It's hard to put into words exactly what Bangkok is like. In some ways, it's very easy, almost laid back. The people are unbelievably friendly and to smile means that all is good! A brief nod of the head, or wai, with a smile, soothes more misunderstandings or cultural bumblings (of which I seem to be prone) than any amount of verbal backtracking or apologizing!
Our living quarters are right in the heart of downtown Bangkok. If you were to listen in our rooms at night, it'd be hard to tell the difference between here and 5th Avenue in Manhattan. The hiss of brakes, the drone of hundreds of motorbikes, it all comes together to form the perfect cityscape soundtrack. Turn a street corner here though and you might find yourself in a narrow street with taxis inching their way through the swarm of locals, and run-down single room apartments sitting atop meager stalls or businesses. The smells of local food pass you from one cart to the next, mixed with running sewage below. This is Bangkok. A glistening cityscape that eclipses the simple and determined lives of her people in the backstreets and alleys.
To such an end, it shocked me to hear that John 3:16 holds little relevance here. To have "eternal life" is not a good thing for Thai people. An eternal existence to them equates to continued punishment for past wrongdoing in another life. No matter their state here and now, whether wealthy or poor, they are all on a sliding scale of punishment so long as they exist (whether in this life or the next). Buddhism, and its ideals, permeates their subconscious worldview (decision-making, view of life, motivations, etc) much like cultural Christianity exists in the States.
To reach Bangkok means a slow, methodical, loving relationship with people must exist. As much as I'd like to read up on Buddhism and feel I'm ready to evangelize, that still will not translate here. No amount of knowledge about Buddhism will help you in the backstreets unless the knowledge forms a working, daily relationship with these people. The cultural foundations here are totally different from our cultural understandings in America. Yet like home, the mission in Bangkok is to make much of God and the Gospel of Christ. This universally begins with sharing the foundation that the Gospel is built on.. unconditional, undeserved, unrepayed love. As much as Nicodemus tried to intellectually comprehend God's plan of salvation, we must key on the fact that the intellect can only go so far as our hands are willing to act. Anything more becomes dead weight. Being around the Thai people makes theology all the more real and vital. Its not to answer questions correctly anymore, but to be able explain accurately your faith when that moment of conversation comes. It might take years.. we've heard cases where it has..but it is really the truest form of earning the right to be heard through love. Peter calls it "being ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you..." and I think that applies here in this city the same way it does in America and around the world.
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