Asia

In Asia, I was “seriously disturbed” meeting the women I had previously only read about; women with beautiful names and faces. They shared stories of their pain and suffering and the labels they bear as “untouchables.” God filled our hearts with love for the precious women we met in the slums, brothels, and house churches.

• In the red light district we met with a group of young girls who asked us for help. Most had been brought from the villages, their low caste and lack of education condemning them to a life of prostitution. Behind brothel doors we were told of children 5 -6 years old, prostitutes held captive beneath the floor boards. I could hardly breathe thinking of the fear and darkness they lived in. Proverbs 31:8 says “cry out on behalf of those who have no voice”. They have no voice, their cries ring in my ears and I left asking God how to cry out for them.
• The women we met in one of the thousands of slums are often labeled scavengers as they scavenge among the garbage to try to make a living. Many of their husbands are alcoholics or drug addicts and the women have no means of support. They are the lowest of the low, outcasts in their society. Their living conditions are appalling, their lives hopeless. Again I prayed, “Lord, how can we help?”
• We traveled hours each day meeting women in small house churches all over the city. These were the most intimate and sweet times of fellowship as we shared stories, prayed and cried together. These are the women who can reach the oppressed women in their communities, but they themselves are hungry for love, encouragement and support in the midst of such poverty and need. We left with a commitment to return to provide training and support in practical ways so that they can reach out to other women around them.