Jenga isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when your at a bar nor is it when you are looking for a prostitute for the night. However these small wooden pieces are a giant reality to what women here in Chiang Mai red light district face everyday. As I sat down at a small wooden table and gathered my composure for the atmosphere I was in, I mindlessly played with these wooden pieces. Carefully each block was placed and one by one I strategically pulled a block with an on edge fear the whole structure may very well topple over. My false move and the whole establishment would be over.
It struck me as I looked around the alley way of the women and men coming in and out aimlessly of the bars. They too are Jenga pieces on edge of fear their whole world might come crashing down. An amazing thing happens when you ask God to see the world through His eyes, to have His grace, and everything you once thought begins to melt away. I have an incredible fierce love for all the women and men of the red light district. It is so beautiful seeing Him in every moment of the bar ministry.
Our nights start at 8pm with prayer session then we head out at 8:30 to begin whatever our Father has laid out for us. Each time I have gone out it looks completely different from the last. One thing is always constant, no agenda, only love. Love gets used often in our culture. I think we forget the weight it carries and its value. Love for me is pure. I love the women we have been building relationships with. Yes, it is a short amount of time but love is something you freely give without expecting anything in return. I love them by pouring worth into them. I love them by investing time with them. It is an absolute honor and privilege to sit beside the women I meet and hear their hearts. I think of a young girl named Faa. She is also 24 years old who has a little boy who is forced to live in Bankok with his grandparents. Faa works every night at the bar to try and support herself and her son so that one day he can live with her here in Chiang Mai. Myself and two other teammates visit her every other day while she is working. It is so nice to see her face light up when we come in and for a short while I know we are a small distraction from her troubles. She sometimes talks about Buddism that she goes everyday to the temple to pray. Last night my eyes teared up as I could see the desperation on her face. I asked her “what do you pray for?” She said “happiness.”
This month human trafficking ministry has ripped out my heart and stomped all over it. Not one day has gone by where I am not in tears. Before we start ministry for the evening we go on prayer walks in the afternoon. We go back to the same bars in the alley way and sit for hours to pray. In the afternoon the environment changes, what was once a busy loud spectacle becomes empty and vacant. I sit and pray. I can’t say that I have ever fiercely prayed for people I have never met as much I have been this month. My heart shatters and I literally feel the ache in the building. I feel my spirit groan inside of me for the longing of my Dad for his beloved sons and daughters. I feel the LOVE my Dad has for his beloveds! It is so giant and overwhelming and I can’t hold back my tears when I sit with Him in prayer.
Our team spends hours everyday in prayer. We understand the magnitude of prayer but also our Father’s ability to shift lives and atmospheres through us. It has been intense but so wonderful. We strip ourselves from our own agendas and seek after our Father’s pure love, only then can we fully love others.
I am currently $1000 away from my final January 1st deadline. If I do not raise it in time I will be sent home and no longer be able to continue my missions for the next five months. I am doing a fundraiser 50 people, $20 campaign! My deadline is only two weeks away! I hope you will share with your friends and family but also prayerfully consider contributing to my missions. Every dollar donated makes a giant difference to me as well as the people I meet along my journey! You can click the donate tab to the left and make an easy one time tax deductible donation! Thank you for all your love and support! NOW LETS GET THE WORD OUT!! :))
