No Plan B

Three weeks since our last post?!  This will certainly not do.  I better start thinking of some fun and interesting things to write so I can blog more often.  Today, I wanted to mention something more serious that has been on my heart for a long time...human trafficking.  David and I both feel God has given us a passion for women and children, particularly orphans and those affected by human trafficking .

Gary Haugen, the president and CEO of the International Justice Mission, was the guest speaker at our church yesterday and spoke not only about the work of IJM but also about how much God is passionate about the world and fighting injustice.  Gary is a former US Department of Justice prosecutor who was assigned through the UN to investigate the genocide in Rwanda and bring to justice those responsible.  A few years later he and some colleagues founded IJM and since then they've grown to 17 offices worldwide.  In an honest and self-evaluating message, he challenged us to align our interests and passions with God's. An entertaining but hard-hitting confession about his main interest was, "I am passionate about...ME! I'm fascinated by me."  How easy is it to get wrapped around ourselves and our own world, suffering "injustice" at the hands of an aggressive driver cutting us off, and not even give consideration or thought to the hurting world around us and those who suffer true injustices.  I know I am guilty.  He asked a tough question that I believe we all wrestle with at times (and I'm paraphrasing): what makes it believable to people that God is good despite the suffering and pain they experience every day?  And similarly, what is God's plan for fighting injustice around the world?  The answer is us.  God wants to use us to help break people free both physically and spiritually -- and He doesn't have a Plan B.

Honestly, I often feel overwhelmed when I think about all the sin and suffering that happens daily and wonder how I could ever make a difference.  Gary mentioned the story of the feeding of the five thousand to illustrate our role as believers.  In John 6 and Mark 6, the disciples came to Jesus after he had been teaching for a long period of time and suggested that he dismiss the large crowd of those listening so they could go home and find themselves something to eat.  I imagine Jesus had quite a sense of humor when he simply said, "You give them something to eat."  After some quick math, the intelligent disciples were so kind to inform Jesus of the actual reality of the situation.  It would take eight month's of a man's wages to feed so many people.  Rather than raining down manna from heaven or pulling burgers from his cloak, Jesus involved the disciples and asked them what they had.  Andrew, being the educated voice of reason, said they had only five small loaves and two small fish, but how far could that go among so many.  As you know, Jesus blessed those five loaves and two fish from a young boy's sack lunch and performed an incredible miracle by feeding over five thousand people.  The key point to this story is that God wants us to bring all that we have to Him in obedience so He can perform the miracles.

Gary went on to talk about a young girl from India who was persuaded by some women to get a job in the city to help support her family.  They ended up selling her to a brothel in the city for the equivalent of $250.  This young girl was violently beaten for three days and then forced to offer her services to 20-30 men PER DAY 7 days a week.  With the help of people who were obedient to God's call and the local authorities, this woman and the other young girls held captive were set free.  She felt so empowered by her freedom that she told the IJM workers of another brothel she knew of and helped lead a raid to rescue more young girls. One of the rescued told of still another underground dungeon with more children.  IJM and the authorities made a third raid and rescued 24 girls from a seemingly hopeless and completely horrifying situation who now can experience the freedom Christ wants for each of us.  Praise the Lord, right!  IJM continues to work in many countries, pursuing justice alongside their law enforcement and encouraging laws against slavery and real injustice. Gary also mentioned Psalm 10, evidence of God's passion for each individual in the world and for justice. Their efforts, freeing hundreds of people, have been used by God to solidify peoples against human trafficking and to affect far more than mere hundreds in this reprehensible trade, which encompasses millions.  My hope and prayer is that we would be involved in our world and in our own neighborhoods to boldly help those who are hurting with a God-will-make-a-miracle- from-my-lunch mentality. We must ask the Lord for opportunities to be beacons of hope and light to a sinful and dark world.  Bring what you have to the Lord and allow Him to work miracles.

Check out IJM's website and some of Gary's books including the next one on my reading list, "The Good News About Injustice."  Link to their facebook page, pray about giving, and also, BE ACTIVE: The Child Protection Compact Act is in the Senate right now. It allows the US to provide assistance to slavery-plagued countries which may not have the resources or training to end it in their own countries.

balloons: 27 million enslaved, the average cost of a slave is $90

An organization making a huge difference in the fight against sexual slavery worldwide and the recovery of the women freed (and it was started by two Air Force Academy grads, Go Falcons): The Somaly Mam Foundation.   Another avenue to get involved is through yobel market, "a global marketplace inspiring awareness, promoting justice."  Check out the one now open in Old Colorado City. 

Thanks for reading our post.  Before you leave, read this story from the IJM website about a young boy named Kumar and remember, you are God's plan to reach the world....Cassie & David (yes, we both wrote this time! :)  

Kumar: Orphaned at age 5, Kumar became a slave in a brick kiln at age 7. He was forced to carry heavy loads of bricks on his head and work through illness and injury. While his peers were in school, he struggled daily with the physical stress of hard labor. After five years at the kiln, Kumar was released from slavery through IJM intervention in collaboration with local authorities. Now an adolescent, Kumar is free to pursue his dream for the future: “I want to become a police officer so … I can help and protect the good people of our village,” he recently told staff. He has excelled in school and remains in close contact with IJM staff.