Househunting

House hunting has been one of our early objectives here in Thailand. Some homes have “for rent” signs which we’re learning to decipher in Thai. Others have English signs, like the one we saw today advertising a “3 bedroom, 2 bath, fartly furnished home.”

In reality, most Thai homes are rented without furniture. This means there’s no couch, no cabinets, and usually no water heater or kitchen sink. You have to add those in on their own. The fact that there’s a sealed up concrete building make a home “nice” in our neighborhood. And really these homes are "nice." I’ve been in much more poverty stricken places than Chiang Mai, but this is the first foreign city that Nate and I have chosen to call home. The discrepancy between the rich and poor has made us question what sort of lifestyle we want here.

Living a comfortable life here would not be difficult or expensive. We found a beautiful fully furnished 3 bedroom home 20 minutes outside the city in a semi-American neighborhood. As we looked at the home it was easy to envision chatting with our English speaking friends on the back porch while watching K climb a mango tree. We could live the American dream here.

And yet we didn’t come to Thailand to live a comfortable, isolated life. And we certainly didn’t come to spend all day mowing grass, cleaning house, and washing windows. There is a time and place for that, but now is not the time for us. We came befriend, serve, and learn from Thai people.

Ironically, as we considered our housing options, God showed Nate a passage in Haggai 1.

“Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this
house (referring to God’s house) remains in ruins?...Give careful thought to
your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build the house
(of the Lord) that I may take pleasure in it and be honored.”

God has called us to live in the city among the Thai people so that we can help build HIS house.

We’re not saying it’s wrong to own a large home or to live among people who speak a similar language. We know hundreds of people who have built beautiful homes and are using them to share God’s love with others. In fact, we still have dreams of living in a larger space one day where we can host parties and let K run freely in the yard. God calls His people to neighborhoods of all shapes and sizes, so we can never judge another person’s love for God based on the size of their land.

What we ARE learning, however, is that God cares about how we use our home and how we relate to our neighbors. For this season of life, that means our best shot at ministry may look like living in an apartment building that’s filled with college students. Don’t get us wrong. Our apartment is still very nice, and we are incredibly excited about moving in. But our goal has shifted from wanting a home that’s “comfortable” for us, to wanting a home that allows our family to serve together in ministry. Please hold us accountable to this goal and pray that God will give us the grace to keep the right focus during this season of language learning.

Be Careful What You Ask For

Last night we went to a large Thai supercenter (like a Thai Walmart) to get household supplies. One item on our list was shampoo. We managed to find the hair care aisle (I think), but didn’t see English writing on the Thai products. Hoping the word for shampoo was universal, I picked up a pink bottle that I assumed was shampoo and pointed to it.

“Shampoo?” I asked. The lady nodded confidently. I pointed to another bottle of the same brand. “Shampoo?” Again, she nodded and repeated the word. Glad to know that the Thais use the same word as us for hair products, we bought the bottle and left the store.

Tonight I found myself flipping through the Thai phrasebook reading random words. Apparently “champoo” means pink. I don’t know what substance is in the pink bottle we bought, but hopefully it’s meant to clean hair. If it’s a dye that turns our hair pink, then we’ll have a whole new series of blogs for next week.

Flooding in Chiang Mai

There’s a reason why the guesthouse where Nate and I are staying is called the “Riverside Guesthouse.” It’s right by the Ping River. Apparently that river floods every decade or so. Today happened to be the lucky day. Our room got flooded, but thankfully none of our stuff was damaged and the owner graciously offered to put us up on the second floor for the remainder of our stay here.

Our normally busy street is now filled with sand-baggers and teenagers wading in knee-deep water. The amazing part of it all is the attitude of the Thai people. Men are pushing motor bikes down the street bowing at each other as they pass. Women carrying their children through knee deep water holding their babies and smiling as if they were out to smell the roses. Meanwhile small trees are floating downstream. There is no yelling, no rushing, and no sign of distress. I wouldn’t know a Thai curse word if I heard, it but if there’s rude words being exchanged they are done so with the most gentle attitude I’ve ever seen.

I realize that I have much to learn from the Thai culture. If it was my car, my house, or my store, I may not be so quick to blow it off with a smile. Life is short and possessions are ultimately meaningless. I’m thankful for God’s provision today, but also thankful for the Thai people who are teaching us to let go of materialism.

Good Morning Karis

Daddy gets more than a smile from Karis...