Wan Sii (Day Four)

I expect God to do great things, and when He doesn't I'm confused, but when He does I'm surprised. That's dumb.

This morning I asked God to direct my footsteps. He led me to the Thai Bible Society. I have literally been trying for months to get hold of a Thai Bible and/or tracts in Thai. I ordered one over the net, never got it. I ordered one through Koorong, never got it. I've been on countless websites searching for them, got nothing. So I gave up and assumed God had other plans. Then this morning, He handed me one Thai bible and a pack of tracts in Thai. 440 baht. I literally had that exact amount with me. 

God is a funny guy.

I know you've all heard me say this before, but I love Thailand. It's the weirdest kind of love I have ever felt and I've been baffled by it. But today that love started to take shape and colour and texture:

I love the Thai people. Their friendliness and sincerity melts my heart. They make me want to be a kinder, gentler, more open person. I wonder why we don't act like this in Australia and New Zealand. Why do we not smile at strangers? Why do we not say good morning to randoms on the street? Why do we not laugh at nothing?

I love the hospitality in Chiang Mai. They are so open to Westerners, so eager to help. Sure, tourists inject a huge amount into their economy, and so I guess they have a good reason to be extra nice to us. But it's not always about money. Example: I lack a fair amount of upper body strength and could not open a bottle of water on the street this morning. A Thai man walking past offered me his manly muscles without hesitation. I'm not saying an Aussie bloke would not do the same thing, just that this guy didn't have to be friendly cos he wasn't getting any money from offering his 'services'. (Maybe this is a poor argument, and I am possibly starry-eyed, but still, they are nice people for no reason okay!)

Also, I love the diversity here. I love how on one side of the street you see a Buddhist temple and an orange-robed monk, and on the other side you see an ultra-modern shopping mall. It's weird. I like it. I wish Christians had to wear some weird outfit so we would stand out and people would literally see faith and God and religion walking down the street. I like how integrated religion is here. Passing one of the batrillion temples this morning, I see a guy pull something out of his bag and make his offering to the 'spirits'. Then he continued on causally down the street to attend to his other errands and whatnot. 

I feel like Christianity is so apart from everyday life. No one stops in the mall and lifts their voices and hands in praise. Maybe we'll pray in our head in a public place, but there is not outwardness of our faith in our everyday lives. I'm not saying we hide it: for sure if a stranger in the mall asked me whether I believed in God, I would tell them I did, and I'm sure that's the same for you guys. I'm not saying we're ashamed of faith, just that we have no way of regularly displaying it outside of our church walls.

I'm loving loving Thailand. I'm loving God's love for Thailand. But I know this place is profoundly broken, and spiritually bound. God is doing things. He is changing the way I view these people, and He is giving me purpose here.

So it's all good :)