Funerals and Ghosts

I'm down to two weeks in Thailand. I have been reading the blogs of all my fellow community development interns and laughed at how so many of them said how fast the summer has gone and how they will miss it. I laugh because I have been thinking the same thing. This week, I have thought a lot about what I want to do before I leave, and found I want to do a lot more than I can in the next two weeks. I have had to set my priorities. So here they are:

Step Ahead Internship Work
1. Start Implementing Loan Performer into Step Ahead's program.
2. Show Pi Tun, Pi Golf, and Khun Sai how to use Loan Performer so they can continue what I have started.
3. Write a short handbook for loan performer to leave with Step Ahead.
4. Write a three year scenario projections report for Step Ahead based on Microfin findings.
5. Write a short handbook for Microfin to leave with Step Ahead.
6. Write three more weekly logs, two research reports, a research design critique, and a final

Time Off Work
1. Spend as much time as possible with Chai Yo, Pi Kung, Pi Noi, and Tallia Klung Toei Church.
2. Spend at least two or three more nights with Jonah and Chris.
3. Go to Kids Club the next two Saturdays.
4. Teach English at Tallia the next two Sundays.
5. Shop for gifts for people here.

This is a ridiculously crazy list for two weeks. Please be praying for me to get everything done and to be helpful for people.

Ok so your wondering why I labeled this blog Funerals and Ghosts. Tuesday, Chai Yo's grandfather died unexpectedly. I spent Wednesday night with him and went Thursday with him to the funeral. Chai Yo's dad is the pastor of Tallia Church. The death was especially hard for the family because the grandfather is not a Christian. When pastor Suwat was a kid his dad was Christian. His dad even sent him to a Bible College in Korea where he received the call to be a church planter and pastor in Klong Toei. After that, the grandfather turned to drinking and bankrupted himself. In the face of starving he became a Buddhist monk because Buddhists give food and money to monks. That is when he died of a heart attack. Please be praying for the family as this is hard, because they know the grandfather will not be in heaven waiting for them.

Wednesday night when I was talking with Chai Yo about anything but his grandfather, he gave me a history lesson of the church. Two years ago Tallia moved to a new building. The building had previously been owned by the mafia and had a spirit house in it. When Christians buy a new house there is usually a spirit house in it. The Christian buying the house gathers some fellow Christians and they break the spirit house to pieces. Then they fast and pray in the house praying that God will cast out any demons that are in the house. Pastor Suwat did the same thing for the new church. (Pastor Suwat and his family live in the church.) Inspite of their prayers, the spirits in the spirit house stayed in the home for one year afflicting the family. There were times when Pastor Suwat was held down by four "baby Ghosts," and once he was confronted by a "big ghost with flames coming out of it." Utty, pastor Suwat's youngest son, could not go to school that year because he was made paralyzed. Chai Yo could not sleep at night because he was always very hot. During this time Pastor Suwat and the whole church prayed like crazy that God would cast these Ghosts out. Finally after a year of affliction pastor Suwat got some oil and drew crosses on every window in the church, declaring the house for God. Everything stopped. The ghosts left.

Ok so that's my crazy stories and weeks ahead of me. Its time for me to get back to chopping away at that list of things to do. Until I return pray for my endurance, diligence, wisdom, and love. Especially love. If I get everything on my list done and see many women delivered from moneylenders and have not love I am only a resounding gong. (I praise God he can even use the resounding gong I often become and can transform this resounding gong into an instrument of love for others and Him.) I have discovered the greatest love story ever and found I am in it.