Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

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All I want for Christmas is…..

……the chance to share God’s love with the people of Thailand! Yes, you heard me. I don’t want a new iPhone….iPad 2…..flatscreen LCD tv….any of that. I stayed and babysat Thanksgiving night so that my Mom and Aunt could go out and do their Black Friday shopping. I would’ve been right there with them, but this year I wanted something much different. I simply just wanted to go to Thailand. Trust me, if Expedia.com had a store and was offering cheap international flights I would’ve waited at the door for days just so I could assure I’d be able to make it over there. But they didn’t. So I stayed home.

But most importantly, I wanted to go over there and share Christ’s love with the women working as prostitutes in Phuket……just as I did when I was there in February.

I began to wonder why God chose this type of ministry to lay so heavily on my heart. Why couldn’t I do something like be awesome at construction so I could go out and build churches and schools around the world? Well for one…..those who know me know that I’m not the type to get down and dirty all the time. I mean c’mon…. I bought TWO suits while I was on the World Race. Who does that? And secondly this (sex/human trafficking) type of ministry takes a certain type of man make things go well. Truthfully, there really aren’t that many guys in this field. A guy by the name of Matthew Snyder has been a huge inspiration for me as I continue to pursue this passion the Lord has placed on my heart. Matthew has an incredible blog filled with tons of facts and figures about human trafficking. He has led sex trafficking trips with AIM and continues to find ways to fight trafficking. Want to hear the cool part? Matthew is the one that interviewed me when I applied for the World Race. Coincidence? Of course not. Follow him on twitter @matthewsnyder and/or visit his blog: www.matthew-snyder.com
 

Also, to get a better picture of where I’ll be ministering…..please see my teammate Mac Mitchell’s PHOTO ESSAY of Bangla Road. He truly does a great job of capturing sexual sin in this dark dark place.

I’m slowly beginning to realize that for this season the Lord has placed a fairly large coat on me. It’s going to take a lot of growth to fit in to it. I hope it’s a coat like the pilots in Pan Am wear….those are super cool. Truly the main thing that God has been saying to me is this:

“dude, (yea He calls me that sometimes) I don’t think you realize how big of an anointing I’ve placed on you. Those women that work in the bars, they don’t get many men that treat them with respect. You, my child, have been taught what it is to appreciate a woman. GO! Show them what I’ve taught you. Love on them. I choose you!! The other I don’t think you realize is that you, as a man, have way more of effect on women than you think. Remember that time I brought you to the women’s prison in the Philippines? You were scared and didn’t want to go. You were afraid the women wouldn’t like you because of males in their past. And then warden came to you and asked you to share a message when you weren’t expecting it. Do you remember what she said? She said, “brother…the women would love to hear you speak. They never get interact with Godly men and many of them are grateful you would take time to come visit with them.” This is same same but different! The women trapped in the bars don’t expect to be respected and loved on. Go surprise them!”

 
 

Was I going somewhere with this? Oh yeah…..

I hear December is the month of miracles, so I am reaching out to you, my loyal blog readers. See, I need your help in order to follow what God has in His will for me. Last December, you and many other helped me raise just over $5,000 in order for me to stay on the World Race. This December, I am asking for just short of that in order to help me return to Thailand for 5 months to attend S.H.E. Ministry’s Ministry Training School. Three months of seeking God’s vision for the ministry and two months out in the field ministering to the Red Light district of Phuket. Here is a breakdown of what I kindly ask you to prayerfully partner with me in:

Food/Lodging/Books/Tuition for ALL 5 months: $3,000

Airfare to Phuket: $1,000-$1,600

The Bible tells us to present and pray for our needs and the Lord will provide. So here I am presenting my needs to you. I can’t do this on my own, and if I could …..I still wouldn’t. That just wouldn’t be fair to my fellow Christ followers who want to help with such a great cause. And my passion is that I want others to feel a part of something grand that God has placed in my life and the lives of others that will be touched during my time in Thailand. Every smile that is had, life that will be changed, and joy that will be brought will all be done with all thanks to you, my wonderful supporters!

If you or anyone you know would be willing to help support God’s will for me, please feel free to email me: [email protected]

I have also set up a Pay Pal account for online donations. But if you would rather mail a personal check-I can kindly email you my home address.

Lastly, I hate to bring this up, but time is of the essence…..especially for plane tickets. I really do need to book a flight (one-way or round trip) by December 7th before prices get TOO crazy out of control. Right now, this is my top priority and without it, well it’d be a long boat ride over there. Just kidding. I know God will provide. I’m stepping out and truly living my FAITH knowing that He will provide. Please join me as I pray and fast for the next few days to truly seek out the Lord and His  Greatness.

 
 

In the meantime, please check out this scene from the movie Furious Love. This scene really strikes a chord in my heart and it displays raw footage of what really goes on in Thailand. THIS is what I plan on doing with my time back in Phuket. Please prayerfully consider joining me.