Flexibility has it's rewards

For the past couple of days, Paul and I have been trying to get up to the village. However, it seems that every afternoon when we should be loading up the car to go, something delays us and we have to put the village off another day. While we've certainly learned the value of flexibility in the past year and a half, it can still be rather frustrating to have our plans and expectations constantly "thwarted". Yesterday, as per tradition, something came up which prevented us from getting to the village, however as it turned out we were not frustrated but blessed by the experience.

One of our friends, a national Foursquare pastor who lives a couple hours away was at a hospital here in the Chiang Rai with his wife. We were glad to find out that she had not been admitted, but simply had an appointment with a specialist. His wife has a thyroid condition and would appreciate your prayers.

In Asia, if someone is in town, you take the time to see them despite your own "plans and expectations". So we hopped in the car to join them at the hospital. We had a great time catching up with them while they waited for her medications and offered to give them a ride back to the bus station.

They gladly accepted the ride, but politely asked if we could stop by Big C on the way. Big C is kind of like Super Walmart or Super Target in The States. However, instead of being a stand alone store, Big C's are usually located in a mall (for lack of a better word) which also has many smaller stores and restaurants. When we are in Chiang Rai, we frequent Big C and indulge in KFC, Dairy Queen, or even Auntie Anne's Pretzels.

When we stepped through the automated sliding glass doors, it was obvious that our friend's wife & 9 year old daughter had never seen anything like it. They live in a small rural town with nothing even resembling the "big city" atmosphere of a Big C. The little girl's eyes popped and sparkled as if she were at an amusement park and the mom's eyes glazed over at the frenzy of lights, noise and crowds. As they approached the escalator both mom and daughter viewed it with trepidation and wonder. Luckily, dad knew his way around and led his family proudly through the exciting chaos. We left the family to their shopping and grabbed a Lemon Frost from Black Canyon Coffee while we waited.

Tags:

• Foursquare
• culture
• Thailand

Really Tiny News

It's love, of course, that makes us fathers do it - love for the woman we've married and love for every baby we've ever seen, except the one that threw up on our shoes. And so, in spite of all our reservations about this scary business of reproduction, we must admit that people look happy when they're carrying babies. - Bill Cosby, Fatherhood

We had grand plans of keeping the secret much longer than this, but we are terrible secret keepers. We also wanted to call each and every one of you and let you all in on the news personally, but living in Thailand makes that task very difficult. So this announcement will have to do. We are excited to let you all know... We're going to have a baby!

We found out for certain on May 14th, which was a wonderful Mother's Day present both for Lori as well as for the newly expectant grandmothers (who, we might add, are very excited). We have bounced from very excited, to very scared, to utter disbelief. In fact, to help convince us that we really are pregnant, we went out to buy Lori her first maternity outfit. This task was much more difficult than you might think, because pregnant women in Thailand wear "tarp like moo moos" (this quote thanks to Lori). As much as we desire to blend with the cultures around us, Lori has put her foot down regarding Thai maternity dresses. However, we were able to find one outfit in Chiang Mai that met her standards for cuteness and with visitors coming soon we have more American maternity clothes on the way.

We know you will have lots of questions and comments, and we encourage you to leave us a comment on this page. Since we cannot have these conversations with you individually, we will now list the most frequently asked questions and answer them accordingly:

When are you due?

The "official" due date is January 15th. Although the ob/gyn said it could come as early as Christmas.

Where are you having the baby?

We will have the baby at a hospital here in Chiang Rai.

Do you have a doctor?

Yes. Our doctor speaks English very well and has delivered many of the missionaries' babies here in Chiang Rai. We have already had one appointment with him and really liked him.

Are you going to find out the sex of the baby?

Yes, We think.

How fat are you? (boys) or Are you showing? (girls)

Not showing (fat) yet.

Are you scared?

Sometimes. A little about the pregnancy, a lot about the parenting. But we have been given a great verse that encourages us:

Psalm 78

5 He decreed statutes for Jacob
and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our forefathers
to teach their children,

6 so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,
and they in turn would tell their children.

7 Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget his deeds
but would keep his commands.

Tags:

• babies
• family

Journey Notes Updates

Here is a quick update to our Journey Notes while we are in town:

Tomorrow Mi Shui returns to the hospital for a check-up on her broken arm. We are hoping things have healed well and a new cast will be all she needs. If she needs surgery we will update again in the next day or so.

A Wa did not return to the deaf school in Chiang Rai. We are unsure as to the specifics of why (it is difficult to communicate with him) but about a month ago his father was arrested for smoking opium. His father is a pillar in the community and since his arrest A Wa has been struggling against his mom. This might be a cumulation of those feelings. We picked up his paperwork from the deaf school and will try to get him into school in Mae Salong. Please remember this family in your prayers.

We did bring two other children to school in Chiang Mai. The first is a girl from an Akha Village in Mae Salong. The other is a young boy from an Akha Village in WiangPapao. Both are handicapped and there is a special needs school there for them.

Sorry to be so factual - we'll get you some more fun stories as soon as we can - but we wanted to keep you all in the loop.

Tags:

• Akha
• village
• ministry

Foursquare Missionary to Poland

We wanted to point out another Foursquare Missionary - Denise Johnson, Missionary to Poland. Lori and I had the pleasure to meet her for a very short time when we were training at the WorldBase in Los Angeles, CA. Denise has been a missionary since 1986 - and full time since 1996 and has an incredible passion for the relationships she has in Poland. When we met her, we were so green (still are) in ministry and we were very excited to go to Thailand, but her desire to return to Poland blew ours out of the water - we pray that our passion continues to grow as hers obviously has. When you hear her share you realize that in her heart, Poland has become her home.

Denise has been updating her blog, Journey of the Heart, since July of 2004. Her most recent post My Sunshine / Son shine Room is about the attempts to convert part of her basement into a meeting area - now that's commitment! Take a look at her site when you get the chance and pray for her ministry in Poland and as it extends throughout Europe.

Tags:

• Foursquare
• missionaries

The Akha have Allergies Too

We actually used to wonder if the Akha were allergic to anything. They all seem to be able to eat anything, and we have yet to meet an Akha with hay fever (at least, we haven't met one who was willing to complain about it). Anyway, in the last year of doing minor medical exams we haven't run across a single significant allergic reaction - until this morning.

When we arrived for church this morning, we saw one of the girls from our village - 5 year old A Mi. This precious little girl had a swollen cheek like we had never seen. Immediately, I assumed it was an abscessed tooth and began examining her teeth, but they all looked fine. As I was looking in her mouth her father came up and told me what happened.

Apparently, A Mi was in a tree this morning (a common place to see Akha children) when she was stung twice by a bee. Once in the arm, once in the cheek. We still haven't figured out if the stings were inadvertent or whether she was attempting to get some honey, but that is neither here nor there. When I heard she was stung, I looked at her arm and found a nice swelling welt there as well, confirmation that she was definately allergic to bee stings.

The swelling was so severe that we were afraid her breathing might end up being affected. Fortunately, she was breathing fine and other than her obvious self-consciousness about her cheek she wasn't in any pain. However, our anti-histamine did not immediately help the situation and her cheek continued to swell.

Off we went again, another Vernon Ambulance trip - this time to the local clinic in Mae Salong. They were able to prescribe her a liquid anti-histamine for her to take over the next day or so.

Please remember A Mi in your prayers as she continues to heal.

Tags:

• Akha
• medical
• ministry

A Look at a Great Summer

Broken arm, rain storms, house construction, an Akha clinic, Song Kran, youth camps, new pastor, English lessons, Akha songs, bi dza's, kids, kids, kids.

There's the five second update from our past month. We have had an incredible time in our village, building relationships and building language. The big news is that my heart has been really stretched and challenged in viewing our ministry calling in this time in the village.

We have a heart to see a healthy Akha church that is characterized by discipleship and our ministry model is to serve the Akha in love whatever our formal roles. Simple enough on paper, but how this vision and ministry works out practically is like nothing I ever imagined.

Village life has become so important to me. For so long I viewed our village as a temporary time (years long, but still temporary) while learning the Akha language and about the Akha people while my heart was for formal training environments in the future. Though I still see the value and the economy of leadership and pastoral training and will be involved wherever we are led, it is the average Akha man and woman who makes the Akha church. In fact, it's who I have always been in the church. There are amazing men, women and youth in our village who I hope to serve, to disciple and to grow with for many, many years to come.

The emotional needs of children and the physical health and care needs of the Akha are the practical ministries I never imagined having a passion for. Once again, what began as part of a learning process has become a ministry tied to my heart. Although we still have our best life conversations with the ya goo (youth group age kids), instilling value in children and ministering to the physical health and care needs of the Akha are becoming permanent tools in our ministry.

Our vision to serve the Akha is becoming a holistic vision, seeking to minister to the emotional, physical and spiritual needs of the Akha in Southeast Asia. They are the foundation stones of a healthy church. It was Christ's ministry, and as we grow and learn (and fail and fall) it is becoming ours.

Tags:

• church
• ministry
• personal

The Akha Clinic

There are many English words which the Thais have adopted as their own by adding Thai tones. In our limited observation these include: mustard, computer, battery and clinic. A clinic in Thailand is a step up from a pharmacy but quite a few steps down from a doctor's office. It is a place where people go to get a minor diagnoses and medicine or a referral to better facilities.

We have shared a little about our roles providing medical care and as the village ambulance and our ministry in this capacity has really begun to expand. Every evening beginning around four o'clock people trickle in from the fields and towards our home, visiting for a while and then turning our attention to a child's fever, a cut or wound from working in the fields, arthritic joints, colds, boils, stomach flu, absessed teeth or chicken pox.

Those of you who know us know we have no formal medical training, but it is amazing how much we do know about medicine. Even more amazing is how much we have learned, largely due to a wonderful book which every missionary should own: Where There is No Doctor (available at Amazon or for free online at HealthWrights). The Akha have their natural remedies which include teas for stomach ailments, honeycomb used as medicine, massage techniques, and a bruising technique which brings the blood to the surface of the skin. These techniques are often effective, but have their limitations.

The biggest health issues with the Akha are often results of misdiagnosis in the home or in a clinic. In the clinic, the misdiagnosis often comes from a lack of understanding (nurses speak Thai, the Akha mothers don't) or a lack of finances (the nurses know the Akha do not all have the benefit of health privileges in Thailand). In the home, a serious injury or illness is often mistaken for something minor. For example, Mi Shui's arm was first assumed to be nothing and was cared for in the Akha way which unfortunately included shaking and squeezing the injury and spitting on the arm. In America we have our American way as well (when did a kiss ever heal an injury?) which is appropriate at times, but innapropriate at others. In the end, we hope to educate the parents to confidently treat minor illnesses and injuries before they become major ones.

One step in this direction has come from an unexpected source. Our intern Pastor ATu who was our housemate all of last year has moved on and a new intern has come in and taken his place. They have built a new home for him which leaves us with an empty room. In a pretty short time, the medicine boxes had moved in (along with a sleeping mat and a plastic chair which serves well for our examinations) and all the teenagers were walking around talking about the "Akha Cleeney (Clinic)". Since we have further formalized this treatment area we have had a severe burst wound (we think a girl was caught stealing and was shooed off with a stick), an absessed tooth, a dozen colds and a stomach flu (we were very happy for our dirt floors with that one).

There are still many things we have to refer the Akha to real doctors for, but it's been great to meet the physical immediate needs of our village. They have given us so much, it's great to be able to give something back.

Tags:

• Akha
• medical
• ministry