True to reports, everything that could ever satisfy any earthly desire, whether moral or immoral, is easily accessible in Amsterdam. Walking down the streets the aroma of marijuana hangs like a dense cloud throughout the city. Of course every time you walk past a “coffee shop” the smell is over powering and almost suffocating, but it is also a scent that is encountered along the sidewalks, in the open markets, and just about anywhere else you may go. In Amsterdam “coffee shops” are places where anyone can go and buy drugs at the counter as easily as one may order fast food at a restaurant. There are cafés in town where people go to hang out and buy coffee or alcohol. But when the sign reads, “coffee shop” (in English) it is a location where the purchasing of drugs has been made a very simple process.
Not only is drug use in public a very normal and accepted practice, but prostitution is also a tragic practice that is very in your face all over the city. All throughout the red-light district of Amsterdam buying the services of a prostitute has been made a very public process. Customers, on the streets, window shop for women. The women actually stand in the windows, day and night. Passing by these windows is a very heart wrenching experience.
(This picture was taken from a mission across the street from a brothel.
There is a woman underneath each red light seen as a blur in this picture)
The first time I saw these women in the windows during my five days in Amsterdam, I was shocked. I had known that this practice was a norm in Amsterdam but I was not expecting to see it at the time. I had just walked out of a mission in the heart of the red-light district. It was about noon and I had been with a group of people from YWAM and we had just spent two hours praying inside of the mission. It was about noon. Then when we walked outside I was admiring the canal running through the middle of the street and when I looked up I saw the women, grooming themselves. They were just standing in the windows of a large glass fronted building across the street, waiting for the customers that would come throughout the day. Even though this sight caught me by surprise in the moment, I was not surprise by the existence of such a place. I had already been in Amsterdam for two days and I knew full well how easily accessible a wide variety of horrific sins were. The realization of just how real the problem of prostitution was in Amsterdam and of how acceptable it has become was still a horrifying reality and it made my stomach turn. But I was not surprised by it, which was a very sobering and heart breaking realization. Yet even in all of these things, God really used the week in Amsterdam to encourage, teach, and challenge me in unexpected ways.
An interesting note about prostitution in Amsterdam; it is legal. Women from all over the world can be found in the Red-Light district; in “business” as prostitutes. It is illegal in Amsterdam for anyone who is not a citizen to work in the city (this is true for all of the Netherlands). Prostitutes actually are given a special business license to come into the country and work. So even when ministries are able to reach out to these women, if these women decide they want out and no longer want to be a prostitute, they have no other options. If they quite then they will have to go back to their home countries. And for many, this is not an option because many are required to send money home for their families. So ministries reaching out to the prostitutes are limited in how much help they can give these women. They can’t get them out of prostitution and enable them to make a living in another way, and if the women go home they will more than likely just end up back on the streets again. There is child sex trafficking everywhere in the world and thus it is a problem in Amsterdam as well but it is under ground. Women are sold in the windows but finding child sex trafficking is a much more in-depth and difficult process. These were a few sobering facts I learned during the five days we were in Amsterdam.
We arrived in Amsterdam on Monday the 28th of February. On Tuesday we participated in a prayer station ministry. We partnered with a ministry of elderly individuals who go into the main square in the center of Amsterdam on a weekly basis. They wear red vests that say “prayer helps” (in Dutch) and they walk around and just ask people if they can prayer for them. When the occasion allows they share the gospel with people and give out small booklets with the Bible printed in Dutch. I joined with an elderly Dutch man who has been part of the ministry for quite a while. I really enjoyed spending time with him, watching him interact with the locals, learning from him as he shared Christ with them, and I really enjoyed learning about the Dutch people from him, about Holland, and about prayer. On the whole I was unable to talk with the people because I don’t speak Dutch, but as he spoke with them I prayed. Then we came upon one man who spoke English. He told me a bit about himself and he said he would really appreciate it if I would pray for him. In the end he was the only person who accepted prayer. We were able to hand out three Bibles and engage in conversation with people but this man was the only one who let us pray for him. It was such an encouraging time. As I prayed for Him I really sensed the leading of the spirit, as God taught me how to pray for the man in accordance with His will. When I was finished the man expressed how encouraged he was and I left so excited about the good work God wanted to do in that man’s life and about the power of prayer.
During that first day in Amsterdam God showed me that this was something He really wanted to teach me during the week. He wanted to teach me more about how to intercede for others according to His will, and about the power of prayer. I had an unusually difficult week the previous week and I was in dire need of refreshing. The first morning in Holland our DTS broke into small groups and we prayed for each other before entering into ministry for the week. During that prayer group people prayed that God would use the week to refresh me, give me renewal, and encouragement. And God was more than faithful to answer that prayer. Then as we prayed for others I asked God to teach me how to pray specifically for each individual. And God told me to ask for His heart. So as I prayed I would ask God to give me His heart for each person. Then God was faithful, time and again, to give me a very specific word and way to pray for each person. It was such a sweet time of prayer and I was overwhelmed by God’s faithfulness in speaking to me and teaching me more about intercession. Then when I was able to pray for the man in the square latter that day I was again amazed how God led me in prayer for a complete stranger. I left so excited about the power and faithfulness of God; so excited that He would choose to use me.
On Wednesday our DTS was sent on a scavenger hunt, created by the YWAM base in Amsterdam, and were able to see the main points of interest in the city and learn more about Dutch culture. Thursday we were taken on a tour of the locations that held significance in Jewish history, and that was an incredible experience. Then on Friday I had the opportunity, along with my roommate Heidi
and Sara (a friend who is also in our DTS). And this experience was amazing. First of all I was so honored that I was able to spend so many hours with about 24 Dutch Christians who worked at the soup kitchen. The Dutch people are so hospitable and friendly. Spending time with them was a precious experience in itself. Before the soup kitchen opened we spent an hour singing, praying, and in Bible study (all in Dutch). Then during the ministry to the homeless I had the opportunity to meet so many people and hear their stories. It really was an amazing opportunity. Then that night a group of about 15 of us went to a youth hostel in the middle of the red-light district. We did some skits and had a girl give her testimony. We were there for a number of hours and just spent time building relationships with people there.
We left on Saturday and flew back to Switzerland. But I left so excited and refreshed by the week. This was an incredible thing. Amsterdam is so spiritually dark and there is such a heavy spirit over the city that I was expecting it to have a negative effect on me spiritually. But God clothed me in His armor. There were a number of individuals in our DTS that had night mares and other unpleasant experiences after doing ministry in the red-light district. Yet because God had given me such an incredible sense of security, comfort, and strength I was actually able to come along side these people in prayer. And through this God continued the theme of teaching me what it means to be obedient in intercession, and thus seeing Him move in power. So by God’s grace I left the week feeling rejuvenated. This was such an incredible blessing.
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