I went to Singapore Bible College (SBC) to study a one-year course in June 1990.
The course was related to the grass root ministry. My education field was
in Thai Good News Centre of Golden Mile Complex. It was operated by the
Lutheran Mission to the Thais in Singapore (LMTS).
Pastor Visanukorn of Lutheran Mission in Thailand (LMT) came to Singapore
and carried on the Thai Ministry of our Centre. He went back to Thailand
after the six months' assignment. After that, Pastor James Chamraeng of LMT came and
took over the work in January 1991. I was then still doing my study in
SBC. I used to meet Chamraeng at the Centre during weekend.
Chamraeng was humble and easy to get along with. At the Sunday Service, he
used to wear the traditional short sleeve Thai shirt. He carried himself
with ease and confidence.
We liked Chamraeng very much. Many Thai workers were close to him. One of our
English class students Lamkhai told me that Chamraeng ever stayed at his worksite.
Chamraeng did not mind the not-so-well living conditions of the worksite.
Another student told me that he would go to Chamraeng when there was any problem.
Chamraeng would listen patiently and sometimes kept the student in trouble
accompany after leaving the Centre.
I ever went to the construction worksite with Chamraeng to visit the workers.
The place where the workers stayed was simple and not too clean.
When the workers saw us, they were very happy. One of the workers
gave a cup of water to Chamraeng. He then passed the cup of water to me and said,
"Teacher David, you drink first." He then explained to me that the Thais
used to share the same cup of water. For Singaporean, we would finish the
cup of drink and clean the cup before passing the new cup of water to another
person.
When I took the cup, I was touched. The Thais were close to each other and
they shared the same cup of water. Chamraeng was the pastor and I was then a
student of Bible school. But he was humble and polite to let me drink
the water first with ease.
Once we organised an outing for our students and workers who came to our Centre.
A woman saw Chamraeng and told him that his hairs were long and she would
do the hair-cut for him after lunch.
We had our free time after lunch. Chamraeng then sat on the used newspaper paved on
the grass. He used another piece of newspaper to cover his shoulder.
Then the woman did the hair-cut for him. As a pastor, he sat on the meadow
and let the lady barber did the hair-cut. He let people see his humble and good
deeds. People indeed experienced God's Love through his behaviour.
Our Centre sent an eight-person mission study group to Thailand in May 1991.
My wife and I were sent to Grace Church where Chamraeng served God. We met Mrs. Chamraeng
and some Finnish missionaries. The missionary Pastor Tapio received us liked
friends of long time. I learned from him how to wisely make use of
God's gift, how to help others in need and how to pray according to
God's will.
When we returned to Singapore after our mission trip, our Centre Director
Sister Salli Lamponen went back to Finland for her three months' furlough.
Hence I took over the administration of the Centre. Other than the
Monday off day of the Centre, I had to work in Thai Good News Centre everyday.
Chamraeng would come in the afternoon after his English course in the morning.
Most of the times, he would help to collect the cups and put them in a
basket. He then quietly cleaned the cups in the washroom and kept the cups
in the cupboard neatly while I was doing my work or writing the sermon scripts
in my office.
I discussed with Chamraeng on the living of his six-month assignment in the Centre before
he went back to Thailand in July 1991. He told me that the allowance given to him
was just right. He suggested that to give an additional
two hundred dollars of allowance to the subsequent pastors from Thailand.
It would not be too gingerly in the living expenses then. He was rather considerate.
Although I was working with Chamraeng full time for only one month, I was
moved by his sincere and kind assistance.
Before our next Thai pastor came to Singapore, I planned to give Chamraeng
a treat by giving him a short trip to Cameron Highlands. Our assistant
co-worker Sister Eve knew about it and helped to take care of the
Centre on that few days.
In order not to be away from the Centre for too many days,
we took the tour that started the journey at night.
It was cold in the coach as there was no sun shine.
I covered myself with a towel, but it was still cold for me.
I fell asleep because I was too tired on the way.
I later felt warm and woke up. I saw Chamraeng used his towel to
cover on me. I was very sorry and told him that a piece of
towel was good enough for me. He needed to cover himself with towel too.
It was also very cold for him.
Chamraeng drew a picture of Here am I. Send me! (Isaiah 6:8)
for me before he left for Thailand.
He also took many evenings to record Thai hymns sang by him
and made into a cassette tape for me.
On the evening before Chamraeng' departure, I stayed in the apartment
where Sister Salli rented and Chamraeng stayed during Sister Salli's
furlough. A few of our Thai friends hosted a farewell dinner for
Chamraeng in the apartment. They missed Chamraeng very much.
Two of them stayed back and the others went back at midnight.
We continued to talk until one o'clock.
Chamraeng said that he would not sure whether there would be
any opportunity for him to come to Singapore again.
He answered me, "When will you come to Thailand to see me, Teacher David?"
I wept and did not give him any answer.
God gave me an opportunity to visit LMT that November.
There was an ordination ceremony for
Pastor James Chamraeng and Pastor Visanukorn during the
15th Anniversary of LMT. Pastor Tapio sent a letter to
inform Sister Salli that I was invited to the ceremony.
Sister Salli later told me that Pastor Tapio also sent
an air ticket and arranged the accommodation for me.
I thought that Chamraeng and Visanukorn ever worked together
with me in the Centre and I was happy to have them working
with me. Hence, I was invited to attend their ceremony.
When Sister Salli and me arrived at Bangkok that evening,
Chamraeng and a missionary from Grace Church were receiving us.
They took me to Grace Church and stay there for few days.
Sister Salli was received by other missionaries.
After settling down and took a shower, it was almost midnight.
Chamraeng said he would take me out. I thought that there would not
be any public transport after midnight. Chamraeng said that there
would be night buses.
He brought me to an University not far away from the Church.
It was the University he graduated from. It was quiet and dark
in the campus. I was not at ease for the dark and quiet campus.
Then we went to another place where there was still busy.
We took snacks and drink at the road-side stall.
Chamraeng' parents were staying in Grace Church that few days.
They came to Bangkok to attend the ceremony. They would go
back to Chiangrai after that. As Chamraeng' family would also
go to Chiangrai, his parents invited me to spend a few days
in Chiangrai. As there was not planned earlier, I did not go.
On the night before I came back to Singapore,
Chamraeng asked me the same question, "When will you come to Thailand
to see me again, Teacher David?"
I had then worked in the Centre for a few months.
The salary was just right for my own living.
I was sad when I heard his question.
We wrote to each other.
Years passed, we wrote less frequent and finally stop writing.
Sometime around year 2000, I received a call from Chamraeng.
It was when we had parted for eight or nine years.
He said that he was in Singapore. He came to attend a meeting.
Although he stayed at the place where it was within a kilometer
away from my place, we met at Thai Good News Centre.
We were glad to see each other.
But we did not talk much. His English was not so fluent and
my Thai was not so fluent as well.
We just smiled most of the times.
He had moved from Bangkok to Northeast Thailand (Isan) Korat.
He served in Korat and built a house in Korat too.
After that meeting, we did not hear from each other for almost ten years.
May God richly bless my dear brother James Chamraeng!