When Darkness meets Light...

We visited 3 bars last night.  I'll be honest... it's actually very hard to share what we experienced and learned. Words just are not enough to explain the hopelessness and deception we witnessed. Words are also not enough to explain the supernatural battle that is raging, that we can sense in those situations. But I'll try. :)


The first girl I talked to was 26... she works in a hostess bar. Over a couple of drinks, she told me a little bit about her life: she has three children, the first two by a Khmer father who left her and took the kids. The last by a New Zealand man who went back home and broke her heart... and left her with a child to support on her own. She cannot read or write, but would love to work with computers someday. If she can save enough money to get an education.

She earns about $60 a month-- not enough to live on. She has to sell a certain number of drinks just to keep her job. If she can get men to buy her drinks, she gets a tip (of about $1) that she can save. To earn any more, she needs to sell her body. It will never be enough to escape. The tragedy of the situation is that most or all of these hostesses
a) truly believe that if she works hard enough or long enough, she can earn enough (it almost seems like a gambling mind-set... just keep trying and someday it's bound to work out!)
or
b) don't believe that they have any hope of getting a better job.
It is a mental trap. James Pond (who works with rehabilitation center in Phnom Penh and who was taking us to the bars to give us a chance to talk to people, observe, and learn more about the reality of prostitution) says that he and his wife have tried many times to offer these women jobs or education to give them a way out... and none of them have ever taken him up on it. Their thought patterns and life experiences don't let them believe that they will find something better elsewhere or that they will  be successful in another line of work.

The last bar we visited was awful. Jenny and I walked in (we separated from the guys because a mixed group gets an entirely different experience from either solely male or female groups) and were immediately overwhelmed by the  darkness of the place... both literally and figuratively. There were lots of girls just sitting around. They all looked young, although it was hard to tell because of the dim light (this was done on purpose). Most were Vietnamese, and we got a clear sense that many were under some sort of influence--either drugs or alcohol. (Being young, foreign, and under the influence: good indicators of trafficking.) A more experienced eye could also pick out the pimps who were there to make sure their girls were doing their job.

We walked up to the bar and ordered a drink. Green Tea... clearly we did not belong there. Two young, obviously innocent white girls, sitting in the midst of one of the darkest places of the city. A helpful older man (western) came over to enlighten us:
"You know this is a working bar, right? All these girls are here to earn money. So just to warn you... if you stay here you may be approached. If you're lucky." He chuckled and walked away.

A few minutes later, another western man came up to myself and Jenny, bursting with curiosity to know why we were there. We were discreet and evaded his questions, but were drawn into a very enlightening conversation. This man had lived in Cambodia for 5 years, but clearly did not know exactly why he was there. He had an incredibly negative outlook on life and humanity, and only came to this bar to "avoid tourists" (ironic, since the bar is for westerners). I asked him what he thought of the prostitution that went on in the bar: He told us in no uncertain terms that the girls in this bar "had it good"... especially compared to those who worked in Khmer bars. Apparently westerners don't abuse the girls like locals do (denial, anyone??). I asked him if he thought all the girls were there by choice, or if some of them had been trafficked: He got a little flustered and said he doubted they were trafficked and he didn't even know if trafficking occurred in this part of the world.

Jenny and I were face-to-face with the brutality of Satan's lies. It was clear that he was refusing to see the truth of the situation, that he was believing lies to justify his presence in that place. In short, he was deceived.

I believe that the Holy Spirit drew him to us that night. Jenny and I came into the bar with pure motives... we came with love and compassion and integrity. We came because we were called by God to be His hands and feet. In an evil place, where Satan has such a stronghold, we could not help but stand out. That is why, within 10 minutes of us being in the bar, two men came to talk to us.  I believe that they felt the presence of God, and although they did not recognize it, they were drawn to it.

My prayer now is that God uses the questions we asked the second man to unsettle him. We asked questions that shook the thin layer of lies he uses to hide from reality, and I hope that our questions keep coming to mind and keep penetrating the darkness he is hiding in. I pray that every time he wants to use and abuse a girl, our faces come to his mind.... that what we represent will haunt him and he will not be able to follow through on his impulses. I pray that God will use his brief encounter with us to bring him to his knees... and that God will start to rebuild his mind on a foundation of truth, love, and integrity.

I pray with hope... because from what I witnessed that night, Satan's ploy is to strip people of hope. He takes away the girls' hope for freedom. He takes away the men's hope that they can find true fulfillment and even forgiveness if they face the truth.

I think that's what happens when Darkness meets Light.... people find hope.