After a long day and a half of traveling North in Cambodia, we crossed the border into Thailand last Thursday. The reason for our journey? A three-day get-together of EMM workers from Southeast Asia, hosted by Skip and Carol Tobin. (Upper Left: A glimpse of Thailand's green rice fields.)
We had a wonderful time interacting with the group of 11 adults and 4 children. We came away from the retreat feeling very encouraged in our faith. Though we don’t have a large EMM Cambodia team to support us, we are grateful for the team we have with these brothers and sisters. We gathered together regularly for meals, worship, Bible study, and prayer. We were blessed by how meaningful the times of prayer for one another were.
A highlight of the weekend was having the opportunity to attend an Isaan-style church service. (Bethany and Kai missed out on this because Kai was sick.) The Isaan people are a people group in Thailand. Skip and Carol Tobin helped to plant this church. The worship group lead the singing using some uniquely Isaan instruments. Though Juliana and I couldn’t sing along, we clapped our hands and enjoyed the joyful noises that were being made to the Lord.
After the service we enjoyed a meal of sticky rice (which you eat with your hands) and all kinds of “fixin’s.”
Here is Juliana, after the meal, playing a xylophone-like instrument with the help of one of the members of the worship band.
While driving in Thailand, Skip pointed out this New Holland tractor retail shop. What a surprise to see this reminder of rural Lancaster County on the other side of the world!
We enjoyed the scenery as we traveled. Here’s a view of Cambodia, close to the Thai border.
The one dissapointment of the trip was Juliana and Kai being sick. Juliana was sick as we traveled to Thailand and Kai was sick as we came home. Juliana is better now, but Kai is still suffering from something in his digestive system. We'll see a doctor tomorrow and hope he'll recover soon.
Can you guess who's feeling sick in who's feeling like himself in this picture? These two grow more and more special to us every day. We are blessed to be their parents...Until next time,
Ryan
1 comment:
Hope that the doctor visit went well. I can't quite imagine trying to convey my child's sickness to one when I wouldn't know if I could convey quite the right message...hopefully you guys have mastered the language. :) Take care, and hope you guys don't catch the bug...Mis.
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