The night is approaching and I realize I have to shower, put on makeup & get dressed before heading out for the bars.
The night is approaching and she needs to wake up from napping and get ready for work for the night.
I put on light makeup, fix my hair and put on a dress that will go great with the same pair of flip flops Ive been wearing the last 9 months.
She puts on makeup, maybe hoping she will look older than her young age of 20, fits into the tight clothing that is only appropriate for the job & steps into her 6 inch heels.
We pray and worship before heading out. Asking Jesus to fill us with His presence before entering the hardness and darkness of the bars. We prepare ourselves for the darkness and oppression that will surround us tonight & pray to radiate joy and freedom as we walk into the bars we will enter.
She puts on her front of pretending to enjoy her job before heading in, trying to numb herself of feelings of wanting to be anywhere else but here. She hopes that although she feels pain and sadness, she will be able to show face of happiness and enjoyment as she talks with various men who will enter her bar.
We both spend our night in the red light district of Chiang Mai.
Our reasons for being there are completely different – but we are the same.
We are both daughters of the King.
We are both sought after and pursued by our God who loves us exactly the same.
The only difference is that she might not know this yet.
But we are the same. Neither of us want to actually be in these bars.
No women wants to strip and give herself away to men looking to not feel lonely for a night.
We, knowing the truths and promises that are offered, do not want to have to see women giving and displaying the most intimate parts of themselves.
As she is up on stage, stripping off her clothes & dancing, she brings her mind to other places trying to push down the feelings telling her she doesn’t want to be here.
While she is dancing on stage, I sit on a barstool and bring my mind to other places as well. I pray. I pray that soon she will learn the truths of what she is worth and how she is truly seen by her Father. I bring my mind to a place where I can picture her as the young woman she is – a woman who does not need to be bound by chains of darkness and shame. A woman who is offered joy and freedom.
You see, we are the same. I am the same as the girl dancing on stage for a man. We end up in the same place tonight – yes for different reasons, but it is not by coincidence.
She is seen- not by the men staring at her on stage and not by us as we hope to be able to speak with her. She is known and seen by The Father. He sees what she does, he knows her to her depths as she exposes herself on stage- but, He is good and He is full of more love & grace than we can understand sometimes. He sees these women and He pursues them fiercely.
She sees each man as just another customer with a wallet of cash to do as he pleases with her.
I see the men and push past the anger I want to feel for them and try to understand their reasoning for being here – to know that they are hurting & are just as pursued and loved by Christ as these women are.
Its an awkwardly beautiful night in the local strip club of Chiang Mai. The situation could not sound any stranger: women stripping on stage, local & foreign men buying these women for the night & four american missionaries all in one place. But, God is moving and is doing far bigger things than I can imagine.
Going out to the bars is tough, but this month God has given me His eyes & heart to walk in & out of these places with celebration for who He is and what His promises hold as a possibility.
This month our team & another have been placed in Chiang Mai, Thailand working with Lighthouse in Action ministries.
Please pray for the two teams as we continue our last week of ministry entering the red light district and pursuing friendships with the girls we meet.
