Author: Adventures

~~God has messed me up so much this summer. Every time I pray for the women in the Red Light District I find myself praying over the men. My heart is so drawn and focused on them. The men who are buying and abusing these women are just as broken as the women—if not more. Something went wrong in their life for them to settle for being less than a true man. Something horrific must have prompted them to damage these women and everyone around them.      I encountered an older gentleman in his 60s who was so wasted that he could barely function. He sat with a beer and a...

I have spent the past 6 weeks in Chiang Mai, Thailand. There are several ministries to partake in but one of my favorites is bar ministry. We go into the red light district and go to a couple bars a night. We typically sit in a bar and order a coke and try to engage in conversation with a girl in sex slavery. Sometimes the conversations are heavy and sometimes they are light. Either way we are there to be their friend and shine some light into the darkness. Something that surprised me most about the bars is that there are children there. The little boys and girls can't go home until...

Defense mechanisms.     How we deal with life.     How we push past pain.     Everyone has them. They build up like walls. They go up unnoticed, slowly growing higher and higher, and thicker and thicker. Before we realize it, the top isn't even visible.  In my case, I honestly didn't realize how thick and tall my walls were until the beginning of this summer. Who knew that getting into an uncomfortable situation full of unknowns could dig up so many different sides of you. God knew.  After a couple of weeks in Thailand, it was...

9:47pm, Chiangmai, Thailand    There are at least seven different rap songs blaring within earshot. They all blend together and create one single sound, drowning out all voices except for sporadic bursts of drunken laughter. When I listen close enough, I know some of them, creating an odd mix of familiarity and despondency. I breathe through my nose. It smells like green curry and cheap perfume. I remember that I am in Thailand. The tacky fluorescent lights blink in every color, clashing starkly against the darkness of tonight. I can still see their glow when I close my eyes....