Lauren's Going to Thailand!

Are you wondering where I am?

2008-10-17T16:11:00.000-07:00

If you haven't checked out my new website, http://laurenbecker.wordpress.com, you should! If you have been subscribed to this blog and you are wondering why I haven't posted in ages, that's because I have a new blog on my new website that you can subscribe to. So check out the blog link there, and let me know what you think!

New Website!

2008-09-02T12:15:00.000-07:00

I made a new website, and it's so much better! Please change your bookmark to http://laurenbecker.wordpress.com/ and check it out! Make sure to enjoy tons of pictures too using the link on the right side of the new website.

Goodbye, Chiang Mai

2008-08-22T04:23:00.000-07:00

Here is (part of) Chiang Mai from a lookout point on Doi Sutep Mountain (second bike ride up, Aug 18). On a clear day you can see the entire city from the top of this mountain, as well as the mountains on the other side of Chiang Mai. It's beautiful. Well, I'm back in California! I made it safely home after a long journey on Thursday, Aug 21. Now it's on to itineration, big time! The sun was bright and the clouds billowing and tall as I left Chiang Mai. Do you see the river on the right hand side, just above the wing tip? And do you see the fields? They are ripe for harvest...

Adventures in Thailand

2008-08-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

I have been enjoying my time in Thailand immensely. For the first two weeks, I took two classes for my masters degree. This is a picture of one class, Crosscultural Teaching and Learning. I am excited to use what I've learned when I teach English at TLC church here in Chiang Mai. My classmates are missionaries to the Philippines, Indonesia, Sudan, Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand, and there were a few students from Biola's main campus that came to join us this time too.

In Thailand, Mother's Day is celebrated on August 12, the queen's birthday. At church we celebrated by honoring the mothers. This is May, who works as the church administrator, and her two kids. It has been great to spend time with my friends and hear what God is doing in their lives.

In some of my free time, I've been on some long bicycle rides throughout the countryside, and up a mountain. I rode up to the temple at the top of Doi Sutep mountain in Chiang Mai. What fun!

Mountains, clouds, rice paddies out on a ride... gorgeous Thailand!I return to California in a week, on August 21, where I'll dive headlong into itineration. Please pray for me as I finish up my trip, continue with schoolwork, and start speaking at churches and meeting with pastors.

And I'm Off!

2008-07-22T18:17:00.000-07:00

I'm on my way again to this beautiful city of Chiang Mai! I get on a plane in 5 hours, and I'll be on that plane for 17 1/2 hours. Can't wait... but I successfully changed my internal clock, as I slept from 10am to 5pm today. This will greatly enhance my sleeping experience on the plane, and should help with jet lag once I get there. I arrive on Thursday morning, classes start on Monday! In the mean time, I have two books to read and respond to, a presentation to write, and a few other homework assignments. I'm praying for productivity on the plane!

Thanks for your prayers for safe travel, a productive time studying, and deepening of friendships while I'm there. I don't want this trip to be JUST about school--I want to make more friends, encourage my friends who are new believers, and help draw my non-believing friends closer and closer to Christ. So here I go!

Three Whirlwind Weeks

2008-07-16T13:34:00.000-07:00

I got back to California on Saturday after spending three weeks in Springfield, Missouri. It was a great--and busy--time, as my days were full of classes on culture, renewal services, and spending time with old and new friends.

Some HIGHLIGHTS:

- My roommate Laurel Parmley, who is also going to Thailand and has spent two years there working at an orphanage
- Getting to know other new missionaries on their way to the Asia Pacific region

- Getting to know veteran missionaries who have served in Asia

- Learning about Asian culture

- Spending time with friends from college

- Being commissioned! The last night we had a commissioning service. All of the new missionaries sang a special song as a choir (we practiced nearly every day for two weeks), and then people prayed over us. Mark Durene, the missionary under whom I will work in Thailand, prayed for me.
Now I'm off to Thailand for a month to study for my masters degree. Please pray for safe travels, productive studying, and continued building of relationships with Thai friends.

On the Road (in the Air) Again!

2008-06-19T20:49:00.000-07:00

Clouds over the Pacific. Somehow I always sit just behind the wing. Makes for some great pictures.
Chicago! Just before landing.

This Saturday it's back to the airport for me. I feel like I'm there so much, I should be able to get mail there or something. Or at least a discount on parking when my parents come to pick me up!
I'm off to Springfield, Missouri, for Missionary Training and Renewal - three weeks of classes, services, and spending time with friends! Because I went to college in Springfield, and a few of my friends stayed in town, I am able to see them and spend some quality time. I am excited. AND, on the way there, my long layover just HAPPENS to be in Chicago, where another good friend will come to the airport to visit me! I love my friends. And THEN, some friends from California will be in Missouri on vacation, and we're going to have a meal together! Springfield is just the place to be, let me tell you.

Please pray for my time in Springfield to be encouraging, rejuvenating, low-stress, and just an all-around good time. I need it! Pray too for safety, and that I would learn a lot while I'm there. The budget-raising goes slowly right now, and in the past week I've had meetings in Santa Barbara, San Diego, and Covina. Sometimes I wonder... but God knows what He is doing, and He goes before me! Amen amen.

"Smack It!"

2008-06-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

Special thanks to June, my pastor's wife, for directing my attention to the June 8th entry in Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest. Here is an excerpt:

"Launch all on God, go out on the great swelling tide of His purpose, and you will get your eyes open. If you believe in Jesus, you are not to spend all your time in the smooth waters just inside the harbour bar, full of delight, but always moored; you have to get out through the harbour bar into the great deeps of God and begin to know for yourself..."

"Beware of harking back to what you were once when God wants you to be something you have never been."

My friend who introduced me to triathlon has a special expression for doing a workout well: "smack it!" Am I about to run a certain distance and attempt to beat my previous time? "Go smack it." Did I just finish a workout harder and faster than before? "Wow, you smacked it!"

What does "smacking it" have to do with anything?

As I face itineration, some days are harder than others. I don't always know what I should be doing, or if I do know what, I don't always know how. But I still need to "launch all on God." I have to go beyond the harbor, go into greater deeps, get out there and DO it. I have to "smack it." God does want me to be something I've never been, and this time of itineration is stretching me so I do not go back to what I once was. I need to get out there, do my very best for the Lord, and "smack" this thing - get it done, and done well.

Please pray that I would have the courage to "smack it" and launch all on God through this itineration process.

Here's a picture of me after I "smacked it" in a 4 mile race (in Thailand!) and placed third in my age group.

G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S

2008-06-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

Looking at a missionary's life from newsletters and the stories they share seems to glamorize the career missionary experience. We share about the positives and the advances we have made for the Kingdom of God, so people will be encouraged, and motivated to pray and give. I have a few stories myself of the victories I've experienced as people come to Christ. Still, as I began itineration, I struggled with telling only the 'glamorous' stories. Isn't this deceiving? Don't people need to know I live a normal life there? I buy groceries, I do laundry, I have to buy gas for my motorbike, I pay bills for electricity and water, I get wet when it rains and sweaty when... well, most all the time. And that's not glamorous.

Today, during one of those normal everyday moments, I felt like God clarified this idea for me. Of course it's not all glamorous. There are struggles - I've experienced a few, and I'm sure to experience many more. But, God has chosen me to go to Thailand to reach people for Christ. THIS is beyond glamorous. THIS is worth living for. THIS is what deserves promoting. I am serving God, I am going where He wants me to go, and that makes life exciting, worth living! Stories may be glamorous, but LIFE lived for God goes further than just glamorous to purposeful, exciting, fulfilling.

It doesn't matter if you are a missionary or a pastor or a dental assistant or a mailperson or a receptionist or a student or a grandmother --- if you are doing what God has called you to do, if you are being who God has called you to be, your life and story should go beyond glamorous.

Just for kicks, here's an unglamorous moment of my normal life in Thailand.This past January, my bathroom was infested with mosquitoes. As a matter of fact, "infested" might be an understatement.

Yes, this is a toilet. On my blog. Please don't be offended... this is just another part of normal life.

Promo Video - Rough Cut

2008-05-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

A Thank You

2008-05-26T10:52:00.000-07:00

"...we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses..."

A personal part of this "great cloud" around me are the missionaries already in Thailand. So many of them have helped me as I research different facets of Thai culture and what it's like to minister in a Thai context. My papers for school have been improved because of their input and wisdom. They have encouraged me as I start raising my budget and figuring out this whole 'missionary' thing. They have invested in me before I even arrive in Thailand, and I am grateful. So, thank you! Thank you for your time and energy to help a newbie find her feet, and to provide a foundational understanding of what has gone before me.

Who is in your "great cloud"?

The Long Road Ahead

2008-05-16T20:04:00.001-07:00

Some days I wish I were in Thailand so much it hurts. I want to smell the air, feel the heat, ride my motorbike, eat the spicy food, shop at the local market... but more importantly I want to see my friends -- I want to be like Christ to Phung and Prem who don't know Jesus yet; I want to pray and worship with Pin and Apple who became Christians in December; I want to fellowship with my brothers and sisters at TLC.
But, it's a long road to get there. The itineration process is both exciting and nerve-wracking. I know I need to grow in faith, in my communication skills, and in prayer. At times it seems overwhelming, with a huge budget and so many opinions how it can be done. People tell me, "It will be hard because you're single" ... others, "It will be easier because you're single." "It will be harder because you're a woman." "No, it will be easier because you're a woman." "It will be hard because Southern California is such a full district." I am trying to put these aside and make God my bottom line -- my budget, my location, others' ideas are not the determining factors in this whole process. God has called me. HE is the one that must bring it to pass. I am trying to look at the end result: All this hard work is worth it, because in the end it will get me to Thailand, where I am supposed to be. Now for the getting there...

Prayer requests:
- favor with people, to make appointments and also when I meet them
- courage to grow in ways I need to grow
- that I would communicate effectively my call and the passion and love God has given me for Thailand.

God is Sending Me to Thailand!

2008-04-18T09:59:00.000-07:00

Hello! Thanks for visiting my website. I am so excited to go to Thailand as a missionary! I will be living in Chiang Mai, the largest city in the north. I've lived there for a total of seven months already, and I love it there! God has definitely put a burden on my heart for the people of Thailand, and for the city of Chiang Mai. While I'm there, I will work with TLC Church to start Coffee Talk English Center. We will offer quality, low-cost English classes for university students and other people in the community. Chiang Mai has over ten universities, and students come from all over Thailand and Southeast Asia to study there. By offering English classes in a comfortable and friendly atmosphere, we will be able to make friends with students and show them the love of Christ.

I will be going to Thailand for three years as a missionary-in-training with the Assemblies of God. Please pray for me as I begin this journey - I have many months of itineration and support-raising ahead of me. I will be posting my progress on this site along with prayer requests. Also, you can help me financially by giving monthly support. Participate in what God is doing in Thailand! Check out the links on the side of this site to see how you can help.

Blessings!

Serving Christ,

Lauren