The Wall Mural - Thailand 09

Finished! Well kind of, the bottom half of the wall still needs a solid color but due to construction underneath I wont be able to get to that area until they are finished. It doesn't look like they will be done anytime soon. Someone from the construction crew will finish the bottom in a couple of weeks or so but by that time I will be back home!

There are no cliche bible verses in Thailand.

Repairs to be Made

When I came back I discovered new holes in the wall. The wall is very old and falling apart as it is but this is due to the construction going on on the inside. They are putting in a vegetarian restaurant. When I saw the hole in Jesus chest it put a little one in mine too. I am just thankful it wasn't the whole wall.

SDA Language School

Heres a little promotional video we did for the SDA Language school. You may recognize a few of the teachers.

SDA Language School Bloopers

Thanks Brandan for putting this together.

Bye Thiaw

Bye Thaiw simply means "vacation." Can a missionary go on vacation? Shouldn't I be doing missionary stuff like bandaging some wounds and giving bible studies? What kind of work can you be doing when your on vacation? These are the questions that I asked myself before going. I have heard many missionaries say that no matter where you are you are a missionary, a ambassador for Christ. Working in the big city of Bangkok has definitely redefined my idea of the mission field. Bangkok has also changed my conception of what the work of a missionary is. When I volunteered to be a student missionary I was given a limited pallet of options. To be a missionary meant that you either did something in medicine or education, I honestly wasn't interested in either one of them and wondered if I was really meant to do the whole missionary thing. Just when I was about to give up on the idea of it all God opened the doors to Thailand under the call of media. Now that things are starting to wrap up I am starting to look back on the whole experience and I realize that God used me to do a whole bunch of stuff that didn't fit my job description. I have this saying up at the top of my blog just under the title it says " its not about what I can do, its about what God can do through me." Its very tempting to take pride in the things you do, especially as a missionary its almost like your put up on this Holy pedestal. Its a good thing we are not saved by our works. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9 Works are important though "Where there is no active labor for others, love wanes, and faith grows dim." DA p 881. I assure you anything good that you see come out of me comes from God.

Krabi Climbing

View from the top. With all the limestone formations Krabi is a mecca for climbers.

Looks like we weren't the only monkeys around

Snorkeling With the Locals

You dont want to swim into this guy. If you take a closer look you will notice tiny little fish living in the protection of the stinging tentacles. They are kind of hard to spot because they are the same color as the Jellyfish. It was very cool to see all the amazing stuff God created.

It's rare to see great white sharks in this part of Thailand.

We found Nemo and his pops!

Sea Kayaking in the Hong Islands

Some people live and work in these sea caves. They harvest Birds Nest and make soup out of it. Its apparently worth as much as silver per ounce or something like that. I have had the Birds Nest drink and its not very tasty at all but the Thais love it. The workers wont let you any where near the caves and will shoot you if you get to close.

I can do the most exciting thing on this earth and it still doesnt compare to the Love of Christ.
You can have all this world. Give me Jesus!

3 2 1 Bungy Jump!

What a rush, of blood to the head that is!

A view from the top of Krabi.

Meet Goi and her little sister Dora

Robin and I thought the locals would get a kick out of seeing two Farangs play soccer.

"Bowling For Chickens"

"Gorilla Wars"

Gin khaw may khrap? (Hungry?) I am learning how to make a few authentic Thai dishes.

The Hilltribe people of Chiang Rai are mainly farmers. They grow stuff like tomatoes, cherries, coffee, jack fruit, rice......

This week we were able to go to our friend Goi's home in Chiang Rai. Her house is located on top of a mountain. It was quite the ride!

The reason why I say almost finished is that I am waiting on the construction. If you look at the top you will notice a new wall is being put in, I just found out last week and so this changes some things but it shouldn't be to bad.

almost finished now, a few more hours!

 Things are running good now. It should be done in about a week or 2. 

Its been a while 

This weekend I had the opportunity to go camping at a friends place in Motlek. It was sweet! The city life can be pretty draining, so this was a good change of pace. 

Things have really started to pick up after building 2 platforms, now my friends don't mind helping. I don't blame them either, before the platforms they had me using two pieces of wood nailed together in the middle which was pretty sketchy. Thank you for your prayers, things have been running pretty smoothly and it hasn't rained here much, it still rains everyday but it just doesn't seem to hit this part of town. God is so gooooood!

I mentioned about a couple of months ago that Robin and I were thinking of doing a wall mural for the hood. Well it turns out that it is actually happening!  The landlord has given the approval and has been very helpful in providing the materials needed to get this project up and running.

So this is what the wall used to look like.

This is one of four paintings done by a Thai artist 30 yrs ago. The artist was commissioned to read certain texts from the bible and paint what he saw. The artist was Buddhist and had no exposure to western art. The picture above is not the one that I will be painting but its done by the same artist, I threw it up there to give you an example of the style that it will be painted in. The one that the Hope 4 Bangkok team decided to go with is the 2nd Coming of Jesus! At first glance it looks like something you would see in a Buddhist temple but to a Thai when they actually stop to look at it they immediately notice that there is something different. This difference causes mixed reactions to both the Thai and the Farangs ( Foreigners).  To some people its a good thing, to some its bad, and some just don't know what to think. This is a good thing, I want people to ask questions. Through questions they learn about our amazing saviour Jesus Christ!  Many know about Jesus over here but they identify Jesus as the God of the West. The last thing they needed up on this wall was a picture that a foreigner did of his God, they just wouldn't understand. I hope that in doing it in this style I will be speaking their language visually. Thai art is full of intricate details and subtlety that I as a foreigner don't fully understand. The way they portray people holding hands, body gestures, colors... all communicate something. Jesus is not the God of the West, He is not the God of Christians, He is the God of every nation, tribe, people and language. (Rev 7:9)

This is about a week into the project now. Took a lot of time to prep the wall before I could lay any paint on it. This is the base layer and it looks like I need to do a 2nd coat in some areas. With a painting like this you have to work in layers, usually starting with the things that are the furthest away. I'll try and keep you guys updated as the painting progresses. I plan to finish this in 1 month. Please pray for me, the weather here is my worst enemy right now, we are starting to enter into rainy season. 

Brandan, Robin and I just got back a few days ago from Laos. We had to make the famous "Visa Run" So we spent a couple days checkin out the what the other missionaries where doing in Lao. 

This was Jorge's last day in the mission feild so we went to The Crocodile Farm

I got a elephant to paint me a picture for a $1 , I'm thinking of hiring him to help with the wall mural.

Crocodiles were not the only animals at this farm

Sonkran 09

The streets are taken over, becoming the playground for this event.

No one is safe

Not even buses

Especially not Tuk Tuks

I am so happy to have experienced this years Sonkran Festival. Every year mid April people from all over Asia have the biggest water-fight know to mankind. Sonkran is Asia's way of celebrating the New Year. The sprinkling of the water is to represent the washing away of the past. Its cool cause God gives us a promise that is somewhat similar in Ezekiel 36:25-27 " I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleans you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you an new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh, and I will put My Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." Sonkran turned out to be such a blessing, it gave the missionaries an opportunity to interact with the community and to really have some fun. This opened up many doors that were once closed. Our neighbor was kind enough to take us out on her truck around the city. At the bottom here is a pic of everyone that went.

Khantonabori Prison

At the very end they had called all of us up to the front stage to sing them a song.

Pulling teeth here can be quite nerve racking for the prisoners, so I try to do all I can to take the next patients mind off of the approaching pain. The only thing they have to ease the pain is a needle to numb the surrounding area of the tooth, no meds. Ive seen grown men full of tattoos faint, others are so full of pain that they are dead silent but you can see the tears rolling down thier face.

Robin and I drawing characters of the prisoners as they waited in line to get there teeth pulled.

I guess i should explain this one. Pretty much the first thing I did when I got there was ask the guard for the hangnam ( toilet) thinking it would be in a building somewhere but then he pointed to this outdoor one jokingly, thinking that I a farang (foreigner) wouldn't actually use what the prisoners use. By this point it had caught everyones attention and they all were waiting to see what I would do, the guard saw the wierd look I gave him when I saw it and he offered to take me to a private bathroom but at this point it was too late, I knew what I had to do. I have to say that with all the clapping from the prisoners I felt pretty good afterwards.

Eating some authentically made Thai food with some friends!

After visiting the prison we went to our friend Yings house and stayed there for a weekend.

More monkeys

This is the famous reclining Buddha. It is actually really big!

The rainy season has come! It can get pretty crazy here, sometimes it rains all of a sudden without warning and you may need to find a quick shelter like these kids. Sometimes it rains for a minute of two and others it rains all day.

Back in BKK

Giant trees = fun climbing

Brandan, Robin and I found this massive dance/workout routine in Lumpini Park.

Locals playing a game of Takra. Its kind of like volley ball except you use your feet. I have gotten pretty good at defteating kids but these guys are seasoned vets.

Here are a few pics of me actually doing some work. It was alot of work but it was fun. The English camp had over a hundred kids come stay at a church in Chiang Mai for a week. I have to admit that at first I wasn't to happy to baby sit a bunch of kids but the cool thing is that the Holy Spirit quickly changed my heart. Just in case your wondering what is going on in the picture at the top its the parable of the Good Samaritan found in (Luke 10:25-37), Brandan was kind enough to play as the Donkey.

Summer Camp Talent Show

Goin Ape

These are some waterfalls located near the English camp in Chiang Mai.

Ruins of Ayuthaya

What I learned from Scott

Almost 1 in every 6 people around the world is a buddhist or is strongly  influenced by Buddhism. 150 million Theravada Buddhists live in countries like Cambodia, Laos , Myanmar, Sri lanka and Thailand.  850 million Mahayana Buddhists live n such countries as China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Singapore, vietnam, and wherever Chinese people have settled. Buddhism has recently grown rapidly in western countries. There are at least 1500 temples in the USA and lay clam to the ten million followers. These are faceless statistics to us, but God knows each and loves each as parents love their children. He wants them to know Him! A number of primarily Buddhist countries have serious poverty. Barely 1 out of 2 people in Laos can read. In cambodia the average family tries to live on $25 US each month. Out of 1.3 million children that are born each year in Myanmar, almost 1 out of 10 will die before they reach the age of 5. The Gospel is for the poor, with its practical help and the hope of heaven, but few in these countries have felt Gods loving arms through His church. One of the greatest horrors is child prostitution. In Thailand alone there are approximately 800,000 children under the age of 16 who have been sold  or tricked into being prostitutes ( 200,000 under 12). Slavery, abuse, AIDS, broken hearts and broken dreams are the daily reality of these little ones. Many Buddhists are lulled to a fatal sleep by the false hope of reincarnation. God has given us this one life, but Buddhists assume there are many more chances to come. Millions strive on in the vain hope that their merits or prayers will bring them salvation. Buddhism's standard of morality is extremely high. Beyond the many rules, each person must deny all desires if he or she hopes to reach nirvana. Thervada Buddhism teaches that each person must save himself without help from any outside power. The laws are like a clear mirror showing whats wrong, but there is no soap powerful engough to clean. This discourages some while others are fooled by their rices or status into thinking they are blessed because of their good karma. Many philosophical Buddhists think it is foolish and unscientific to believe in any god. the idea of a compassionate Creator is ridiculous since the world is unstable and full of suffering. the cross is confusing to many Buddhists. Those who believe in karma and reincarnation easily assume that Jesus died for his own past sins. Many Buddhists think it is impossible for one person to receive the punishment of another. Buddha told people to stay away from magic and superstitions, but people feel an need for power, so millions of Buddhists have turned to fortune telling, amulets, mediums, and all forms of magic for help. These are open doors through which the powers of evil deceive and destroy. The Dalai Lama has given Tibetan Buddhism a non violent, peaceful face, leading to the conversion of many westerners. A closer look reveals that much of this sect's focus is on magical ceremonies and contact with spirits. God longs to have each Buddhist look up and say, "Abba, father." Jesus personally carried each Buddhist's sins. The Holy Spirit strives today to draw each Buddhist closer to salvation. Sleepily, the majority of Christians are unaware of Buddhists nearby or far away.

"He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains. They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work. He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate-bringing forth food from the earth." (Psalm 104:10-14)

They Formed a perfect triangle in less than 3.5 seconds!

The purpose of this was to tell a story of some sort. I don't know exactly what it was about but what I got from it was that the gods offered protection from the tigers/demons.

Learning Phassa Thai is Fun! Heres why.

Buddhism takes its name from its founder who was called "the Budda" which means "the enlightened one," or "him who is fully awake." His name was Siddhartha Gautama and he was born in 623 B.C. as a prince in a section of India called Kapilavatthu near the Himalayas. One day Guatama slipped out of the palace and saw four scenes that changed the rest of his life. He saw an old man, a sick man, a corpse and an ascetic, an ascetic is a person who renounces material comforts and leads a life of self discipline as an act of religious devotion. The first 3 scenes brought home to his heart the striking reality that age, sickness and death come to all. the 4th scene gave him a hint of a possible escape from the cycle of death and rebirth. Convinced that all the pleasures of this world are temporary, Guatama left the luxuries and privileges of the palace. He renounced everything in order to search out a way of escape from suffering and death. He diligently practiced self mortification and meditation until he almost died. While nearly starving, Gautama recognized  that extreme asceticism was as useless as pleasure seeking. He sat down beneath a Bodi tree determined to meditate until he could find a better way. According to the story , exactly on his 35th birthday he attained enlightenment, destroying all mental impurities and gaining perfect understanding into all realities. He then called " the Budda" which means "fully awake" or "enlightened." He continued to reflect on his insights for 7 weeks and determined to spend the rest of his life helping others to move toward the same. Budda preaced his first sermon called " Setting into Motion the Wheel of Dharma" and ordained the first diciples. He proclaimed " the four noble truths" which are 1) Existence is dukka ( life is unsatisfactory, full of suffering and emptiness.) 2) Dukkais caused by tanha ( sinful cravings, and good desires which cannot last.) 3) there is an end of dukka through obtaining nirvana( escape from the cycle of death and rebirth.) 4) the way to reac nirvana is by following the eightfold path. The eightfold path is a combination of maditation and good deeds that is intended to lead people to detatch themselves from all desires both good and bad. Buddist have written about each one of these and have practiced them extensively. there focus is on the inside of a person and what can be changed through self-effort. The eightfold path includes: 1) right understanding, 2) right thought, 3) right speech, 4) right action, 5) right livelihood, 6) right effort, 7) right mindfullness, 8) right concentration .    Its important to recognize that there is a huge diversity in beliefs and practices amoung Buddist. Many times Buddhists mix the above beliefs with local religions and the worship f spirits and gods. Some Buddhists practice Buddist philosophy without any belief in the unseen. Others are very secular in thier lifestyle and thought pattern basically buddhist in name only. The same can be said of Christians. Some seek to reach Nirvana, others simply try to improve  their future life by making merit. Buddha sent out 60 desciples to each others and spent 45 yrs in active ministry, dying at the age of 80 in 543 B.C his last words were " verily do I say unto you: Perishable are all conditional things. Work out your way with diligence."

This waterfall in Chiang Mai was amazing. This type of waterfall is unique there are only two in the world. You can actually walk on it! This was pretty sweet but you can show me the most beautiful thing on earth and it would not even compare to what God has in store for us in heaven.

We have been busy these past couple of days collecting stories/testimonies from pastors all over Thailand.

This is Pattaya Prison, sadly this was the only photo taken that day. Security was tighter than usual and would not allow any photography. Going to prison was fun and I would like to go back again sometime. The majority of our day was spent pulling teeth and handing out eye glasses. Robin and I did character drawings for the inmates as they waited anxiously in line to get there teeth pulled.

Sleeper buses should not be called sleeper buses.

Malls=Ludacris

It took roughly 1 hour to get to class, depending on the method of transportation. Today I took the slower rout via fairry boat. As you can see Im enjoying every minute of it.

Robin and I plan to do a wall mural for the local community right behind these kids.

Chillin with the local community folk. Putting my Phassa Thai skills to the test. The Locals are very interested in our presence here. Its not to often they see a foreigner in this part of the city. I have learned that when you speak to one person its kind of like you are speaking to a whole group of people. When you share something with them they will then share it with all of their freinds. Wich is a good thing because I like to share the good news of Jesus our Saviour.

This world is not our home.

I have gotten sick of eating plain rice, my only solution was to hunt for fresh vegtables.

aroy may khrap?

Always look both ways before crossing the street you just might get ran over by and elephant. The top photo was taken right outside of our house.

These are my neighbourhood friends. They really bring life to the streets.

Every so often the local temple hosts a festival for the community.

This bottom picture captures the look and feel of Bangkok. City mixed with jungle. Structural and yet organic.

So many of you are probably wonderning how I am doing by now since it has been over a week since I left. Right now I am in Bangkok. It turns out that I have been given the opportunity to go to a Thai language school and learn. I have been going to classes the past few days from 7am to 12pm. After that I work on my homework and eat. The Thai language is one of the most difficult languages I have ever encountered because it is tonal for me to speak it is even more of a challenge because I speak very monotone. It looks like the majority of my work will be done in Bangkok because this is were the greatest need is right now, I was expecting the jungle when i first got here but things change, God has other plans for me right now. In the next few days I will be working out an iteneray that lists a more clear Job description but for now I just have to take this one step at a time and pray about it seeking Gods will for my life. I do know that next week the team will be heading down south to visit a prison to do health evangelism. I am looking forward to going to prison!

THANK YOU!

First of all I would like to thank everyone who has supported me in my mission trip whether it has been through donation or through Prayer. I am still amazed everytime to see how God works and provides. Thank you God for your support, thank you for using me to spread the amazing news of of your son Jesus.

The date of departure has moved from the 15th of January to the 1st of Feb so it will be a few more weeks until I post any pictures.