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Thailand Actually

Between the pictures of our fun experiences on Facebook and our blog posts containing specific events or thoughts, our team (or myself at least) has received a lot of “So what are you actually doing there?” So here's what a day as Team Thailand looks like: (many combinations of activities, ministries and teammates every day)

Zion Cafe- This is the cafe which we live above, and is owned by Emmi, the director of our ministries and host. We help the Thai girls that work here full-time with delivering orders, busing tables and washing dishes. Our purpose in the cafe is really to get to know and build relationships with the girls that work there, but we help when we can. 🙂

                      

Monk Chat- Monk Chat is a program that many temples organize so tourists and visitors can come speak to the monks. Visitors can ask any questions about Thai culture, Buddhism or the life of a monk, as well as his personal life. Most of the monks participate to practice their English, as many of them are in school. Through the process of talking to monks and learning more about Buddhism we are better able to reach the lost people of Thailand by sharing the true hope we have in Christ.

                      

Slums- Going to the slums of Chiang Mai is a ministry where we get to play with and love on kids. Its about a fifteen minute walk from Zion, where we are able to greet and smile at the locals we pass along the way. Slum ministry with the youth consists of playing soccer, jumping rope, blowing bubbles, drawing with chalk and a lot of laughing.

                      

Teaching- Two girls and I had the opportunity to help teach English at Chiang Mai Technological College for three weeks which was quite the joy! We planned lessons based on the information the students had been studying and worked with three English classes and one Tourism class. We loved being able to serve the teacher and get to know the students through fun vocabulary games which they loved as much as we did! 

                    

Morning/Afternoon Prayer Walk- Our prayer walks take us down to the “bar street” and red light district twice a day, five days a week. The purpose is to pray over the ground and ask the Lord to come and work in that place. We ask this to ready it for the girls who will do bar ministry that night.

Bar Ministry- Our team does bar ministry four times a week; half of the girls go out while the other half stays back and intercedes (prays on their behalf). During bar ministry, we enter the red light district with the intention of meeting the girls that work in the bars. These girls usually sell themselves for sex to the male customers who come in from other countries. In this setting we also wait for the Lord to open doors to opportunities we don't expect. At the beginning of our ministry, most of our time was spent meeting new girls, or seeking out girls we had met during afternoon prayer walk. Buying a coke and asking them to join us for a game of pool would put us in a casual atmosphere where we could ask them about themselves and they were free to do the same. As time goes on, we have been building more solid relationships and are very happy to be returning to familiar faces multiple times a week. We are even called “friends” by many. We believe that building relationships with the girls shows them love in a way they've never seen before. This is a love for who they are, not what they have to offer, Christ's love. Friendship with the girls also opens a door for us to offer them a way out or a different lifestyle, which is Emmi's aim for our presence in the bars.

                        

X-Life- This portion of ministry is where teams visit the village for a number of days. Our team  went for five days and arrived during a Buddhist festival where the entire village celebrated the new building of the local temple. This celebration meant everyone took work off and celebrated late into the night. Our team got to know three wonderful host families including Emmi's father and his wife. We spent two mornings working in the rice patties with Emmi's dad and ended our time in the village helping at an English camp at the national park.

                      

As we continue our ministries, I ask that you would pray for God to keep opening doors to relationships so our team can show Him off to the people of Chiang Mai so that He might be glorified. Chiang Mai may be a city polluted with sin and exploitation, but we know it is not outside the reach of God's love and goodness.

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