aom and noo.

One of the highlights of my evenings is getting to spend time with Aom and Noo. They are both new believers and absolutely incredible women! 

[Noo, Claire, Me, Aom -- photo credit: Claire]

Tonight was the first evening that Claire and I met with them for a weekly small-group discipleship time. I have missed having a small group since being in Thailand... tonight was good for my heart. (It completely energized me-- hence why I am up so late, instead of sleeping!) I am so grateful that God has given me the opportunity to be a part of these ladies' lives.

One of the things that excites me most about Thai believers, like Aom and Noo, is their testimony. As much as I read about Buddhism, I can never give the testimony they can give: "I used to be a Buddhist, but now, I believe and trust in Jesus Christ." Long after I am gone, they will still be here, proclaiming that message. Praise be to God!

The BSC

[A view from the 15th floor of one of the nearby buildings of the BSC (white building with the steeple). The rectangular building on the right side (with the white car parked in front of it) is where Claire and I live.]

Well, classes are officially under way! Tonight was my first class-class. It is my only level 5 class. Levels 1-4 are taught by Thai teachers, and level 5-9 are taught by the farang (foreigners). I had 19 students on the roster and 16 showed (which made for a really tight classroom). To help lighten the mood and get people talking, I had the students play a mingling game which got a little lost in translation... but I think they enjoyed it? (I'm not sure they would tell me if they didn't like it, but I did warn them that games will be a staple-part of the class!) Afterwards, I had them fill out a little survey about themselves and we discussed it together. 

Highlight of the Class
(This is mostly for the enjoyment of the umw girls... who perpetually must tolerate my conversations on the following topic!)

One of the questions I asked was, "If you could have any animal as a pet, which one would you want?" The best answer? "A sugar glider." That's right, people! Not only did I find out that the Thai people know about and love sugar gliders (aka: sugar bears), but also that they can be purchased at J.J. Market. I think I just made weekend plans.

lunch with mam.

Today, one of my students (Mam) took me out to lunch. She drove us to the restaurant in her car and then ordered the meal for us... Here's what the waitress brought out (in order of my preference):

[Some kind of appetizer... with chicken (?) and corn inside.]

[I'm not sure what this was either, some kind of fried chicken and ...?]

[That's right... there's a giant shrimp floating in my soup! A little spicy, but good.]

[Duck. This dish was really sweet-tasting... but there were too many bone chips to make it truly enjoyable.]

Mam is very generous and kind, and we have really started to develop a good relationship. Today she called me "Nong Liz" (little sister Liz)... and I call her "Pee Mam" (older sister Mam). We had a really good conversation about what she believes as a Buddhist. She is a very strong Buddhist, and was open to sharing a lot of her beliefs with me. Her understanding of Jesus is that He teaches to us to love each-other. While that is part of it, it's definitely no where near all that He taught! I tried to explain that to her... but I think in her mind, America got Jesus, and Thailand got Buddah. Because of our friendship, I know that I will have more opportunities to talk with her in the future. Please pray that I will know how to explain things clearly and that the Holy Spirit would begin working to soften her heart.

Here are a few more pictures from our luncheon (it was in a very beautiful garden).

[The name of the restaurant... I still don't know what it is called!]

why am i here?

The Thai people really sideswipe me with their questions sometimes. We'll be working on verb tenses and bam! They unknowingly give me opportunities to lead the conversation back to the Gospel. And I love that I work at a place where I can honestly address all their questions... in the classroom setting!

One of my students asked me on Tuesday why I was in Thailand, specifically why I didn't graduate from college and build a career so I could earn lots of money. She asked why, instead of that, I was teaching in Thailand and volunteering. What an open door to share the truth of God and the goodness and faithfulness of His Church!

I was able to share with her during a previous lesson about what I believe as a Christian. On Tuesday, I was able to build on that and share that it was my relationship with God that brought me to Thailand. I told her that God wanted me to come here because He wants the Thai people to know that He is good, that He loves them, and that He wants a relationship with them. I told her that having a relationship with God has changed my life. It has given me peace and joy and purpose. I told her that I am able to volunteer here, because other people who also love Jesus are supporting me. I said there were many, many Christians in America who also want for the Thai people to know God (which is so true!).

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to brag on Christ, and on what He is using you to do (from America... in Thailand).

It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” - 1 Corinthians 1:30-31

update.

Thank you so much for all your prayers over the last few days. I am happy to say that I am feeling quite a bit better. I even left my room today to visit with Claire in her room (change of scenery!). My mission for the weekend is introducing real food (crackers ≠ real food) back into my life. While this whole experience has been altogether quite unpleasant, I am so grateful for it.

1. Because getting sick in Thailand was one of my biggest fears in coming over here. I was really dreading my first time being really sick so far away from home. And, it wasn't as terrible as I imagined. Dani was a great nurse, Claire made my cracker-runs to the 7-11, and I survived. Now I can move forward without a lingering fear of "my first time sick in Thailand." It happened. And it's behind me!

2. Because I got sick the week before classes started, instead of my first week teaching. There is no way I could have been in a classroom like I was feeling... and to miss the first week of my classes and have to find time to make all those up would have been close to impossible. Praise God in His perfect timing that He allowed me to get sick when I was able to have a few days to rest and recover without feeling panicked about all I was missing!

3. Because it gave me time to rest (I'm not sure how many hours I clocked asleep... but it was quite a few!) and, towards the end, read. I have some books that I've been reading on my Kindle: Empty Promises (finished!), The Explicit Gospel and Sifted. And I was able to make a dent in all three. Even though they all are quite different, each of them promote the centrality of the Gospel in our daily lives and the need to root out anything that would take priority over Christ. Something I need a daily reminder of.

So that's my health update! Claire and I are continually so encouraged by all of you who post us notes and send us emails. Thank you for the love and prayers you faithfully send our way!

prayer requests.

I have a couple specific prayer requests that I would love your prayers for:

Since Tuesday (it's Thursday night as I write this), I have been really sick. My fever broke last night, but I am nowhere near 100%. I am so grateful that one of the other teachers, Dani (she's also a nurse), has been here to help take care of (and medicate) me... however, without going into all my symptoms, it hasn't been pretty. I was able to eat some crackers today though, so that's progress! Please pray for my continued recovery and strength.

Term 4 starts on Monday, which means 8 classes/week will be added to our tutoring-load... vacation is over! All the teachers get one day off a week (in addition to Sundays) and mine will be Monday this term. Which, is a blessing as it affords me an extra day of recovery and preparation. Please pray that Claire and I will boldly seize opportunities in our classes to share Christ with our students... and that God would be working in the hearts of our students.

David and Jen McCaman and their baby Josiah just arrived in Thailand last week. David will be the pastor at Lifepoint (our church home here in BKK). If you want to read their first blog post, click here.  Please pray that they would continue to adjust to Thai life, and that they would avoid any more illnesses. (Being sick is kind of a theme here in Thailand...)

[our first week at lifepoint / photo credit: witt kaminh]

There are also some short term teams on the horizon!

-- Lifepoint team (from Smyrna, TN) arrives July 2nd (leaves Aug 12th)
They will be participating in a Missions Training School in the mornings hosted by Lifepoint: Bangkok, and then doing various ministry/outreach activities in the afternoons/evenings. Click here to watch a short video they made regarding their trip! It's really good.
-- Calvary Baptist team (from Clearwater, FL) arrives July 7th (leaves July 20th)

Please be praying that God uses and grows each of them, and that Christ is made much of during their time not just in Thailand, but also when they return home.

And, speaking of teams on the horizon, the Spotswood Team will be arriving in Thailand at the end of Term 4! (That's in 42 days... but who's counting?) Please also be praying for them-- for their hearts to be made ready, for their bodies to be prepared, and for the funds needed to be raised. (For those of you on twitter, search: #Thailandorbust)

postcards!

While at the Teak Palace I picked up a string of postcards... and am eager to send them out! If you would like to receive a postcard, just email me (lizswauger@gmail.com) your address. Supplies are limited. First come, first mailed :)

weekend.

This weekend was filled with "tourist-shenanigans" with our fellow teachers and BSC staffers. The BSC talks a lot about how we are a family... and this weekend felt like our unofficial initiation. It was fun to get to spend brief snippits of time last week with some of the folks we work (and live!) with... but this weekend was a nice break. It was time that we were able to step away from the building and spend some quality time with some really awesome people!

I'm going to let the pictures tell the story.

The Teak Palace

 An airport-themed mall: "Terminal 21"... each level of the mall represented a different country.

[L-R: Dani, Khun Noo, Noy, Luke, Claire]

Dinner at the "Halo Pig" (that's what I call it, not it's official name) and dessert at Swenson's

 Adventures to Soi (Street) 10

Preparing and enjoying our first "family dinner" meal. Spaghetti with home-made meat sauce, home-made garlic bread (even the bread was home-made, yum!) & from-scratch cookies... delicious.

[L-R: Dylan, Susie, Lorena, Claire]

tutoring.

Every day in Thailand is a little different. Right now, we are between terms. Term 3 ended the week we arrived, and Term 4 does not begin until July 2nd. In the interim, Claire and I have been given one-on-one tutoring assignments. While instructing one-on-one for 1.5-2 hours per session can be a little tiring, it remains one of the bright spots of my day. I currently have six tutees, and I individually tutor each of them once/twice a week.

Mam: I tutor her on Mondays and Tuesdays. She is so sweet and thoughtful. We talk a lot outside of class and she has offered to take Claire and I around Bangkok! She works as police officer, and is trying to get a job with the Immigration department at the airport. She needs to be proficient enough in English to pass the exam for this position-- this is where I come in! We have been working together to practice scenarios and vocabulary that she might encounter at her job. I get to role-play the angry/sad "farang" (Thai word for the foreigners), and she has to walk me through filing a fake report. It is a lot of fun, for me at least! And I am getting to teach her some conflict management tips also... I-messages, diffusing situations, collaborative and positive phrases, etc.

Dr. Thom: I tutor him on Wednesdays and Fridays. He is the quintessential Thai: hospitable, friendly, generous. From our first lesson, he has exerted extra effort to help me acclimate to Thai life. He gave a me a great lesson on the titles that Thais use to address people, and also made a map for me with all the places I should go to eat and where the young Thais hang out. He's in his 20's also, so his advice on what he thinks Claire and I would enjoy is very relevant. He also marked which places are safe to go alone/not alone and what time of day to visit them. He is quite thorough! Yesterday was our last lesson together and I had the opportunity to share the Gospel with him; I pray that some seeds were planted and that I'll have the opportunity to teach him more in the future and continue sharing Truth with him.

May: I tutor her on Wednesdays and Fridays also. She is in high school, and very involved in ballet. She is planning to go abroad to further develop her talent, which is one of the reasons she is committed to improving her English. I've only tutored her twice, but she (like all Thais) is very respectful and eager to learn.

Mint: I am tutoring Mint every Thursday. She is my age and is incredibly proficient at English... most of the Thai's have trouble with their L's, V's, Th's, and R's, but her pronunciation is wonderful. She signed up for tutoring because she is in a Business class that has regular oral exams. And while her English is great, she doesn't have the scope of vocabulary that she needs to excel. I tutored her for the first time this week and we had so much fun. She has a great sense of humor and we role-played various mock "entrepreneurial" ventures that she had to generate for her oral assessment.

Fourth: I mentioned her in a previous post, but she is one of my Thursday tutees. She is going to be studying in America for a year, and we're brushing up on American socializing (Little things like... tipping in restaurants and how to use a knife), culture and history. She is a student at a very prestigious and highly selective high school in Bangkok. From what I understand, you have to "test into" the high schools, and schools only accept students with certain scores. (Can you say, "cream of the crop?")

Aeh: She will be my new Wednesday and Friday tutee starting next week!

As always, the purpose of tutoring is not exclusively to teach English, although, that is an important part of it! But rather, to build relationships and bridges to Christ. I've been able to share what I believe with a few of them and had partial conversations with others. I hope that as we get to know each other, they will become more comfortable opening up in more serious and spiritual dialogues. One of the things that I am increasingly convinced of is that-- no amount of being persuasive or clever or smart is going to win the Thai people to the Lord. It is only the the power of God which can soften their hearts. Yes, I need to be faithful to share-- but I also need to be faithful to pray, pray, pray! Because that is what will make a difference when I speak. The Holy Spirit is the only person who can make the Gospel make sense to their hearts.

Pastor Doug often quotes someone who said, "I heard the gospel, I heard the gospel, then praise God! One day I heard the gospel." The only difference between the first two and the last one is the Holy Spirit. Please pray that God soften hearts to His Word. That they not only recognize their need, but also see and accept Him as the solution for their need.

songtaew.

In most cases, a picture is worth a thousand words... but mine here do not do the "songtaew" justice. Imagine old trucks with roofs on top and benches in the back racing up and down one long stretch of road. Only 7 Baht. This is the songtaew. To get to The Well we took this special low-cost truck-taxi, walked, and rode the BTS, everything short of a tuk-tuk! While it was nice to be in a truck again, it was not a typical truck-experience! Here are a few pictures from our ride: 

Claire putting on a brave face for the camera!

You can stand, or you can sit on these lovely benches. Your choice!

The view out of the truck.

The cab of the truck... notice that the driver is seated below the bed of the truck!

But, we all survived, and made it both to and from The Well safely. Luke, one of the teachers at the BSC, was our guide. His family lives in Thailand, and his dad runs The Well. He's going to be giving us some more information about The Well in the near future... but from what I gathered from our time there, they have a worship service and sermon (what we participated in) twice a week, and they also provide skills and training for the women in order to help them support themselves so that they can get out of the bars (ie: prostitution). They have a whole jewelry and clothing line that they are working to develop and brand in hopes of providing a livelihood for these women. They also do outreach in the bars. Some of the  women go to the bars to engage women and share with them about The Well. While everyone is welcome to come to the worship services, only the women who commit to working to get out of the bars are able to get financial assistance. It seems like a neat organization, and I am glad that we were invited to be a part of it this morning. I'm also looking forward to finding out more, and finding out if/how other people can be involved with it!

[week one]

Yesterday marked our "one week" anniversary in Bangkok. The first week was important to start developing relationships, recover from jet-lag, and orientate ourselves to the city. While we still don't know where everything is, we can go to Victory Monument to get smoothies or noodles, we know where the closest shopping and grocery stores are, and we can navigate the BTS (/Skytrain). Dylan, one of the other missionaries, even showed me how to get to "Soi Ha" a local street market that sells affordable fruits and vegetables, as well as the nearest Starbucks (for Claire... and Doug when the team comes!).

[left to right: Aom, Claire, me, Noo, and Kung]

[Buying fresh fruit smoothies at Victory Monument... only 15 Baht!]

Today, however, is the beginning of week two. And I think week two will prove to be a lot more interesting than week one-- if this morning was any indication! Today, I crossed the street alone for the first time. I took the BTS solo for the first time. And I got lost for the first time. In all fairness, I knew exactly where I was... it's just that no one else could find me. (Mom & Grandma, don't worry! I found my way home :) )

Today, I also had my "hit the wall moment" as Doug calls it. I've felt exhausted all day and, for the first time since I've been here, I really felt frustrated by my inability to do things for myself. Moving to another country feels like regressing back into my childhood. I'm not independent anymore. I need other people all the time to help me figure out where to go and what to buy. Some of the foods are also so foreign that I have to ask how it is to be eaten. Do I eat the skin? Not eat the skin? Is that thing on my plate that came with my meal edible? Is all of it edible? etc. It is exhausting. And today, I felt it. So, I took some time to nap... okay, I took two times to nap, and tonight I'm going to bed early also.

It is no coincidence that Claire and I decided a few days ago to begin a book study on Sifted-- which we selected per Josh and Tasha Via's recommendation (well, not to us personally, but they recommended it on twitter!). So between my naps today (stop judging!) I read the introduction and chapter 1 and it was such an encouragement. Wayne Cordeiro describes sifting as:

A process that forms new character, tearing away old perspectives and putting fresh truth in its place. Former habits are discarded and wrong tendencies are abandoned... it produces clarity about who we are and what we do, giving definition to the work of ministry that produces long-term results and fruitfulness... Scripture tells us that the challenges we face in life happen for a reason, and the process of sifting refines us, revealing our weaknesses, exposing our self-dependence and inviting us to greater faith in God and greater dependence on his promises.

While getting lost hardly qualifies as "sifting", I do think that this next year of my life will involve sifting. Being away from the familiar and being unable to rely on my own "know-how" is an interesting place to be... but I think it is a good place. In Thailand, I only have God (and His Church) to rely on. (I'm not sure why I even want to say "only God" when that is obviously more than enough.) This experience is showing and revealing to me how much I depend/rely on other things. Because when those "things" aren't there... it is glaringly obvious. This area is something you can be praying for me about (and Claire, also).

For the many of you who are faithfully praying for me, thank you. It is such an encouragement to know that there is an army of my brothers and sisters lifting up Claire and me. There is so much more I want to share with you all, but I promised myself to get plenty of sleep tonight! (We are getting up bright and early in the morning to visit "The Well"-- a ministry for women who are brought out of the bars in Thailand.) So until later...

this is thailand.

Sometimes the only proper response to situations is, "This is Thailand." While the Thai people are incredibly friendly and generous and work hard to make us feel at home, there are still occasional reminders that this is Thailand... here are a couple of those moments:

- When you have to clarify which months you are referring to when you say "winter" (a foreign season to the Thais... and an inverse season to the Aussies)

- When the price of a small package of sliced cheese is more than a whole meal at Chipotle. (Cheese is an expensive commodity in Thailand... So no cheese for Liz!)

- When you plug in your alarm clock, and it gets fried. (Forgot to check the voltage. Whoops.)

- When you go back to the car and you've been blocked in by another car... and the solution is to push it out of the way. (People leave their cars in neutral for that purpose)

- When you go to a nice restaurant and no one tips.

- When there are signs posted throughout the market to beware of pick-pockets.

- When corn and beans are dessert... and popular flavors of ice-cream and yogurt.

vlog: Rambutan

A brief tutorial/editorial on one of Thailand's most exotic fruits... Rambutan!

Brought to you by: Claire & Liz

(we are taking v-log requests-- send them our way!)

[day one]

Today was a long day. Good. Full. Helpful. Long. It started off as a relaxing morning. Claire and I had breakfast in my room and then I was able to skype with my mom and sister (yay!). After getting ready for the day, having my quiet time and knocking out a little more of Empty Promises, we met with some of the BSC staff.

John, Lorena (a 91-year-old woman who has been teaching at the BSC for... years), and Khun Noo briefed us on teaching at the BSC and our schedules until our "official teaching semester" begins July 2. Matt is the BSC-English coordinator. He also met with us to discuss the classroom, introduce us to more of the staff and show us our desks. He graduated from VT and lived in Madison (Laura-Michal: shout-out to your hometown!) so he was very familiar with Fredericksburg. It was nice to meet someone who is familiar with our area.

Lorena has been having some trouble with her vision, so Claire and I are going to be helping her finish out the semester with the students she tutors and with one of her classes. Because this was unexpected, we started taking over with her students today! Please be praying for Lorena, that the doctors can figure out what exactly is going on with her eyes.

I taught my first class this evening-- there were only four students, but they were a lot of fun. I am curious how long I can blame jet-lag on my scatterbrained-ness, though. I'm hoping at least a couple more days... The Thai people are very gracious though, which I appreciate! After class, Claire and I had dinner with Dylan, one of the other young teachers at the BSC. He invited us to go with him to visit some refugees, but because of a tutoring appointment, we were not able to go this time.

We tutored a 15-year-old girl named "Fourth" tonight. (She is the fourth person in her family, so her parents gave her that nickname!) She will be an exchange student somewhere in America this fall. I will be tutoring her until she leaves in August. She was so sweet and a lot of fun! We showed her how to use a knife to eat (they don't have knives in Thailand) and also explained currency/tipping/pricing of American meals.

Claire and I also ran into Archan Thongchai, Archan Ponsak and the missionary couple (Jack and Gladys Martin) who the building we're staying in was named after! Everyone is so excited to have us here for a year... and to have the short term team come in August (56 days! But who's counting?). Archan Ponsak was especially excited to hear about the construction-crew Jake will be heading up to paint/repair his home. Jack Martin even offered to donate some paint brushes to the cause :)

So, that is the short of it! I'm trying to stay up a little later tonight to help regulate my schedule-- so blogging is keeping me up until bedtime :) Claire has to leave at 8am in the morning to go to Ampa Wa with New Vision Church to teach English-- but since I'll be teaching and tutoring at the BSC, I will get to sleep in a little longer. Yay! Thank you for all your prayers-- please continue to pray that Christ is glorified through our time here and that He leads us to develop strong relationships with the Thai people.

Happy Thursday!