“I can’t believe I’m in Thailand!!!” is what I have been saying over and over and over again…both in my head and aloud. I have been wanting to come to Thailand for so long now…and now I am finally here and it’s hard to believe!
I have had many “Aha!” moments when things ‘just click’ for me and I realize where I am, etc. Over this past week, they have come when…
**We toured The Grand Palace …knowing that The Amazing Race has filmed there too! Hehe ;]
**Exploring the streets of Bangkok during our squad debrief the first few days that we were in Thailand and running in to the King of Thailand’s motorcade.
**Eating Thai food on the floor at a floating market
**Walking down “Walking Street” and realizing that this is real life here, not just a video that I am watching. Walking Street is a main street in Pattaya that is well known for prostitution. This is the area where we will be going into the bars in the evenings to build relationships with the women.
**Worshiping the Lord for hours in the midst of ex-prostitutes at Pattaya Praise ’10.
I’m sure I have said it before, but worship is a huge part of my team. We believe that worshiping the Lord is one of the best battle tactics to defeat the enemy and it strengthens you up as well. That’s why we were really excited to be a part of Pattaya Praise from the first day that we arrived in Pattaya City last Thursday.
Pattaya Praise is a worship conference that lasted for about 4 days where Christians all over the city of Pattaya came together to worship the Lord for about 12 hours a day. There was a morning session at the City Hall and then another session in the evenings down by the pier near Walking Street. It was probably the absolute best ways we could have spent our first few days in Pattaya!
I was just reading some articles online about Pattaya and discovered that this city was pretty much built around the sex trade and is maintained and prospers today because of the sex trade. So now you have a little glimpse of what we will be working with and coming up against this month as we partner with the Tamar Center here in Pattaya City, Thailand. We will be building relationships with the women in the bars, inviting them to free English classes and showing them the Love that the Father has for them.
I cannot explain it, but God has given me a huge amount of confidence already this month. I wasn’t feeling very well the first night that my team went walking down Walking Street, so I stayed home. But when they came back home and I heard their stories of the night, I knew for sure that I would be a complete emotional wreck all month knowing all the perverse things going on all around us. But the very next night I went walking down Walking Street and felt so powerful in the Lord, knowing that it is all in His hands. Knowing that there is nothing in my own power that I can do but smile and let the Father’s love shine through me to both the women in the bars and the men purchasing them.
The next night I had so much confidence that I walked down the street singing worship songs. I know that my voice probably wasn’t heard over all the noise of the bars and commotion in the street, but I KNOW the enemy heard it. I know that it made them cringe. Because they know that there is light shining in the darkness coming to win the King’s daughters and sons hearts back to the Lord!
