Coming into Thailand, I was pretty worn out. It was our 6th month being on the race, finally marking the halfway point. I was having a hard time comprehending that we still had 6 more ministries, 6 more languages, 6 more travel periods, and 50 plus more sleeping arrangements to get through. Furthermore, the boys of P-squad were taking this month to do Manistry (a month of ministry without the women). Therefore, with my leader being a guy, I was asked to lead my team in his place for the month. I was worried I didn't have the energy to lead them well.
In signing up for the race, bar ministry is the most anticipated ministries for most racers. In Thailand, bar ministry works one on one with women trapped in the sex trade. Unfortunately, my team was not assigned to work in the bars. We were paired with the organization, “Remember Nhu”. While we didn't get to work in the bars, we got to work against the sex trade from a different angle. Remember Nhu rescues “at risk” children (primarily from villages) before they are sold into the trade. They are brought up in homes with 20-60 other rescued children. Each home has a house mom, and other volunteers or interns who help raise the children.
The most common approach in battling sex trafficking is by rescuing women who have already been sold to the trade (bar ministry). This is definitely necessary due to the great number of people already victim to the trade, but it hasn't proven to be the most successful. Only 1 out of every ten rescued women chooses a life style outside of the trade. Once they are rescued, they often return to the bars; the job they already know. Remember Nhu is an awesome approach to end sex trafficking, because it works from the front, preventing children from ever entering the trade. By taking in children from a young age, their innocence is saved, they are taught their value, and other means for making a living.
While I was disappointed about not getting to work in the bars, it wasn't until later that I realized the ministry we were assigned was perfect for where I was at the time. We didn't work one on one with the children at Remember Nhu. Rather, we worked on various projects on the Nhu property. We pulled A LOT of weeds, and hacked up A LOT of bamboo. The girls and I joked that the boys on our team were out somewhere doing their nails and getting their hair done, because surely we were doing their "manistry". It was pretty hard physical labor, but after two months of more spiritually trying ministry, getting our hands in the soil was just what I needed. Being outside in the beauty of Thailand, working on the land, and having some needed alone time in the yard really recharged me. By the end of the month, we were "over the world race hump". I caught my second wind and grew excited for the next 5 months of the race!
Here's a video from our month! 🙂
