“On the seventh day the Israelites got up at dawn and marched around the town as they had done before. But this time they went around the town seven times. The seventh time around, as the priests sounded the long blast on their horns, Joshua commanded the people, “shout! For the Lord has given you the town!” ... When the people heard the sound of the rams' horns, they shouted as loud as they could. Suddenly, the walls of Jericho collapsed” (Joshua 6:15-16...6:20).
I was reminded of the story of Jericho many times over the past week. God is delivering this city from evil, he is commanding the Christians to walk in faith, marching through the streets with expectation that he will cause the walls of injustice and corruption to fall here, just like he did in Jericho. I can already see cracks forming in these seemingly impenetrable walls.
There was a festival in Pattaya last weekend that took me by surprise. Most of the markets and street vendors in the heart of downtown Pattaya are saturated with pornography and sex. The building I teach english in is in the middle of one of the worst streets for blatant prostitution, and this street is connected to a major road – “Beach Road” – which is a hub for women working in prostitution who are not connected with a bar. It is also a hub for pornography. Beach Road – as you may have guessed – is directly on the beach. It offers an interesting array of people, cultures, and merchandise. There are always innumerable tourists shuffling about on Beach Road, some spend there days lounging in reclining chairs allowing their skin to burn to a crisp, others hire one of the many boat owners walking up and down the beach enticing customers with pictures of para-sailing, snorkeling, and a nearby island. But by far, the majority of tourists on Beach Road are middle aged to older, white men, usually from Europe. They walk up and down the streets, often stopping to sit with a pretty woman who is sitting on a bench waiting for just such an occurrence. There are also many merchants walking up and down the street selling every imaginable food, fruit, drink, and “souvenir.” They sell jewelry, hats, clothes, toys, oils, and often large posters of naked women. There are also tables displaying watches, necklaces, carvings, and giant paintings of naked women. You have to be prepared to go to downtown Pattaya, if you are not receiving from Jesus it can feel assaulting just to be there, just to be surrounded by the perversity – fortunately, God has called his children to step into just such circumstances, to shine in otherwise dark places, and he never sends his children into the darkness ill-equipped, he is our strength and source of life in places where the darkness threatens our spirits.
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| Rice and pork cooked in grape leaves sold at the market |
Anyway, last week I left work and started heading down Beach Road. However, the commute was heavily congested that day by endless street stalls that aren't normally there. At first, I was annoyed by this disturbance to my schedule, but soon as I started to observe my new surroundings, I felt hugely encouraged. The next three days held the first ever “food, fun” festival in Pattaya. Beach Road was transformed. There was literally at least two miles of street vendors. It was a fairly typical Thailand market, but typical Thailand markets don't exist in downtown Pattaya. For a few days, there were families walking down Beach Road, there were people selling paintings of floating markets and elephants instead of pornography. There was a glimmer of hope in this festival.
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| Empty bar on a friday night |
We spend a lot of time praying for God to close the bars in Pattaya. We want to see God redeem tourism here. This city lives and breathes tourism, so tourism disappearing would destroy Pattaya. There is a prophetic painting in the prayer room on the top floor of the building I teach in. The painting is of Soi 6, the street the building is located on. The street is lined with little shops and street cafes. Apart from the sign at the end of the road reading “Soi 6,” you would never guess this painting is of the same street. But this is our prayer, that God would restore this city, that people would come to visit because of the beautiful beaches, the delicious and unique foods, and because of the genuine hospitality and kindness of Thai people. God is starting to answer these prayers. There are empty bars all over the city. There are entire streets being rebuilt – bars are being torn down and condos, stores, and hotels are being built in their stead. It is so life giving, and faith building, to actually see God transforming an entire city right before your eyes.
Every few months some of the Christians in Pattaya rent four or five song-taws (pickup truck taxis), and ride around the city for an hour or two worshiping and praying. I was able to join a song-taw prayer meeting this past sunday. It was an awesome time of intercession and prayer ministry. I believe that worshiping God is a powerful tool for spiritual warfare, that lifting up his name and declaring that he is Lord of lords and King of kings breaks something in the spiritual realm. As we circled the city proclaiming God's ownership, authority, and love, I was once again reminded of Jericho.
There are a unique mix of Christians here. Some are single women called to reach out to, and minister to the broken, abused, and oppressed “bar-ladies” of Pattaya. Some are families with young children who are stepping out in obedience to be a light in a dark place, to love children and their families, and to often rescue and intervene in child prostitution and slavery. There are some young people who have received God's heart for the poor, those living in the extensive slums of Pattaya. And there are many citizens of Pattaya who have received the love of Jesus and are now disciples themselves, going back into the bars, but this time to share what freedom they have found, reaching out to their neighbors who also have had their families taken advantage of, and caring for the neighborhoods they themselves grew up in. We were an odd bunch to be sure – as we rode around the city singing together, just like the Israelites must have seemed, a tattered and tired group who had literally been raised wandering in the desert. But just as God responded to his children's shouts of obedience then, he responds to us now.
The world has not gone to hell in a hand-basket, God is hungry to redeem his cities, to rescue his people, and to replace burdens, oppression, and injustice with freedom. He is aching to do these things, but he chooses to do those things through us. Don't underestimate your prayers, prayer moves the hand of God. Please continue to join me in prayer for the city of Pattaya.
