Seeing as it is Thanksgiving day, I figured I would take the time to reflect on this past year(s) and give you 10 things I am thankful for.  Now any good Thanksgiving list could easily be pages long, but I’ll keep it to 10 things.  Mostly because 30% of you reading this probably won’t even make it to #8!

November 2010

1.)  I’m thankful for my wife. There has been plenty of stress, highs, lows, pain, sorrow, agony, irony, anger, and felony-committing rage at times in the past 8 years of us being together.  Oh, and love too…  But still, I absolutely know that my life would fall apart without her there to hold it all together.  Sure, I like to pretend that I could do it on my own if I had to, but truth be told, I’d be in the corner rocking all day without her.  So, Sara, I’m thankful for you!  Your patience with me.  The joy you bring me…  And even the times that you throw your little fits about something that I have done wrong….again.  (You should realize by now that I do some of those things on purpose just to ruffle your feathers…)  <—  Time for marriage counseling?

2.)  I’m thankful for the opportunities that we have had the past few years to live an amazing, adventurous life.  We love Thailand.  We love travel.  We love new foods, new languages, new people…  But being an Indiana boy from the cornfields, I never imagined that I would be living in SE Asia doing what I am doing every day!  This could be the best job ever!  (Some days)

3.)  I’m thankful for my family. Between about being arrested on a few occasions growing up to being a Children’s Pastor, and now a missionary in Thailand, I’ve put them through a lot.  But I know that my family is both one of the most messed up & most unconditional loving group of people I have ever met.  I miss you all and I am sad I can’t be around for all the conversations, laughs and inappropriateness this Thanks-turkey-day…

4.)  I’m thankful for God’s provision. Let the clichés begin, right!  But seriously…  We are in our mid-20′s, and despite having 8 years of private college education, have no debt.  Not only that, but we have never NOT seen a need met…  We’ve seen God raise $50,000+ per year in order for us to be here doing what we do…  And despite the falling value of the US dollar and the hard financial times in the US, we’ve still never NOT seen a need of ours met.  In fact, we continue to see blessings beyond those needs in many areas…

5.)  I’m thankful for friends in the US that despite the 8,000 mile difference, continue to be there for me.  I have friends who Skype with me once a month, friends who comment on our Facebook stories.  I have friends who pray for us and give to us despite having their own young marriages and bills to tend to also.  These friends do more than keep me connected to home.  They also get me through many tough times here on the mission field.

6.)  I’m thankful for friends here in Thailand. Making good Thai friends is no easy task… …and still isn’t…  So I am thankful for the few that I have been able to build.  The language and cultural barrier can sometimes be pretty steep even after a year and a half of language study, but I am thankful that there are a few there for me if I need them.  A Christian Thai family in our neighborhood has all but adopted us into their family and literally help us navigate our new lives in Bangkok every week.  My language teacher (who is less of a teacher and more of a friend) continues to provide good laughs and help when we need it.  While I miss many of my friends back home, I am thankful that God has given us a few friends here to help us day-to-day.  And the number of those friends continue to grow as we get to know new people in our area!

7.)  I’m thankful for the internet. It almost sounds pagan for a missionary to say that, doesn’t it?!  But imagine just a few decades ago missionaries around the world had little-to-no connection with the rest of the world in any timely manner.  Today we have email, Twitter, Facebook, Skype, international calling plans, etc…  All of which help bridge that gap between here and home.  Sometimes it does get in the way, but other times it comes to rescue just when you need it the most.  So, yeah, I’m a big fan of the internet…  Hulu even lets us relax and watch some TV from home when we need to “escape”…

8.)  I’m thankful for our supporters. Just as I am thankful for God’s provision over these past few years, so many of you have been sacrificially giving your finances and time to support us and pray for us.  I never thought that I would be worthy of people’s sacrifices in their own lives.  Yet we have seen churches and individuals from all over the world chose to support us in prayer and finances.  Why?  I don’t know…  I’m thankful that God is bigger than the messed up man that I am.  And in being so, He has called people to support mission work in Thailand… …and specifically us.  Thank you!  But just a reminder, we don’t really deserve it…

9.)  I’m thankful for our new home. Some of you may know and many of you may not know, but our first year in Thailand was a day-to-day struggle…  Nearby clubs, bars and karaokes (which the Thai people love) kept Sara awake every night.  Not only that, but we had some new young neighbors move in about halfway through last year that played Linkin Park from 10 AM until 10 PM (he had no day job)…  Our new home here in Bangkok is nothing but peace… …which we love!  It’s quiet at nights.  People are friendly and willing to have an extended conversation despite our (still) broken Thai…  We just love it here and our monthly rent is within our means…

10.)  I’m thankful for Jesus. There.  I said it.  Maybe now is a good time for another cliché, but we’d have nothing to be thankful for in the long run had Christ not given himself for us.  Friends and family, while great here on earth, would be but nothing but lacking when it comes to eternity…  I’ve been in church services on 3 continents and can tell you that Jesus brings it all together…  Worshipers, while singing in different languages and tones, still sing that sweet song for the free gift that they have been given…  And, well let’s be honest, without Christ, I wouldn’t have a job…

I’d be glad to continue this list and tell you about how I’m thankful for my kid sisters.  How I knocked one’s teeth out with a crisp elbow the face when she was 3 or 4 years old.  Or about how I used to drag my other sister around the house by her hair when she was little, but I’ve already lost 30% of you a few paragraphs ago and now seems like a good time to stop vomiting up my thanksgivings in this post…

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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I just wanted to say a quick thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday yesterday!  Your thoughts and comments were such an encouragement!

Over 100 people commented via Twitter and Facebook and despite being over 7,000 miles from home back in the States, we felt a bit closer with all your thoughts and good wishes!

Thanks!