Welcome to Thailand everyone, its about to be a wild ride.
This month is an all squad month. All 40 of us are together on the regular. We participate in separate parts of a single overarching ministry focused around the sex trafficking industry. We have been guided and loved on the past 4 days, are finally prepped and ready to dive into the deep end of ministry.
Intervention
Restoration
Prevention
Those are the three branches of ministry our host and founder of Lighthouse explained.
INTERVENTION: Going out into the bars, building relationships with the women and genuinely loving them. Treating them like people, and genuinely get to know and care for them. Then offering them a way out of the life they seem to be trapped in.
RESTORATION: Working in the café connected to lighthouse where there are jobs provided to women who want out of the bars. Building into them, sharing Jesus with them, and investing in their lives. This is where my team is working this month and I am excited to genuinely serve along side women building themselves up from the bottom, with the community around them and Jesus healing them from the inside out.
PREVENTION: Going into the slums and working with the kids and families at the source of where the trafficking often starts. Creating programs and spending extended amounts of time within that community. The teams participating in this branch of ministry also get to participate in monk chats during the day at local temples, learning about and discussing Buddhism, while hopefully being able to share the message of Christ in a respectful and impactful way.
Learning the ins and outs of ministry for this month was long, hot, and trying. But seeing our host, Emmi’s face as she spoke and explained the vision of this ministry and how God has truly blessed it, was not. It made everything worth it. When God places a specific desire on someone’s heart and they run with it, and run hard, it is a beautiful moment to see the fruit.
I was speaking to an intern at lighthouse and brought up the enthusiasm and passion that is so evident in Emmi’s life.
“She has the anointing for it.” She said.
God has anointed Emmi to be part of something huge.
What an incredible way to look at the places we are put in this life. God knew Emmi’s testimony before she did. He placed an anointing on her life to work within what most people would call a hopeless situation. But she knows she has the ultimate source of hope. She is working within a movement, rooted in the foundation of Christ, and God is giving her traction. That doesn’t mean there are not trials, doubts, fears, but the presence of the Lord is here. He has provided. Every time another girl comes in, every time rent comes due, every time a team comes and stays, the Lord has provided. She has been faithful with what God has placed in her life, and has freely giving what she has received.
It is beautiful being able to serve alongside people who have had their hearts set ablaze by the king of kings. They are pushing forward in this physical, mental, emotional, and SPIRITUAL battle. These people are on the front lines and the enemy knows it and we are honored to be here with them, step in step. I am constantly reminded that our God is good, but he is NOT safe. That’s not the point. He has raised us up as warriors for his kingdom, and I feel privileged to fight with seasoned soldiers. Thank you Emmi and the lighthouse staff, I feel honored to be here this month, and have my hand in what God is doing here.
“He’s not safe, but he’s good. He’s the king.”-C.S Lewis
