As we went out into the
Red Light district of downtown Pattaya,
Thailand last
night, I was overwhelmed. Sex, lust, and
a sense of confusion was EVERYWHERE! Each
way you turned a laminated card with different women for sale would be shoved
in your face. As we walked by, many of
the white men wouldn’t even look us in the eyes, most likely because of the
shame they felt for what they were doing there. All along the street are open bars with music
blaring from each one, people covered the street, and women with very little
clothing littered the sidewalk in front of each bar (some with numbers on the
front of their clothing for the men to know which one they wanted to buy). Old men walk with their arm around the 17 year
old Thai 
girls they purchased for the evening.
Other men were obviously perusing the “aisles� of this street, “shopping�
for someone who would catch their
eye.
It’s disgusting to
watch. It’s heartbreaking to understand.
These people NEED desperately to hear of
better hope than that of the possibility of good payment for the evening. They NEED to hear of a REAL LOVE as opposed to
the lust that they confuse as love. Some
of them have lost hope that there is anything more than the painful, hopeless
things that they see and experience each night… My Redeemer lives.
God has reminded me in the
last couple of days about his redeeming love. We all have “issues.� We all have junk that we deal with from our
pasts. We have all been hurt. BUT, b
ecause of the hope that Christ provides
because He died once and for all to cover our sin and shame, we do not have to
carry the weight of these burdens. Neither
do these women who sale themselves in order to provide for their families. Neither do these men whose minds are
completely engulfed with lust. Christ
covered it all. Redeeming love. Powerful.
Pray for my team and I as
we minister to the men and women in the Red Light Districts. Pray for their heart to be open to what God
says through us, and that we have clear opportunities to strike up
conversations.
For God has not given us a
spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love and sound judgment. 2 Timothy 1:7
He forgives all your sin;
He heals all your diseases, He redeems your life from the Pit; He crowns you
with faithful love and compassion. Psalm
103:3-4
