Each country, each month seems to take a slight or drastic
turn of its own and I find myself learning more and more about the world,
cultures, about awesome people, and about the Lord. Last month’s ministry was a highlight for me on the race. And it was a delight living in Chaing
Mai.
I love Chiang Mai… it has a moat through the city and the
markets are enchanting; the clothes are enticing; the food is scrumptious! Some other fun highlights are: free fish feet fungus eating treatment
�” haha yes it tickles!, exploring the city on a bicycle, then later on a
scooter, playing with tigers, and Christmas festivities (no it totally feel like Christmas when it was so hot
out and a fake Christmas tree was a novelty)! I also never knew I enjoyed Thai massages or hot fudge sundaes so
much before Chaing Mai … but these are not the things that really stand out for
me about last month.
In Chiang Mai we were working in the red light district in
Chiang Mai. We were partnering
with Emmi and her ministry called Lighthouse. She runs an incredible ministry! She is a national and is all about meeting people where
they’re at and introducing them to Jesus in a culturally relevant way. It was a
privilege to be a part of what the Lord is doing through Emmi, and her
ministry.
Her ministry is all about bringing freedom to people caught
up in the sex industry who end up there for various reasons, and by showing
them Jesus’ love. It usually takes
a long time for a Buddhist to come to follow Jesus, so building relationship
and mentoring is crucial.
Emmi has some sweet plans up her sleeve. She asks the Lord to give her effective
ways to bring life and freedom to God’s beloveds. I hope that down the road I can somehow be a small part of
the sweet plans that the Lord is giving Emmi to bring healing to people in
Thailand. Here’s her blog and
website http://lighthouseinaction.blogspot.com. I recommend checking it out!
Part of her ministry is going out to villages and building
relationships with communities there, helping them out with their practical
needs, loving them, and through this, sharing with them about Jesus… with the
goal of preventing girls going out to work in prostitution of prevent them from
being trafficked.
In Chaing Mai she has a café called wongen. One of Emmi’s
friends said that there were two places she has experienced peace: in the
solaces of a Buddhist monastery, and at wongen café. The café provides a place
where the girls may be employed if they come out of the industry, and provides
them with a place to live as well.
The café is also a place where people can come hang out, and build
relationships. It’s right across from the university so it’s a great way to get
to know some students.
Bonus: Wongen also has
amazing nachos, smoothies and even brownies- wow wow wow!
In the afternoons we would work at the café, or with
university students. Then in the
evening we’d hit up the bars �” woot woot!
We would spend time in prayer before and after going out and ask the
Lord to show us who he wants us to talk to and where we should go. Some of the group would stay back to
intercede while the others would go out to the bars.
I had the privelege of meeting some awesome people on Bar
St, Chaing Mai. We really we
able to show some of these women and men that we were there for them, that
weren’t there to get something from them, just show them that they are valuable
and have beautiful hearts.
It was hard to say goodbye to Chaing Mai and the friends we
made there. On the way out of the
city… actually I was standing on the back of a tuk tuk, wind blowing in my hair
taking in the sights of the city when I got a phone call (haha dramatic
explanation to set the scene for you)… It was Ouey… a lovely girl we meet in
the bars. She’s 20 years old and
is
Here’s a link to Justin Jue’s blogs that tells about
one night in the red light district: http://justinjue.theworldrace.org/?filename=sweat-and-sweetness. http://justinjue.theworldrace.org/?filename=thai-bar-girl
We got to meet a couple young girls and one of
the girls’ aunt who had only been working for a couple days at the bar. Their faces barely hid the fear that
they were feeling… The aunt spoke English and spoke about her heart and
missing
her children �” unusual and encouraging for a lady to be so open about
her real
feelings in such a setting! I was
able to connect the aunt with Emmi and teach them English for a bit…
Some
others will continue to teach them English now that I’m gone and
establish a
relationship with them. I know that there is hope for this family to
have more
fulfilling jobs and to feel the security of being loved unconditionally! I’m really excited about what the Lord
will do in their lives.
It was hard to say goodbye to Chaing Mai and the friends we
made there. On the way out of the
city… actually I was standing on the back of a tuk tuk, wind blowing in
my hair
taking in the sights of the city when I got a phone call (haha dramatic
explanation to set the scene for you)… It was Ouey… a lovely girl we
meet in
the bars. She’s 20 years old and
is working in the bars to support her 1 year old �” who is with her mom in the
village. Anyway, she calls me to
say that she misses me already and wants to know when I’m coming back. Ugghhh. I could feel her pulling on my heart! Hmmm so it hurt a bit to say goodbye to
Chaing Mai because of the women we meet there who we were able to have fun
with, comfort, and show them a type of love they may not have experienced
before.
