If you haven't read our post on Church in Thailand you may want to check that out first as I cover the different kinds of churches one might experience coming to Thailand. For fun, I'm going to take you on a journey of what a typical Sunday morning was like for us in Thailand.
Our church, Chiang Rai Blessing Church is non-denominational and fully led by Thai pastors & leaders. The service is in Thai and there are a handful of missionaries who attend the church.
All pictures in this post are from our church. Join me in this Sunday morning experience...
The Arrival
We pull into a "parking lot" which is a grassy/stony area outside the church. Motorbikes are parked snuggly together to make as much room as possible for all the other bikes, and among the vehicles there's is at least one truck with bench seats in the back for the children's home that attends there.
As we walk to the entrance of the church, we slip our shoes off at the entrance way of the church building, adding to the 50-60 pairs of shoes already there.
We enter the building at the back of the Sanctuary. The room is filled with lively conversations, people hugging one another, and maybe music playing in the background, and fans blowing to keep air flowing.
The Service
We eventually make our way to a row of plastic chairs where we sit for service. We are greeted from the front by the pastor and before kicking off worship, he leads us in a song of greeting that requires us to interact with one another through little dance moves or hugs. Awkward as it can be, especially for us westerners, it's sure to get people laughing and provides a great way to bridge the gap between all the generations in attendance that morning.
Following the ice breaker song, worship begins. The stage is full of singers and musicians, young and old, leading the room in worship with guitars, drums, & keyboard. The lyrics are on a screen in the front of the room. We sing a mix of Thai written worship songs as well as songs that have been translated from English to Thai.
Worship goes for 30-40 minutes. We sing songs off praise and joy, with people jumping, clapping, waving flags, and raising their hands. We eventually transition into a more intimate time of worship and the pastor leads us in a time of waiting, listening, and responding to the Holy Spirit.
After worship there is a special song or dance performed by a few people who want to honor Jesus with their talents. An offering will be taken and then the sermon begins.
Kids are dismissed for the sermon. Some children head outside to a gazebo (Salaa in Thai) and the younger ones go to the Pastor's office. The kids have a Bible story and craft, and at the end are served lunch before the main service has ended.
The sermon is usually about an hour and our tummies are rumbling as we have been smelling lunch cooking off to the side of the Sanctuary for the last half an hour or so.
Lunch Time!
When service ends, we stack up the chairs in the Sanctuary and leisurely make our way to the eating area. We find our children who are finishing up their meal and then enjoy a wonderful Thai meal while fellowshipping with dear friends & family in Christ. Between 1 and 2pm we pack up and head home, spirits, hearts, & bodies full!
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