Hi all!
I am currently living in Bangkok, Thailand. Last month we were in Laos. I was on a social media fast during that time, so I didn’t write or post any blogs while we were there. I actually wrote this one during our travel day from Laos to Thailand, on February 24th. I hope you enjoy reading it!
02.24.20. We’re on our way to Bangkok today. We said goodbye to our friends at our hostel (our family and home for the last month). We jumped in a tuk tuk and headed to our bus station. We laughed the whole way there, as is common for Fight Club. We boarded our bus with ease. We got through immigration with only one surprise fee (thank you, Jeevan, for having some leftover kip to get us through).
As I write this, I am reclining in my bus seat (a.k.a. my bed for the night), with an overflowing heart.
Laos was unfathomably wonderful. It was better than anything I could have imagined or planned. God showed up big! He IS a God of miracles.
We walked into Laos knowing:
- It is a closed country. It is illegal to speak the name of Jesus or to evangelize there.
- Of all the countries we are going to, this was the one that we needed to be the most careful with when it came to sharing the gospel, admitting to being missionaries, etc.
- We had no host and no pre-existing ministry partner. We were going to be doing ATL (Ask the Lord) ministry again.
We came in with empty but open hands, and willing hearts. We prayed. We felt like God had placed specific types of ministry on each of our hearts, so we began to pray that He would fulfill them.
Here is what God placed on our hearts:
- Kacie’s Connection. My teammate, Kacie, had a connection in Laos from her home church in the states. Through a series of emails, she discovered that her connection was based in the very city that we were going to be in that month. Wow, what a small world! Maybe God would have opportunities for us to work with them!?
- Ministry at the Hostel. When we got to our new home in Laos, we decided as a team to leave the first hostel we were in, and to move to a quieter one just a half mile up the road. Bowen and I went to inquire about its availability and cost, and as we left, we both felt overwhelmed with joy. I looked at him and said, “I don’t know what it is, but I think that part of my ministry this month has to do with the worker at that hostel.”
- Women Stuck in Prostitution. After the second night of staying in the city, Bo let me know that he had seen several women on the street corners at night. Women stuck in trafficking have been heavy on my heart and the hearts of my teammates, ever since I watched them being sold for the night in Ho Chi Minh City, back in Vietnam.
- Temple Ministry. As we explored the city, we found that it was swarming with temples. Many of my teammates had been wanting to pray in temples, so it looked like opportunities would be endless to do that.
- Underground Church. God had placed the underground church on my heart in Vietnam, and I was still praying that He would help us find one in Laos.
As we stepped through each of these ministry doors, here is what happened:
Kacie’s Connection. We met with Kacie’s connection. We were worried we wouldn’t be able to work with them, because we had spent our entire travel budget just getting to the city we were in, and the connection was located several miles away from our hostel. But God came through!
During our initial meeting, before we could even mention that we had no money for transportation, they offered to pick us up every day, free of charge. My treasurer heart about fell out of my chest.
I had spent the last 3 days stressed, thinking I might have to ask my team to fast from meals, just to make our budget work. I had literally just prayed that God would make our money extend, and that He would make things cheaper for us. I had told our team, “we need Him to make transportation free, because we don’t have any money left for it, and I don’t know how we are going to do this if He doesn’t.” Then He showed up. Not only did they pick us up every day, but the van we rode in was air conditioned, and one of the nicest we had been in on the Race.
Kacie’s connection ended up being an incredible partner! We made friends with each of them, and they connected us with loads of ministry opportunities. We attended two Sunday services with them. We partnered with them to help students and medical professionals improve their English. We played soccer with the community. We attended a Bible Study, and pretended we knew how to speak the local language during worship. We planted trees at local schools. We led kid VBS events. It was incredible. I loved every single second.
Temple Ministry. We went to the temples and prayed. Adam and I walked around one of the temples seven times, like they did in Jericho. No, the physical walls didn’t fall down, but the atmosphere did change around it. Ben and I went back to that same temple a week and a half later, and prayed inside of it. As we were walking around, I told Ben that something had changed there. God was there. Adam had prayed that God would plant his flag there. As I walked inside of it this second time, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that He had done just that. That He owned that temple. He was there, and He wasn’t going to lose it.
Throughout our time in Laos, we covered several temples in prayer. We prayed for victory. We prayed for victory over Laos. We prayed for their leaders. We prayed for freedom. I am confident that those prayers will be answered. They are His people after all.
Women Stuck in Prostitution. One of the days, I was struggling to feel like I was making an impact. I was feeling limited in my ability to share, because of the laws prohibiting it. As I sat wanting to do more, one of my coaches messaged me, and asked how I was doing. I told her I was struggling to feel like I was making any impact, but how I thought I might go out that night do a prayer walk to intercede for the women on the street corners. My coach encouraged me, and told me that that was no small thing, and that those prayers were so valuable. That was all the motivation I needed. That night three of my teammates and I hit the streets. We walked around, and interceded for each woman we saw. We prayed for protection, freedom and for God to make Himself known to them. I may not have been able to speak with them, or to tell them about Jesus, but I am praying that God continues to put people in their paths that know Him. That He doesn’t stop pursuing them, just like He didn’t cease pursuing me.
Hostel Worker & The Underground Church. Over the course of the weeks we were there, I got to know that hostel worker whom I had mentioned earlier. During our last week of ministry, the worker’s daughter and I got to talk, and I was able to share that we were there to tell others about Jesus. I then learned that they also know Him, and that they have a connection to an underground church.
On our last Sunday in Laos, we went to the underground church with our hostel worker and her family. We got to worship with fellow believers in the very way the early church worshiped: undercover, with risk, with joy, in community, with people of all different races and countries of origin, united by the Father. It was amazing. There were people from all over the city present that night. That also was a fulfillment of our prayers. We had been praying that the city would be covered with people who know Him, and that He would raise up leaders to change the status quo of the nation.
For the first time in my life, I felt like I was living out the gospels. I was interceding. I was asking for miracles. I was seeking fellowship with fellow believers. I was praising God in the streets where fear was trying to silence it from happening. And the more I did, the more I wanted to continue, and the bolder I was becoming.
So today as we leave, part of my heart is being left behind. I feel like we just started a work there. There is so much more yet to be done: women to be saved, leaders to be trained, youth to be sought after, lives to be saved and set free.
I don’t know if God has more in store for me in Laos or not. I also don’t know that my work there is done. I’m praying into it more. If you want to partner in prayer with me about that, I would be appreciative.
Now we are on to Bangkok for our final month in Asia. I’m excited and heart broken. I love it here. I don’t want to leave. I’m thankful for another month of ministry, so that I can continue to follow the Spirit’s leading.
What do I want from this month? I want to ask God to use me each day, and to say yes with boldness. I want to pray and to speak his name. I want freedom for the men, women and children of Thailand. And I want to see God work miracles.
I’m excited! God is living and active.
Love you all!
From Asia,
Liesl
