This week I have talked to a lot of men about the issue of human trafficking and have gotten the response that they want to do something about the issue but just don't know how to get involved. And as I was talking to the staff of 4Sarah, she was telling me about a campaign to end sexual exploitation right here in Georgia... and it's coming up. SO- men get ready and women pull out the heels... here we go!
Join 4Sarah,
Inc. on September 18th
to
Stop the Sexual Exploitation
of
Women & Children in Georgia!
Prizes will be given to the first, second and
third place men that walk
or run the entire mile wearing high-heels!
Each year, an ever-increasing number of men, women and their
families
are joining Walk a Mile in Her Shoes®: The International Men's March to
Stop Rape, Sexual Assault & Gender Violence. Walk a Mile in Her
Shoes®
is a fun opportunity for men to educate the community about a very
serious
subject and to rally the community to take action to prevent sexualized
violence.
First You Walk the Walk
There is an old saying: "You can't really understand another
person's experience until you've walked a mile in their shoes." Walk a
Mile in Her Shoes® asks men to literally walk one mile in women's
high-heeled shoes. It's not easy walking in these shoes, but it's fun
and it
gets the community to talk about something that's really difficult to
talk
about: gender relations and sexual violence.
Then You Talk the
Talk
It's critical to open up communication about
sexual
violence. While hidden away, it's immune too
cure. Unfortunately, it's difficult to get people talking. People
unfamiliar
with it often don't even want to know it exists. It's ugly. People that
have
experienced it themselves want to forget about it. How do you get them
talking
now, so they can prevent it from happening? And after it's happened,
how do you get them to talk about it so they can recover?
Walk a Mile in Her Shoes® provides several opportunities to
get people talking. For preventive education, it helps men better
understand
and appreciate women’s experiences, thus changing perspectives, helping
improve gender relationships and decreasing the potential for violence.
For
healing, it informs the community that services are available for
recovery. It
demonstrates that men are willing and able to be courageous partners
with women
in making the world a safer place
Not
Just a Women's Issue
Sexualized violence does not just affect
women. It
affects the men who care about them, their families, their friends,
their
coworkers, and their communities. Sexualized violence is epidemic. Some of the
statistics: Every two minute someone in America is raped. One in six
American women are victims of sexual assault. That means someone you
know,
someone you care about, has been or may become the victim of sexual
violence.
It may be your mother, your sister, your friend, your girlfriend, your
wife,
your coworker, or your daughter.
This is from Tom Davis, writer and President of Children's HopeChest, an international child advocacy
organization. Please read below.
Last week, I shared a couple
of posts on apologetics and atheism, which may have given some readers
the wrong impression. Let me be clear: I am not an apologist. I have the
utmost respect for apologetics, but it is not the calling I've
received.
And quite frankly, I think that we can easily be misled down the path of
knowledge -- the same temptation that Adam and Eve faced in the garden,
falsely believing that knowledge was more important than life.
I see the value of intellectual proof for the existence of God, but at
the same time, if we are not living as if we believe what we say we
believe, then what's the point of saying it at all?
Along those lines, I'd like to see us put our hands and feet where our
mouths are. As you know, we talk a lot on this blog about justice
issues. In my study of Scripture, I've been blown away by how many
verses talk about God's love for the fatherless and widow, how he cares
deeply for the imprisoned and oppressed, and how expects us to do the
same.
As an adopted son and father of two adopted children, I am, as you know,
passionate about orphan care; with the writing of my new book Priceless,
however, I've been compelled to advocate for the millions of victims of
human trafficking around the world.
Friends, I'll be blunt: I don't think that it's time for apologetics or
theology or philosophical musings. I think it's time to act.
I don't want to try to guilt you with statistics or lofty figures that
you can't relate to. We've all heard those before. I want to share an
opportunity for you to do more than merely advocate.
If you are 21-35 and a Jesus-follower, I want you to seriously consider
going on this trip. It will give you an opportunity to be the Body of
Christ and to put his red letters into action. I guarantee that it will
turn your world upside down (in a good way).
And those of you who cannot go, please consider what you can do to be a
part of this. Pray for the ministry, support someone who can go,
mobilize a friend, help get the word out, etc. Advocacy is great, but
God also calls us to act in response to the injustices and atrocities we
witness.
I want to know how, if at all, this post touched you. Would you mind
sharing in the comments section what you are led to do?
Last weekend I stayed in a
Hilton Hotel chain with my family and two days later I read:
"A Hilton Hotel in southwest China lost its
five star rating this week after an underground brothel was found to be
operating out of the hotel last month... This recent bust isn't even the first
time an underground brothel has been operating at a Hilton Hotel. In 2008, a
brothel was being run out of a Hilton in Ireland. And Consumerist named the
Hilton in Washington D.C. the third
most prostitution-friendly hotel in
the city, based on the phone records of the notorious DC Madame. With
so many brothels being operated out of their hotels, you would think Hilton
would take pains to ensure that none of them involve children."
Then today I read about a MOTHER and GRANDMOTHER
in Dallas who have been charged for pimping their 14 year-old DAUGHTER/
GRANDAUGHTER out to bring in money to pay their living expenses. And if that’s
not bad enough, according to the police report, they have been selling her for
sex since she’s was 11 years old.(To read more on that story click here).
It’s in moments like these that I am overwhelmed.
What is happening in this
world we live in?
What is my response to these appalling stories?
How can I be
a part of the change?
And then I go to "work" (seriously I have the best job in the WORLD)...
I read through
applications of future participants of the World Race Human Trafficking
Edition. I call the "new inquires" to answer questions they might have about the WR Human Trafficking Edition. The participants are ordinary people who are willing to give up their cushy lives in America to make a change in the world. I interviewed these normal everyday people so
that in January we can take 35 twenty/thirty-something’s on a journey that will
change the course of history, literally. We will go to Cambodia, Thailand, India, and end right here
in America to help end human- trafficking, also known as modern- day slavery.
What will you do today?
Will you walk
away unchanged?
Will you pray?
Will you go?
Will you send me?
To learn how you can be a part of the WR:: Human
Trafficking Edition click here.
I am currently in need of monthly supporters
and special gifts to continue this ministry. If you’d like more information
about how you can be directly involved with this ministry please contact me at laurameyers@theworldrace.org or to support my ministry please click here.
This ministry encounter is from one of my beautiful India team members Rachael Hayes. We had the opportunity to serve in Mumbai, India together and this is a glimpse of human trafficking from her perspective.
* * * * *
A few of us got the opportunity to go to
Mumbai last weekend and after a 12 hour train, sight seeing at 4:30
a.m., and joining a senior citizen's laughing club on the street , i was
finally in the place i have been praying for. I came on this trip
prepared to be with commercial sex workers in the red light districts.
But for the past 6 weeks i have been a preschool teacher and have been
hangin in the slums every day. When we began working in Mumbai, i was
face to face with the human trafficking business just as i had hoped
for. I was walking down a street full of women who were waiting in their
doorways for business. I played with children who were dropped of at a
center when their mothers were preparing for their night. I was
literally steps away from the injustice that brought me to this place we
like to call India. I was in a shelter full of girls who have been
handed over by their mothers because they are incapable to take care of
them while taking part in prostitution. And as i found myself in the
midst of this environment, there was nothing i could do about the things
going on around me. I was there for a short three days and could not
begin relationships with any of the prostitutes or with their kids. It
would cause more harm than good for me to drag the women out of their
situation and begin a place of refuge for them. I could not destroy the
entire business of human trafficking in one swipe simply because it
angered me. And so the world continued to spin in the same way it always
has. The men were still indulging in the desires of their flesh and
fueling this business. The women still feel powerless and are bound to
the commands of their madame's and pimps. There are still children who
are headed for a dingy future and have no promise for a way out of their
parents' lives. But the problem is that i raised $5000.00 to be here
and take part in God's destruction of this evil. I have come halfway
around the world in order for things to change here. And i have been
praying for the moments when i would be able to use my hands and feet
for the sake of the love of God reaching these people. But faithfulness
is not found in my own desires, but in the moments where i find myself
in the midst of the will of God. And regardless of everything that needs
to be done in Mumbai and besides all the pain and affliction going on
in my heart by being in that place, God has shown me one immovable hope:
himself. God sees all the darkness in that place 24/7 and still has the
whole world in his hands.
* * * * *
AIM has put together a specific World Race human
trafficking trip as an opportunity for young people to have
first-hand exposure to the sex trade and to play an active role in
bringing healing to the lives of those who have been trafficked. It is
an intense, four-month ministry journey around the world, with one of
the steps actually in the U.S. (yes, people are trafficked here in the
United States).
If God has placed the sex trade on your heart, please pray and
consider how you can be a part of this. Find out more about the trip here.
I remember in high school having a disagreement with a teacher about "Real Life." I always hated that term because people that were older than I was would say, "wait until you get in the real world" or "what till you get to real life!" And I always thought, "This is my real life; right here, right now, this is where God has me and it is my real life."
Fast forward to this summer. This time in India has not been so different as times in the past. I meet all kinds of people who worship idols and other gods. I sing and play with children who are beautiful and just need to be held. I have cooked and shared with women who are broken and need to be loved. I've had random conversations with men on the bus that leads to an opportunity to share about the ONE who came for them. I've been blessed to see the Living God move in peoples lives in radical ways but my heart still longs for more.
All summer long the Lord has been teaching me and I have become overwhelmed with a sense of URGENCY. My heart churns within me because people are living and dying without knowing REAL LIFE. They haven't seen, known, or experienced life without knowing the One who has given us life. There is an urgency to the Gospel. People need to know the love of God, the peace of his Spirit and the knowledge of His truth and grace.
I have one week left in India before returning to America. I'm asking you to pray. I want every second to count. I want to see Jesus move in this nation in an even more powerful way. I want to see people turn away from other gods and turn to the One and Only God that will save them. Jesus is speaking to the nations... and I hear him calling out the names of the people of India.
I can hear HIM saying...
I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly. To know me... the living God, the ONLY God. Quiet your heart! I want you to hear my voice- the voice that says I love you, deeply and intimately. You are saved, I have come to your rescue. I am your resting place. I am good. I gave my life for you so that you could have all of the fullness of God. I will protect you, come take shelter in my love. I am good. I know you. I knew you in your mothers womb. I haven't forgotten you. My grace is sufficient for you. I love you with an everlasting love, come to me and you will find peace that passes all understanding. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I LOVE YOU!
This is the REAL LIFE. Freely Given. Freely Received.
Please join me in praying this week for the nation of India.
It has certainly been a long time since I have written a blog. A lot has happened in the nearly two months that I've been in India but I'm going to share some highlights (both from me and my team) and then I promise I will go into more detail in my blogs later this week!
Change of Heart
When we came to India we thought that our primary ministry was going to be to women that are in the mix of coming out of prostitution and helping these women be restored; however, when we arrived we began to learn more about what our time was going to look like… and it was nothing that any of us expected. Instead of working with the women we have been mainly working with slum children. Everyday we go the one of two preschools and teach Bible stories and preschool classes. Then in the afternoons half of our team goes to work with a small group of women while the others go into the slums to either do community outreach or run a nutrition program in the slum. The "m" has been fantastic and Jesus has made himself known in this community and in our hearts, we just had to be open to his will and not our own expectations.
In the afternoons when we walk into the slums, I feel the
Holy Spirit just filling me back up more and more so i can pour it
out.. So, on Tuesday, I went with Laura to a families house that she was
suppose to go to, to learn how to make Chipatee (an Indian tortilla
type of thing). As we take off our shoes to go inside, there is an old
woman curled up siting on a bench type of thing. I felt such a love for
her already.. i said hi but got no response so i just walked on in. They
later told me she was blind so immediately i went outside took her
hands and started talking to her. She started speaking in Hindi back.. I
was drawn to this woman and i felt so much compassion towards her. So,
the rest of the day i thought of her and Elyssa found out about her and
starts talking about how she got a word from the Lord about healing the
blind. I already wanted to go back and see her but then i got even more
excited!!
So, Wednesday comes and we went and prayed healing over this woman.
Tears started coming out and the cloudiness in her yes started coming
out of the corner of her eyes... While we were praying a crowd started
to gather around along with the rest of our team. As i looked out into
the crowd of Indians, there were about 6 of my teammates in prayer right
along side of us for this woman!! We had a boy translate for us and ask
her if she believed in the 1 true
God who could heal her. She said yes and we asked her what his name is.
She responded with Jesus! SHE BELIEVES!! She said she felt peace and
happiness in her
heart... We kept praying and she still cannot completely see, but I
believe God will bring complete healing within her life. Then a man
asked for prayer and Will who was with us, prayed for him. The man told
us how he and his wife have not had any children and they have been
waiting and waiting. Will talked with him and then prayed with him again
and he accepted Jesus too!! H then started to pull out money to pay
Will. Will just put his arms around him.
The whole time it was on my heart for the people to know,we are not
just a bunch of Americans who have some special powers, we are no
different from them! It is ONLY JESUS who is different!! ONLY JESUS who
can and is healing them!! and then Will spoke up to the crowd and said
exactly what was on my heart!! it was so cool.... beyond cool actually!!
The Holy Spirit was moving so powerfully and is still moving and i am
in complete awe of our GOD!! Gosh, he is just so GOOD!! Please be in
prayer for this woman and for this slum community!!
Foundations
I was sitting in the Sunday School that we help teach this past Sunday morning and I was with the older children (ages 8-14ish) and God spoke to me about their futures. All thirty of the children sitting in front of me are from a nearby slum. Most of them are children that have very little education. Most of them live in shakes and conditions that you couldn't imagine unless you've seen it first hand and even then it's still hard to wrap our western minds around. BUT, most of these children are the happiest children I have ever met. They are resilient. They have hope because they know the hope of Glory. They are beautiful and precious. As I looked into their eyes I saw Jesus and in that moment I heard the word foundations.
What these children are learning right now in Sunday school might seem meaningless but it is their foundation for life everlasting. They are hearing and experiencing the only living God. This is the foundation of their lives. When most people look at these children they see how society has marked them as nothing and they are treated as such but when God sees them, they are marked by his love and grace.
*** For more blogs and stories from my team please visit our team blog ***
"God is more interested in you character than your comfort."
- Micheal Hindes -
If I'm honest, when I was first asked to co-lead this team to India my heart was not super excited. Don't get my wrong, I was excited, but not like you'd expect it to be considering I LOVE India.
My heart has been torn for a long time between my home (where my family
is) and the nations. My heart so longs to be back "home" with my family. I love them and miss them deeply. But at the same time my heart has been broken for the nations- for India, Uganda, Haiti... the list could go on. Thus the great divide. When I'm here, I want to be there and when I'm there, I want to be here...
Today, I'm once again getting on a plane and my heart is full of joy. Although I'll miss my family and friends... I'll miss Stake & Shake Milkshakes at 11 pm, taking a drive "around the horn", quilting where we stay up all night laughing, sitting by water at the creek... the simple things of life, I don't want to miss this opportunity to go and to serve once again.
The team of women that I'm serving and serving along side of are absolutely phenomenal! They are 17 very different individuals coming together for one divine purpose... to be a part of the Kingdom of God in India!
This is our vision and mission for India... from Isaiah 61 Oaks of Righteousness, consumed by the fire of God, freedom, loved, restored, redeemed, warriors, rescued, and beloved... among other things...
Most people say, "home is where your heart is" but most World Racers
begin to say, "home is where my backpack is!" My backpack's headed to India for the next few months!!!
Please take a pause in your day to read this blog that was written by Brandy Chaffer (August
‘09 World Racer). It's a beautiful story of just how BIG our God really is! Dan and I traded the
comforts of the city for the tranquility of the country to serve with
Team Shekinah in Krongnoung village for our last week of ministry in
Cambodia…a village too small to keep this story for itself…
Are
not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the
ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of
your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than
many sparrows. - Matthew 10:29-31
“Brandy…she’s scanning the
van for you.” Sam said.
I immediately slid across to the window and began searching the crowd
for her. The instant our eyes met, smiles swept across our faces as our
hands frantically continued to wave.
Goodbye Lita Lou.
Lita
is the 4-year old adopted daughter of Sun, the woman who ran the
kindergarten in the remote Cambodian village we were serving. Lita is
beautiful and precious gem who radiates with His love. She twirls with
the innocence of a child while carrying the testimony of a old soul.
When
Lita was only a few months old, her mother, dying from HIV, made the
desperate decision to sell her on the streets of Phnom Phen. Sun learned
of the little girl and desired to rescue her from the fate of the
streets. She was interested in adopting her but only if she did not have
HIV. She met 6-month old Lita and immediately fell in love. Sun took
her to the hospital to have her tested.
She waited…she prayed.
The
doctor delivered the news.
“I’m sorry, this baby has HIV.”
Wanting
desire to overrule reality, she had her tested again.
Positive.
And
again.
HIV Positive.
With the results
placed before her and the baby in her arms, the choice was hers. Return
Lita to the streets to be sold - or pay the price. The $200 monetary
price her mother demanded…the sacrificial price of raising a baby with
HIV. Was she worth the cost? Was she deserving of life’s most precious
gift….
Lita was bought with a
price. Sun loved her too much to let her go.
Sun returned to her
village with Lita in tote and offered her the only two things she knew
to give… unconditional love and prayers. The few Christians in the
predominantly Buddhist community began to faithfully pray for Lita’s
miraculous healing. Day by day, night by night, they continued to pray.
When
Lita was 18 months old, Sun returned to the city to have Lita re-tested
for HIV.
She waited…she prayed.
”Please God let the
words that come out of the doctor’s mouth not be ‘I’m sorry’ - please
Lord let him say ‘Congratulations - your daughter does not have HIV.”
She waited…she prayed.
And
then came the doctor…followed by the words…
“Congratulations
- your daughter does not have HIV!”
Today
Lita is the picture of health and product of love.
God’s
greatest love story…for Lita…for Sun…for me…for you.
For
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. - John 3:16
Lita pictured with Sun and
SocaSoca is another little girl Sun has taken in, along with her mother "
who were tragically left homeless in the village
If His eye is on the
sparrow, His heart is on you.
Before I get started, I just want to say a
BIG THANK YOU for all of the prayers and phone calls to ask about my grandpa
Terry this week. Most of you all know, but my grandpa (Terry Meyers) had a heart
attack on Sunday evening. He had a heart defibrillator & pacemaker put in
today and is doing good and is hoping to come home from the hospital in the
next two days depending on how he’s feeling. Thank you again for all of your
prayers and please continue to pray for healing and a fast recovery!
I am really excited to share
that I will be helping to lead a REAL LIFE team in Bangalore, India from June 1 to
August 2nd. REAL LIFE is our college age program here at Adventures In Missions and
Amanda Thompson and I will be leading a team of 16 incredible 18-21 years old
to one of my favorite places!
Bangalore:
Bangalore, the capital of
Karnataka state, India, reflects its multi-religious and cosmopolitan character
by its more than 1000 temples, 400 mosques, 100 Churches, 40 Jain mandirs,
three Gurudwaras, two Buddhist Viharasand and one Parsi Agiari. According to
the 2001 Census of India, 79% of Bangalore's population is Hindu, while Muslims
comprise 13% of the population. Christians and Jains account for 6% and 1% of
the population, respectively.
The Situation:
In India, the federal
police say that around 1.2 million children are believed to be involved in
prostitution. A Central Bureau of Investigation statement said studies and
surveys sponsored by the ministry of women and child development estimated
about 40% of all India's prostitutes are children. Trafficking in human beings
is now the second-largest moneymaking venture in the world, after illegal
weapons. The UN estimates around 4 million people a year are now traded against
their will to work in some form of slavery. Each day in India nearly 200 girls
and women are forced into the sex trade. Sex trafficking has become an engine
of the global AIDS epidemic. In India, the birth of a girl is considered a
burden. Typically, she is not fed properly, loved or educated. The mortality
and suicide rates for Indian women are among the highest in the world.
The Ministry:
My team will be working
with Rahab's Rope, a ministry that helps to bring women out of the sex industry.
Rahab's Rope Women's Center provides food, shelter and protection; a place of
education and training; a place where the whole person is ministered to
spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially and financially. It is
a place of hope, a place of transformed lives. At Rahab's we will build
relationships with the women and children, teach English, basic math and
trades, visit dump communities, plan and participate in children's programs and
learn about life as a woman escaping the grips of the sex industry.
How YOU can be involved:
Would you please
prayerfully consider joining me in ministry? I need to raise $21,000 for this year’s ministry and I need to
raise $6,930 of that by June 15.
Would YOU invest in this ministry and join me in reaping the harvest this summer?
If you are interested in supporting me through prayers and financial support please visit the SUPPORT ME page on my blog or click HERE.
Bangalore, the capital of
Karnataka state, India, reflects its multi-religious and cosmopolitan character
by its more than 1000 temples, 400 mosques, 100 Churches, 40 Jain mandirs,
three Gurudwaras, two Buddhist Viharasand and one Parsi Agiari. According to
the 2001 Census of India, 79% of Bangalore's population is Hindu, while Muslims
comprise 13% of the population. Christians and Jains account for 6% and 1% of
the population, respectively.
that helps to bring women out of the sex industry.
Rahab's Rope Women's Center provides food, shelter and protection; a place of
education and training; a place where the whole person is ministered to
spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, 