Our first day in Thailand, we awoke early to begin our crash course in finding our way through Bangkok, sampling almost every available form of transportation in the city. Wonderful as it was to have Don and Janella Abbey as our experienced guides, it was a memorably challenging first day in this new country we will call home. We were weary travelers with several large suitcases, and the packed trains and buses didn’t leave us eager to try that trick again soon!

We had many goals for this pre-launch trip, and we especially looked forward to the joy of meeting missionaries and seeing their projects. Little did we know the many challenges we would encounter that caused us to readjust our plans over and over. I picked up some kind of bug that resulted in a week of fever, sickness and significantly reduced energy. I ended up with lots of extra time in bed to talk with God about what we were experiencing and all the things we were learning.

After I made a visit to the amazing Bangkok Hospital and received the proper meds to get going again, it was Bruce’s turn. He woke up one morning with a painfully swollen leg. It didn’t take long for the emergency room doctor to confirm his fear of a blood clot. We were very grateful we had travel insurance when after a couple of pain-filled days the specialist put him in the hospital for four days of bed rest with his leg elevated. Despite our limited language ability, it was an opportunity to witness for the Lord, and the experience ended up being very positive.

As we reflect on this trip we are reminded of Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 1:4: “Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

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