While in Chiang Mai our group went to a Christian orphanage to spend time with the children there. After playing games with them, we had dinner with them, followed by a program from the kids and then a worship service. It was very evident at this orphanage that Jesus is the focus. Although the facilities did not look that nice, the children were genuinely happy. The video below includes pictures of the orphanage, pictures of our group interacting with the children, and video segments of the children singing Christian worship songs in Thai.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
Chiang Mai - Monk Chat
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5:00-7:00 was the opportunity to attend Monk Chat. During the specified times, anyone was welcome to come in and engage Buddhist monks in conversation. For our group, our conversations opened many doors for the gospel to be shared.
Chiang Mai - Concert
Two free Christian concerts were held for the community. The first was at a small venue where I was able to speak to a Thai college student about Jesus. The other concert was held at a church. The Tim Johnson Band from America and several Thai musical groups performed as a means to reach the community for Christ.
Chiang Mai - Class
The morning until lunch time was spent in worship and in class. Worship consisted of The Tim Johnson Band leading us in song and a Helen, GA pastor leading the devotion. Class followed the time of worship. Class was held in our hotel conference room. The first week we studied Buddhism, and the second week we studied Islam. Part of class was also spent hands-on when we went to Buddhist temples.
Chiang Mai - Church in the Village
Most of our time was spent in the city, but one Sunday we went to a church in the village. We attended the worship service where they sang songs we knew, but in their own language. After the service we ate lunch with the kids and spent time with them for several hours.
Chiang Mai - Transportation
One of the three planes that transported us to Thailand. 
Riding in a Tuk Tuk - one of our main types of transportation. The Tuk Tuk reminded me of a wanna-be golf cart, but was driven like a motorcycle.
The Sung-tow was our other main type of transportation. It was a truck with two benches in the back. About 12 people could fit in a Sung-tow.
Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai is only .08% Christian! The population majority is Buddhist, since “To be Thai is to be Buddhist.” Muslims and atheist were also encountered on the trip. With such few Christians, there is much work to be done in Chiang Mai!
Eric and I spent July 7-26 in Thailand with five of our KFBC college students. Our KFBC team of seven joined up with Truett McConnell College and Southwestern Seminary, forming a group of around sixty people. Due to extensive travel time, we only had 2½ weeks in Thailand. The first several days were spent immersed in Thai culture and learning our way around the city so that we would know how to best reach out to the people. The first full week was spent focusing on Buddhism and Buddhist evangelism. The mornings were spent in a class learning about Buddhism, and the afternoons and evenings were spent out in the community building relationships with people in efforts to share Jesus with them. The second full week consisted of the same schedule, but with an emphasis on Islam and Islam evangelism. For both weeks, we engaged the culture and people by visiting universities, restaurants, local shops, malls, mosques, temples, and monk chat. At all these locations, the Lord opened doors for us to share the gospel with others. We also had the opportunity to work with children at a village church and at an orphanage.
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