Practice Run for Thailand
Last night we had a practice run to help prepare us for the kind of atmosphere we'll be in in Thailand. We went into a couple bars/clubs and talked to people; got used to starting up conversations and being in that scene. I really do not enjoy the whole party scene and found it quite uncomfortable to be in if I wasn't talking to people. But the whole night really brought out some things that I can be in prayer for about myself and that you too can be in prayer for with me. Because as dark and sad as the scenes were last night, in Thailand it's going to be so much worse; old nasty men with young beautiful girls- it's going to be really hard and I have a better understanding of how I'm going to be feeling in those situations.
When we were in the bars, and I wasn't talking to people, it was a tug of war in my mind to stay focused on why I was there. I would have these thoughts back and forth that would heighten insecurities and make you want to join in and be seductive; all things I did not expect to be thinking or feeling. But then it'd come back to denying those thoughts and being like, "Steph what the heck are you thinking? You don't care about that stuff! That's not why you're here! This isn't true life; they're so deceived." I don't know if it was the spiritual atmosphere that brought on those thoughts but it was definitely an unforeseen battle that I was facing in the clubs. So you can be in prayer for that with me.
Another thing was my reaction to the men that were buyers of sex or going into strip clubs. I wanted to confront them, castrate them, yell at them, anything to stop them. I know that God has as much compassion on them as He does for the sex slave and the prostitute but it was really hard to share that compassion. I've been saying for a long time that we need to have compassion on these guys because the Lord has compassion on them and they're just as much enslaved, and it's true, but I found all those feelings slipping through my fingers when I saw them going in or going up to prostitutes. So please pray that the Lord would give me His eyes and His heart for the men as well as for the girls.
The highlight of the night was when I got to talk to and pray with a woman who is a prostitute. The Lord totally opened a door for me to talk with her and get to know a little bit of her story. And the most amazing thing happened when I was praying for her, she cried out to God and said, "God get me outta here!" My heart broke! This woman started working as a prostitute when she was 13 years old; her dad dropped her off on the streets to make money to support his drug addiction. She knows no other life and has known no other work. She also has 2 kids to support now and is afraid that she won't be able to support them in the same capacity with a 9-5 job. She feels stuck and she wants out. Broke my heart! I gave her some contacts and told her to go to this church and that they'll help her find a good job if she wants out. So you guys can continue to pray for her.
All in all a pretty successful night I'd say. We might go out again one more time before we go.
This last week of lectures is about spiritual warfare so I'm looking forward to it. I still can't believe it's the last week of lectures. AHHH!
When we were in the bars, and I wasn't talking to people, it was a tug of war in my mind to stay focused on why I was there. I would have these thoughts back and forth that would heighten insecurities and make you want to join in and be seductive; all things I did not expect to be thinking or feeling. But then it'd come back to denying those thoughts and being like, "Steph what the heck are you thinking? You don't care about that stuff! That's not why you're here! This isn't true life; they're so deceived." I don't know if it was the spiritual atmosphere that brought on those thoughts but it was definitely an unforeseen battle that I was facing in the clubs. So you can be in prayer for that with me.
Another thing was my reaction to the men that were buyers of sex or going into strip clubs. I wanted to confront them, castrate them, yell at them, anything to stop them. I know that God has as much compassion on them as He does for the sex slave and the prostitute but it was really hard to share that compassion. I've been saying for a long time that we need to have compassion on these guys because the Lord has compassion on them and they're just as much enslaved, and it's true, but I found all those feelings slipping through my fingers when I saw them going in or going up to prostitutes. So please pray that the Lord would give me His eyes and His heart for the men as well as for the girls.
The highlight of the night was when I got to talk to and pray with a woman who is a prostitute. The Lord totally opened a door for me to talk with her and get to know a little bit of her story. And the most amazing thing happened when I was praying for her, she cried out to God and said, "God get me outta here!" My heart broke! This woman started working as a prostitute when she was 13 years old; her dad dropped her off on the streets to make money to support his drug addiction. She knows no other life and has known no other work. She also has 2 kids to support now and is afraid that she won't be able to support them in the same capacity with a 9-5 job. She feels stuck and she wants out. Broke my heart! I gave her some contacts and told her to go to this church and that they'll help her find a good job if she wants out. So you guys can continue to pray for her.
All in all a pretty successful night I'd say. We might go out again one more time before we go.
This last week of lectures is about spiritual warfare so I'm looking forward to it. I still can't believe it's the last week of lectures. AHHH!