Pray for Thailand on Sunday, February 1, 2015
Lectionary Selection: 1 Corinthians 8:1–13
Prayers for Thailand:
Gracious and compassionate God we look to you to make us realize that our actions have far more reaching consequences then we think;
We ask forgiveness as we begin to realize those consequences on a global scale;
We lift up the workers and laborers of the world, particularly those who are exploited to make us those things which we “ iodize” the most;
We ask that you bring comfort, and life to the young men and women whose lives are exploited.
God of Life; help up understand the inequity that exist within us; help us find a way to close this divide. Teach us to love one another, to not only care and think of those who need our help but to truly love them. Help those that have no love come to accept the love we have to show them and offer them, especially those who are most vulnerable- the boys and girls exploited with their bodies, the refugees working in the fishing industry and all those who are forced into labor.
We ask prayers for these harsh realties of not only Thailand but also all of Southeast Asia to you, as we seek to understand how to truly love one another.
Mission Stewardship Moment from Thailand:
As I have traveled throughout Thailand, building capacity and supporting the Church of Christ in Thailand churches on the grassroots level by providing trainings on the awareness of trafficking and sexual exploitation to rural communities, I have found that one topic in particular is not discussed: the issue of boys. Recently, on a trip to Cambodia I met with stakeholders working to build capacity and data on the growing number of boys that are sexually exploited in Southeast Asia. This is a topic that many do not focus on, in fact there is only one group in Thailand, Urban Light located in Chaing Mai, that even has the resources or the capacity to deal with boys that have found themselves trapped in sexual exploitation. I ask for prayers as the CCT attempts to become directly involved in this issue, which many in the church are reluctant to do.
Working with boys is often seen as a cultural taboo in Southeast Asian and the Cambodian/Thai proverb comparing boys to gold and girls to white clothe best illustrates the resilience that boys are expected to have:
“A girl is like a piece of cloth; if it is stained then it is spoiled for ever but a boy is like a piece of Gold; if it is dropped in the mud then it can easily be washed clean again”
This is the attitude of most people when it comes to boys. There are not adequate resources to provide the boys who are survivors of trafficking with the services they require. The CCT sees this and hopes that we can equipped our churches to be safe places where we can train our ministers to be responsive when boys come forward with reports of abuse.
Mission Partners in Thailand:
McGilvary Faculty of Theology at Payap University
The Church of Christ in Thailand
The Thai Burma Border Consortium
More information on Thailand:
http://globalministries.org/thailand
Global Ministries Missionary in Thailand:
Adam Royston serves as a Global Mission Intern with The Church of Christ in Thailand working on issues related to Child Protection and Human Trafficking. His appointment is supported by Week of Compassion, Disciples’ Mission Fund, Our Church’s Wider Mission and your special gifts.