Happy New Year China!

Two days ago it was the Chinese New Year (aka Spring Festival). It's as big culturally as our Christmas is. Everyone goes home, big food, lots of family, presents, etc. So, I came to China and I celebrated THE Chinese New Year...in Thailand. Bummer, I know, but that's how our travel plans worked out. Jordan and I did get into Bangkok at 4:45 am and made our way to the train station to wait for our train to leave that night. In the process, we walked around Bangkok and actually into China town! WOO HOO! Celebrating Chinese New Year in China town... in Bangkok.

Welp, it was a little different than I expected. There were security guards everywhere as we approached the big Buddhist temple there. (I found out later via one of my students that the Thai Minister and Princess were in China Town to "wish happiness to Chinese people." But happiness is not what we found...

The temple with some of the police out on duty.

It was awful. I cried, multiple times I started to cry. I was physically sick after we left the temple. Granted the temple itself, if looking at it architecturally was pretty cool, very ornate and trimmed in gold. But it broke my heart to see these people and these religious chains and know beyond a doubt that they aren't going northward. Ah, it's easy to pretend with Americans that maybe... But with them and seeing all these monks around, knowing, that they have spent their whole life as a waste. Seeing them spending tons of money to buy relics and bells and incense to burn and just seeing this...it... it hurts. To be honest withourselves, we say it alot and can muster up our minds to think how "awful" it is and about their fates. But I've been asking more and more for His heart, and to be broken for the same things that break His and I was literally sick and mad and numb to so many other things as we left. A taxi almost hit me and I started to turn and yell at him without even thinking, "there are people dying here, can't you see?! Dont you care?!" It's like I was in a war with people being shot around me and someone is talking about the new movie that Brad Pitt is in. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I just wanted to snap! One of the things that just spelled it all out was this sign (english is the bottom red part):

There were people buyign these relics, and statues, bells to write their pr's on. Buying these monks clothes and giving it to them with requests for them to mediate on, the Monk would "bless" them and pr over them sometimes. It hurt. It sucked. It ahh. I just wanted to fall down and cry right there.

Like, I said, I left physically ill (no exageration). I told one of my friends about it and she commented about how sick and heartbroken and worn out He had to be all the time from what He saw. I mean, He's referenceas as a "Man of Sorrows" so I now start to see why. Both of us were just out of it after that. Not really hungry, or looking forward to seeing anything. We passed a few stores all filled with incense in them and you know they paid for this to please whoever. It was draining.

We found a C-Ian fellowship nearby and spend the next couple of hours there. Pr-ing. Resting. Writing. Asking for intercession. And so on. It was good. They came in and kicked us out saying we weren't supposed to be in there...oops. haha. Oh well. It was very nice though and needed to have any sort of energy, especially because the day before I had had a two hour convo with a guy from Michigan on the bus. We talked about world religions and apologetics stuff and all and he knew a good bit, probably more than I did (something I realize now that I need to learn more about) But it wore me out, drained me physically and supernaturally. I didn't want to argue, I just wanted to talk through it, and He wouldn't take any thing I had and... well I'll tell you the story later because it did end really really well, but left me worn out and like a squeezed sponge, I was gasping to be rehydrated. It was well needed.

Afterwards, we made it back to the train station and got on our train and got to talk to a pretty cool couple named John (from Turkey) and Sesil (from Chzeck Republic) who met in a work camp (not concentration camp - it's a good thing - I asked.) a few years ago out of high school and now they meet up and travel with each other over breaks. She's taking the semester off and traveling through Thialand and he met up after his semester was over. They shared the set of bunks with us and we got to share a bit with them. It was a much better ending than it previously was. So oddly, the best part of the Chinese New Year ...wasn't in China or Chinatown, but in a nearby building with a plus sign on it. :) Happy New Year!