Sunday afternoon reflection
I know it's been a long time since I've written. I thought about shutting down, but today convinced me not to. I think I'll just promise myself not to feel pressure to post.
Today was one of those Sundays that seems a little out of control.
(1) We had an outreach partner from an Orphanage near Hua Hin up. They brought about 20 kids to visit.
(2) We also had a recognition for our Sunday school teachers. Actually not too many teachers present today.
(3) We also had kids from the Klong Toey Community Center (one of our outreach partners here in BKK) providing our coffee hour.
(4) We finished off the "Parenting by Heart" Sunday school. The extension cord needed to run the multimedia portion disappeared. (It seems like a small problem, but I can't seem to get the staff to show any sign of urgency in such cases at finding a replacement.)
(5) And to finish things out I wasn't at all comfortable with my sermon going in. I was up a lot last night trying to figure out how to say what I knew God wanted me to say. (Pastor's can I get an AMEN to that!?)
That's a lot for one Sunday.
But then it happened. The Holy Spirit took over. God's Spirit just swept over the place. Things fell into place. And by the time I stood up to preach - I could just feel God's presence. I love it when that happens.
After church we took the kids, both the Orphans from Hua Hin and the kids from Klong Toey (for those who don't know, bkk's largest slum community) and we all went bowling!
During the bowling at one point I just stood back and had to laugh. What an amazing God we have! Here were 18 orphans from Hua Hin, most of whom are undocumented Karen refugees. Parents probably died of AIDS or in the war in Burma. Most of them are bowling for the first time in their lives. Some of them took an escalator for the first time to get up to the bowling alley! They needed to be taught the game.
Scattered among them are 6 kids from Klong Toey slum. They are urban, highly worldly kids. Many are also orphans. Parents, if they have them, are addicted to something or other. One of the kids is a Katoey. This is the Thai middle sex for anyone who doesn't know. Use google if you need more info! :) The Klong Toey kids are now regulars at our church. They don't understand much English, but I'm told they love it because they are received with open arms. Apparently that's not something they get often.
And we have over 25 volunteers from our church. And they come from all strata of society. We had HiSo Thais and LoSo Thais and a wide variety of foreigners. Japanese businessmen and Auzzies who live in the Slum.
And I sat back and thought - "I'm supposed to pastor this?!" What a sense of humor God has? What a blessing to be part of God's crazy upside down kingdom way of doing things! I think we were probably a little preview of what heaven will look like.
Today was one of those Sundays that seems a little out of control.
(1) We had an outreach partner from an Orphanage near Hua Hin up. They brought about 20 kids to visit.
(2) We also had a recognition for our Sunday school teachers. Actually not too many teachers present today.
(3) We also had kids from the Klong Toey Community Center (one of our outreach partners here in BKK) providing our coffee hour.
(4) We finished off the "Parenting by Heart" Sunday school. The extension cord needed to run the multimedia portion disappeared. (It seems like a small problem, but I can't seem to get the staff to show any sign of urgency in such cases at finding a replacement.)
(5) And to finish things out I wasn't at all comfortable with my sermon going in. I was up a lot last night trying to figure out how to say what I knew God wanted me to say. (Pastor's can I get an AMEN to that!?)
That's a lot for one Sunday.
But then it happened. The Holy Spirit took over. God's Spirit just swept over the place. Things fell into place. And by the time I stood up to preach - I could just feel God's presence. I love it when that happens.
After church we took the kids, both the Orphans from Hua Hin and the kids from Klong Toey (for those who don't know, bkk's largest slum community) and we all went bowling!
During the bowling at one point I just stood back and had to laugh. What an amazing God we have! Here were 18 orphans from Hua Hin, most of whom are undocumented Karen refugees. Parents probably died of AIDS or in the war in Burma. Most of them are bowling for the first time in their lives. Some of them took an escalator for the first time to get up to the bowling alley! They needed to be taught the game.
Scattered among them are 6 kids from Klong Toey slum. They are urban, highly worldly kids. Many are also orphans. Parents, if they have them, are addicted to something or other. One of the kids is a Katoey. This is the Thai middle sex for anyone who doesn't know. Use google if you need more info! :) The Klong Toey kids are now regulars at our church. They don't understand much English, but I'm told they love it because they are received with open arms. Apparently that's not something they get often.
And we have over 25 volunteers from our church. And they come from all strata of society. We had HiSo Thais and LoSo Thais and a wide variety of foreigners. Japanese businessmen and Auzzies who live in the Slum.
And I sat back and thought - "I'm supposed to pastor this?!" What a sense of humor God has? What a blessing to be part of God's crazy upside down kingdom way of doing things! I think we were probably a little preview of what heaven will look like.
