open in heaven.
but more battles are won by submitting.
This is our seventh day here in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
My daughter Obedient One and I arrived at this lovely city on January 7, a week ago. This is my
Sentimental Journey, part 2.
Exactly one year ago, I had come here upon the invitation of my Thai friends Ut and Oy. It was my first time to re-visit this place where Ernie and I spent the last year of his earthly life.
I really was not planning to come back so soon, for it had only been a year after my husband passed away...
There were mixed emotions inside my heart, probably even a little fear of how I would feel.
But my friend Ruby was right, I needed to go back for closure.
True enough, that January 2010 trip proved to be very meaningful. It did provide a kind of closure... going back to the familiar places which held special memories of our time together, but this time seeing them from a new perspective, and in a different context.
Of course, it was no longer the same. It is the special someone, those who mean something to us, that give meaning and importance to the places and events in our lives... Apart from them, who cares?
No other human being knows, or understands. I remain alone in that memory... the pain of the loss is mine alone to bear.
There was a tinge of pain and sadness, but it was time to let go.
Aside from closing a door to a past season, that trip opened new doors for special friendships to be nourished and nurtured.
Before I left Chiang Mai last year, my friends Ut and Oy extended another invitation for me to visit them again in January this year.
Because of the circumstances surrounding the birth of my new grandson Elijah just six weeks before Christmas, I was not sure of going on this trip. I wanted to be certain all was well before finalizing all travel arrangements.
The confirmation came a few days after Christmas when a quiet confidence filled my heart that this plan was part of God's purposes for me. I sensed a still, small voice telling me,
"Book your ticket to Chiang Mai already. I want you to go on that trip."That was the final step I was waiting for...that
"yes" in my heart.
It has been a quite relaxing visit... Ut and Oy have welcomed me and Obedient One into their home... and into their lives. Thai people lead private lives, so I have truly appreciated their kindness, their gentleness, and their generosity.
This trip also provides me with a transition point.
A few months before the year ended, my days were filled with family concerns. We celebrated Christmas and welcomed New Year in a simple, quiet but meaningful way... and before I knew it the holidays were all over.
I finished packing my suitcase for my trip to Thailand only a few hours before my dawn flight to Manila on January 6.
I was still groggy from lack of sleep when the plane landed. Nevertheless, there was a quiet assurance in my heart. It was a meeting with destiny.
An unplanned late lunch with my two dear friends Rosemarie and Tina at the Shangri-la Mall on the same day I arrived in Manila also turned out to be so meaningful for me.
There are circumstances, events, and people that God brings into our lives...
kingdom connections, I call them. At the start we may not be aware that it is a divine appointment, but as the days unfold, the realization strikes home - it had all been a part of God's plan after all.
For whatever reason God has brought me back to this place, I am truly grateful.
Chiang Mai is not a strange place for me; a part of me feels at home here. But this time around, I am looking at the old familiar places with new eyes.
Visiting this city does not have to be some kind of a pilgrimage, where I try to
re-create or
re-live or build a memorial to a past experience.
That chapter of my life was beautiful and meaningful, however, it has come to an end. I cannot, I must not, hold on to it forever.
My being here today gives me a point of transition...to prepare me for what is ahead.
As the new year began, I had the leading to meditate on the book of Joshua. This is such an incredible book, written by one of my favorite Bible characters.
In the first few chapters, Joshua speaks about leaving Acacia Grove, crossing the Jordan River, fighting battles the unconventional way.
He talks about the call to enter new territories... being careful to obey the Lord's instructions... for they have not passed this way before.
As I think of the spiritual significance of Acacia Grove, the place where the Israelites camped before they crossed the river, I am amazed at the spiritual lessons.
Acacia Grove doesn't have a very good history, for it was a place of sin, disobedience, idolatry, and greed.
Yet in this very place, Joshua receives his marching orders from the Lord.
Every place that the soles of his feet will tread upon is his!Joshua must have felt very small compared to the great leader that Moses was. And God understands. He pours encouragement and confidence into this man's heart, tells him not to fear, but rather to be strong and to be of good courage.
At Acacia Grove, Joshua receives his commissioning, the official orders to lead the new generation of Israelites into the Promised Land.
From here, Joshua sends out two spies to check out the land... and it is in this place that Joshua speaks to the people about the battles ahead of them.
This important message that God speaks to Joshua stands out as I read the first chapter of Joshua:
Only be strong and very courageous,
that you may observe to do according to all the law
which Moses my servant commanded you;
do not turn to the right hand or to the left,
that you may prosper wherever you go.
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth,
but you shall meditate in it day and night,
that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.
For then you will make your way prosperous,
and then you will have good success.
- Joshua 1:7, 8
Acacia Grove is the "great divide" - from this point on, the Israelites will no longer be a homeless, nameless people, slaves running away from a foreign power... across the river lies their inheritance, the land of promise. Once they cross the river, they will have a homeland and they will be a people. They will be free. Above all, God will give them a new identity.
But they have to be ready for what lies ahead... be willing to face the giants of the land...be willing to do it the hard way... be willing to obey.
Be willing to obey.
In God's kingdom, battles are not won by human strength or strategies. They are won by obeying.
God is raising up a Joshua Generation for these last days... a people whose character is shaped by faith, obedience, and humility.
It is a high calling.
Chiang Mai is the northern capital of Thailand. It is very beautiful, and at this time of the year, very cold. We went to two mountains last weekend -
Doi Ang Khang, and
Doi Mae Salong.
Going up two mountains in one day is no joke. But thanks to Ut's skillful driving, we did it.
God also has a clear message for me as I reflect on the events of this past weekend. What takes place in the natural corresponds to what is happening at the supernatural level. Indeed, I am very much aware of the spiritual implications of this journey, and whatever God is speaking to me these days... my heart is ready to listen and understand.
There is an open door in the heavens, the invitation is clear,
"Come up higher, and I will show you things that are to take place..."
Doi Ang Khang
Overlooking a tea plantation at Sweet Mae Salong
Flower Hills Resort at Doi Mae Salong
Buying Chinese tea cups at Doi Mae Salong market
Eating my favorite Khao Soi (curry noodles) at Lamduon a famous roadside eatery on Faharn Road
San Kampaeng Hot Springs
Tea and tea cakes at Vieng Joom On, Chiang Mai
The mountains of Chiang Mai, picture taken from plane
