Whew. What an amazing month in Thailand. My prayers going into month 8 of The World Race were that I would be refilled with energy to finish this race strong; that I wouldn't slack off or coast through the last few months. I want to be able to go home knowing that I ended with everything I've got.
I'm thankful that God answered my prayers, because we were given a sweet ministry that led us into the redlight district of Chiang Mai.
My heart broke immediately as I walked down the streets in the heart of Chiang Mai, lined with bar after bar that offers more than just drinks. To see young women selling themselves out to men night after night. Whether the women have chosen this lifestyle or whether they have been forced into it, they are all victims. As I sit and talk with these women, my heart cries out to tell them that they are loved, that they are cherished, and they are worth far more than whatever men are paying for them. Especially when many of the women will tell you flat out that they don't like what they do. You can see in on their faces too – they look miserable as they dodge kisses from men old enough to be their fathers who are seeing her for just her body and what she can give him, rather than as the human being that she is. They don't look happy when a man buys them and hauls them off for the night.
I watched these girls hop on the back of a moto with a stranger. They are grabbed at all night. They are fondled. They are kissed. They are bought at a cheap price for services.
I didn't ever imagine that I would find myself on a mission trip, spending my nights in the bars of Thailand, sipping diet coke after diet coke, and playing pool with the local bar girls. I never would have guessed that these bar girls would become my friends and that I'd end up paying their bar fee so that I could hang out with them outside of the bar. That's exactly how this month went though. I spent 3 weeks in Chiang Mai, Thailand working with an organization called Love Acts. The name pretty much sums up what we did – acted in love toward the girls who sell themselves to the foreign men.
It took some getting used to changing environments. In Africa, it was all about following strict rules and dress codes to make myself known as a Christian, and sharing the gospel a lot with words. Here in Thailand, I was told I needed to go shopping ASAP because I look too much like a missionary and to avoid saying anything about God unless it was brought up in conversation by the girls.
It was an amazing experience to watch transformation take place in just the 3 short weeks I was in Thailand. My team of 11 girls spent each day praying over bars and the more we prayed over those bars, the emptier they got. We have spent our nights going into the bars and getting to know the people in them and we have been able to hear about the brokenness that has led them to where they're at and their desire for something more.
The times that I got to pay bar fees and go out on dates with the girls were so much fun. I got to enjoy overpriced ice cream at Haagen Dazs them and then pedicures afterwards. I went to lunch and shopping at the local Sunday market, where we got friendship bracelets. I got to know so much more about these girls outside of the bar. I got to hear about their families in far off villages…the families they're supporting by working in the sex industry. I got to hear about their future dreams. Jane wants to work at a bank so she can wear cute business skirts. Sue wants to have her own beauty shop. Jill wants to be a cop. I got to hear them laugh about someday meeting a man, something that's obviously not a possibility when working in the bars.
On my last night in Chiang Mai, a few of us paid bar fees for half the girls in a particular bar. Despite the fact that one of the girls loves to rub my belly and ask if I'm pregnant with twins and another loves to pat or pinch my butt when going in for a hug and they're all a bit on the wild side, I'm so glad I got to spend the evening with them. We went to a buffet where you grill all your own food. The girls had so much fun showing us how it was done and stuffing us with more and more food. The best part of it was, they acted just how young girls should act. They wore regular clothes, they giggled and laughed, and they didn't worry about trying to impress anyone. It was sweet.
These girls are something special. They have left an imprint on my heart. Something that I was told on my first day in Chiang Mai was how important it was when I met a girl to pray for her, because I may be the first person who's ever prayed for her. So as I sit on this train that takes me away from Thailand, away from these girls, I will continue to pray for them.
The girl who especially touched my heart, I never got to take out on a date. I never really got to have an in-depth conversation with her because she didn't speak much English. She quickly caught my attention because of how out-of-place she looked in the bar. She looked really young and wore baggy clothes. She had the sweetest smile. She had innocence written all over her. The second time I saw her she was wearing quite a bit of makeup. A little while later she was in the bathroom washing the makeup off. Her response was simply "it's not me". A week went by where I didn't see her in the bars. I grew hopeful that maybe she couldn't handle being there and got herself out. On my last night visiting the bars I decided to make one last stop at her bar just to confirm what I was hoping. I didn't recognize her at first. She had a new hairdo. She had makeup plastered on. She was wearing a tiny black dress and heels. And instead of hiding in the back of the bar as she did before, she was right out front. I had to fight back tears. There's so much I wish I could have told her, but she wouldn't have understood.
Chiang Mai is a beautiful city. It boasts delicious food, bustling markets, cute coffee shops, friendly people, a fun river walk, and plenty of parks to relax in. There's also a sad reality to this place though. To some people, this beautiful city is their prison.
I will fight for hope for them. I know I didn't leave Chiang Mai having gotten girls out of prostitution or defeating human trafficking or removing the selling of sex in these bars. But I was able to show these girls a love that doesn't require anything from them. I know I can pray for them. I know that I can look at what God did in my life – the restoration, the healing, the renewing that He did. The way He made something beautiful grow from a heap of trash. And what He continues to do in my life. I know it can happen for them too. That in their brokenness and their pain that something new can take place in their life. I hope that someday I can return to Chiang Mai and see these girls living a different, better life.
