Things I've Done so Far

So I've been here about two weeks and I haven't really updated anyone on what things I have been doing in Thailand, and to be quite honest I don't really do anything "touristy" because I don't have time. I have been able, however, to have some free time and hang out with people at the more bustling places! So here is a log of what I've done, and what I would like to do one day.'

• The Royal Palace
• Very beautiful, intricate murals
• It is interesting to see how revered the King and Buddha are here in Thailand
• "Buddha is not for Tattoos" "Buddha is not for decoration" 
• Signs and slogans continually posted around the temple
• Lots of Chinese tourists
• My group managed to find a restaurant hidden away from the crowds, and praise God for that! The food was more reasonably priced and delicious than what surrounded the area
• Taking the water taxi here was hot, smelly, and a fun experience! Definitely would do it again
• Chinatown
• Your typical Chinatown. A lot of Chinese people and Chinese food. Food is really good though, and it's also a very pretty place. 
• Riding the tuk-tuk is cool too. Not much to say about it though. 
• Overall it's a cool place
• Ko Phi Phi/ Ko Chang
• I haven't been able to visit these places (and probably won't be able to, they're quite far from Krung Thep/Bangkok). However one day I would to go diving here (I need to learn how to scuba dive first). The beaches look beautiful and the seas are clear. 
• Ayutthaya
• The previous capital of Thailand before Krung Thep (Bangkok). Filled with ruins and old temples, this was a place I was hoping to visit this time. Unfortunately no one was ever able to and things always came up, so I haven't been able to visit. However, next year I can hopefully come back and be able to visit!

Yeah, so far I've only done two things that could really be considered sight-seeing. For the most part, I'm just teaching, hanging out with my students, going to church, and eating. Not complaining though, it is very fun to be serving here, and God is teaching me so much (more on that later).

Hope my prose will be better next time. I'm very tired today.

Chenglin Lee

Correction: the previous capital was Thon Buri, not ayutthaya

A Sharp Sword: The Importance of Scripture

For my missions trip to Thailand, one of the many books I brought with me was the Christian classic, Desiring God, by John Piper. One of the most striking chapters to me so far has been, "Scripture: Kindling for Christian Hedonism". The thesis of the chapter is essentially this: being saturated with Scripture daily is essential for your joy as a Christian. However, this seemingly obvious truth is often buried by daily worries, distractions, business, and laziness, especially within my life.

What My Life is Like without Meditating on Scripture
Oftentimes, when I have become too lazy to properly read, meditate, and memorize scripture, my spiritual life suffers immensely. Depression sets in, sin abounds, and I get burnt out, sometimes even turning into a nasty person--not someone particularly pleasant to be around.

The Blessings of Scripture
On the other hand, when I fight for my joy in Christ by inundating myself with Scripture, the opposite happens. The Bible is very clear about the positive effects of scripture!

"How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does he prospers" Psalm 1:1-3 NASB

"How can young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word. With all my heart I have sought You; do not let me wander from your commandments. Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You" Psalm 119: 9-11

"and take the Helmet of Salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" Ephesians 6:17

 As I meditate and read the scripture, my joy increases! I see what I truly have in Christ and the worldly things melt away in the mirror of the Word. It keeps me from sin, by constantly giving me wisdom, rebuking me, and encouraging me. It also is a powerful weapon against Satan, able to cut down the lies and falsehoods he daily throws through culture and thoughts.


This is incomplete and I feel like there's a lot more I can write on this subject (and there has been) but it's late and I should sleep soon! Just a tiny glimpse of what I've been learning in Thailand.  Maybe I'll add more to this when I get more time.


Chenglin

 

 

2 week update

So, I've left Southern California for about a month now, and here are some quick things I've learned or been reminded of so far....

• Vancouver has really good Chinese food (dare I say better than....Monterey Park??)
• Layovers are both exciting and tiring (layovers in Vancouver and Hong Kong)
• You meet and see all kinds of people on different flights
• Thailand has low living costs (Only needed about $700-800, most of the money went to the plane tickets)
• Thailand has really good food (that is also ridiculously cheap, a plate of pad thai is only $1)
• That one really does need to rest, even in the compacted time frame of a short term missions trip
• "How can a young man keep his way pure?
  By keeping it according to Your word." Psalm 119:9 NASB
  
• God and the Gospel is transcendent upon all corrupted, sinful, finite language and culture
• The Gospel is a better bond than any earthly thing
• Don't use my laptop on the bed, it heats up really quickly

I haven't been able to update because I've been busy or my laptop didn't work. This post wasn't very substantive, but hopefully I'll be able to go into more detail soon!

Safe and Sound

Week one of teaching English in Thailand is finished. I can't believe it's been a week already. Here's a quick update and some prayer requests. One of our prayers here for the short term missionaries in Thailand is for safety mainly because we are eating street food everyday. That's by choice, by the way because one, it's a lot cheaper and two, it tastes 10 times better. The coup d'etat is visible in Thailand but they are mostly seen near downtown. I haven't seen the tanks or any crazy things happening so thank God. The media just likes to hype things up so rest assured we are safe because God is protecting us. We started our classes on Monday and it's been an amazing week of fighting jet lag, trying new food, and meeting with our students. I can see God working in certain student's hearts as they are learning English and about Jesus. Most of my students don't believe in the supernatural and miraculous works that Jesus did, I mean it does take faith to believe in rising people from the dead or the healing of blind men. There are also other students who are more curious and have an open mind. It took me a while to believe that Jesus would save someone like me so I know God can work through these student's hearts. One thing I remembered from English class back in high school that I realized while teaching here in Thailand is that grammar is so difficult. I don't even remember some grammar rules and I'm relearning some right now. We speak English like it's nothing because it's second nature but trying to explain English grammar rules properly is like learning how to walk again. It take lots of practice learning a new language, I mean I'm trying to learn Thai but there are so many tones that I'm having a hard time hearing.

Hanging out with students at Swensen's, popular ice cream parlor in Thailand but originated in SF.

              Chenglin's Level 3 classroom                                        Dragonfruit with purple on the inside.

This is my cell group in Kwaang's room.

Snails are bigger in Thailand!

And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,

Ezekiel 11:19

Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.

Romans 10:1

This is my prayer for not only the people in Thailand but for people back home. This love I have found from God is unconditional, everlasting, and powerful. I think about how many times I have sinned against God but He still loves me after the fact that I chose to disobey him. He gives me new grace and mercy every morning that I am so thankful for.

Last Day In America

I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been supporting us this past year from pre-planning in August, to our multiple fundraising events, and just encouraging us with kind words. I wish I could just take you with us to show you what has been stirring in our hearts for the Thai people but this blog will suffice. I can’t wait to catch up with old friends and students I’ve met three years ago along with the new ones I’ve yet to meet. 

In the past few years God has been teaching me a lot about my selfishness. I did a lot of traveling, explored new hobbies, trying to seek happiness in new experiences but I still wanted more. He was revealing to me how I would cut off people if they were getting too close or just plain hard to deal with, so I would escape to let them solve their issues by themselves. I’ve learned that we are meant to be relational beings seeking acceptance from someone or something. I am reminded everyday of the good grace God has given me because He loves us so much that He gave His own son to be our replacement for the punishment of our sins. In 1 John 4:19 it says “We love because He first loved us.” This verse reminds me how I am deeply loved by my creator and I need to love others like that. I’m still learning everyday how to love all my friends and my family even if it’s difficult because I’ve come to realize that I, too, am hard to love. 

The purpose of this mission trip is to not only teach English to the Thai people but build these friendships and relationships to show them who Jesus is. If I have not yet shared with you who Jesus is and what He has done for my life, I apologize. To me, Jesus has rescued me from my darkest, selfish, and insecure self. I always thought that I was good enough to work my way to heaven so I aimed to be the best version of myself but that quickly turned sour. It took years of growth and a mission trip to Mexico for God to reveal to me that He was all that I needed and that I didn’t need to work to be accepted by Him. God doesn’t say clean up your act and then you can become my child. He says repent and believe. God is continuing to grow me each and everyday to be more like Christ. To show love, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in my life. I pray that my team and I will be able to do so in Thailand, America, or wherever I am placed next.  So follow us on our blog as we serve and love the people in Thailand in the next month and see how God is growing us.

Here is a glimpse of the greatest and my favorite love story ever told:

God existed before time began and He created this world. He created man in His own image to show intelligence and value in His creation. We were made to love God, worship God, and enjoy His creation. When God created Adam and Eve He gave them one rule “you must not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil for you surely will die.” God’s enemy Satan wanted to deceive Adam and Eve so he took form of a serpent. Adam and Eve knowingly disobeyed God and immediately sin, disease, pain, suffering, and death entered the world. What is sin? Sin is what separates us from God because He is holy and perfect. Sin is the complete opposite of what God is. We are all born sinners according to Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” The consequence of sin is eternal death, a lifetime in hell.

With that said we need a savior. God still loves and cares for His creation so He sent His own son to live a perfect and blameless life to be an example to us. Jesus went through similar temptations and he is our hope to reconcile that perfect, pure, and holy relationship we were meant to have. Jesus did so by dying on the cross for our sins and rising again in three days. Jesus is the innocent perfect one to rescue the hopelessly guilty. In 2 Corinthians 5:21 it says, “ For our sake he made him who knew no sin to be sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” God gave us hope in eternal life, a lifetime in heaven, and death is conquered because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice.

If any part of this speaks to you, I praise God. There is hope friend, Christian brother or sister, or new reader. Pray to God admit that you need Him and ask forgiveness for whatever separates you from seeking God. In 1 John 1:9 it says, “If we confess our sins He is willing and just to forgive us from all our sins and to cleanse us from all our unrighteousness." God wants to save His creation from the sin that entered the world and for us to have a relationship with Him. It’s not about working to gain acceptance from God because Jesus did all that for us already. In Ephesians 2:8-9 it says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. 

C. S. Lewis

The Universal Church: Chenglin Lee

In reading Acts and the Epistles, something I am always amazed by is how Paul (a Pharisee/Jew!) is able to minister to the churches of Philippi, Thessalonika, Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, etc. Paul has a very different background from these churches, and these churches themselves are very different culturally, regionally, and geographically. Despite all this, the doctrine is still theologically unified. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the same for someone in the church of Galatia as it is in Ephesus. Nothing changes---it is immutable and catholic (universal). When Peter became divisive and imposed Jewish cultural standards on the Church (recounted in Galatians 2); Paul  rebukes him. "If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?" (Galatians 2:14). Throughout the NT, it is emphasized again and again that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for all cultures! 

"Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the father" (John 4:21)
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28)
"Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, Slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all" (Colossians 3:11).
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19)

The Gospel in America is the same in all cultures, all over the world. 

Before I started to follow Christ, I was horribly elitist. I would set up barriers to be a close friend: you had to listen to really good music (to me listening to bands and people such as Bob Dylan, My Bloody Valentine, GY!BE, Kanye West, and so on), able to discuss philosophy and literature well, someone who watches arthouse and classic films, and someone who's personality clicked with mine. Anyone who did not fulfill at least two of these requirements was cast aside (unless you were a cute girl). However, setting up these barriers also led to isolation---obviously not many people could fulfill these arbitrary requirements and I would as a result not have many close friends. 

After I became Christian however, many of this started to change. I learned that the shared devotion to Jesus Christ was a stronger bond than anything similar aesthetic, political, and intellectual values. While they are nice to share (such as when I get to discuss philosophy and sociology with Danny H or Alex H) this is not the ultimate connection---only Christ is, and when I let down these barriers I have been able to serve and be served by some of the best people I know. Some of my closest friends don't share my likes and interests, but we are still able to have some of the deepest and encouraging talks. 

Today I was studying at Yami Tea Time to meet up with Mitchell, and was surprised by visits from Arianne, Patrick, Katie, and Fiona (brothers and sisters I met through Epic). We prayed together, laughed together, and just talked. It blessed me tremendously as they prayed for me before I left for Thailand, and it just reminded me of a truth I often forget: the catholic church of God connects people far deeper than interests, likes, distance, and personality. God has given these differences that we should celebrate, but ultimately these should be used to unite rather than divide. 

"For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in the grace given to use, let use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in genereosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness" (Romans 8:4-8).

Because of this, I have been able to encourage (and be encouraged), rebuke (and be rebuked), learn, teach, weep with, rejoice with, and ultimately live with the vast and sprawling network of Christians that transcends cultural, age, and regional barriers.

Right now, only about 1.8 % of the Thai population considers themselves Christian, and only .5% of the 1.8% considers themselves evangelical/protestant. My longing is that this percentage will grow, and that more Thai people are able to be inducted in to local churches, and by extension the universal church of God.Their backgrounds, creativity, intellect would be a blessing to the Kingdom of God, just as the Kingdom of God will be a blessing to them. I cannot wait for the day in heaven when all cultures and tongues come together with their different cultural art forms, cuisines, hymnodys, compositions, stories, and ideas; integrated and united under one goal---to worship. "All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name" (Psalm 86: 9). 


Chenglin Lee 

In One Week: Chenglin Lee

I'm going to start off with some facts about Thailand:

• Most are Buddhist--only about 1.5% are proclaimed Christians.
• There are about 2.8 Million people involved in sex work, many who are poor and sold into it as slaves
• Many refugees come to Thailand as it is a safe haven from political unrest and instability in the region.

While these things break my heart, the place still seems....nebulous and abstract. It hasn't quite hit me yet that I'm leaving Southern California for 1 month to spread Christ in Bangkok. Hmmm......

Still I am excited! Not everyone gets the opportunity to do cross-cultural missions, and I praise God that he has chosen me for such a task. I long for the day in heaven when people from all nations and all cultures will be worshipping and giving glory to God, and to hear and see the Thai people and culture being used mightily for the glory of God!

Things are still unclear in my head, but as the trip gets closer maybe I'll have more to say.

Until next time,
Chenglin Lee