January Oh-nine

Hello avid readers!

It's hard for me to believe that January's practically 2/3 over, and that only 2 weekends ago, I was braving -40°C weather. There was a bit of a story with my return flight, but in order to read that, you're going to have to check out the post before this one.

Since I've been back to Thailand, there have been a few developments:

• The church that I've been asked to partner with began its first service on 1 January. I have yet been able to go due to my other service obligations at the ex-pat church where I attend (I mix sound once every three weeks). I've heard reports, though, from my friends (a couple from the states—the guy who's teaching high school math in my lieu) that seem optimistic and at the same time, concerned about the sheer volume of activities that the Thai leadership has expressed a desire to undertake. Owing to my absence at the beginning of January, I won't be able to check out this church next week either (sound mixing duty), but I hope that the opportunity arises sooner than later.


• I had a chance to go to a Thai wedding on the day that I landed in Thailand. The wedding saw a couple of my friends—Dominic and Sherri—tie the knot on the 6th of January. It was a pretty cool experience, notwithstanding my severe jetlag, and I'm glad that I had the opportunity to celebrate with them. Sherri's parents are in North Carolina, and they couldn't make the trip out to Thailand for the wedding. Perhaps they'll have another celebration when the new couple moves across the pond later this year?


• Last week saw my teaching career at GES all but cease & my library duties redouble their temporal allotments. After the typical Tuesday staff meeting that I sat through a few short hours after I had landed back in the BKK, I was called into the administrator's office along with the grades 1 & 2 teachers for a second, smaller meeting. In that meeting, we were told that the school thought it best if my classes were delegated to others & my efforts in cataloguing & organising the library become the primary focus of my weekly activity. It was sad to leave the students last week although I still do teach one class (grade 7). On the upside, however, there has been a huge increase in my library productivity since this shift. Because the computers classes are always scheduled 30 minutes (or less) after my last library check-out session, it becomes very difficult to get into a rhythm for the short "free time" that used to exist between my services. Cutting out my teaching hours has effectively doubled my productivity in cataloguing & data entry. It's great. Great, though, might still not be enough to cut it: there are thousands of library books that need to be catalogued & which need new shelf tags (the old ones have since faded, and the typical letter classification for book type: 'E' 'JE' 'F' 'JF' etc. Confuses the kids who try to do their best to keep the library in alphabetical order, so I’ve devised a new classification system for the fiction collection). With the few weeks that are left, I'm not sure if the records will be completed—not to mention creating "accounts" for all staff & students who will be using the system too...


• This past Monday, I received a new helper! Her name's Ann & she hails from Taber. It's a huge blessing & relief to have someone with a strong command of the English language work alongside me in the library. She's been instrumental in helping with the cataloguing process, and we're coming up to the point where our combined productivity will double my throughput alone. She's a quick learner & is good, not only in finding the fine details, but also in understanding systems & the importance thereof. It's like she's been a God-send (which, perhaps she is, seeing that she came to volunteer with the school in December). Combined, we're getting close to reaching 80 completed title records a day for the non-fiction section. That's pretty good, considering that half of the library's operating time is filled with students running around & checking out books, with the mundane upkeep of re-shelving books and, lest we forget, checking in books also.


• Along with Ann, my other helper, Mrs. Lorena, a Filipino mother/missionary has continued to help me, but now the school has given her more working hours toward the library project which is also a huge blessing. She's been a trooper in labelling & covering the books that Ann & I have been cataloguing. We're working a veritable assembly line in the library these days. It's awesome.


• We were asked two weeks ago by the school to fill out forms of intent for the upcoming year. These forms are supposed to help the school plan & decide how to staff the next couple of terms after this one expires. The word on the street (and from our administrator) is that we should be hearing from the owners regarding job offers by the 1st of February. It's a huge time of transition right now as all the staff members are weighing the options & trying to decide what 2009 will have in store for them.


• My bent on 2009 goes somewhat like this: While in Canada over Christmas, during one of my prayer sessions with God, we were talking about what my future portends. I expressed my anxiety and uncertainty with pretty much everything, telling Him that I didn't know how long He wanted me to stay in Thailand (How long is "indefinitely" anyways?), and if I were to stay for longer than June / July this year, how I would find lodging & finances required for living, what exactly He wanted me to do with the church plant, how far to take it, and on & on & on... Instead of answering my questions the way that I was hoping He would (which seems typical for God), He said this, an excerpt from my prayer journal:

[Holy Spirit:] Trust in the Lord and He will give you the desires of Your heart
Do not let your heart be troubled Trust in God; trust also in me. In My Father's house there are many rooms, if it were not so, I would have told you.


[Me:] You go ahead of me to prepare a place for me.

[HS:] "It doesn't matter if you know what I want you to do. All I require of you is that you walk in faith the path that I have laid before you. Trust in Me; trust that I know where I am taking you. Do not fear, for I am with you and I will make you great & prosperous. Only, be sure to walk in the way that I have set before you: walk in it and do not tread to the left or the right. Let me worry about where you are going. You, be mindful of where you put your next step. I have called you to help with this church plant, now be faithful in my call. Do not worry about how long you will be there: just be there as long as I have ordained you to be there."

[Me:] What, then, do I do about May, Father? What is the step after this one?

[HS:] "That will be revealed to you in due time. Only be mindful of what I have set before you at this current time. Let me worry about where I am taking You."

Make no plans until February. Proceed as normal. Plan as if you are returning in May, but make no solid commitment to any plan until after January ends. Who knows? Maybe something will surface that you are not currently aware of.

And that, my friends & family, is what I'm working with. It strikes me as a bit providential that this prayer was written on 28 December, and when I arrive back in Thailand, I'm told that job offerings will be on Feb 1. Who knows? Maybe God will have me here another year? All I know is that He wants me to be serving Him in this time—and that "this time" is in His hands.

Things that you could pray for:

• Pray for the staff @ GES as all of us are considering the future. Pray that we be mindful of what God wants us to do & that we need only be responsible for following the step that He immediately lays before us—that the rest is in His hands until He goads us otherwise.


• Pray for my G. 11 student, Kitty, who's leaving on Monday (ish) to live Brooklyn until August (or thereabouts). She's a professing Christian, but one of the difficulties of being a Thai Christian is that spiritual growth / discipleship is scant at best. Pray that she would get connected to a good, solid Christian community while she lives in NY.


• Pray for this new church plant that God wants me working in/with. Pray that wisdom would be granted to the leadership & that above all things, the Lord would be followed. Pray for unity & harmony above believers.


• Pray that we, as a Christian staff, wouldn't slip into the "game over" mentality with our 8 remaining weeks of school. Pray for our unity, for our fervour & for our lives to blaze bright as living examples of Christ, not merely resounding gongs or clanging cymbals.


• Pray that the Lord's direction for my 2009 would be blatantly evident in February: if He desires for me to stay in Thailand for 2009 or beyond, that all those intimidating hurdles would be jumped / all those imposing doors would be opened. Conversely, if He wants me to return to Canada (or elsewhere), pray that that step would also be illuminated clear as day in a desert.

Thanks, all, for your interest & prayers. They're greatly appreciated!

A January Tidbit

This officially is the first adventure of 2009. Missed flight! First class! Rerouted to LA! Free hotel (please may that happen)! It is pretty exciting to think that all this happened because of a small flame failing to ignite in an engine on the tarmac of Edmonton's International Airport in the wee hours of this morning. Something about it being -40°C or other… And on top of this, the clock in the room where I was staying got re-set with a different time, throwing me off my schedule be an hour! That was odd... Thank you, Lord, that my mom woke me up because I'd be willing to bet that even if my own alarms had woken me, I'd be poking around, biding my time during that hour before my plane was supposed to take off completely unaware that I was 60 minutes behind schedule. The great irony is that it didn't really matter in the end, seeing as the airplane only left YEG a full two hours after it was scheduled to depart.

And here I am, in seat 2A on Northwest Airlines flight 315 to Los Angeles for a 17ish hour layover before I fly out—a day later—to Tokyo for my connecting flight into Bangkok. I'm not exactly sure what the purpose of this delay is in the grand scheme of things, but there usually tends to be a reason that floats to the surface sometime later in this progression of time called life. I have never been to LA before, so it will be an experience to say the least. Is my rerouting a need to fill a gap or to interact with someone while I layover in Los Angeles? Was there something that was going to happen on my other schedule that I wasn't supposed to experience? Is there something that I am supposed to be missing in Bangkok? Not sure. Yet. Maybe one day I'll find out, but at this juncture, all I know is that I know that God is doing His thing: and when He works, ain't nothing gonna stand in his way.

I am going to be crazy tired for my friends’—Dominic and Sherri—wedding on Tuesday. Sheesh! I mean, talk about a busy day: first I get in at 12:30—all things going to schedule—then I struggle through customs & return to GES probably by 2 at the earliest, 3 at the latest. That morning, we have staff meeting at 7:30 am. My two computers classes plus library stuff. Maybe Thai class? The wedding at 6 & the party until who knows when? It's going to be a full day, especially when there's a games day on Friday which may or may not interfere with my classes... And then Teachers' Day the following Friday! The Grade 7 & 9 classes will be sooooo far behind if the time allotted in class is for instruction. Methinks we're going to have to hash out something—some sort of monthly plan of attack—to see if these classes can stay in line with each other (parity or something... Or not. I mean, who says that each class must have the same level of instruction? I know that it's kinda gay for those students who get less [or for those who get more, depending on your perspective. Ha!] instruction, but the way that the schedules have worked out this year really doesn't lend itself very well to instructional parity. Oh well.).

It's going to be an interesting year back, Lord, and You've decided to start it off with a bang :). I'm not 100% sure why my brain is screaming & throbbing at this point in time, but I trust that You've got it looked after & that it may merely be a result of fatigue or dehydration or both.

Father, I pray that you help me to be faithful with the resources that you've given me & the relationships that you've afforded me. Let me not squander them, but give me the wisdom & the direction to take these things and develop them for your glory. I pray for reconciliation between Sparky & I; for an open & curious spirit to overwhelm Oom; for opportunities to lead & develop the staff & the students that wouldn't become nullified due to lack of interest or lack of priority. Father, I ask you emphatically for wisdom with how to proceed in this church plant ordeal. I'm going to wait on you, as you've instructed, but in this time of waiting, let your wisdom steep my brain & pickle my thoughts so that all of the information that comes at me (and has already done so) can be processed through the distinct flavour of your loving wisdom & discernment. Jesus, I ask that you bring reconciliation & cooperation & understanding & restitution in the relationships surrounding this church plant project & NBC. I pray that William turns out to be an excellent resource & willing servant in the advancement of Your Kingdom. May his excitement / passion and vision not be swallowed up, but Lord, may you be so gracious as to use him as a catalyst to enliven those Christians around him.

My brain is sore—as are my legs—and I'm tired (not to mention that the battery on this contraption has sunk below 70% & I don't have access to my charger until further notice). So, that being said, Lord, I pray that you take my life & take my will & take my all and make it Yours. Give me the grace & strength to live in subjugation to Your will.

I's loves ya's.

December Oh-Eight

Hello family & friends in North America,

Again, it blows my mind to think about how two weeks have already passed & how, in a little under three weeks, we'll celebrate the culmination of 2008 & usher in the last year of single digits in this third millennium since our Lord's physical manifestation.

As the time has flown by, many of the events in these 14 days seem rather fleeting also, but I'm sure that they have importance somewhere to some people, so I'll relay them to you now.

For those of you who've been tuned in to the international scene, you probably heard about how the PAD stormed, occupied & blockaded Suvarnabhumi International Airport over here in Bangkok. You probably also heard that it took a week of cancelled flights & stranded passengers before the constitutional court ruled in favour of the PAD, calling for the leadership of the governing party in Thailand to be stripped of their offices & denied political authority for five years, owing to corruption & vote-fixing in last year's election. You also probably heard that flights have since resumed & that everything's pretty much back to normal. In fact, you guys probably know more about it than we do: while living in Bangkok, it has been difficult to tell from our surroundings that any political turmoil whatsoever transpired. Honestly, the only way that I even knew that there was unrest was from people in Canada asking me how things were over here. My usual answer was "Fine? Why, is there supposed to be something that I should know about?"

Indeed, very little has seemed to change before the uprising & very little has changed after the uprising (save for less white faces), and it's life as usual over here in the good ol' BKK. In fact, flights seem to be back on schedule and everything, which is why some of you may see me in 7 or 8 days.

As the year draws to its close, so do classes meet their expiration date before Christmas. We have four days of school left before the break & 2 days of Christmas program celebrations this upcoming weekend. I've been asked to act in the official program—a small bit part, but one that requires an adult actor. It should be pretty good. I've yet to memorise my lines, but I'm not too worried.

What does worry me a little bit is this surprise that I discovered on Wednesday this week. I woke up one day & realised that I had a tick dining on my haematic fluids (that's "blood" in normal-speak)! How did it get there? That's another story which will follow shortly. Anyway, the reason why this tick worries me is because apparently 3 in 10 ticks from the region where I probably acquired it carry pathogenic bacteria, which if left untreated, potentially can damage my internal organs permanently & possibly even lead to death. I wouldn't be so concerned, except for the fact that the lymph nodes closest to where the tick was hiding have been persistently tender since the day I removed said beastie. I think I may go to the hospital today just in case (better safe than sorry, right?)...

Last weekend was a long weekend, due to the King's birthday. Because of this, one of the families at GES gave out a general invitation to the teachers to go on a trip up to Lopburi & make a few stops along the way: one, to see a waterfall in Khao Yai National Park (a UN World Heritage Site) and two, to see the famous sunflower fields that were blooming this time of year. I went along on this trip & am not certain at which stop I acquired my arachnous parasite, but it had to have been some time on that trip, since there isn't any brush to walk through in Nonthaburi...

Alright, that's pretty much all there is to tell at this installation. My birthday this year was one of the best on record: I didn't have to remind people that it was my birthday! My grade 11 students, the witty bunch they are, ran up to me during the morning announcements / flag ceremony & presented me with a shopping bag filled with Coke Zero bottles (*Ahh* they know me too well!); after school, one of my students who no longer attends GES stopped by to visit (and it was her birthday the week previous, so we co-celebrated) and _then_ about 8 of the teaching staff decided to head out to eat a celebratory birthday meal with me at Fuji—a Japanese restaurant—at The Mall. But it didn't stop there, either: while 6 of the girls decided to go watch "Twilight" later that evening, the rest of us went to eat ice cream & then grab a less girlie movie to watch back at school. It was stellar.

Things to pray about in this last week of school before the break:

• The Christmas program. That the students, teachers & support staff would all be un-stressed & that what _should_ be stressed would be the news/memorial celebration of Jesus' birth.


• My job situation & my students. This may potentially be my last week of teaching at GES. There are plans in the making to get me working full-time (as was the original plan) in the library, so that when the school-year is finished, the online catalogue would be completed & that the books themselves would have a consistent & effective method of organisation.


• My health. That I don't have some weird disease from the tick that I acquired last weekend.


• Wisdom for the future. Pray that God would continue to give me direction: that He would open & close doors as needed for me as I pursue His will in my life. How long does He want me in Thailand? In what capacity do I enter / stay (my work visa expires mid-July 2009, and I'd need an official purpose to stay longer)?


• Safety. Many teachers & students will be travelling this break. I'll be flying out in a little more than 6.5 days from the time I write this. Where will I go? Canada. Will I see you? Maybe: that depends on how flexible our schedules are. I'll be in Canada until the 3rd, when I fly back to Thailand & resume the rest of the school year.

Any questions, comments or concerns? You can e-mail me. If, though, you're okay with waiting, give me a shout when I'm on the same soil as you are. That said, I probably won't give another update on this blog until January. Merry Christmas & happy New Year!