With this having been our second week in the village and also our last official week of ministry before we debrief and prepare to head back to the states, things couldn't have gone more perfectly. As we went into this week, our main goal was to continually build on what we had already been doing, which was gaining influence and growing in the relationships with the villagers. This week definitely exceded my expectations and God opened some amazing doors that we were able to step into.
One of these doors took place when Simon, our Translator and intern for Zion Cafe had noticed a cross on one of the homes in the village. Simon then went to this home and began talking with the family that lived there. While there Simon was informed that they were the only Christian family in the village, and they later asked for all of us to come over and fellowship with them. This time with the family later transpired to us being able to bless them with scriptures writen on poster board for their home and for their gate so the other villagers would see in passing. They also invited us and our families to come with them on Saturday to the Thanksgiving service at their church.
Only two of our host mothers went, but even this was amazing and we're hoping by introducing them to this family that maybe they will go again.
Meeting this family was also a huge blessing because anytime you go somewhere to do short term missions you always leave hoping someone else will be able to keep being a light and showing the love of Christ. Knowing we leave this family behind gives us great encouragement for the things to come in the lives of the villagers.
Throughout the week we were also able to continue cutting garlic and were actually given the opportunity to go help plant in the rice fields. We also kept meeting the kids down at the basketball court every day at 4 o'clock. By the end of the week the kids had taught us their version of dodge ball, a traditional Thai dance, and were able to beat us in P.I.G .
To end our time in the village our team planned a bon fire where we invited all of our families to come and hangout one last time. This was a time filled with great laughter and Joy. We taught them how to make smores and they showed us how to properly break open bamboo rice.
Since all the families were there, we honored them by thanking them for their hospitality and generosity over the last two weeks. We truly were so blessed by our host families and they will all hold a great place in our hearts. We finished the evening off by singing some worship songs to the villagers and Sharing a few testimonies about why we follow God and what He has done in our lives. Ultimately, our last evening with our host families was amazing, and as we left this morning and the villagers waved us off I had this peace knowing we did what we were called to do, which was to love our neighbor as ourself.
- Austin