…and I mean REALLY not in Kansas. I’m actually in Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand. After 40+ hours of travel from Guatemala, during which we passed through LAX, across the International Date Line, and through Guangzhou, China, we finally arrived in Bangkok. We spent two days in Bangkok with the YWAM people there, getting adjusted to the time difference (12 hours from home), the climate (muggy and hot, sometimes muggy and hot and raining), and the culture (unlike anything I’ve ever experienced). We toured a few of Bangkok’s attractions – including the reclining budda – and took an overnight bus to our ministry assignment here in Chiang Mai.
We’re working with Lighthouse in Action, a ministry started by a Thai woman named Emi (we haven’t met her yet) that is a broad-spectrum outreach mission for the whole area. They run a guest house where we’re staying (showers in every room – this is NOT preparing me for Africa!), a very nice coffee shop that serves as a sort of day base for outreach ministry, and they work with the people living in the slums and students at the university near the coffee shop. There is also a ministry opportunity we’ll have working with the nightlife. Prostitution is incredibly pervasive throughout Thailand, and the entire culture at night is very sexually charged. There are bars all over Chiang Mai that serve the prostitution industry – and it’s a very diverse industry. It’s not just young girls selling their bodies (and often being forced into the trade – human trafficking plays a huge role in the continuation of the sex industry). Ladyboys and gay and lesbian prostitutes are also at work at night. One of the opportunities we’ll have will be to minister to the people involved – our women will be working with the girls, and the men may have the chance to talk with some of the sex tourists or male sex workers. The goal is not to rush in with Bibles waving, preach some hellfire and brimstone, and walk out tallying the number of people who ‘bought fire insurance’ that night. Christian evangelism isn’t about that. We’re being asked to do what Jesus did for the people He ministered to – love. We’re asked to establish relationships with the people God brings us to, to prove to them we’re not just here for sex, that we actually care about these people as people. We’re called to live out a life of Christ’s love, and to give these people a hope that there might be more to life than the desperation they’re living in. Over time we will be leading them to understand what we’re really here about, and connecting them with the people of Lighthouse to continue to bring them God’s light and truth. This is not about drive-by evangelism. I’m very excited for the opportunity to be working with the people trapped in this vicious industry and to bring them the love God’s shown me. The flip side of this however is that we are going into some very dark places. Your prayers will be appreciated as my team and I walk into the darkness to bring light.
Speaking of my team – we have a new addition! This month V squad is partnering with another one of AIM’s mission opportunities, Real Life. RL is aimed at the 18-23 age range, and because many of the people that are interested in RL missions are similar to the people interested in the World Race, we have been given the blessing of a Real Lifer to be added to our team for this month as part of what AIM calls ‘World Race exposure’. Her name is Hannah, she’s 18 (and quite smart – already a senior in college!) and she’s already been an incredible blessing to everyone on the team. She fits in with us quite easily – I always say God makes no mistakes when He puts the teams together – and we’re having a blast. Since she’s been added to our team for this month, please add her to your prayers for the team.
Stick around for more updates – things are about to get wild!
FINANCIAL UPDATE: I am in need of $1,021.68 to reach my funding goal for the Race. It’s absolutely amazing how far God has brought me since the first day of training camp, when I was facing the necessary total of $14,300. I cannot say enough about God’s faithfulness to bring in the money from some seriously unlikely places, and He’s been absolutely amazing to continue to bless me financially throughout this race. I’m not asking you for money because I think God’s going to fail to come through for me by the July 1 deadline – I’m offering you the opportunity to be part of God’s work. There is not a whole lot of money left I need to raise, which means there are a limited number of chances for you to get in on the ground floor of the amazing things God’s doing through me and my team. This is God’s mission, and I know He will be bringing the money in – the only question is, do you want Him to use you to do it? I can say from first hand experience that there is nothing as amazing as realizing that God has selected ME to be part of something He is doing, so jump on board and be part of the miracle that is God’s faithfulness to supply me for what He’s called me into!
