Meeting with Friends

 (1) All teacher volunteers (mostly from Minneapolis) gathered on Saturday for teacher training. Phil and I had gone to the gym earlier to work out, because sitting for hours is difficult in a classroom setting. (That IS one thing I am getting too old for.) A missionary who works with Santisuk, Deb Guzman, led the four-hour training session. There were 17 teacher volunteers around the table.

Next to me near the far end of the table are Lyndell and Gary Moberg, friends from the North Church in Minneapolis (they are the ones who encouraged us to apply). We know several others as well. After three or four days of simply being on our own, it was good to be with a group again. It helped us feel that we are really part of something here, instead of being two little particles tossing around in the huge sea of Bangkok.

The training was fast-paced and a bit overwhelming (most volunteers have been teachers here before). But they all assured us newbies that the first two or three days had been scary and confusing for them too. Phil and I will be team-teaching two classes of Level 1 English, where students will have basic knowledge of grammar and vocabulary but need help with pronunciation and practice with speaking and writing. I think we can do that. 

Our 1:00-3:00 class has five students: two older couples whose children want them to learn English before vacationing in the United States, and one au pair who will be leaving for the US on Jan. 28. Our 4:45-6:45 class has younger students. 

(2) After teacher training we went out to dinner at the BangKhapi Mall with Gary and Lyndell and another teaching couple, along with a Thai student named “Giant.” (More about Thai nicknames in a later post.) The restaurant touted fresh, organic vegetables, so we ordered lots of salads and some meat. Great food and conversation. Adriana gave us a tour of the mall, which she walks almost every day. (More about the mall later—it’s unbelievable.) Then Lyndell and Gary left for their teaching location in Silom (close to downtown Bangkok, about a 45-minute drive from our location).


(3) Sunday (today) we became part of a cell group at the Santisuk church. (Large-group worship is at Santisuk on Friday nights, but cell groups meet in people’s homes on Sunday mornings.) We walked with Jun (church member and Santisuk employee) about a mile to a high-rise apartment building. 


There we met in Kratae’s apartment—a tiny studio about one-third the size of ours. We spent 2 1/2 hours sharing Scripture and what God is doing in our lives. We also discussed Friday night’s sermon and prayed for each other. Thankfully two of the members spoke both English and Thai and could translate for us. It’s amazing how much you can get to know another person even with the language barrier. We look forward to more cell group meetings each Sunday morning.

Note that both Jun and Kratae came to faith in Christ through Santisuk English classes. If you are reading this blog, pray that the friendships Phil and I will make in our classes will also plant seeds for others to come to faith in our dear Jesus. Every day we walk past small shrines like the one below, where people leave offerings to appease the gods, in the hope the gods won’t play mischief in their lives. Despite the bright sunlight, this is a place of spiritual darkness.




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