5/25/13

It was embarrassing...

The other day I had quite an embarrassing moment. I won’t go as far as to say it was my most embarrassing moment but it was awkward nonetheless. There was a team of about fifteen college students helping us at our practice. So we decided to open up with a fun game of “dinosaur.” The purpose of this game is simple. The “dinosaurs” run around, soccer ball in hand, and try to tag the kids with the ball. Kids love the game, therefore we love the game. However, at one point in the game, an observation came to me; the “dinosaurs” are not playing with any heart. They didn’t quite seem to understand the potential delight that this game brought about. So I decided it was time to show them just how much “fun” this game could be. As soon as I got the ball I began to run around like a crazy dinosaur. I tagged one, two, three kids. They were gleefully screaming at the overzealous dinosaur. And then it happened….I spotted an overjoyed yet overconfident kid across the field and with focused determination I ran, I ran with all my heart. What I failed to do was to scope my surroundings and identify potential obstacles. About halfway to my target it happened…the incident I now refer to as “the great collision.” A small boy about three years old, unaware of what was about to happened, emerged from the large legs of the nearby dinosaurs. In my defense, he was small and almost everyone else on the field was large. I didn’t see him coming. It seemed to happen in slow motion. At the last second I saw him but it was too late. I did my best to jump over him but my legs are not as young and spry as they used to be. I flew threw the air, not as high as I hoped, knocked him down to the ground with my flailing legs, and then I landed…face first…in the dirt. The first person I saw when I lifted my face from the ground was my husband, Billy. He looked at me astonished and speechless. I turned around to face my audience. The game came to a complete standstill. No one moved, all was silent, everyone stared…for about three seconds. And then came the wailing. The small boy had just realized his fate or shall I say his face… full of dirt and blood and he began to cry. And boy did he cry! My first thought was to attend to the small boy but truthfully this was because I was hoping to take as much attention off of myself as possible. I carried the boy to the water stand to get him cleaned up and hydrated, hoping that soon his cries would cease. But they didn’t. He kept on crying…and crying…he cried a lot! In the midst of his cries I could hear him, in Thai of course, crying out for his mother. I had no choice but to return the boy to his mom. With his older sister guiding the way, we made the slow trudge through the small neighborhood to the home of the boy. As he cried, people stared. Here I was, a red-headed white girl, dirt covering my face, carrying a small Thai boy, tears streaking his face, his mouth spitting out dirt, crying for his mother. I like to think that I am here in Thailand to bring smiles to kids’ faces but inevitably I also bring tears. When we reached his home the boy’s mother was nowhere to be found. His father, however, came to see what all the fuss was about. The boy’s sister explained to the father what happened and with a little smile on his face he stretched out his hands and took the crying boy in his arms saying, “lets go get you cleaned up.” That young boy had carried on for about twenty minutes but as soon as the father took him in his arms, the boy’s crying turned into muffled breathing as he began to collect himself. There was nothing I could do to stop the tears. In that moment, only the Father could comfort, only the Father could speak his language, only the Father could clean his wounds, only the Father could take the pain away.


“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.” 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

5/12/13

In the Shadow of His Wings


This kid had never expressed any affection toward me. It was not that I felt he was longing for affection, that he ever needed a hug or a playful jostle of the hair. He is a happy kid, a tough kid, enjoys soccer and having fun. And for the most part, yesterday he was that same kid…except for a few moments. It caught me by surprise, a small head tucking himself underneath my arm. For a second I thought he was maybe just trying to use me as shade from the sun, in which case I didn’t mind. It was a very hot morning and I was longing for some shade as well. But as the morning progressed I continued to feel a little head making it’s way underneath my arm. I soon got the hint that this boy was just looking for someone to hold him a little closer that day. Maybe he had a rough week or maybe he was just a little tired that day. Or maybe he was thinking about the mom he never got to grow up with or the mom he wished he had. I don’t know the reason but I got the hint and in a small way, certainly not the same way, but in small way I could relate.

Today is mother’s day. My mom has been gone for three years now but the deep longing for her embrace does not escape me. Her friendship, her wisdom, her voice, her love is missing from my days. Yet, those moments are missing from my life only because at one time I had the opportunity to experience them. I have wonderful memories of my mom that I hold and cherish and can take with me throughout the rest of my life. What do I do with a little boy who has had no such memories? As far as I know, he has a good life, surrounded by people who love and care for him, even as a mom should. But they are not his mom. I wonder if he misses what he should have had. Does he see other kids with their mom and wonder what his was like? Or does he question the situation at all? Maybe he just lives the life he knows and on the days when he needs a little more affection, he finds a loving arm that he can rest his weary head under. The beauty of this picture is that God knows our need for affection; “He will cover you with his feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge.” (Ps.91:4) I cannot answer you the question of why this boy grew up without his mom, what I do know is that God longs to give him the deepest affection, to hold him close, to show him that he is loved. I pray one day this boy will experience this love…a love that goes even deeper than a mother’s embrace.

As for today…well, my mom is resting her head under those strong and loving arms...and for that I will celebrate her life.

Happy Mother’s Day

5/4/13

Meet the Team

Our team is small. We are all very different from each other. We all come from different places and backgrounds. Billy and I come from the U.S. but from opposite sides. Yet somehow, God brought us together as one and now we live in Thailand. Yohei is from Japan and his favorite sport is baseball. But God brought him here to Thailand to coach soccer. He met his wife here. Her name is Ant and she is Thai. Sanan comes from Burma. Sanan was taken as a very young boy to serve in the Shan army. God rescued him out of the army and brought him to Thailand where he serves God here with us. Oom is also from Burma. His family fled to Thailand as refugees when Oom was just a boy. Thailand is where Oom grew up and Thailand is where God has called him to live and to serve. And then there is Ayaka and Brett and Jack. God has called them all here temporarily. Ayaka is also from Japan. God has given her a desire to use Sports ministry in Japan but for the next two years He has called her here to Thailand where she serves with contagious passion.  Jack is currently a college student at Messiah College where he plays soccer for the school team. Last year, his team won the national championship. Jack loves people and for a few months God called him to love the people of Thailand. In a couple weeks Jack will go back home to finish school and to continue serving God through soccer. And last but not least, we have Brett. Brett is Billy’s younger brother. Brett also played soccer for Messiah College and has a passion to continuing playing. But for right now, God has called him to use his gifts as a coach to serve the kids here in Thailand. At this time, this is the team of people God has brought together. We don’t always get along, but we love each other. One of us may fall, but someone is there to help them up. When one is weak, another is strong. If someone is sick, another cares for them. If someone wanders away, another will find him and bring him back. We are brothers and sisters, we are family. We’re all unique, gifted, a little strange, sinful, beloved children of God who are called here to Thailand for a single purpose; to love God and to love others. We do this in many different ways but under one name only, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Without Him, we are just a strange group of people hanging out in Thailand. With Him, the impossible is possible, the weak are strong, the team is complete, and our purpose is worth the journey.