I Am in Thailand

I can hardly believe I am finally here,  The trip over was uneventful and very long except for getting separated from my mother-in-law, Wanda York,  as we were going through security in Korea.  I was getting the bags off the conveyor belt and turned around and she was nowhere to be seen.  In a moment of panic I surmised that her wheelchair assist person had taken her on to our gate as we were running short on time to make our connection.  So after a quick, "OK,God, what do I do now prayer, I  decided to head to the gate wherever that may be.  Luckily the airport was well marked with signs in English, so I took off to gate 31.  Well, of course it must have been at least a mile away, and I only had about 20 minutes to get to the gate.  Now imagine me with my backpack, carry-on bag and a laptop rushing through an airport in Korea trying to make a flight.  Thank goodness I made it to the gate with about 10 minutes to spare and there sat Wanda in her wheelchair saying "I AM NOT getting on that plane until Pam gets here.  I was so spent, I fell asleep before the plane backed out of its space.  Other than that, all was well.  The kids were so excited running to greet us, and of course we had to stop by McDonalds on the way home.  

This morning we woke up and Sai left on her scooter to go to the Lighthouse to prepare an amazing breakfast for us.   Makaila spent time designing a Christmas signboard.

Then it was off to Big C, Thailand's version of Walmart.  It is actually like a mini mall with a food court and multiple shops and vendors also.  On the way we passed many street vendors and motorcycles were everywhere.  Big C has a special lot just for the scooters and motor cycles.

One of the many sellers at the food court was selling whole cooked chickens, and I do mean whole. And I couldn't resist taking a picture of this guy's shirt.  I guess he is in Pattaya for a different reason than me.

Then there was the pier.  I am not sure I can ever put into words what I experienced tonight, but I must try.  At first I was just taking some pictures and observing, then Joseph handed me a stack of New Testaments and said here, go for it.  I told him I didn't know what to say, and he told me a couple of Chinese phrases and had to constantly correct my pronunciation.  I was trying to say "It is free" and "A gift for you."  By some of the looks I received, I am not sure what I was saying, but it worked.  The thrill I received when the first person reached for a Bible was overwhelming, but when someone ran back to me and tapped me on the shoulder to ask for one, I became speechless.  I must admit, taking pictures didn't matter so much anymore, giving out The Word was all I wanted to do.

And then it happened.  A young lady took a Bible and became so overwhelmed, she reached into her purse to give me money.  I tried to explain it was free, but she was insisting. Joseph came over and she explained to him that she had lost her Bible and was so excited to be able to get another one, she had to give us something.  He told her we would use the money to continue to spread God's Word.  I tried to hand this Chinese bill to him, but he said, you keep it.  It will do more good in getting Bibles by you using it to share this testimony than the amount of actual Bibles it will purchase.  He also gave her a full Chinese Bible.  She came back down the pier after her dinner with the biggest smile on her face and again she told me "Thank you!"

There were so many instances of people running back and taking a Bible after they realized what we were giving out and that it was not illegal Chines propaganda.  Joseph had one older gentleman run all the way back from his tour bus that was about to leave to get a full Bible when he saw his friends with one and had to run back to the bus before it left. One lady had about three New Testaments and asked Joseph if she could have more than one full Bible to take with her to share with others.

I cannot even begin to imagine how many thousands of people passed through that pier tonight, but with only four of us handing out Bibles, we were able to distribute 700 New Testaments and 166 full Bibles in just three hours.  Am I tired, yes, but my heart is overflowing.  God is doing an amazing work here, and I am so excited to get to be just a small part of it.

It is late, and I am tired.  I can't wait to see what tomorrow holds.

In His love,

Pam