Enemy Territory!

A couple of weeks ago, the Grace Gardens outreach team went into one of the brothels and we were met with more hostility than we had been met with in a long time. The brothel manager tried to kick us out and one of the girls tried to hit me when I tried to start a conversation with her. We have been hearing growing reports from girls that leave that hotel, that that hotel uses charms and witchcraft to increase business.The rest of the team and I decided that we could not fight this hostility, only God could. So, last week, we took a break from outreach and we spent all of Wednesday praying and fasting for the girls in the brothels. The residents at Grace Gardens and some people back home joined us in praying and fasting. What a blessing it was to hear the residents pray for the women in the brothels to come to know Christ. I cried listening to their sweet prayers.This week, we went out once again to the same hotel that had been so hostile to us last time. We walked in, praying every step of the way. We met two girls right inside the door and talked to them for close to an hour. Then we went upstairs and talked to two sisters. We had a really good conversation with them that lasted over an hour. Then we came back downstairs and started walking through the back hallway that is always the hardest for us to reach. Every girl looked straight forward and in a monotone voice said, "I already prayed today thank you!" They had all practiced what they would say when they saw us again and it was obvious none of them intended to talk to us. We kept walking and kept asking the girls if we could talk to them, but we were about to give up, when we ran into a new girl that obviously did not know the routine. She agreed to talk to us and asked us to pray for her. So I did.As soon as I opened my mouth to pray, every girl in that hallway started loudly chanting in unison against what I was praying. Even girls who had been sitting there with earphones in their ears and should not have even realized I was praying. I continued to pray for this girl, and I tried my best to pray against the demonic activity behind me. When I stopped praying, the girls went silent once again.When we got outside, I looked at the other two members of my team and said, "That chanting was so demonic!" Both my other team members agreed and told me that while I was praying, they opened their eyes and watched the girls and prayed for them. They both reported that the girls looked scary and full of evil while chanting. So, I looked at my team and said, "You know that this means right". They both look confused so I finished my though, "It means we make satan uncomfortable! We must be doing something right!" And with that, the three of us did a little happy dance out on the street behind the brothel!"You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you." Duet. 3:22"for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." 2 Tim. 1:7