Ministry at the Cleft

What an eventful week! I had my interview on Monday afternoon for working in the Cleft. Edna and Kim, the leaders, told me after the interview to go home and pray about whether or not I'd be working with the ladies behind the windows or with the street ladies (ladies who sell themselves to get money for drugs), and that they would do the same. Of course, all along my heart has been with the ladies behind the windows, so I was hoping they would come to the same conclusion. On Tuesday Edna called me and asked if I'd been praying and how I was feeling led. I told her about my desire to work with the window ladies, and she said that she and Kim had come to the same conclusion without a doubt! So I was finally able to start ministry on Wednesday afternoon.

That first time, Edna took me on a prayer walk around the Red Light District to explain the different sections and to pray over it. That was a nice, slow way to get into it, because I was pretty nervous about starting! There are about six of us involved in the ministry, and each ministry time starts with Bible reading and prayer. Then we divide up into pairs, prepare baskets of hot drinks and cookies, and go out into the neighborhood. On Thursday night I was actually able to go and visit with the ladies, and it was amazing! I went with Rebeca Balderas, and at first most of the ladies whom we offered refreshments to just waved us off, saying they didn't want any. But then we met with some ladies who welcomed us, and in I went to one of the windows. It was really surreal standing there, seeing things from their perspective, watching the way people would walk by and stare--some curious, most lustful. Since I'm new to the ministry, the leader that I'm with takes the lead in conversation while I sit and pray. Rebeca was able to have some really good conversations at one window. Three ladies from the Dominican Republic all share the same window, so we were able to cover more ground there! Rebeca shared with them that satan loves to prey on women, but that God wants to restore their worth and dignity. They really seemed to be listening intently.

Through the years, Rebeca and Edna have been able to build a relationship with a man who owns Cassa Rosso (a live sex show) and most of the sex shops in the city. Most of the time he runs away from conversations with Rebeca (she's quite a powerhouse!), but she was able to share the gospel with him recently, and he ended up in tears. Anyway, I met him Thursday night, and he and Rebeca were talking about getting together for coffee sometime this week. Please pray that that will come to pass. In Perspectives, when we were talking about frontier missions, we learned about the importance of finding a gatekeeper, or person of importance, in the tribe you're going to minister to. Although this is by no means a tribe, I think that this man is definitely a gatekeeper, and it's such a blessing that Rebeca and Edna have a relationship with him. God could do amazing things through a man like that, living for Him!

One of the last windows we stopped at housed two beautiful ladies, one from Italy and one from Romania. The girl from Romania looked like she was about 18. They were both so sweet, friendly, and outgoing, and the one from Italy has really been on my mind a lot. Please pray that I'll be able to build a relationship with her; her name is Sonja. Thank you all for being such prayer warriors. I've really been able to sense your prayers, and I know I'll need them all the more as I become more involved in ministry in the District!