See's parents

 

Yes, she is Hmong.

 

Chiang Mai is a favorite vacation/get away spot for me.  It just also happens to be the home of Doi Inthonon, the highest mountain peak in Thailand, located at the bottom of the Himalayan Mountain range.  April 26-29, I and the girls embarked on an excursion there.  We left early Friday morning for the 7 hour drive.  We arrived hot, tired and thirsty, but in good spirits.  We were met by See’s parents (no, not See’s candy).  See is one of the 11 returning girls at the girls’ house.  She lives in a Hmong village on Doi Inthonon.  Late Friday afternoon, we wandered around the Queen’s garden and went to a waterfall.  The cool water felt very refreshing after the long, hot drive, as April is the hottest month in Thailand.

 Early Saturday morning, See’s parents took us on a tour of Doi Inthonon.  First we went to the very top of the mountain and looked around.  Then we went on a 3 KM hike.  For me, this was the highlight of the entire trip.  The first half of the hike was shrouded in forest. After slightly over a 1 KM walk, all of a sudden, with no warning, the trail opened up onto the side of a mountain ridge, and we were just out in the open.  It felt like we were the only people on the face of the earth.  The scenery was breathtaking.  One minute we were in the forest, and the next on the side of a mountain.  Two very different kinds of terrain right next to each other.  The trail meandered around the mountain and then back into the forest.  We stopped at one point very near the end of the trail and there was a sign in both English and Thai that talked about taking a few minutes to enjoy the quiet.  As we were sitting on the benches provided, I felt this overwhelming desire to hear God speak. I asked God to speak to me and to not let us go until I had heard His voice.  A few of the girls thought that I was crazy, but I didn’t care.  I just wanted to hear God speak.  A few minutes later, God gave me Psalm 46:10 which says:  “be still and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, and I will be exalted in the earth.”  How many times do we (I)  worry and fret about this and that?  How much are we really trusting God?  I had to answer truthfully that there are many times I think about something from every possible angle, but I don’t pray about it.  How much more time could be devoted to sharing Christ if we weren’t so wrapped up in these little things that we so enjoy fretting about??  “BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.”  I want to challenge every one of you to spend a few minutes in silent contemplation and ask God to speak to your heart whatever He would speak to you right now, right at this moment.  He is faithful and He is longing for us to come to Him, just as we are and listen.

Later that afternoon, we went to another waterfall, but there wasn’t any swimming allowed there due to dangerous conditions.  So, See’s parents took us to a spot down the river where we could play in the water.  La, our Bible student intern said that for her, that was best part of the entire trip.  I think she had more fun swimming and playing than half of the girls. 

See’s parents welcomed us warmly and treated us like like part of the family. We ate every meal at See’s parents house.  The girls helped cook and did the dishes.  We gave them money for food, but if we had eaten every meal at a restaurant, we would have spent a lot more on food.  Because there were a total of 13 of us, 14, if you include See, we couldn’t all fit at See’s house, so we stayed at the church. We slept on the floor of one of the Sunday School rooms.  The bathroom was outside, with running water, but no hot water. I discovered the most amazing thing!  Medicine for car sickness works really well as a sleeping pill. I don’t recommend that everyone rush out to try that, but it helped that first night.  I was so blessed to be at this church.  The pastor is Hmong, and his wife is Thai.  This is the first time since I’ve been in Thailand that I have seen a husband/wife team of differing ethnic backgrounds working together to serve the Lord.  Saturday evening we went to a prayer meeting at the church.  This was the first Hmong church I had ever been in where any of the church members came to a prayer meeting.   They actually had a Sunday School hour (common in Thai churches, but not in Hmong churches), for different age groups.  During our time there, we witnessed confession of sin by someone in a previous leadership position, a vital time of worship, solid Biblical teaching and a small, core group of prayers.  That’s not to say that this church is without problems.  Problems exist, but this is a very dynamic church which blessed me beyond measure.