Words cannot truly capture what I experienced this last week. My parents came to the Philippines and got a little taste of what life is like on the field. Little did either of us know what we were getting ourselves into. That we would step into bars to talk to girls who wear little to nothing on their bodies. That some of us would talk to the very men who came into the bars to find a girl to satisfy his needs. That we would find Jesus in the last place we ever thought we would find him.
Wipe Every Tear is a organization that we worked with that gives bar girls a place to be physically and spiritually free. They give these girls funds for school and college, a place to sleep, food to eat, and provision for their families and kids. And those very girls who have been set free go back into the bars to set their sisters free, because most of those girls are told to not trust this organization. That they will rape them, hurt them, and kill them. And they need someone who has been in their shoes and has firsthand experienced freedom. And so side by side with this organization we walked into bar after bar offering these girls the very thing they crave; freedom. We offered them to join us to come on a bus that would take them to Manila to the houses that they could stay in. The houses they could potentially live in. Then the people from the organization would explain to them that they do not have to sell themselves anymore to feed their families. That their dignity and respect can be restored by going to school and getting a job. That they can finally be free. But those girls would have never known if we did not take the initiative to be bold and courageous and go into the bars themselves. We had to take Jesus to those bars, and we found out that he was already there waiting for us.
We were put into groups both nights and the first night my group was me, my parents, my good friend/squadmate Kara and her parents, and our Filipina. Each group has a Filipina to help translate and – most importantly – share her story of how she used to be in the bars and found freedom. Because these girls in the bars have no choice. These girls were tricked into being there. They had no money and no way to support their families. Their parents have no job so the responsibility falls on them to provide. Women come to them offering a job that will pay for their families. These women more often than not are the pimps, called “mamasons”. They are older women who used to work in the bars but are now “less desirable” for men, but still need to make money somehow. So they recruit girls to come and work for them. Most of the time, the girls have absolutely no idea what they are getting themselves into. This is called trafficking. Once they get to the bar, they are thrown into a room with skimpy clothes lying on the bed and are told to put it on and go on stage, and so starts the beginning of their entrapment. They have no way out. Most of these girls’ parents do not know what they are doing. If these girls came home, they would be shamed for what’s been done to them. And who else is going to take care of their family? Their kids? It is up to them. They have to stay here. They have to provide. They have to survive. And this is the only way.
The first night I was so pumped. The spirit within me was so ready to go out and set girls free. But when my team and I stepped into our first bar my heart started racing. Every beat getting faster with every step I took up those stairs. Finally we got to the curtain and pulled it aside and I will never forget the image. Music blaring, darkness where the patrons were sitting but all the spotlight on the girls on stage. Most wearing booty shorts and high high heels. Some in just bras as tops and others in lace tank tops over their bras. All beautiful women. And all looking absolutely miserable, ashamed, and humiliated. A majority of the girls were just standing there, barely dancing to the music. Some were getting into it, but most covered their stomachs and tried to stand as far away from the spotlight as they could. That was when I realized these girls really did not have a choice. These girls are trafficked. Forced to sell their bodies to hungry men to feed their hungry children. Forced to wear things only a husband should see her wife in. Forced to play the part so they can please their customer. Forced to shove down their dreams and ambitions to survive. We sat down and ordered drinks and were asking the Spirit which girl to call down. I felt led to call down a spunky girl with short cropped blonde hair and man she was the sweetest. My parents and I talked to her for about an hour or so and just had normal conversation. She had two younger siblings, and neither of her parents had jobs. She wanted to go to college and had been working at that bar for three months or so. We talked to her about the bus leaving in two days and about Wipe Every Tear and what they do and about life itself. Her hobbies, what she likes to do during her free time, her favorite artists and so on. Then before you know it she was dragging me onstage to dance and because I was going up there, so was Kara. And we made absolute fools of ourselves. Going all out. At one point I looked around and at the girls were laughing at us, but also looked relieved because most of the attention was on us and not them. Funny thing though, I felt such joy dancing on that stage. Dancing with my new friend and her just laughing at me and enjoying our time together. When we said bye to her and went to our next bar, it hit me that she is just a normal girl. A girl who is in bondage yes, but she’s just like me. She has dreams and ambitions and wants to go somewhere with her life. She desires to be told she’s worthy and loved. That she belongs somewhere. That there is more to life than what she is doing now.
Bar after bar we went into telling girls that there is a way out. That she does not have to stay there. We only did ministry for two nights because it was so intense, but MAN it was so worth it. One of the best nights of my life. Twenty-two girls ended up stepping onto that bus and unknowingly stepping into their freedom. One of those girls I met the night before and talked with her and she was a firecracker. She was so excited because she had heard of us and was ready to get on that bus and told us she was going to bring her friend with her. A moment that I will never ever forget is her pulling up to the front of the hotel. She actually came. Wow. She got to choose freedom for herself. We did not force it upon her, but the freedom the Lord has granted us was enough to tempt not just her, but all 22 of those girls.
It was a heavy heavy week for me. Most everyone knows and has heard about sex trafficking. I have learned about it and even researched it. But nothing compares to when it’s right in front of your face. Learning about it and seeing it with your own eyes are two completely different things. It became real. It is real. Girls being trafficked is real. Girls selling their bodies to foreign men is real. Girls giving a piece of their soul and heart to each man she sleeps with is real. Girls being shamed and humiliated by wearing skimpy clothes and dancing provocatively is real. Girls wishing they could be any where else but there and wanting freedom is real. These girls deserve justice. More than that though they deserve to know that they are deeply loved. They are cherished and valued. They are worth the death of the son of God. They are daughters of the King of kings; and they deserve to know that. Because these girls are not prostitutes, they are prostituted. It would be really rude of us to go around and label people by their sins. I would not want people going around calling me a liar or an idolizer or a glutton. That is not my name and a prostitute is not their name either.
Sometimes we find Jesus in the most random and unexpected places and times. I found him in every bar I walked into and in every girl I sat down and talked with. I found him on the bar stage dancing alongside with me and my friends. I found him in the darkest of dark places. Not in the church, not in sunday school, not in the places where it is safe. But I found him in taking risks. In being bold. In the places where no one dares to go. If we really want more of Jesus and want to be closer to him, why don’t we go where is? The places where no one dares step. Are we willing to go search for him? Do we love him enough to go after him in those places? Is it worth it? That is a question you are going to have to ask yourself, because I know the answer. I experienced it first hand. I never thought I would ever step foot into a bar. I never thought I would call on girls who are wearing just a bra and a thong to talk to. The ones I “should never be like” and “stay away from”. I never thought I would step onto a bar stage and dance. But most importantly, I never thought I would find so much of Jesus in all those things.
Be bold. Take the risk. It is worth it. Not only does he use you for others, but he draws you closer to him. How sweet. I got to make new friends. I had so much fun. I found joy. I found Jesus.
