Stories from the 'hood

The Kids Club at our house on Saturdays has probably been as much a cultural education for us, as for the children who attend, and see us doing things probably very differently to what they are used to. Thankfully, they don't laugh at our language mistakes, and strange ways.

Cultural lessons have included the surprise element each week about when the club is going to begin. At times we get children turning up at our door an hour early and wanting to play; other times they are half an hour late, with no explanation. This fluid concept of time and appointments extends to most of our meetings, especially in the villages - Isaan people, like most of the world, don't live by the clock and it's almost impossible for them to schedule things because they simply take each day as it comes. Although this is frustrating for the planner in me, it is definitely teaching me to just chill and take things as they come.

A favourite activity was doing this group painting after learning the story of Creation.
We are aiming to teach the stories using the Discovery method, where they learn the story well so they are able to retell it, then think about what it teaches them about God, themselves and how this applies to their lives. One week, after learning the Bible story of the fall of man, one little girl asked, "Can I tell a story about a scary ghost now?" This is such a prevalent subject here, we are beginning to get used to it but it still saddens us that evil spirits are such a commonly acknowledged presence here and have such a grip of fear over hearts. We were able to ask her in relation to the Creation and Fall of man story, "Who is most powerful?", "Where does fear and evil come from?" for her to discover that as children of an all-powerful God we have no reason to fear, and should not give Satan and his spirits a place in our lives or thoughts.

This is Aunty Uu and her daughter Kaew. They own and run little corner shops down my street. On the day we moved into this house, I ventured into Uu's shop looking for something. We started chatting, and very quickly struck up a great friendship. She and Kaew have become like family to me, sharing laughs, stories, encouragement and prayers over food every Friday. Uu is a very religious folk-Buddhist, incorporating a little of everything she likes into her faith. Both wanted to come to church with me. When Uu visited, God gave someone in the house church a word of knowledge about a pain in her side that she has had for a long time. We prayed, and she was amazed at how God would care to give someone that knowledge. The next week she said the pain was much better, and that now she worships both Jesus and Buddha. Such a response came as such a disappointment to me, but it is natural considering the deeply embedded worldview she has built up over her whole life. Only the Holy Spirit can lift the veil over her heart. Please pray for her, and for Kaew, who also encountered God when she visited.

The apostle Paul wrote, "When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power." (1 Cor 2:1-5).

This gives me no end of encouragement and fuel for prayer.

Today we saw this Scripture in action. We visited the cancer hospital, feeling quite unmotivated and apprehensive. All the patients we knew had gone home. We never know how well we will be received or what we should do. It is a weekly exercise in trusting the leading of the Spirit. But all we had to be was available, and God arranged the rest. Minutes after we sat down, one patient started to pour out her heart to us. She had been through 3 life-shattering events during this year and her heart was in pieces. She listened intently as we shared the hope of the gospel with her, and testimonies from our own lives. She was ready to receive Jesus, and we led her in prayer. She kept saying she felt better, and felt the peace of the Spirit filling her as we invited His presence into her life. Then we sang worship songs and she was keen to sing along. Her first offering of worship to the Living God - a fulfilment of the purpose that she was created for.

Is there any greater joy in life than this? As Christmas approaches, I am filled with inexpressible joy that Jesus came, and keeps coming. All he needs is our invitation.