Have you ever had something you wanted to tell people about, but could never exactly find the words to say it?

It’s as if every time you begin, the thoughts inside your head start swirling and when you open your mouth, all that falls out is your breath. Silently waiting, there is too much and not enough.

Welcome to Thailand.

A place so unexplainable it deserves to be told of, yet I cannot seem to find the words. If you’ve been wondering what we’ve been doing this month, it’s been an overwhelming ride of everything. We live in Chiang Mai above Zion Cafe, where we hang out with Thai women rescued from the bars for a better life. We hang out in the slums with children and families looking for abundant life, having nothing and yet having all they need. But not all they want- and so they look for better life in the only place life available- the bars. We talk with monks, devoted to their god, praying daily to statues that never answer and resigning to life in simpleness with an education, respect and good favor for their families. We befriend the homeless beggars, the children selling flowers, the bartenders and the prostitutes. A city filled with so much life after dark, yet the dead people are walking everywhere.

And then we met Leap. She has three friends who are triplets. They all four work in a bar beside a boxing ring called Lay By Bar. They are my friends. And I love them.

We spent three weeks this month relentlessly pursuing them. We showed up at the bar almost every night, and prayed intercession over those on the bar streets on nights we couldn’t go out. We played pool, and danced, drank a lot of coke and perfected our charade skills enough to get by. They don’t speak English and we don’t speak Thai, but smiles and laughter go so much farther.

So does consistent love.

Each night our hearts grew closer to Leap and the triplets. The Lord was giving us His heart for them, and letting our own hearts become more and more in love with our hilarious and vibrant friends. Finally we were able to take a translator to the bars with us and have a first real conversation after 3 weeks.

And she shared her heart. Her whole heart.

We found out that Leap is 20 years old. She is from a village about 4 hours outside of Chiang Mai, called Mae Ai. She grew up in the rice field village in a family with a mom and dad and two sisters. Her father is a Christian pastor of one neighborhoods, the only Christian pastor in her area. She knew Jesus and loves Him deeply. Her parents sent her to Chiang Mai to find a better life, a good job and to meet some people to practice English with. She has never been to school, cannot speak English and has trouble reading and writing Thai. She tried to find a good job, but the only one available was working in the bars. She knows that girls can make better money by going on “visits”- prostituting themselves. Yet she relies on the tips she makes serving drinks instead, because she said “my heart belongs to God.”

She does not tell her parents she works at a bar for fear of shame.

She does not tell her friends at the bar she is a Christian.

She has never been able to fully share her heart with anyone- until she met us. The Lord answered her specific prayer, that she would find some Christian friends in the city to encourage her. We found her and spoke only English. We smiled but she could not understand. Yet she says she knew we were sent by God and she could not wait to share her heart with us. Her whole heart.

God did amazing and incredible things during our time in Chiang Mai. We were able to take Leap and the triplets to church, getting them plugged into the Zion community. They gave us so many parting gifts and we shared a horribly tearful goodbye – the good kind where you cry because you know you loved so well.

Leap told us she would be making arrangements to go back to Mae Ai and find a better life somewhere else – the bars could no longer hold her back. We were able to spend time with the cafe staff and pouring into their hearts. We were able to travel tothe rice field village Leap is from, to spend time with Pi Emmi’s father and his friends while gaining some rest and perspective over Thailand from The Lord. To say I was sad to leave was an understatement. I loved it.

Every second in Thailand was a blessing from Jesus. I know my time in Thailand is over, but I also know that God continues to love and pour into lives long after we are gone. I think of Pi Emmi and Zion Cafe daily. I pray for Leap. I miss the triplets. I long to see the beauty of the mountains, the rice fields, the vibrance of the city and its people. I remember all the smiling faces and I can rest because I know…

I left pieces of my heart forever in Thailand.

God is moving inside this beautiful country and inside His beloved people!

Original post by Kaylaynn McAdams.