After a full, emotional last day at the orphanage and a fun series of flights lasting 34 hours from door to door, I just landed in Seattle about an hour ago, and now after a quick shower and change of clothes, I'm off to work. I think I'll sleep well tonight. The rest of the team will be headed back at various points over the next week or two after some decompression time in Bangkok and/or Krabi.
A few lessons from the trip: durian (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durian) really does stink, but it's awfully yummy; scorpions are crunchy; prostitution is a sad and prevalent reality (young women walking around with old men can be seen everywhere in Udon Thani); poverty is a hard cycle to break, as it is hard to see beyond the status quo, among many other reasons; poverty and happiness are not mutually exclusive; Thai people are friendly, love food, love spicy food, and love sharing food; deep, honest relationships, with God and with each other, are vitally important to living a fulfilled life.
The entire week has been an incredible experience for me, and working with and getting to know everyone on the team has been a blessing. So, thanks to all of you for coming, giving your time and resources, and working so hard! Thanks also to the many others who supported us through prayer and financially.
Moving forward, my prayer is that God will soften my heart, and all of our hearts, toward the sad realities we witnessed, from prevalent prostitution to child labor to poverty to disease to the emotional needs of the precious orphans, so that we can work together to address them with His help. Working at the orphanage is an important start toward that, which we must continue. By encouraging the kids and continuing contact and relationships with them, we can help them discover that they are valuable human beings, are loved by God, have a purpose in life, and are very special. I know that we can make a difference if we have hearts to listen and hands to respond.
Blessings,
- Andrew Moedinger
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4 comments:
Beautifully written. Thank you for sharing your perspective. Welcome home and I hope you have a great night's sleep.
We miss you Google!! See you Sunday, you are a stud - sleep well.
I MISS GOOGLE!!!!!!!!!
Andrew - I hear from Charles that you are a true man of God, and a real cool guy to hang with. We'll have you over soon so you two can tell me all about the trip. Glad you're back safe.
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