Angeles City

Last night we went to Angeles..and I think it was a whole lot different than what any of us were expecting. We were in the devils playground for the night ..and it wasn't a pretty thing.. the hardest thing is knowing that what we are seeing isn't even half as bad as the stuff we are unable to see.
Angeles is a huge city about an hour away from Olongapo where we are currently living. It a place known for its bars, clubs and huge problems
with prostitution. We decided to go to get more information and photos for the book we are producing as well as to do some bar ministry. We got out of the jeepney and the street looked like the ones we had been in Olonagapo. but the minute we rounded the corner it was a whole different story. I felt like I had walked into Las Vegas strip club or a movie scene. The road was lined with clubs, dancers and prostitutes standing out side trying to bring you in. My mind wasn't sure how to process what was going on. and stomach became queasy at the sight of all the american men walking down the street. It was sick, most with wedding rings, others so old they were walking with a cane. They looked like dads, teachers, fathers. what were they doing here! Go home to your families! we wanted to shout. We split up into two groups. The first bar we went into I felt like, what the crap am I getting myself into.. I felt this huge heaviness as we walking through the door/curtain. It felt like walking through a time warp or into a movie..walking into a different life. I've never been exposed to anything like this before. The room was small and overly crowded with female waitresses and dancers. The center of the room was a round bar with close to 25 girls on top dancing while looking in to the mirror. They were wearing nothing but bras and underwear. The looks on their faces
showed how much they did not want to be there. They barely moved as they danced, their expressions emotionless as they watched themselves in the mirror. One by one the men starting coming in. Young, old, fat, skinny. Mostly white men. It was so disturbing and I quickly found a girl to talk with so I could block out everything else. She was a waitress working there and such a sweet heart, she told me how she doesn't dance and wont ever go out with a customer, she has a boyfriend and is in nursing school. It was encouraging to hear from someone who values themselves still. She commented on how different we were from other foreigners who come in, we are simplier, quieter. She could tell we were different. I began to tell her why we were here and spoke to her about how our hearts break seeing these girls...they have so much worth and potential, they are so loved. She was such a beautiful girl and it was nice to be able to talk one on one. The next bar we went to was even a different story. Three floors high. The first floor had tons of tables and a stage for the dancers,
the second floor has girls lined up and table and couchs for customers to sit, and the third floor was pool table and "VIP rooms." Each girl had number. that to me was one of the most disgusting parts. it was like we were in a store and the men were just watching and looking to see who to pick, and when they found the one they wanted they would point a green laser at her to let the "mama-son" or pimp know who they wanted for the night. This bar was so loud and the girls were so busy with what they were doing that it was almost impossible to get any girls alone to talk with. I felt defeated like there was nothing I could do but sit their..and by doing that I felt as though I was no better than the men sitting and watching the show. I walked up to one of the men to try and talk to him.. he was from Texas. when I asked what brought him here he said his friends then scooted over implying he was finish talking with me. I wanted to chew him out right then and there but I couldn't even find the words to say. My mind could do nothing but pray pver the bar. Pray for restoration, pray for conviction on the men, pray for new jobs for the women working there, pray for the lord's spirit to flood this place. I started talking with the waitress that had served me my drink. she was SO young looking and her shirt was a different color than the other waitresses. I found out later that she was new, she was in training. her smile and face was so beautiful. I got annoyed with the volume in the bar and stepped outside to where I could actually have a normal conversation with someone. She was out there and I talked with her and another older waitress. They were both so friendly, she told me their were over 200 girls working in this bar. Most because of living in poverty and needing money to support their families. I asked them what their dreams were, what they would rather be doing.. the one girl said her dream is to find a good guy and get married. I told them I would pray for them and that the Lord would give them the desires of their hearts. We talked for awhile and I was sad to leave thoes girls. We decided to leave Angeles City early that night because of how intense it was for some people. While we were waiting for the other group I saw these girls behind the counter of an open air bar along the road. They had no customers and they were just hanging out texting or whatever. I felt like we should go talk to them so I grabbed a friend and walked over. It was such a nice change from how the evening thus far had been. It was outside..it was quieter, and their were no customers. The girls said they were 18, 18, and 20 although they looked much younger than that. we just sat and talked for awhile and got to know each other. When I asked them what they like to do for fun , in their free time, they looked at me blank and confused. I asked if they ever got a day off and they said they would have one day off every 15 days. and they sleep on their day off and they work 12 hour shifts and sleep and other hours. So they have no real free time, they don't know anything other than work work and work. I felt so sorry for them. With the help of the translator we were able to tell them about the restoration home we re staying at and share the gospel with them. at the end we then prayed for them. I was so happy that after a frustrating night of not being able to REALLY deeply talk to anyone, we finally got to. We exchanged names and gave then the name and number of the place we were staying. We said our goodbyes and piled in the jeepney to head home. We arrived home around midnight but decided to take sometime to process together as a group. We expressed our frustrations..how was felt defeated and like we were unable to have any good and lasting conversations with the girls. how were werent really sure the purpose of the Lord allowing us to see some of the things we saw. Our leaders reminded us that we are the salt and light of the world..whether we feel we accomplished anything big or not wherever we go the spirit of the Lord is with us, and he was there that night and we may not know how our words effected those girls after we left. We've been making this book on prostitution and last night we were given an in your face taste of it. The Lord was allowing us to see this stuff..allowing us to experience it be apart of it for the purpose of growing our hearts for the issues and making the stories of the people we have interviewed more real. Our leaders reminded us that even in a place that is so full of sin, so hopeless feeling, there IS hope and the lord IS GOOD. He has control over the sun and stars and moon, he knows every hair on your head and he knows every single girl working down there. His heart breaks for them even more than ours do. And although we felt defeated and hopeless that is a lie from satan because their IS HOPE and the LORD IS GOOD. My friend shared a passage in Zephania 3:5-20 that the Lord showed her after we got back and it fit perfectly. I wont share it on here because this post is long enough but please take the time to read it, keeping in mind this city and these girls, and pray for them with me