I arrived in Thailand this morning at 7am. My squad and I have been traveling for 2 full days. I'll give you the breakdown:
6 hour flight to LA
15 hour flight to Hong Kong
3 hour flight to Bangkok
3 hour truck ride through the streets of Bangkok to the bus station (had to go WAY out of the day to avoid government protesters, even though we ended going right through a big crowd of them)
11 hour bus ride to Phucket.
Grand total of 38 hours of traveling. Here is the evidence:
Just arrived in Bangkok!!
My Very Swollen feet… waiting for the bus to take us to Phucket
Our 11 hour ride to Phucket
Bathroom stop… my first time using a squatty potty 🙂
Was it worth it? YES!! So, as we arrived and were greeted by our team leaders, they also gave us a breakdown of what we'll be doing this month in Thailand. We have 7 teams on my squad. 4 teams will be heading to the Northeastern boarder (including my sister's team) to work with refugees. 1 team will be heading into the jungle. My team and one other team will be staying here with the mission plant in Phucket.
We will be working with the amazing organization called SHE Thailand. Here is the website if you want to check it out.. SHETHAILAND
Here is the basic info for the organization:
Started in 2006, SHE (Self Help and Empowerment) is a Christian charity committed to helping women and children at risk in Thailand, many of whom are trapped in the commercial sex trade. SHE is dedicated to providing employment, vocational training and counseling for women who want to help themselves out of this industry. All proceeds go directly to helping them find employment, community, friendship, restoration, and above all restoration of their own value.
That's right!! We will be working with human trafficking victims. I can't believe this is the area I will be starting out in. I am excited and nervous at the same time. I don't know how God is going to use me to bless the lives of the people I encounter, but I encourage everyone to please pray for me and the people we meet in this next month. We want them to know that there is another option out there for them and we want them to know that they are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father.
We are fortunate to have internet access for this month because we are staying in the SHE house with the family who runs the organization. I will update my blog several times throughout the month with updates on our ministry! Thank you to everyone for your prayers and support!
Pics for fun: The view from my window & Rachel and I suffering from Humid Hair 🙂
