The statistics:
-There are over 200 Buddhist temples in the city of Chiang Mai
-About 98% of Thai people claim to be Buddhist
-A popular saying is “to be Thai is to be Buddhist”
-Only 1% of Thai residents identify as “Christians”…this category also includes Mormons, 7th Day Adventists, etc.
-About 5,000 men, women and children work in the sex tourism business in Chiang Mai in the “low season” and during the “high season” that number jumps to 20,000
-90% of Thai men admit to paying for sex, not to mention all the white “farang” men who contribute to the industry
The story:
My teammate Kyle and I were prayer walking the red light district last week and we stopped at a temple that stands right in the middle of the district. We stood in front of the entrance to the temple and took in the scene…we were drawn to the scary looking dragon images “guarding” the temple on either side.
Drag-on (noun)— A mythical monster like a giant reptile. In European tradition the dragon is typically fire-breathing and tends to symbolize chaos or evil, whereas in the Far East it is usually a beneficent symbol of fertility, associated with water and the heavens
…interesting how things can get twisted and confused.
Kyle pointed out something that stuck with me.
He said, “Wow, it looks like a slave being held in captivity to the dragon…it’s no mistake this image is on this street.”
Righteous anger rose within me for the ways the devil holds these people captive, deceiving them and filling them with lies. The sin and idol worship is rampant on this street and the enemy does all that he can to perpetuate it.
In my anger, I began telling the enemy how deceptive and evil he is…
As I was ranting on, the weirdest thing happened…something that’s never happened to me before. I hear whispers from the Lord quite often but this time it was the voice of the enemy that ran through my head.
I was in the middle of rebuking the devil when he whispered: “Yea, but I’m winning.”
I was shocked and now even more appalled…agreeing to his deceitful ways yet claiming triumph over the Lord in the fight for human hearts in this place.
“…look around you,” he continued, “I have their time, their dedication, their money…I have them distracted and chained.”
I’ll admit, I froze.
I looked around me at the 500+ idol images that surrounded me and ran through the statistics in my head…98% Buddhist, 1% Christian, 200+ temples and so on…
‘Is it true?’ I thought, …’Is the enemy claiming victory over the city of Chiang Mai? Over the country of Thailand?’
…Gladly I voiced this crazy experience quickly to my teammate Kyle and he reassured me that Christ is truly is victorious and reminded me the enemy is the ‘father of lies.’
I was sadly reminded of how quickly I can fall prey to his lies.
There is no denying it, the enemy has a strong hold over this city and over this country as a whole…but he is not winning and he is not in control.
Despite the idols and the sin that surrounds me in this place I can remain hopeful because I know that Christ is already victorious, He has already won the battle against Satan.
My God is sovereign. My God is in control and I trust that He is redeeming this city, despite what the statistics look like.
In my humanness I can’t fully perceive the spiritual battle that surrounds me, but I do know that the war is raging and the Lord is fighting for the redemption of His people. And thankfully in the end, I can say with certainty that the Lord will be victorious over the dragon.
“And there was a war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
‘Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb (Jesus) and the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows his time is short.’ ” Revelation 12:7-12
The word ‘Thailand’ literally translates to “land of the free”.
I believe the name is prophetic. The Lord is already bringing His freedom and loosening chains of bondage in Chiang Mai and over all of Thailand. I’ve seen it, I’ve experienced it here.
I believe He will redeem the Thai people and claim this country for His glory. My hope and trust is in the Lord.
To hear another crazy story I was a part of at this same temple the very next day, read my teammate Julie Morsfield’s blog:http://juliemorsfield.theworldrace.org/?filename=vomit
