Sa Wat Dii Ka!
Just got back from a week outreach to Mae Sot. It was an amazing time - hopefully I will be able to translate it into this blog. Some things are just easier to understand if you experience them yourself...you know what I mean? Anyways, Monday we left for Mae Sot, which is about a 5-6 hr drive from Chiang Mai. It is SW, near the Burma border. We arrived in Mae Sot around 4ish pm - got settled in at the hotel and then out for dinner. Tuesday was spent going to 2 children's homes in the Mae Sot area. At both homes we played with the kids...entertained by balloons, bubbles and coloring. The older kids liked playing football(soccer), hula hooping and different Thai games...or at least they were not familiar to me!! It was so fun interacting with the kids, especially since we couldn't really communicate because of the language. But kids still liked to have fun - no matter what language they speak. It was definitely a humbling experience - one that I will never forget.
Wednesday we traveled about an hour north, up the Thai/Burma border to Mae La. We visited a refugee camp that holds about 55,000 people. This is just one of the many refugee camps along the border. The houses are clumped together and made of bamboo and thatched roofs. It is something that is so unbelievable. The pictures don't do it justice. In this camp, we spoke at a church. We did a few skits that were linked between teaching. Originally, we were told we were going to be with the youth group...then found out we were teaching the adults. Needless to say, we weren't as quite prepared for that but God spoke through all of us and it worked better than if we had planned it. The Burmese people are so wonderful and friendly. They were extremely welcoming and friendly. To hear their stories were incredible as well. I realized after spending time with them, that I take a lot for granted. It was such a special time...again, one I will never forget.
Thursday we spent the morning at the Rubbish Tip in Mae Sot. Talk about an eye opener! People live in this dump, as well as a school. It broke my heart to see families living in this condition...so sad. We had a chance to pass out some food and also share the gospel. Plus, play with a few of the kids before heading back to the Bible College. Each one of us taught about 40 min each to the college students. There were about 16 young adults that came and spend all day learning about God and the Bible. There dedication is incredible....they were so hungry for God. Such an encouragement to me! After teaching, we went to visit another children's home through Life Impact. We went out to the land that will eventually have all the kids...right now, the older boys are staying on the property. It was so great to see the kids run and play...and room for them to do whatever they wanted. There are a lot of great things happening here in Thailand!
Friday morning before heading back to Chiang Mai, we went to the Friendship Bridge that crosses over to Burma. The bridge is no longer open for people to cross, so there are many people crossing at the river illegally on rafts and boats. The people are desperate for freedom and will do anything for it. The time in Mae Sot was amazing. So grateful for the opportunity to see all of it...makes me sort of sad that I couldn't do more but pray for the people. But I am glad that I am more aware of the things going on...maybe one day I will be able to help.
Check out Facebook for all of the pictures of the outreach to Mae Sot!
Prayer Requests:
- There are only 4 weeks left of MTI - pray that these last weeks would be fruitful and that God would speak even more clearly into my life. I still am not sure what to do after this - so pray for clarity and that I would hear God in the direction He wants me to go next.
-Continue to pray for my father. Treatment for the prostate cancer will not start till December but in the meantime, pray for his health. That he would continue to do well and stay in remission with the bone cancer. Pray for good rest for both my parents as stress has had an effect on their sleeping.
**PRAISE** I am feeling SO much better. I believe that the typhoid is gone...at least I am back to my normal self. Pray that I would continue to get stronger and stay healthy the rest of my time here!
Thanks for your continued support!
~Kari
No comments:
Post a Comment