What to expect
- To be tired – A 12hr time change is not the easiest, but you wont die. I would suggest bringing some sleeping pills to help you adjust to the new time as quick as possible, but you will be tired. The first few days adrenaline will come to your aid, but eventually it wears off and you will be tired. Rest when you need rest, but keep pushing forward.
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A Lot of people – While we may visit a village, the majority of our time will be in Bangkok. So, you should be expecting something that looks more like New York than village huts. Prepare accordingly.
You will be surrounded by hundreds of people. The overwhelming majority of these people are lost and spiritually dead. They are no longer on the other side of the world, it is not a story, it will be reality staring you in the face.
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Some different foods – Much of it awesome, some, not so much. The food will be different and even the common food won't have the same taste as back home. However, there are many good foods and things to eat. Your stomach may have to do some 'adjusting,' but you aren't going to eat anything that will kill you. Remember, 67 million people are surviving just fine here.
Additionally, food is a very culturally sensative matter. If you reject the food, you are rejecting the people. So, come prepared to eat something for the Glory of God!
- A Fantastic time – this trip will be one of the most rewarding trips you have ever taken. You will get to meet some of the greatest people in the world. You will get an opportunity to fellowship with people from the church. The churches are young and the people aren’t perfect, but they love Jesus. Your time here is short, but we hope you will take the time to get to know some of these dear people.
- Time to see some sites – Don’t worry, we have set aside time for you to see some of the unique sights of Thailand. Visiting them will not be a waste of time, because as you learn about them, you will be learning about the Thai people.
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Problems – We can’t guarantee you that the trip will go as planned. We can’t tell you that it will all be comfortable. Actually, we can almost guarantee you that something is going to go wrong. We recommend coming with an adventerous attitude and a flexible mindset.
When things aren’t as you imagined, a bad attitude can arise. We might not get to eat when it’s time, situations might not be as comfortable, you get sick, or something else happens, but make an effort to keep the same self-less, humble, willing attitude that you had when you signed up for the trip.
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God to work in your heart – The Nations are something that is dear to God's heart, so come expecting God to do something in you. Ask Him to.
Prepare spiritually because, after all, this is a spiritual trip. We want God to work in your lives. We hope that He already is! Continue that as you take this trip. Read the Word and pray. As your eye affects your heart let what is seen be directed through the lens of the Word of God. We want a real, not emotional, impact.
When you return to America, we want the impact to be more than, “I am thankful for America and all the things that I have.” You will see poverty that is hard to swallow. You will see conditions that make you thankful that you have a nice house, car, clothes, church building, etc. We should be thankful for these things, but we want a greater impact. We want the kind of impact that a lost man can’t comprehend. We want you not to just be burdened about their poverty and thankful for your prosperity, we want you to become burdened about their spiritual poverty and realize you were given spiritual prosperity to do something about it. We want you to surrender your lives or mobilize others to go in your place.
Let your life make an impact on this trip and let this trip impact your life.