Life as a Prostitute

This week I went to two brothels with Missy and Karise, two missionaries here. They go every week to a coulpe different brothels to do a Bible study with the prostitutes. They say sometimes the women are receptive, and other times not. It was surprising to me that the owners would allow us to bring in something that could potentially put them out of business. The gospel speaks directly against their business and that's what we're sharing. The unfathomable thing to me is not that they let us in but that the owner of one of these brothels is a leader in his church. The Bible says people will know we are Christians by our love. What love is there in running a business that allows women to sell themselves? At first I was disgusted and then all I felt was pity. He's fooled himself into thinking being a church leader can earn his way into heaven.

The first brothel was dark and the atmosphere heavy, what I expected. The second one, though, had yellow painted walls and somewhat of a cheerful feel. Definitely not what I expected. I realized that what separated the two was not the lack of or presence of bright colors or good lighting but the attitude of the women. With the first, the women's mannerisns were heavy, as if you could see the burden of work hanging on their shoulders. In the yellow brothel, women were going about the morning as if everything was normal- singing and joking with one another while doing the morning's chores. Walking in with no prior knowledge you might've thought it some type of housing project. In each we did a short Bible study with some of the women and I discovered why the women of the yellow brothel seemed so normal. Their hearts were almost completely chained up; letting themselves feel nothing was the easiest way to avoid the pain. Karise mentioned that just the week before one of the woman said something along the lines of, "You think we want to live like this, that we don't know what we're doing is wrong? This place has us all in chains." It was just a short glimpse of that woman's heart, though, because this week she was silent. Some might say it's deserved, they chose this life. True, as far as we know women aren't trafficked in these brothels but what looks like a short term solution to poverty turns into a longterm slavery to debt and hopelessness. I imagine it's the latter that makes it so difficult for these women to leave. If you believed there was nothing better for you outside- and at least here you get food, clothes, and shelter- why would you leave? Steal a person's hope and you have their freedom.

You think that someone living like this would jump on the chance of escape, be open to the prospect of a Savior who could set them free from this life. Mama Rahila ran the first brothel. She told us that she knew what she was doing was wrong and felt her sin piling up. Still she didn't leave, said that only if God would find her another business then she could go. Mama Rahila and what I think a lot of the women can't come to terms with is the depravity with which their lives have been carried out, hence the hardened hearts. How do you convince someone living like this that the power of Christ's death can break those chains?

The hardest thing about the brothels for me to come to terms with was the children that lived there. One girl especially caught my eye, Mama. She came right up to me and within minutes we were playing and laughing. It's like the reality of her life hadn't touched her yet. Naivety and a child-like ignorance had spared her these past 10 years of her life. Then I thought, 10 yrs...that's the same age as my little sister. It hit home. And how much longer would it be until Mama was ushered into the same lifestyle? Five or ten years? Maybe only three? I prayed that Missy's idea to buy the brothel and rehabilitate the women happens before Mama stops smiling.