Walking down the street aimlessly has become one of my favorite pastimes. There’s so much freedom in setting my feet in motion and believing that the Lord will clearly speak, revealing how He intends to use my willingness to walk. Three times this week, my wandering legs took me into some conversations that God used to create a burden in my heart for people who know the Gospel, (when i say that, I mean that they KNOW the scriptures inside and out) but haven’t allowed that knowledge to transition from their heads into their hearts. The folks that I conversed with all shared similar stories with me.
The ladies of the night around this area are far more aggressive than I have ever experienced in my life; though my experience isn’t very extensive in the realm of sex workers. These women know what they’re looking for and the American male tourist has a healthy track record of providing that for them, so when Jerome and I were posted up on the curb in front of the city’s casino, we were less than shocked to have been approached by three of them one after the other almost immediately.
As we began to engage each of these ladies in conversation, they realized that we weren’t going to buy their time, but they chose to carry on with our dialogue. I was intently watching their eyes during this encounter and as they were interpreting my broken spanish, I knew that something was shifting. Then it happened. They turned around and walked away. There was no repentance or surrender. Nothing.
Our sharing the Gospel with these women was no fresh revelation to them. They have great knowledge of who God is and what He asks of us. All three of them confessed an awareness of their sinful lifestyle, but things get messy when your livelihood comes from a demonic profession. In that, they were all aware of the character of God and his disapproval of their work. In fact, all three made a statement similar to this quote from the second lady,
“God can’t love me because of my work in the street. My sins are too much for Him. He is beautiful, but I have to make money.”
The first woman even shared with me about her three daughters that stay with their grandma every night so that mama can come into town and make a buck to slap some rice and beans on the table for them. She’s lost the thrill of her occupation and lives for the dollar. What do we do with that? How do I tell her to leave the streets and go home to her children? I know that God is the great provider and I’ve seen him provide in wildly radical ways, but how can I expect her to have that same faith?
Watching each of these women walk away from us was distressing to me. I turned to Jerome and needed to find affirmation that the work that we are doing matters. Though I’ve seen and have learned plenty on the field, I have not yet seen a person come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Day after day, I spend my breath on what I believe is the only worthwhile mission and time after time, I watch folks walk away, seemingly unchanged. But what Jerome shared with me that evening thrusted me into a new level of passion for the work that God has asked us to do.
What matters in these situations is that we have clearly communicated the truth of who God is, who we are, and what He’s done to restore His relationship with us. If we are planting seeds of truth and freedom and grace and mercy and abundant life, He will bless that and use it to transform the hearts of people. It’s not up to me to work in their heart, I have no choice but to leave that to the Holy Spirit; trusting that He will demonstrate his faithfulness to these people when they lay down their lives and cry out to Him.
Honestly, in the moment, I was not satisfied with his response to me. I was searching for some practical answer. Maybe I wanted him to tell me what to do, but the reality of this situation is that my sole responsibility is to communicate the truth of God’s character. He will validate that all on His own. He’s just that good.
Be challenged to step out into the world, amigos. Heaven is invading Earth and you don’t wanna miss out on what He is doing around the globe.
I love you, my faithful friends.
AWM
