12/18/2025
An excerpt from one of the November Thailand prayer updates -
"Night falls over Thailand, and the streets awaken with a relentless pulse. Bars blast loud dance music, neon lights flash across the pavement, and the air is thick - heavy an odd sewer stench, perfume, and the weight of desperation. The women are everywhere - standing on sidewalks, crowding doorways, their eyes searching for customers. They are exposed, objectified, yet human - each one carrying a story of pain and hope in equal measure. Men from all over the world sit nearby, alone or in groups. They have come seeking what cannot satisfy, enslaved by sin that leaves them empty even as they believe they hold control. Both women and men are captives - bound in ways only Jesus can redeem. Yet even here, God’s presence is not absent. He has always been here. His light is revealed in the small, tender ways that speak louder than words: a listening ear, a prayer offered in faith, a gentle hand extended in care. Sometimes that care is a side hug - offered by a man not as an advance, not as flirtation, but as a true, loving act. For women who have been treated as objects their whole lives, such a simple embrace communicates dignity, safety, and human connection - a glimpse of Christ’s unconditional love. Some of the women have begun to take real steps toward freedom, leaving s*x work behind and finding safety. They are not yet followers of Christ, but God’s redeeming work is already visible in their lives. Others are not yet open; some turn away, some remain in chains. And the men, too, are captives - slaves to desires that promise more but deepen emptiness. Acts of mercy and truth go hand in hand. Compassion opens doors, but it is the Gospel that brings life. We tell them that Jesus Christ sees them, loves them, and can save their souls. The true Light, which enlightens everyone, has come into the world:
'He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.' - John 1:9–12
Walking through the red-light district, through the chaos and the noise, I am reminded that we are not bringing God to a place where He is absent. We are joining Him in what He is already doing - shining light, offering mercy, and calling the lost toward freedom. Even over the pounding music and flashing neon, His light shines. And one day, that light will overcome every shadow.
'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’- John 1:5”
