doesn’t mean what I think it means.” At this moment I was standing in the
middle of a tourist souvenir store in Amsterdam, and had just had my picture
taken standing in a pair of very large wooden shoes.
“That’s our second most asked question.” The clerk said. “Here, write this
down. It stands for Determination, Courage, and Mercy,”
“Oh, ok…that was unexpected. What’s your first most asked question?”
“Where is the red light district?”
“Ahhh…so, where is it?”
“You are 2 blocks away.”
We walked, dodging other tourist, bikes, trains and very small cars 2 blocks
towards the red light district…and pulled out my camera. I began to pray. Lord, what do you have in store? Can we make a difference in such a
short amount of time?
like rain. (Nor does my hair). I was running on little sleep and I could feel
the weight of what laid around the corner. Besides wooden shoes, the city flag,
the XXX on everything, pubs and bars with their colorful advertising and the
last day of the Gay and Lesbian Pride week – there are sex shops, and shows
everywhere. You can’t help to think that there is more to the connection
to the city’s sex tourism reputation and the XXX on the cities flags etc… It’s
a sad place. A heavy place. A dark place. It’s obvious.
church, you are taking pictures of beautiful flowers and see movement ahead.
You look up to see a floor to ceiling window and a woman standing in it. A red
light shining over it… and your eyes meet. Oh
no, I hope she doesn’t think I was taking a picture of her. I didn’t look
away. I wanted to tell her that she is loved, she is beautiful, she is
worthy…and then she slipped behind a curtain. I wonder…Do thoughts count?
because of its age and location. It was agreed by the church, that as long as
the women worked inside and were not standing in the door openings they could
do their “business”. As the years went by the curtains opened more and more.
And with the less strict sexual morality of the sixties and seventies the
tolerance towards prostitution increased. In 2000, prostitution was legalized!
We spent hours walking and even riding a rickshaw around the area. Snapping
pictures where we could. Taking it all in…allowing our hearts to break and
praying for redemption and freedom. No laughter and few smiles.
Something about the church in the Red-Light District… aware of what was
happening just a stone’s throw away, really bothered me. What was it? I
wonder if they are in denial of what was happening. Impossible! Do they agree
with it? And the biggest question, the one I don’t have the answer to, but the one that
keeps me awake at night, and keeps me praying for the women and men, teenagers,
children, and ladyboys across the world who are not nameless or faceless to the
One who made them, keeps me wondering what I can do to help… no, not help, to
change things… to bring the Kingdom of Heaven to those dark, red streets and
into the Light that does not fade or flinch, the Light that reveals, gives
life, and breathes hope into a dying world:
Great thoughts. I have wondered similar things when in the “red light” district in my city.
Thank you for you heart and desire to bring light into the darkness.
I have wondered the same thing……why?
oh my soul.
(thank you for not looking away
for praying
for capturing the “life” in photos
so we can see a snapshot of what you
experienced.
thank you for going.)