Hey friends!
I thought it would be awesome to share my experience last week with my mom. First off I have to say seeing my mom was very encouraging and it definitely motivated me to continue this race and finish well. I do want to talk more on what ministry looked like last week and how it impacted my heart and I also want to say it is very difficult to share everything I learned last week so be sure to look for new upcoming blogs.
Last week we partnered with an organization called Wipe Every Tear. Their primary focus is to bring girls out of the sex trade – offering them free housing, college tuition, and all around care for themselves and children.
what does this ministry look like?
Kenny Sacht, the founder of the organization gave us a briefing on what we should say and what we should actually do – attempting to prepare us for what we were about to see and experience. I remember him saying, “don’t you dare share Jesus with them” I guess I was caught off guard a little bit after seeing this man’s love for Christ and then his comment about not sharing the gospel. He then explained that these girls don’t need a person to come tell them about Jesus and pray over them and then leave, they actually need a real way to get out of the bars.
So we took a bus about 2 hours from Manilla and arrived to our location. Our ministry sight was based in Angeles City. Try to picture a third world Las Vegas and you will have a general picture of what it was like. I looked out from the bus window and there really wasn’t much action going on in the daytime. I would see a few people walking on the sidewalk and a few cars going by in the road but it really wasn’t anything special. When it gets dark, everything changes. Try to picture a quarter mile strip filled with bars on each side. In just a small space over 15,000 girls work at these bars. We saw old men walking the streets with 18 year old girls, obviously seeking and searching for something that can satisfy. This is a hub for sex tourism, where lonely foreigners are welcome and where girls are putting on fake smiles as they desperately try to make money for themselves/family. I thought about it, and I still don’t know what is worse – seeing young girls fake smile and sell their bodies to old men, or seeing these old men sit by themselves in a local McDonald’s with an empty heart.
About 2 hours before, we opened up a time of worship and prayer. When I say worship, I’m not saying just singing songs in vain, but truly worshiping God for who he is! I’ve found a joy in leading worship. During this time a few people on our squad began to get words from the Lord and many got names of young girls we talked to that night!
It was time to go in the bars. We entered in one of the biggest bars on the strip called Atlantis, a 3 story bar. We got our seats on the second floor, got some drinks, and called some girls over. We stayed there for probably a hour and talked to about 6 girls. A funny thought entered into my head as we were sitting in a bar over viewing about 150 girls, “I’m in a strip club/ bar with my mom” I thought about it more and decided I wouldn’t want anyone else to go with me to one of those bars. We then entered in about 2 other bars that night and ended around 1:30 in the morning. We did it all again the next day and many seemed excited about visiting Wipe Every Tear’s safe houses.
That Friday morning 8 girls got on the bus to visit the safe houses, and many received contact information for Wipe Every Tear’s headquarters. God did some impactful things and I am writing this blog still thinking about the things I saw and the girls I met. It breaks my heart.
Praying for my mom as she leaves for Charlotte today! Thanks.
Ethan
