Soooo we’ve been in Thailand for 2 weeks now! It’s a tiny bit cooler than Cambodia, but it can still definitely get hot. We’re altogether as a squad this month which is AWESOME and all 40 of us are staying at Zion Hostel/Cafe. Zion is a branch of Lighthouse in Action – a ministry that specifically reaches out to people who have been trapped in lives of prostitution, the bar scene, or been effected in some way by the rampant issue of human trafficking in Thailand.
Our squad’s six teams have been paired off to do three different types of ministry this month. The first is the slums: going to hang out and share love and hope with kids in areas deemed “hopeless,” where many families are affected by prostitution as it commonly becomes “the only” solution to a lack of income. This is paired with monk chat ministry: going into Buddhist temples and literally chatting with monks, building relationships, and sharing the gospel. The second type is bar ministry: going on prayer walks during the day in the red light district just around the corner from our hostel, and then heading out at night to just sit down with the different ladies, or men, or lady-boys who hang around the doors of different bars and clubs on the street. These teams take time to get to know them, love them, invite them to events at Zion,and share the hope of God’s love – a group of ladies actually came out to Zion yesterday evening which awesome to see! The third type is the cafe ministry: working in Zion’s cafe with women that have left the bars (or other unhealthy situations) behind and found a new hope, sustainable income, and a loving evironment of encouragement and support. My team has been placed in Zion Cafe which has been SO GREAT. The ladies are so sweet with such servant hearts, and each time I think about the saying on our work shirts – “She is Worth More” – I am SO convicted by that truth…
Emmi is the lady that has basically been heading EVERYTHING up at Zion, is a huge part of Lighthouse in Action, and is overall a cool gal. Instead of trying to articulate all that she and the organization have been doing and hope to do, here’s Emmi’s story and a little bit more about the ministry we’re a part of this month. When I watched it, I was shocked at what she had been through because her joy is INCREDIBLE. When I look at her, I just see a life-changer. So please, PLEASE take the time to watch these two short videos!
Emmi’s Story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQacdkYccRw&feature=youtu.be
Lighthouse in Action Promo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgBAxuiHqgI&feature=youtu.be
Also…if you have time later this evening, I suggest you watch the documentary ‘Nefarious: Merchant of Souls.’ It’s hard to watch. It’s uncomfortable. It’s disconcerting. It’s infuriating. It’s devestating, and sickening, and so sad. But there’s a hope. And that hope PUMPED ME UP. I know, it’s like; “I already watched two videos Martha told me to watch, and this is like that supplemental reading material your prof gives you that NO ONE does…” but seriously. You should watch it. That stuff is literally happening around the corner here. Those children in the documentary – from Cambodia that are sold by their parents so they can send money back to their families – statistically make up at least a handful of the kids we met last month.
As Emmi says, “90% of Thailand doesn’t know of the hope we have…yet. YET.” So though we’ve been put in what feels like the middle of darkness, there is SUCH a bright light that is slowly spreading – one which has a tonne of potential to overcome the darkness that many feel permanently lost in.
Seriously, watch those videos.
