The World Race in unique for many reasons. One being that you move to a new country each month. Every month you get a new home, a new culture, new food, and new ministry. When we left China this past week is when the moment finally hit me. I have been on several short-term mission trips and every time I have left the country I was ministering in, I have gone home. This month instead of going home, I traveled to Thailand. This is the World Race.
It is such a weird sensation to know that this is what my life will look like for the next ten months. In some ways life is always new and exciting. There is always a new country to look forward too. But in other ways, it is hard. Leaving new friends and ministries we have fallen in love with has already been hard and will continue to be hard as the months continue. But as I have learned recently, hard goodbyes are beautiful and there are amazing moments in every day life that I am constantly looking for.
As we begin our ministry this month in Thailand, I have already been impacted by the work that is being done here. My team is partnered with Team Relentless working with an organization that pulls kids who are high risk for being trafficked into safe homes. This month we are helping to construct a new boys home. The work is hard, but so worthwhile knowing that the home we are building will be a refuge for children who will never know the unspeakable horrors of the sex industry.
We are blessed to be able to spend time with these kids and eat dinner with them at night. As we play and laugh with all those beautiful kids every night, all I can think about is how every single one of them would have been sold into the sex industry if not for our ministry contact here.
There is so much darkness here in Thailand, but you would not know it based on the beautiful landscapes and the smiling people. Knowing how many children are sold into the sex trade here conveys a feeling of hopelessness and despair. But last night when I was playing with those kids, all I could feel was hope. Hope knowing that none of those children will ever be sold into slavery. Also, hope knowing that every single one of those kids will have the opportunity to hear about Jesus. They are so full of love and I can not wait to keep returning every smile and hug.
