our second leg of our journey had been cancelled and we hadn't been re-booked to another flight. China Air rep said "Can't you see I'm very busy? This isn't our problem, please move aside so I may help other passengers check in." Taking a large breath, saying a little prayer, Lori ran over to the Delta Terminal (visiting them for the second time now) and I insisted upon using the agent's phone to call Delta so she could explain it and not back out so easy. Delta blamed China and China blamed Delta and us. China Airlines said we should have called three days ahead of time to check our itinerary. Huh?? Never have done that before.

Thanks be to God, we finally ended up getting on the first leg of our flight, arriving at the boarding gate fifteen minutes prior to departure. (Note: we originally arrived at the airport 3.5hrs ahead of time). They moved our second leg of the flight 12hrs later after much convincing that we deserve a ticket. We later found out that Delta needed a favor and China Air needed a favor and we were in the middle of their "deal".

We were relieved and feeling that we were out of the woods, in comparison to other options (like spending the night at LAX).

Not so much...Upon arriving in Taipei, we learned there were seats available on our originally scheduled flight, but they were in business class and if we wanted to take that flight, we must pay the difference. =(

They also mentioned they couldn't find our luggage, at which point they decided "to fit us in" on our originally scheduled flight, then told us to take up the luggage issue with China Air in Bangkok. Second prayer answered.

We decided to cool down, pray and take showers (hence the t-shirt). After a much needed shower, we were told that our luggage has been located and it would arrive in Bangkok on our originally scheduled flight. Third prayer answered!

Moral of the story? Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we respond to it. It looks like God has fun sometimes trying to determine how we will respond to things that seem so disastrous at the moment.