Sights on the road...

Orange ribbon wrapped around the trees- show that they are
 special and protected and can't be cut down
We call this road..."the big tree road"

You see this all the time...makes me so nervous....
no car seats....no helmets....

There had been a flower parade earlier that day....
saw this while we were waiting for a songthaew (public transportation) 

Trip to a village

I have been helping some Kachin students with English on Monday nights and I finally had the chance to go to visit their homes. These students are living in the city to be able to go to a good school with hopes of getting into university.

We drove up to their village, which took about 2 hours and got there just in time for church.

We sang "Once Again" in both Thai and English in front of everyone :) 

Good thing the girls made us practice on the way there (don't know if it actually helped). haha

Not really sure what I actually sang during the Thai part...

After the service, which was all in Kachin, we went to one of the girls' houses for lunch. Many of the moms were there helping cook as well.

Papaya Salad

Happy girls.... :)

After lunch the girls took us to each of their houses and we met grandmas, nephews, sisters, a brother, moms, and dads! It was kind of funny cause we just walked from house to house- staying at each house for only a couple of minutes. It kind of felt like a parade! They were very proud and pleased to share with us where they lived.

Rice drying outside

Sisters!

Sisters and Grandma!

Father and daughter

Sisters!

one of the houses...

After we saw all their houses we went to a Chinese village that was very close by to the Kachin village. We saw a school, church and a Children's home there. Then we went back and picked up the kids to go home. When we got in the van a couple of the girls asked if I was happy. When I said that I was happy that I got to see their homes and families one of the girls gave me a huge smile and said, "Yes, you got to see my mom, dad, and sister." They were so excited that we took the time to meet their families and see their homes.

To learn more about my friends' ministries around Asia you can go to their website and click on the menu:

www.elijahfoundation.org

No water....

These last few months we have had many times without water in our neighborhood. Yet we don’t always know when they have turned off the water, because we have a big water tank behind our house. This tank refills every time we use water. When the water is turned off it can’t refill, but we can go a few days before running out of the water in the tank and having a “real” problem. 

One time there was a leak somewhere that they couldn’t find so we didn’t have water for nearly 4 days. We didn’t realize this until day 2 or 3 of not having water, so by that time we only had a 1/3 of the tank full. We actually had to be very careful for the next day to make sure the water would last. Usually the water is just out for a few hours and we don’t even notice because we are at school. When the water comes back we don’t have to do anything, it just automatically refills the tank. It is one of those things we just take for granted most of the time.

As I was having my quiet time a few weeks ago, right after the longest stretch without water, I began to think about how this relates to my walk with Christ.

People talk about how as Christians we need to make sure we are being fed and spending time with the Lord to keep our “water tank” full so that we can “pour” into others’ lives. Sometimes I don’t notice when I have stopped being filled up because I am so busy doing “good things.” I don’t think about running empty until I start to really struggle. How I want to always be “connected” to receive God’s love and grow closer to Him daily. Yet this doesn’t happen automatically like my water tank behind the house. I need to make sure that I am taking time to fill myself up with all that God has to offer me. He is just waiting for me to spend time with him in prayer, in quiet reflection, and in His Word.

Not only do I want to remain “connected” so that I am full, I also want to remain “connected” so that I can pour into others’ lives without worrying about not having enough. When the water tank is running low and we have no idea when the water will be turned on we stop using water freely. We are careful with the water we have at our house.  We wouldn’t be able to share any of our water; in fact we have to ask for water from others. In my Christian walk I want to be able to pour into peoples’ lives and not have to worry about not having “enough.”

Everyday I need to stay connected to the Vine.  

John 15:1-17