No. 8

That is all I know her by - the number 8 pinned to her bikini top. She is a pole dancer in a bar in Bangkok, and her face is indelibly burned in my mind. (fyi - this is not her in the picture to the right!) Two nights ago, my last night in Thailand, I went with an amazing ministry on one of their outreaches to prostitutes in Bangkok bars. The first bar my group went to had pole dancers in tiny little suits. Some were so young - they say they are 16, but I suspect a few are even younger. We talked to a few of them, and most told us they would like to have a different job. One 16 year-old and I compared our nose pins, and she told us how she made money for her sick father in a village. And then there is No. 8. She just stood there on the stage, barely even dancing, and holding her stomach as if in a lot of pain. We never got to talk to her, but I will be praying for her and her sad face. And though I don't know her name, God does. He knows the name of every girl in every bar in Thailand, and I know He sees their sad faces.

So now that I am home, what do I do with all that I saw and learned? I spent time today just debriefing all that happened, and I was convicted of two things: first, the needs in northern Thailand are great and the people need to a) know God, and b) find safe work; the second thing I learned is that if we keep asking questions and keep serving the Shan and people of Burma living in northern Thailand, God will make our paths straight. How do I know this? Well, He tells us He will in His Word, and I saw Him work out so many details for this trip, and I had so many Providential meetings, that I know He is in complete control (see the picture above - this is Yod, and she is a young Shan girl who works at our guesthouse - I learned a lot from her!). He IS directing our steps and our work in this region. Our role is to keep looking for those open doors and not be discouraged by the closed ones. And for me personally, I also can't forget the faces that cried out for a loving God to rescue them. I pray that we at GRI can be His hands and feet in this task.

But to end on a hopeful note - I also met many young women who have been saved out of an ugly lifestyle by God's people living in Thailand. I will write more on them in a day or so. Truly, nothing is impossible when we submit our plans to God!

Kerri