Rubber Time

In a recent conversation with a friend from Malaysia, I found a new term that fits how time is seen in this part of the world.

I struggle with the fact that not everyone means the same thing when they say “on time”. To some people 6 pm means 7 pm. The idea of punctuality varies from place to place.

I always found it a little amusing that we give an addendum to Adolf Hitler’s legacy like this: Well, at least the train ran on time. I guess I would trade some late trains for a little less atrocity.

Okay, back to the topic at hand.

Living in Thailand, we get accustomed to Thai time. That means things will start when the people arrive. To our Western minds, we think, make the event start, and the people will come. The further we delay, the later people will come next week. The endless cycle of tardiness will spiral out of control. Or will it?

Timeliness just doesn’t play the same roll in all parts of the world as it does in the West.

My Malaysian friend explained how in Malaysia when they set a time for an event, they have to tell everyone the time is 6 pm sharp. They have to say sharp, you see. Sharp. That is so people know for certain that the event will start at 6 pm. He went on to say that everyone still comes later than 6 pm.

The term for this kind of time in Malaysia is rubber time. We can just stretch the time to fit what we want, my friend explained.

In high school, my coach implemented “Lombardi time” which meant unless you were 15 minutes early, you were late. That just wouldn’t fly in most of the world.

How does punctuality fit you? Are you an early arriver or a fashionably late comer?

 

Reflections from Songkran

As I get a few days away from Songkran, the Thai New Year, I wanted to give some observations of the Thai customs.
Songkran, once a polite and formal holiday in which young people splashed water and went to their families to show honor to their elders. Blessing, cleansing, and honor mark the holiday as people from all corners of the nation of Thailand come together to celebrate with their family. However, I realized through conversations with some of our Thai friends, we come to understand the chaotic water fights have existed always, but the bawdy and wildness has emerged stronger and stronger over the past generation. Last year, teenage girls were taking their tops off; drunkards were making things more edgy, young men look for opportunities to grope the female Songkran participants.
What happened?
People lose their moorings when celebration trumps meaning. When people begin to lose their cultural heritage when they start to forget why they do certain customs. When we decouple the meaning of a tradition, we lose the purpose for doing something.
I have loved watching the church, often seen as a foreign entity, come alongside of Thai culture and help the Thai people hold onto their customs. In some ways, they reinterpret what some of the meaning are or where the blessings come from. However, in Songkran, we do not see the future blessings coming from God.
One example comes from the water pouring blessing, or rot nam dam hua. The young people use this ceremony to show honor to their elders as they go on their knees before their family’s elders. They ask for forgiveness for the things they did in the previous year. They then pour scented water over their elders hands, who in turn pray a blessing over the youth.
The Christians can still participate in this without looking to the spirits of Thailand to bring blessings or curses, but to God. They can see forgiveness coming from Jesus and blessings poured out by their Father in heaven.
We enjoyed watching the church partake in this ceremony, culturally appropriate to Thailand and yet sensitive to Jesus teachings. Thailand has become a party place led by their tourist centers of Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Phuket and others as they jubilantly celebrate their New Year. Others want to fight back against this and hold onto the traditions and the meaning of their deep culture that the New Year starts with a cleansing of the past and openness to the future year. Perhaps the church will play a pivotal role in helping reinfuse cultural meaning into the festivals of Thailand.

 

Back to Blogging

Wow, where has the time gone.

Life really sped up the past few months with some transitions in assignment and moving to a new house. Also, Tina started her own blog and hasn’t been able to guest post as often. The blog caught the short end of the stick or got the raw deal. I neglected my writing here, but I want to come back now that it’s already April. Let’s get into it.

I’m back, and back with a new enjoyment of writing as an outlet for my thoughts and efforts.

 

A Favorable Status

As I was handing back our condo keys to the owner, I was explaining more
about why we were moving. I explained that Andy’s job responsibilities had
changed. Our land lady then asked me a baffling question, as she knows we
are missionaries. “What do missionaries primarily do? Do you mainly teach
English?”

Hearing this froze me for a second. One main way that missionaries have been
reaching people for Christ in Thailand is teaching English. Not only is it a
great open door for relationship, it also meets a felt need in the
community. I’ve taught English as a missionary here. Was it ever my primary
focus? No. My focus was talking about Jesus with people (just another way to
say evangelism) and discipleship, all while teaching English.

Missionaries have been trying to reach the Thai people for over 200 years,
and it is still at less than 1 percent Christian. Even with such a small
percentage of Christians, Thais in general like Christians. They see the
hospitals they have opened, schools they run, English centers, and they know
Christians are good people.

But something isn’t working. Favorable status isn’t winning people’s hearts
to turn to God. Don’t get me wrong, people are coming to Christ, hearts are
turning, but slowly. There are a plentitude of reasons why the Thai people
aren’t Christians, and this isn’t one of the top reasons. But I’m beginning
to think that missionaries might need to change their approach. Not make
Christianity disliked by the Thais, but be more direct about what they/ we
are doing.

 

Culture and the Biblical World

When we first moved to Thailand, multiple people in Thailand told us that Thai culture is closer to Biblical culture than American culture is. It was preached that way and widely spread in the church we serve. Multiple reasons were given: first, Thailand is an agricultural society, even if Bangkok is not, most people come from small towns/ villages or have family there. Second, the Thai people are highly aware of the spiritual world and how spirits interact with this physical world. From these basic tenets, it was then assumed that Thai people would have an inherently easier time understanding the Bible and what Jesus taught.

While I love the heart of what these people said, I have to respectfully disagree with them. After living in Thailand for over 4 years, I believe that American culture, foundationally, not superficially, is closer to Biblical culture. Yes, we don’t understand farming very well, if at all. Most Americans try to ignore, or deny, the existence of spirits.

We have many problems with our culture that are not Biblical, and we need Jesus to transform. But the foundation of our culture is built from the same foundation that made up the world Jesus lived in. Today we call it a Judeo-Christian worldview. On the other hand, Thai culture is built on a Buddhist worldview and it effects all parts of life and how people interact with each other.

Let me example this for you with a story. In America we have an axiom, do to others what you would want them to do to you. It is a Biblical principle, but it is a pervasive idea. People think of others and how they might feel or think when they interact with them. I know it’s not every time, but Americans tend to think about other people’s feelings and reactions. In Thailand, that is not so. I recently rode the bus to visit some friends up north with Ellie. On the way back, the lady in front of me decided she wanted to take a nap so she laid her chair as far back as it would go. She never turned around to see if someone was behind her or how much space I had. Well, I was so squished that I couldn’t even move my legs or get out of the chair. People will regularly come up to Ellie and get in her face or grab her, even if she’s trying to say no or stop. They’re not thinking of her feelings, but what they want.

Ultimately, we God to transform us from whatever culture we are in to be Biblical in the way we live.

 

Face Time Matters

At some level we all understand ministry flows out of relationship. We are able to serve people through relationship and influence out of the relational equity we have with people. Relationship underpins everything in mission and ministry. Yet how relationships play out varies from context to context.

Building relations and connecting through social media helps, but I still like a pat on the back…and a kick in the pants conveyed digitally doesn’t ever go well.

I find that in a nation like Thailand, face time matters so much more. As I assumed the lead pastor role at Our Home Chapel, I found immediately the importance of face time. As soon as I walk into the office, people come in wanting to seek advice, ask questions, give advice, share stories, ask for money, and the list goes on. We could accomplish much of this work over the phone or on email, but nothing really happens until you can meet face to face or in person. The Thai literally say your body is there with you when you talk together. Maybe we take for granted the nonverbal parts of communication and enjoy the phone and other digital means of communication as Westerners, but in Asia, presence matters. Maybe we miss how observant Thai people are to the subtle nuances of the nonverbal may exist.

People call Thailand the land of smiles due in no small part to the varied smiles a Thai person can have. In Thailand, there are said to be nine kinds of smiles, including the smile that means I am going to kill you. When we realize how much gets lost in translation over the phone or via secondary modes of communication, I get why face time is so important. I have come to find that decisions don’t get made or deals don’t get finalized until you meet in person with people. I have seen the power of being present with people when we went south to visit a couple that we want to coach in church planting. We just need to be present with each other. Maybe this limits our future growth potential numerically, but a greater potential for deep discipleship, leading to a multiplication of growth.

How do you see the presence of in person in relationship valuable?

 

Children’s Day

Children’s Day is an important day of celebration in Thailand. Everyone pauses to think about the future, and those that are the future of the country, children.

There are fun celebrations to take your kids to, many of them free for children, as well as speeches from politicians. Thailand wants to have a country that their children will be able to be successful in and proud of. Children’s Day is a day to look forward to the future, and honor those who will make it great.

For Ellie’s first Children’s Day, we took her to the park and then to Toy’s R Us and bought her a small toy. We then went to dinner at her favorite restaurant in Thailand, Sizzler, where fruit and veggies are plentiful and she can drop as much as she wants and get new for an entire meal.

At church we wanted to honor and bless the children. The service revolved around them with games, clowns, and many object lessons. The service finished with each child pairing up with one adult praying a blessing over them. After service, “Jack” was baptized and each child received a gift. As you might have guessed, no holiday could center on children without having gifts.

Do you think that the United States should have a Children’s Day?

 

Our Story

Our mission sending agency/ denomination, The Foursquare Gospel Church, wrote a missionary spotlight on my wife and I. It tells about our ministry and what we are doing here in Bangkok, Thailand. You can read it here.

 

Standing Alone

I wanted to share this story from our newsletter here on the blog. It is a story of a young boy, we’ll call him Jack. Jack, at age nine, has already faced difficulty beyond our wildest imaginations. He has grown up in a nearby slum to the church, been given to a foster family when his mom no longer could care for him, and abused by his caretakers. His rough upbringing caused him to in turn act out and hurt those around him. Yet this is not even a glimpse of the child I know now. When his extended family no longer wanted him nor could handle him, the church stepped in and took him. The church is trying to find a good orphanage, but the only available ones are state run places with unlivable conditions. For years, the church has gone into the communities around us in Bangkok to bring hope and love through skills training, after-school tutoring and other examples of tangible love.

When Jack received the genuine love and mercy of the children’s ministry, it took him little time to also accept the saving work of Jesus in his life.

His slow transformation came to fruition the other day at school. The second term of the school year began late due to the overwhelming flood crisis, so when the children finally got back to school, they needed to get reoriented. Jack still attends school near his family’s slum in which there are a number of Muslim families as well. At the beginning of the school, the teacher wanted to make two groups of students for daily religious activities. She began by having the children make two lines, Buddhist and Muslim. Jack found himself standing alone after all the other children found their place. Perplexed, the teacher asked Jack why he hadn’t chosen a side, thinking maybe he was a bit slow in the head. Jack gained his composure and said, you called for the Buddhist students and Muslim students, but you never called for the Christian students. I am a Christian, and I have no line to get in.  He stood alone in the room as the only one of his classmates who belonged to Jesus.

When is a time you had to stand up for your faith? What happened then?

 

Emmanuel- God With Us

This week, a good acquaintance of mine asked this question at a post-Christmas dinner. How do you need God to be Emmanuel in the New Year?

In 2012, I see Emmanuel, God with us, being a driving prayer of mine in Thailand. We want the Thai people to see God as real and accessible. We example Jesus to them in our life, but we want them to have an encounter with God. As I think toward 2012, I cannot help but be captured by the prayer I made when we took over Our Home Chapel, the Foursquare Church in Bangkok, Thailand.

When we stepped in, we found the church in a difficult situation with a lot of moving parts. I began praying with a fervor like never before knowing that there was no way for me to succeed unless Jesus met us in this place and time. I know strategy has its place, but I purposed to clear my mind of ideas or tactics.  I began to ask for nothing but Jesus. I made the Fernando Ortega song, “Give Me Jesus” my theme song as it helped me guide my prayer time. I had no grand ideas of success, but merely wanted us as a church to get back to the basics and cling to Jesus in the midst of everything, including a flood that displaced many including us.

As we look toward 2012, I cherish the sense of how a new year allows us to turn the page on the old. We can open to a new chapter, blank and ready to be written in by the author of our life and all creation. The new beginning brings hope and anticipation for a new future God has for us.

Even in a nation where less than one percent of the Thai people know God, we are hopeful for the good things God will do in and through this church.

We want to see Jesus be Emmanuel with us in drawing this church together to be family. A family centered on Jesus that grows in the way of God together.

We need Jesus to be with us, present in this time to make us renewed and reborn into the church he has designed us to be. We want him present with us in power.

We hope to see miracles of changed lives, healings, and wonders in this city that draws people to know God. We hope to see many more people this year see that God is real.

Finally, we need to see God real in our life regarding the ministry to children in the nearby slum communities. We want to see long term, sustainable help to give these children a hope and a future.

How do you need God to be Emmanuel with you this New Year?