Jesus Said...

Jesus said a lot of things in the bible, but the most important thing he mentioned was LOVE.  Love the least of these, the widows, orphans, the broken, abused, the hungry, the poor, Gentile, Jew, neighbor, enemy, mother, father, prisoner, the lost.  And the list goes on and on.  Four years ago, I randomly stumbled across a Facebook posting about a ministry out of Waco and something began turning inside me.

Jesus Said Love was founded by Brett and Emily Bishop as a way to love on women in the strip club industry by bringing small gifts to open the door for conversation, friendship, and ultimately...sharing the love (and story) of Jesus.  For some, it has meant someone to walk beside them as they continue working in this industry and for others, JSL has been a resource to help start a new life away from the clubs.  Either way, our message is the same....LOVE.  No matter what.  From the JSL website, "Our purpose is to LOVE. It is not to "fix" women or convince them to leave or follow Christ. We show God's powerful and practical love and meet women right where they are at. In the context of real relationships, true love can be seen and experienced."

So I contacted JSL in 2009 and quickly found out I was not the person to pursue this on my own.  I needed to wait for God's timing.   I switched jobs, bought a house, had a second baby, but still continued praying that somewhere down the line the door would open for this ministry to come to San Antonio.  In 2010, I found out some people from our previous church were in fact pursuing just that.  Praise God.  I knew this was still where the Lord was leading me to serve.  I continued to pray that doors would open.

In 2012, I began serving on my current church's women's ministry team while still aching to be a part of JSL more than just a blog stalker and Twitter follower.  I knew I needed to step down though if I was going to pursue JSL whole-heartedly.  The night I resigned from this team was the night I heard from JSL.  I got word that two leaders had stepped up and our previous church was part of their financial support here in SA.  Joy, unspeakable joy!

Our first club outreach was December 21, 2012 at Rick's Cabaret.  We filled purple bags with everything from granola bars, cupcakes, make up, to handmade scarves and Christmas cards.  The women who went that night took the bags to the dressing rooms, met the girls, had conversations about kids, family, Christmas, and just life.  The girls were overjoyed that someone cared enough about them to visit them.  They asked us to come back...and don't you worry...we will! Currently, I am not going to the club outings since I am pregnant, but come April(ish), I will be.

Until then, please join me in praying for the lost.  No matter where you live.  Please pray that we, the body of Christ, can be the hands and feet of Jesus and meet physical and spiritual needs without judgment or assumption.  Please pray that we, the church, can better support those spreading the name of Jesus outside the church walls, again without judgment, but only with the love of Christ in mind.  Jesus Loves Strippers.  And He loves you too.  I hope and pray you know that friend.

Another good thing for my TCU peeps, all the Jesus Loves Strippers shirts are PURPLE!  You know you want one.  Go ahead and put this on your wish list or just buy it now!  I will be sporting mine around SA soon!