As I walked down the alley ways of China and saw women dressed in all black with their hair and makeup done just right, smiles on their faces waiting for their next customer I could not help but wonder what their stories were. What events in their life led to them standing before me living the life of a prostitute? Do they have any real joy in their life or are their smiles all for show? I tried to place myself in their shoes; I tried to imagine my life being sucked away by the desires of other people. As much as I tried to get what life is like for them I couldn’t. I do not know what it is like to be living with emotional pain or to be an item bought on a daily basis. I prayed for the women who know nothing but hurt to find hope and joy that can only come from God.
The sex trade is a mystery for most people; it is a big dark looming problem that we don’t like to think about because it is ugly and painful. Most people are like me and cannot even imagine what that life would be like and would rather not dwell on the issue. Isaiah 61:1 says “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners.”
I have the opportunity to go to Thailand at the end of the month to minister to those who are trapped in the lifestyle of prostitution in Chiang Mai. I will be leading a team of 8 girls who have a burden for the oppressed women working in the sex trade. Chiang Mai is home to at least 5,000 male, female, and child prostitutes. We will be working with Lighthouse in Action ministries; we will be joining them in venturing out daily into the red-light district to bring the Light, and Love of Jesus Christ. We will build relationships with the girls, ladyboys, and children who work there, both in the bar, and by making dates outside the bar environment. We will love them, listen to them, and share our lives with them. I know that there is a Hope for them.
The other ministries we will be doing during our three month stay will be working at Zion’s café where we will be meeting with the girls we meet at the bars to build relationships with them and share Jesus with them. As well as meeting with local college students to teach them English. We will be going to the villages to teach kids about self worth and trying to prevent them from one day ending up working in the Red Light District. As a leader I will be spending a lot of time investing in my team, helping them through this journey, and being a source of support and encouragement.
I know that God has led me to lead this trip on purpose. The way that I came to be a leader for this specific trip fell into place so perfectly and quickly I have no doubt that God had it planned out a long time ago which makes me pretty excited to see what is in store for me. I am asking for your help, I am in need of a lot of prayer during this trip. The ministry we are doing is hard. It is a spiritually dark area that we will be consistently walking into and it is emotionally draining. Please pray that my team and I are protected and that we will be filled up every day so we can continue to pour out love to those we are trying to reach. I need prayer as a leader, I will be responsible for my team and I do not have a co-leader. I need wisdom! I am also fundraising for this trip. God has shown His faithfulness consistently over this past year and I have no doubt that He will take care of me in this next journey He is taking me on. If you would like to be a part of supporting me on my trip to Thailand I am in need of $1,500. You can donate through my blog on the "support me" tab or by making a check out to Adventures in Missions and sending it to P.O. Box 742570 Atlanta, GA 30374 with my full name on the memo line. I will be continuing to blog so follow me and be a part of what my team and I are doing in Chiang Mai.
