What We are Hearing in Asia

Some things that knock the wind out of you:

Eating shaved ice with mangoes and strawberries but watching the trash collector stomp a rat to death ten feet away from your table.

Relentless heat and humidity that sap your strength as soon as you open the door to go outside.

Having a total stranger spit in your face as you walk down the street.

Hearing that your nephew back in the states committed suicide rather than go back to a mental health facility where he had been a patient.

Learning that a very dear local friend is emigrating to Canada.

Having colleagues leave the field due to severe health issues impacting their small child.

Something that keeps you going:

A lady who started coming to the Sunday School class you teach a year ago. At that time she was argumentative and unkind and no one seemed to get along with her. A year later, she is a changed woman. She is reading God’s word and digging deep. She is treating others with kindness and learning to benefit from their insights. She is discovering her spiritual gifts and looking for ways to serve others.