Ranting, running, reaching and reporting - it's all here

Oh the joys of life in a third-world country!
You may have noticed that I've not posted here in over two months. Well, to make a long story short, my computer broke sometime before Christmas. And guess what.... you can't get a Mac computer fixed in our country. Nope. Not happening here. And unfortunately, our next visa run (to a place where they could fix it) wouldn't be until the end of January, so I would just have to wait.
Finally the time came for us to go to Bangkok, but once we were there and the technicians at the Apple Store looked at my computer, they said we would have to leave the computer with them for three weeks to fix it. Our visa run at that time was only for three days, so we accepted the fact that we would just have to leave it with them in Bangkok until the next time we could come back and pick it up. Since we do visa runs every ten weeks, this meant I would be without my computer for another couple months. Ugh!
However, with the help of a few friends living in Bangkok and some others who live in our country who had to travel to Bangkok and back, I was able to get my computer back this week! Joy, joy joy!
Anyway, things are back to normal now, whatever "normal" may be.

Actually, I feel as if we've reached a point of a new "normal" these days, and it's not one similar to our American culture. Lately, I've been realizing how much our family has adjusted to life here, and the culture of where we're living has become our new normal.
Let me explain...
It used to be in the past, whenever we would travel to Bangkok to renew our visas, while we were there, we would stock up on our most beloved American-style groceries and supplies to take back with us into our country. Things like potato chips, boxed cereal, frozen waffles and good bacon and sausage. (We would freeze the meats and waffles in Bangkok and then put them in our suitcase to bring back with us. They don't thaw during our short return flight and they go straight back to the freezer at our house until we're ready to use them.)
It was Zoë who pointed out that we had stopped doing that awhile back, and in fact during this past visa run, I don't think we even went to the grocery store there to purchase items.
"We've just learned to adjust to using only the items we can get in our country," I explained to her when she asked why we weren't doing all that anymore.
Now I get ground pork at the local market and add my own spices to make it taste just like (if not better than) the Jimmy Dean sausage we bought in Bangkok.

We've also discovered that we're not using our air cons and electricity in general as we used to. Of course, we're not to the really hot season yet, but the other day we were sitting in the dark for about an hour before we realized that the electricity had come back on after an outage. We didn't realize it because we've just become accustomed to doing without it.

Another example of our cross-culture adjustment comes from our recently cancelled membership to the American Club. The American Club is a recreational facility set up by the American embassy here that had a workout room with all kinds of equipment and a pool. It is also really the only place in the city to get American food.
But the prices there keep going up. (Everything for expats is getting more expensive in this city since the floodgates have opened and you have businesses like Coca Cola and Pepsi and GM coming in willing to spend any amount of money necessary to get their foot in the door in this burgeoning economy. You can't blame the local people for wanting to make money from those types, but unfortunately it also effects the rest of us foreigners at the same time.) Anyway, we just reached a point where we almost never went to the Club because we've learned to live without those American conveniences.

Other little things.... like it doesn't seem so unusual anymore to meet a friend on the street and they ask if I've recently had diarrhea. It's just a common greeting to them. You know like in America we say, "Hi. How are you?" Here they say, "Have you eaten today?" and people are constantly asking me about my bowel movements. Everyone is also always commenting on other people's weight. The local people think they are giving us a compliment when they tell us how fat we look. Being "fat" means you've had plenty of food to eat and that's a great thing.
On the other hand, I've had several people tell me lately that I've gotten thinner and they wonder what's wrong with me. They say it with a sad face and they're so surprised when I respond with "Thank you!"

As I'm sitting here typing these things, I can't help but think about my local friends who are going to read this blog. Can I just say to those people right now, there's nothing I want more than becoming adjusted to your culture. Well, there might be a few things I want more like seeing salvation for all the lost and maybe world peace, but becoming more "Asian" is right up there on my list of priorities.


I did miss out on reporting some good things that happened in our lives in the last two months without a computer.
There was Christmas.

It was a great time of family and friends and giving.

Check out this Vimeo link to a video I made showing us giving Christmas gifts in some local villages.
"Christmas Giving" - click here (Video password: Christmas2013)


CJ ran his first MARATHON!!!
We were so proud of him.
He had pulled his hamstring three weeks before the race and we weren't really even sure he would be able to participate. That's why when he crossed that finish line, we were going crazy for him.
He truly proves that with God all things are possible!

(Crossing the finish line video - coming soon!)


We also had the opportunity do some ministry in January. I was invited by a local friend to go with her to visit her family who lives quite a distance away. Anytime anyone gives us the opportunity to go into a new village, we jump at the chance.
In order to get there, we first rode 45 minutes in a car down to the river crossing. Then we ferried down the river, and once we reached our landing, we rode motocycles down dusty and bumpy roads about an hour to reach this village. Let me just say, if you've never rode a motorcycle side-saddle (because you're wearing a longyi) carrying big bags of food and gifts while holding on for dear life to a complete stranger that's driving the motorcycle, then you haven't lived. :)
It was overall a great experience and I loved spending time with my friend's family.

I also got to meet a special lady doing a special work in this village. I hope to get to spend more time with her in the future. (See our upcoming newsletter for more information about this.)

The girls are also doing good.
Zoë started playing soccer and Miá was awarded Student of the Month for 4th grade.

Last, but not least. (Are you still reading my ramblings?) We have news to report...
We are less than 10 months away from our visit to the States!
We hope to arrive back at home just in time for Christmas this year. Then we plan to stay so that the girls can attend the full 2015 spring semester at school in Mississippi before returning back here.
We know we will have to do some traveling during our Stateside trip because we want to visit all our friends and family living in different places as well as taking advantage of the opportunity to speak to various churches whenever we can, but our home base will be in Columbia.

Of course, now that we've adjusted to life in Asia, I wonder how difficult it will be getting reacquainted with life in America?
When you see us, just be patient with us and don't be embarrassed when we ask you if you've recently had diarrhea. :)

Still, between now and then, we've got a lot of work to do here, and we're so thankful for the many ways Father has blessed us in this place.
We've got some really great local friends who mean so much to us.
We've got co-workers who have become like family.
We are thankful for a great church in this place with such a warm and wonderful body of believers.
We are thankful for our friends at home who support us and love us and pray for us in ways that continually humble us.
All in all, life is good.


P.S. It's not too late to plan a trip here! We'd love for some of our friends at home to come see and get involved in our work in this wonderful city. Pray about it!

Coming clean

I learned early on in my life that attitude is everything, and I’ve experienced first-hand that a positive attitude and outlook will take you much farther than one of complaining and negativity.
But maybe my characteristic of only sharing what’s good and enjoyable about our lives and our work leaves the impression that it’s all a bed of roses.
In my attempt to display the many wonderful ways Father has blessed our family, I would never want to undermine the importance and the necessity of prayer for us and our co-workers around the world.
Especially since we live in a place and with a people whose lives are filled with hardship and struggle, we would never complain about the difficulties we endure. After all, we have the joy that only comes from having a relationship with the King of Kings and that supersedes any sadness or dejection that comes from the hardships of this life.
Our family is so happy to be where we are, but mostly that comes from knowing this is where Father has called us to be. We get to see Him move and work in ways that we are just unable to fathom. But there is also an evil one who seeks to thwart the Good Work and we have felt those attacks on our family. There are days when the knowledge of His calling to this place and the prayers by our friends and family at home are the only thing that keeps us here when the challenges seem unbearable.

There are so many of you who have supported our family. You have sent us boxes of goodies from America. You have sent us encouraging emails and sweet notes. You have given your money to support the work we are trying to do. You have loved on our parents when we are so far away on holidays and special occasions. You have provided things for our children that we are just now financially unable to do. Even just the idea that you remember us and think of us from time to time is so humbling, but how do we let you know just how valuable your sustenance is to us?
The truth is, I can’t.
But I pray that Father will.
Only He can bless you in return for the blessing you have been to us.
The only thing I know to do is to be a faithful steward of the gifts you’ve provided for us and to be joyful in all circumstances no matter what they may be.

When you see our pictures on Facebook or any other form of communication with big smiles on our faces, it’s because of your love and prayers. When you see our children laughing and happy, know that it’s because Father has done a good work through you to them.

My prayer though, is that it’s not just for us, but that the joy in our hearts would overflow in ways that point others to Him.

For all you do for our family and for your many acts of kindness, thank you.
God bless you.
Merry Christmas.

18 years and counting

Today marks 18 years of wedded bliss.
This adventure we call life has taken us to places we never dreamed of. Little did I know 18 years ago what I would be doing now or where we would be living. I couldn't have imagined this wild ride, but I am so thankful to be walking this path with him.
For the last few years on our anniversary, CJ and I have been able to celebrate in some pretty unique ways. This year has ended up the same.

For the first time in almost 50 years, the SEA games (basically the Asian olympics) is being held in Myanmar. Although almost all the games are being held in the capital city, Nay Pyi Taw, a few events are here in Yangon.
We discovered a few days ago that there would be a soccer match between Myanmar and Indonesia on the date of our anniversary, so we thought we might try to go.
Getting tickets to stuff going on here is not as easy as it is in the USA. You can't buy them online. There's no ticket booth. There's not even a phone number to call.
So how do you get tickets? You basically have to get lucky.

Today while CJ was in language class, I headed down to the stadium to see if I could figure out what the deal was. Also remember, there is a communication barrier.
I asked about 10 people including policemen and SEA Games officials and they all told me the same thing. They said I had to wait in this long line, although I arrived at the right time and was pretty close to the front. Still I would have to wait for 2 hours before they would start letting people inside the stadium.
I wasn't even sure if, once inside, I would be able to buy the tickets. But I waited...
I even made a few friends while waiting in line. I was the only white woman in a sea of mostly young Asians, but once they discovered I could speak a little, well, I became quite the spectacle.
I was glad to have acquired the attention of a few of the security guards especially because they really guarded my safety when the line finally opened up and everyone began pushing their way to the front. It was a little scary at first, but I was never in any danger thanks to all my new friends protecting me.

But of course, once I finally got through the maze of barriers and people and got inside they told me I couldn't buy tickets for my family, I could only buy one ticket for myself. "Only one per person, ma'am," the guy in charge kept saying, despite my protests after having waited for two hours and being told that I would be able to buy the four tickets I needed.
But... it wasn't to be.

When I came out, our family friend, Jimmy, had been waiting on me and he told me that there were scalpers selling tickets outside and maybe I could buy from them. "It's worth a try," I thought. We decided it would be best for Jimmy to try to acquire the tickets to hopefully prevent price gouging of the foreigner, so I waited nearby while Jimmy went off on his quest.
While I waited however, one local guy came up to me and asked me what I was doing. I explained that today was my anniversary and I was trying to buy tickets for my husband as an anniversary gift. That's when the guy pulled out his ticket and gave it to me and said, "Here take this ticket."
I replied that I couldn't do that and said I would need to buy four tickets anyway.
He said, "This ticket is a present. Please take from me and use however you wish."
I just love the Myanmar people!
Anyways, to make a long story short, we got all the tickets we needed and it was a great night of fun and celebration. It was especially neat to share in our Myanmar patriotism with everyone in attendance at the game. There was not a single person among the 30,000 inside the stadium that wasn't wearing a flag or the country's colors. And despite a close loss, the crowd never stopped cheering for their home team. Everyone wanted to talk to us and have their picture made with us. We enjoyed the unity we felt with all our fellow countrymen. I can't think of a better way to celebrate our anniversary than where we were with our family and friends tonight.

This gives a whole new meaning to the word "to-go cup"

Christmas with the kids

I love Christmas!

The best part of Christmas is sharing "Christ" with others and this weekend, that's just what we got to do.
Miá and I got to help with a Christmas party for some local kids. We sang songs, acted out the Christmas story, played games, decorated ornaments and ate some good food.
The best part is, of course, the smiles on the kids faces and experiencing their thankfulness for such a small act of kindness.
I can't imagine any better way to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas...

On our way to the party with our friend and language teacher, KeKe

This is the outside of the church building where we had the party.

This is the church.

These were the first to arrive.
We would end up with about 45 kids total at the party.

These little girls are cousins and they came in matching dresses. So cute!

We taught praise songs with hand motions.

Miá taught them a song in Burmese - I'm so
proud of her language ability!

Words to a new Christmas song.

This is my friend reading them the
Christmas story in their language.

Now that's what I call an angel!

We dressed them up and they acted out the Christmas story.

A few "wise guys!"

We also played games.

Love this church's Christmas decorations!

Love their smiles while playing games.

Passing the marshmallow with chopsticks.
(They do this much better than I ever could.)

We decorated ornaments.

We decorated cookies too!

Then it's time for the presents! (Thanks to Lottie Moon!)

The best part was doing all of this with my precious baby girl.
Love getting to see my girls be the hands and feet of our Father.

Celebrating 200 years with Myanmar Baptists - The Judson Celebration

200 years ago, a man named Adoniram Judson left his home and family in America, boarded a vessel, crossing oceans and seas until he arrived on the Golden Shore of Burma.

His life overseas was not an easy one. He was brutalized and imprisoned. Many days he was hungry and without food. He experienced the death of not one, but two wives and several children as well. Yet he stayed in Burma throughout his life, never wavering from his mission of sharing the message of salvation with those who had never heard of the one true God.

Because of Judson’s devotion to Father, his faith and this mission, Burma was and will be forever changed.

The Light is here and it is growing!

This past weekend the people of Burma, now called Myanmar, along with the Myanmar Baptist Convention commemorated the life and influence of Adoniram Judson with a 200-year anniversary celebration. It was like nothing I have ever experienced in my life, neither here nor in America. People traveled from all over this country, some riding buses for five days over difficult terrain to get here. Some came from other countries to be here for this special event. And it was special.

Even up to about two years ago, this type of event would never have been allowed in this country. Also, there was no facility large enough to hold the magnitude of people who would be present for the event, so one had to be built. That also means special building permits and land permits and fund-raising that has taken years in the process.

Yet, with Him, all things are possible.

I’ve heard estimates of more than 50,000 people were in attendance throughout the weekend. They came. They sang praise. They worshiped. They fellowshipped. Most importantly, they heard the Good News. It was truly amazing.

And somehow in the planning of this event, this nobody from a small town in Mississippi on the other side of the world got invited to be a part of the program…

It had to have been more than two years ago now that one of my dear friends who lives and works in this country (who I had not yet met) was woken up in the middle of the night and felt burdened to write a song about Adoniram Judson. Inspired by his life’s work of translating the Good Book into Burmese and his life’s quest of enabling the people of Burma to come to know Father, a beautiful song called “Carry the Light” was the result.

She had just finished the song when the Johnson family arrived in this country and we soon discovered our mutual interest in music. Whenever we sang together, people always remarked how uniquely our voices blended with each other. (See my original blog post just a few months within arriving in this country about our singing together and how it was an answer to prayer – http://www.seepy1.com/2012/03/he-keeps-me-singing.html)

Over the last two years, we’ve had countless opportunities to sing together and it was at one of those occasions just two weeks ago when the coordinator for the Judson Celebration just happened to be in the audience. It was a few days after that service that he called and asked if we would sing “Carry the Light” at the big event.

I’m not sure if I can adequately express the honor it was to receive this invitation, and on the day we arrived and experienced first-hand just how big this event really was, well…. I was overwhelmed.

I have never seen so many people in one place in my entire life. Oh maybe at the Superdome in New Orleans, but this was that huge number of people all squished into one auditorium. There were people sitting on the floor in the aisles. People were sitting in other’s laps in the chairs. There were people crowding outside the doors and windows and all around the outside of the open-air building. Big screens were set-up for viewing downstairs in the basement of the auditorium and it was also overflowing.

There was a 200 member choir on the stage and they had just concluded singing “And the Glory” from Handel’s Messiah when it was our turn to take the stage.

“Stand up straight. Think about your breathing. Smile.” These were the thoughts running through my mind as we walked to the microphone. My singing partner intended to share the plan of salvation in the local language before we sang so I was mentally praying for her and using those moments to try to calm myself. I looked out into the congregation and saw a multitude of people representing every tribe of this country and different nations from around the world and every single face was smiling. Then the music began playing.

We had not had any pre-performance mike checks. We didn’t know if there were monitors or if the accompaniment track would play. It was simply a step in faith. And when we started singing, I knew there was sound coming out of my mouth, but I couldn’t hear anything. I couldn’t hear myself or my partner and I had no idea if we were blending or even singing in tune. My heart was beating so fast, my head began to swirl and I thought I might pass out.

“Just sing. Just keep singing,” I was thinking to myself. “Don’t think. Just sing.”

I knew it was over when I heard the applause. I tried to keep from shaking and crying as I walked off the steps of the stage. It was all a blur.

Throughout this whole experience, there has been this one thought in my mind. I keep picturing in my head the fig tree. See, a fig tree can be beautiful. It can even provide shade. But a fig tree’s purpose is to produce fruit.

Over and over in the days leading up to the Judson celebration and during the gathering I have been praying that something great would come out of this experience. I didn’t want the occasion of my friend and I singing this song to just be about us or about our musical ability. My honest prayer is that some kind of “fruit” would be the result.

In Mark, chapter 11, there is a story of J.C. condemning a fig tree and causing it to whither away. Since this fig tree had produced leaves, one would assume it had also produced fruit. But the tree was a hypocrite. It was only outwardly beautiful.

I don’t want to be like this fig tree, giving the appearance of something good because my name is in the program or because I’ve been seen on stage. My job here is not just to show my leaves; instead my desire is to produce fruit.

The attendees at the Judson Celebration came from all over. They heard the “Message” from countless speakers and singers and others, and now it is my prayer that they will take it back to their hometowns and tell everyone they meet. It could be the beginning of an explosion of “Light” breaking through the darkness of this country.

The message is so simple. Carry the “Light.” Share the Good News. Believe in Him.

It’s the same message Adoniram Judson first brought to this beautiful country so many years ago. And Adoniram’s sacrifice was not in vain.

I wonder what he would’ve thought if he could’ve seen all those people in his beloved country proclaiming their faith in God.

It surely gives me hope for our days ahead.

We cannot rest in the fact that the Good Work has started. It’s just the beginning and there is so much left to be done.

Judson planted the proverbial fig tree. It has been watered and pruned over the years by the countless sacrifices of those who have given their lives to the cause. And now, with Father’s prompting and provision, we watch and wait for the fruit.

Everywhere the girls went, people were asking to have their picture made with them. They felt like celebrities.

This is the choir performing just before us.

This is us in the wings right before we walked on stage.

This picture is just the front, top, center section. I wish I would've taken more pictures to better show the number of people there...

Some of the people outside and you can sorta get an idea of the two floors of the main building on the left.

P.S. I realized you don't see CJ in any of these pictures and I should explain. He was preaching earlier that morning somewhere else, but he arrived at the Judson celebration just before my friend and I went on stage. I was so thankful to have him there!

“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” – Luke 10:2