In Memory of Princess Galyani
The Thai nation has been in mourning for the past few days and will continue through Tuesday (I think). Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana died about 9 months ago and the planning for her funeral has been going on since then. I think I read that the funeral costs were going to run upwards of 10 million US. Don't quote me on that. The memory is vague. The point is that it is an EXPENSIVE funeral. Funerals always are.
One of the things that stands out in my mind about Princess Galyani was her generosity. We might say she had a generous heart. She supported numerous charities. One stands out in my mind. She was a patron of the Christian Prison Ministry in Thailand. The Christian Prison Ministry is one of those groups that is underfunded but somehow stretches the money they do have and turn it into a loaves and fishes kind of thing. (You can read about the Loaves and Fish in the Bible. It's one of the only stories recorded in all four gospels! Matthew 14; Mark 6, Luke 9 and John 6)
The Princess, of course, was Buddhist. But she recognized a great ministry when she saw it. She stepped across the religious line and supported God's kingdom work of providing rehabilitative services to some of the most
hardened criminals in Thailand. I was once at the prison ministry Christmas music concert and the Princess was there too. About 20 rows in front of me. She was enjoying the fruits of her investment while hundreds of prisoners sang about the love of God and their love for Jesus.
It is my prayer that as the nation mourns her death - that a bit of the spirit of generosity with which she lived her life would rub off on us all.
One of the things that stands out in my mind about Princess Galyani was her generosity. We might say she had a generous heart. She supported numerous charities. One stands out in my mind. She was a patron of the Christian Prison Ministry in Thailand. The Christian Prison Ministry is one of those groups that is underfunded but somehow stretches the money they do have and turn it into a loaves and fishes kind of thing. (You can read about the Loaves and Fish in the Bible. It's one of the only stories recorded in all four gospels! Matthew 14; Mark 6, Luke 9 and John 6)
The Princess, of course, was Buddhist. But she recognized a great ministry when she saw it. She stepped across the religious line and supported God's kingdom work of providing rehabilitative services to some of the most
hardened criminals in Thailand. I was once at the prison ministry Christmas music concert and the Princess was there too. About 20 rows in front of me. She was enjoying the fruits of her investment while hundreds of prisoners sang about the love of God and their love for Jesus.
It is my prayer that as the nation mourns her death - that a bit of the spirit of generosity with which she lived her life would rub off on us all.
