All week long we have been debating whether we should go to Lampang for our second Sunday, or save a lot of time and expense and just walk to church for a second week in Chiang Mai. I am so glad that we decided to make the trip, because it was such a good feeling returning to my greenie area. And I had a similar experience to seeing brother Thirawoot last week; I had the great pleasure of seeing sister Jongrak, who was a member of the branch back when I was a missionary, and who has not changed one bit from how I remember her. She is pictured next to Deacon in the above photo, and is such a good example to me of faithfulness steadfastness in the Gospel. As a member for over 30 years she is truly one of the spiritual giants that help strengthen the church here in Thailand. She was always so kind to me as a new missionary and seeing her at church today, giving a talk, after riding her bike 5kms to get there, is an example to our family that made the entire trip worth it.
This morning we set out from our hotel at 5:30am and caught a song taew to the bus station.
Everyone we spoke to recommended the bus over the train, citing that it was less likely to run late, a good thing because we would be cutting it a little close as it was. Plus we were looking forward to adding "bus" to our growing list of different forms of transportation we have experienced on our trip.
The bus got into Lampang on time at 8:30am and we found another song taew driver who was certain he knew where the church was (after a couple of his collegues described it to him). We ended up visiting three other Christian churches in Lampang before he went back to the bus station to get some clarification. I was looking at my watch, worrying that we were going to be late. And it would have been my fault because I had saved a map to the church on our ipad, but thought that I'd forgotten it back at our hotel - it turns out that it was in my backpack the entire time and I caused that poor driver stress for no reason.
I needed a map because since I was a missionary, the branch had moved from renting the bottom floor of an old house, to having their own place to worship. It turns out that we made it with minutes to spare and everyone was so welcoming to our family. It was so nice to find myself again at church in Lampang and after the sacrament, the Branch President invited me to bear my testimony.
After sacrament meeting we were talked into staying and the kids were actually excited to go to classes, even though they wouldn't be able to understand what was being said. After the three hours were over, it was so nice to come out of class, and see Heather and the kids all surrounded by members of the branch. Deacon, not only went to class by himself, but told us after that he "loved it".
The members of the branch have a potluck dinner each week after their meetings and despite our efforts to slip away, they insisted that we join them. A lady name sister Ning even presented us with a bag of cakes and other khanoms from her bakery.
Even after lunch, they didn't let us slip away but insisted that brother Kit give us a ride back to the bus station. As we left, I was struck again at how kind the Lampang members are, and have always been, to me. Being called here as a missionary was a huge blessing in my life, and I continue to be blessed by it. Being a member of the church, and a former Thai missionary, allows me to come here and be accepted as a friend and family, as though I belong. The experience that my family had in Lampang today is something that most tourists won't have.
When we got back to the bus station, I was dismayed to learn that because the students were returning to Chiang Mai for school tomorrow, the buses were all full. It seemed likely that I would find a similar situation at the train station, so I managed to find a taxi driver that would take us back to Chiang Mai for 1200Baht (ouch). I just wanted to get the family back to the hotel so I agreed to the price, thankful that we were in a position that we could, when many people would have been stranded at the station. Our driver was really nice and was curious about the missionaries he had seen riding their bikes around Lampang and we spent the entire ride talking about my mission and some of our beliefs.
We are now back 'home' and people want to get something to eat. I will finish off with this great picture of sister Jongrak and Deacon, which sums up how the members at Lampang made us feel today.
- C
3 comments:
Yay, I love that your kids want to stay at church and attend classes. Visiting another ward can seem foreign to me even when just visiting another city!!! Good for them! I'm loving the photos and just a little envious of Ella's skills;)
I loved this post. I love missionary work and how the ripple effects of missionary work can be felt by so many and for so long. I remember having you out on a mission as a really exciting and special time for our family back home. Reading your missionary letters and seeing your pictures you would send home, along with the Thai skirts and family drawing...helped us fall in love with the people and the culture of Thailand also. Then when you came home you were taking us out to Bua Thai and then when you got married Heather was cooking the best Naamtok ever....I feel like we continue to fall in love with Thailand and the culture even though we ourselves have never been there. And now following this blog while your family has been there has been such a thrill and excitement for our family. It is clear from the pictures that your children having fallen in love with Thailand and the people there as well...and the cycle of sharing that love with others will only continue in each of their lives. It is really interesting how missionary service enriches our lives in so many ways, for so so long.
Thanks so much you guys. Crystal, you should be the one blogging, with profound thoughts like that.
Thai food at our house when we get back, OK?
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