psalm 121.

so wow.
yesterday we packed our bags for an overnight stay in a karen (pronounced kuh-wren) village.
we were supposed to leave at 2, headed out after 4, and did a few open-airs along the way. well, my role during those is to start and stop the music, haha. we had dinner at a local dive and sang kareoke...for reals! i wasnt feeling too well, but still managed to get up there and sing some good ole shakira (though nothing holds a flame to antti DANCING like shakira!!).
we made it to the church around nine, the church had a cement foundation, was maybe 50X50 in measurement, and wasnt sealed on top, so lots of lovely and not-so-lovely bugs found their way onto and into our beds. which were mats on the floor. the last time we went up into a cillage it was considerably colder, cool even, so we prepared for that. not a chance! it was a heat wave of magnatudal (magnatudal? is that a word?) proportions! sweat was accumulating everywhere, breathing was heavy work, and swatting mosquitos was no fun. it was pretty bad sleep for all, and it didnt add to my sweet dreams that the pastor said that there were tigers that lived in those hills!!! i was pretty pissed at first, hearing that, but God quickly calmed me down and gave me a good dose of peace (seriously, it was God, i was freaking out, who would remain calm under those circumstances, normally!!). we woke up, i noticed about 15 new mosquito bited, ate rice and nescafe (as gary like to call it, nesCRAPfe) 3 in1 coffee (coffeee, cream and sugar!), and made our way to a refugee camp.
i have neither time nor brain power to relate to you the situation of the karen people as it stands now, but it is a long, bloody, persecuted history, please look it up, it really is worth reading about. the refugee camp consisted of 50,000 refugees, who couldnt leave the camp, their entire lives were spent in a few kilometer raduis. talk about not having a world view. we talked with a teacher there, who shared about the people, and went to a handicapped home to pray with a few people. we had a bit of time to walk around and see everything, and as i was praying, i didnt feel burdened or depressed by what i was witnessing, but peaceful, i felt like God was showing me another part of His creation, and telling me to enjoy it. not the plight of the people, but the fact that i could stand there and pray to Him and worship, in the middle of a refugee camp. so i did. psalm 121 came to mind, and it so fit with what i saw before my eyes. what a wonderful God.
we are headed to chiang mai the day after tomorrow for an overnight vacation, which im going to take full avantage of, as the two weeks coming after are jam-packed with work to be done (seriously, in our last location we will be building a clay wall, as well as staying in mud huts! i am much looking forward to it though, and cant wait to write about more adventures!