OceanicThai

I have been asked to share a couple of life-lessons from my 13 years here in Thailand. I am touched that someone has asked this thoughtful question. A Few Things I've Learned Through The Years 1. Being a language learner is an excellent ministry tool. Thais love to help you learn their language. If you tell them you want to teach them something they may respond negatively, and you may not be able to teach your subject very well even if they consent to be taught. Asking them to help you learn a subject in Thai will make the experience pleasant for them, and help you get better in the language. I have a book that Thais have helped me with over and over again, the Creation to Christ Firm Foundations book. 2. Language will take you deeper into people’s lives. Never be satisfied with your current level of language. I remember sitting at a creek listening to a teenager pour her heart out to me and I really couldn ’t understand her. How could I possibly speak to her heart if I wasn...

Compassion is a worthy feeling, so is concern, empathy, and a desire to make a difference. These, however, are only the beginning of what really matters, and that is our actions. It is not enough to feel compassion and empathy for someone who is suffering, or a people group who is suffering, there must be movement of our hands, mouths and feet to make a difference. I am reminded of a short story written of a young man who visits a brothel for the first time and is horrified at what he sees. The degradation of the women moves him to great compassion and he agonizes over what he has seen and how it may be amended. After many sleepless and tormented days and nights of considering what must be done to stop such a blight, he is overwhelmed by the hopelessness of it all and gives up. What strikes me about this story is that it is often repeated in our own lives. We see injustice, we see evil, and we are horrified by it, but we are unsure of what to do, how to stop it, what difference our own...