I am not sure if the title of this blog is truly fitting… it should be… What God is doing in Thailand and I get to be a part of.
I am working with an amazing ministry this month in Phuket Thailand. Phuket is a province which would be similar to a state in the US. Within Phuket is a city called Patong. This city is well known as a VERY popular vacation spot due to its beautiful beaches, great shopping and fun party scene.
Unfortunately when you peel back the surface layers you begin to find out the truth about what is going on here. The reality is simple. Thousands of woman every night sell themselves to men who have come to exploit them and use them as objects. These woman are here for so many different reasons… some have come from far away… to provide an income for their families. They come with big dreams of working in hotels or getting a great job but come here to find that they are lacking the skills and education they need to get the job they wanted. They find themselves working in the bars. From the looks of things they are just half dressed girls working the bars, but if you know the truth, you know that for less than $20 a man can “purchase” this girl for the night and use her as he pleases. Bleh.
What my teammates and I do is nightly go into the bars and build relationships with the girls. THis looks different for everyone. Some of the girls speak english, some do not. We visit them regularly and have conversation with them. The goal is to outreach to them and offer them opportunities that will allow them to leave the work in the bars and find an income elsewhere. The ministry offers many different opportunities including english classes, jewelry making, hotel training and certification and other job opportunities based on need.
Here in Thailand 95% of the people are Buddhist and it is VERY rare to find someone that has heard about Jesus. Buddhism is so much a part of who they are, so deep rooted in their culture that talking about Jesus is just, well… so foreign to them. Unlike other months where we are really up front about our religion in more of an evangelism way, we attempt to show themJesus with our actions and the love that he pours out of us. When the ladies get plugged in with the ministry they are taught and are given really personal teachings on the TRUTH and the majority of the woman start a relationship with JESUS. YAY.
The toughest part about this ministry is that it is a long process and we are only a little part of it… by this point in our trip we have learned that a life of ministry is not always about results… so we just press in to each day, trusting that the Lord is using us to do one of the very important steps… preparing the land, planting the seeds, watering the seeds or collecting the harvest. It is amazing to get to walk in what He has each day, never knowing what we are going to get, but knowing that it is GOOD because it is His plan.
Please understand that this place is very dark. God gives us hope and He IS MOVING… but here the spiritual battle is VERY REAL, it is tangible and you can see it with your very eyes every single night as you walk those bars… evil vs good… so your continued prayers for my mind and heart as well as the girls is so greatly appreciated.
I am really struggling with getting out the words of all the things God is doing. I wanted to write this and just fill you all in. Thank you for your patience… I am really trying to get some things written out.
Love you and miss you all! Can you believe I have been gone for 9 months already!
Rach
