Looking back and random thoughts

I'm looking back at the last 6 weeks of my life...never before have I had so many cold showers and slept in a sleeping bag for this long. I have not blow dryed or curled my hair for six weeks and make up gets put on half the time. My hair dryer died in Australia. Some of these clothes are going to stay here in Thailand, they just don't get throuoghly clean here and after all this sweat and dirty cities, they are done!

Today I worked with the childrens ministry at a church in Chonburi. I had the cutest little 6 year old girl stuck to me all day. She was really smart, funny, cute and spoke a little bit of English. I loved having her there and made the day so fun!

Yesterday, we went to a slum area and visited a family, some of the adults are sick with AIDS. I got to hold a 6 month old little girl and pray over her as I held her. She was so sweet. Most poor kids in Thailand don't wear diapers or underwear. I'm happy to report the baby peed on Miriam, not me!! About 15 neighbor kids showed up to hang out with us. We sang songs, shared the story of Jesus with them, and made bead bracelets. This is probably the biggest thing that has happened to them in a long time and it is such a good feeling to bring this light into their day. There were four adult women at this house and Miraim and El spent time talking with them, with the help of a translator. All four women were really excited to hear about Jesus and all asked him into their hearts. This is the first Christian family in that area/neighborhood. Our host, Louise, said we planted a church!! How cool is that!

Chonburi brings us back into a city. Ubon was nice because it was in the mountains of Thailand. much cooler weather and beauty everywhere. Chonburi is hot, loud, busy and humid. But the people are amazing and our team is going full force until the last second here. God is using us to pour out his love, what an honor!

Please check out my friend Simon's blog. He posts pictures and writes about our adventures...you will enjoy it! http://www.cheology.blogspot.com/

Off the map

The last days have been amazing and heartbreaking. I am now in a little town in Northeast Thailand called Ubonratchathani. The people group here is the Isan people and their language is a bit different from Thai, but the basics are the same so I get by. Today is my first time having internet access since Jan 28 and I have really missed it, and you guys!

We have been doing a few different ministries. We are hooked up with a little church in the town that reaches out to the surrounding villages. There are 2500 villages!!! We spent one day in a village an hour away painting the roof trusses of their church. When I say church, I mean a concrete floor and posts, a block wall in the front, hand framed roof trusses and tin metal roofing, and old stools for the seating. No walls, windows, doors, or proper seating. The church looks great after the painting and it was really fun for all of us. We camped over night there and went and worked in a school the next day.
My team is really loving being out of the big city of Bangkok and spendig time in the quiet of the country. Another day we went to a slum village and did a program for the kids. We sang songs, did a skit, danced, played tag and just had lots of fun. It was so sad and eye opening to see where these families live. This particular village is in a flood zone so every rainy season they get flooded and to the top of their shacks. For some, their walls are made out of blankets and their shower is a dirty little hut that half closes.
We have gone and worked in schools on two different days. We do an assembly, play games, play sports and try to give the kids something really fun to remember. At the first school, I helped with SIndre by teaching in the kindergarten, but the teacher left and we did not have an interpreter for part of the time. Thank goodness for songs with actions, and rock paper scisors!!! At the second school, I was marveled by the facilities they are in. The assembly hall have holes in the wooden floor boards that were big enough for a little foot to go through and you could see straight down to the dirt ground below. Later that day we had a soccer tournament with the locals, they are so good, naturals. Luckily the europeans on my team have grown up with the game and put up a good game!
Another day we went to a village to join a home church and encourage them and we did the same thing again last night. Often they end up encouraging us more than we do for them. They have so little and yet they are so heartfelt and firey about Jesus. I wonder if I would be as positive as them if I had as little as they do. Everywhere we go, they give us the best hospitality and cook the most wonderful meals for us. They tone down the spicyness for our team, but they say its not worth eating if it doesn't make you sweat!!
Everyday we are so busy, we start early and go until 8 or 9. The church is so excited to have us here and they have our every minute planned!!
We are here until Friday night, the 9th. Tuesday morning we are heading 90 kilometers out of town to another village near the Thailand/Laos border. We will be visiting a few house churches to encourage them, do some kids programs, probably play soccer and maybe work a school. We will be camping overnight again. We will get to go shopping at the border on Wednesday, but probably not cross over. Then head back for the last few days of service in Ubon.

We are staying with the assoc. pastor and his family. They have a pretty big house and the 20 of us (including our interpreter Gan, from YWAM Bangkok who is traveling with us) fit quite well. The 7 of us girls have the master bedroom and for the first time since Australia we have hot showers!! But only the girls!! The boys bathroom does not have a water heater! We also have a tent on the porch off the master bedroom and we take turns sleeping out there if it is not too cold. The weather is much cooler here and no humidity like Bangkok, more my style!! We are having to use our sweatshirts here.

There is so much more I could say, but this is getting long....so it will have to wait. I have seen God move in amazing ways in our time here and it is a privledge that He uses me for his work! We are headed to Chonburi, Thailand on Friday night via an overnight bus. Will arrive Saturday morning. On Feb. 17 we head back to Perth to start working with Impact World Tour. I have no idea what my internet access will be over the next few months. I was blessed by wireless internet and friend's laptops when we were in Bangkok.

Signing out with love, Laura