(Hey readers, it’s Preslaysa. If you are looking for the 12 Peals of Christmas, Day Three, you’ll find it at the end of Precarious’s wonderful guest post today. A double treat! Enjoy)
The Role of Prayer in Combating Human Trafficking
On December 2, 2011, I released The Elite of the Weak, a young adult suspense/thriller. Set in the not-too-distant future, this novel follows Hadassah, a highly trained Messianic Jewish girl, as she rescues kids from the web of human trafficking. Here’s the reality of the situation:
Generating over $32 billion annually, human trafficking is the second most lucrative criminal activity in the world, making even more than black market arms deals. Conservative estimates tell us that 27 million children are among those trafficked, often in the horrific form of forced prostitution.
This doesn’t just happen in Southeast Asia or in Africa (although it is terrible there), there are over 100,000 kids affected in the USA. The average age of those kids is 13-14 years old.
In the face of something so huge and evil, what can one person do in response?
The fight against human trafficking requires a double edged sword. One edge is those who pray and war in the heavenlies on behalf of the oppressed. The other edge is those who work on the ground (or underground) to bring the Lord’s justice and healing to the dark places.
Blaire Pilkington from Exodus Cry (www.exoduscry.com) shared this story about how the Lord used the prayers of people to combat human trafficking:
“[There was] a prayer meeting on February 5th, 2007. Benjamin Nolot had received a burden from God for Human Trafficking. Several hundred intercessors joined the call and together they cried out to God for a breakthrough. The very next day, one of the largest human trafficking busts in history occurred involving 2,400 arrests in 77 countries.”
I remember that day. I was living in Ireland, tuning in to the International House of Prayer by live streaming. Tears poured down my face as I prayed along with them, thanking God that so many others were crying out for justice about this issue.
Whatever your age or financial means, you can definitely partner with the Lord in prayer, and cry out to Him for a breakthrough. Pray on your own. Pray in groups of two or three. Pray with your church. Believe me, the Lord will answer and will move heaven and earth.
You can visit here for a list of organizations working to combat human trafficking. Most of these organizations have set up safe homes to provide restoration and channels of reintegration for the victims.
About The Elite of the Weak: Weak because their hearts are broken for the oppressed. Elite because they keep the code. Hadassah isn’t like the rest of her friends in high school. Neither is she like the kids in her church’s youth group. At least not when she’s in the African jungle trying to rescue an abducted child, or when she’s crawling through an air duct on a surveillance mission in Queens. She was born for such a time as this. She also wasn’t cut out to do this work alone. Book 1 of the Revelation Special Ops series.
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Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas! DAY THREE
Enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from some of today’s most beloved writer’s (Tricia Goyer, Suzanne Woods Fisher, Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, Sibella Giorello and more)! Please follow the series through Christmas day as each contributor shares heartfelt stories of how God has touched a life during this most wonderful time of the year.
AND just for fun … there’s also a giveaway! Fill out this simple {form} and enter for a chance to win a beautiful pearl necklace and earring set ($450 value). Contest runs 12/14 – 12/25 and the winner will on 1/1. Contest is only open to US and Canadian residents. You may enter once per day.
If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.
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Where is Comfort and Joy Found?
By Sandy Ralya
The year 2006 ushered unwelcome emotions into my life. My husband was unhappy in his job, two of my grown children were making poor choices, my mother-in-law was showing signs of Alzheimer’s, extended-family issues were surfacing, and I was writing a book. Things only got worse. Much worse.
Early in 2007, I was asked to represent the mentoring ministry for wives I founded, Beautiful Womanhood, and lead a women’s conference in Uganda, Africa. My husband wasn’t sure if traveling to Africa was a good idea, so we committed it to prayer. While we were listening for an answer, I sensed God asking me to fast from spending, except for groceries, for thirty days. Sometimes you know that you’ve heard God’s voice because you’d never have come up with those words on your own. This was one of those times. I’d never heard of a fast from spending. Tom needed no convincing that a fast from spending came directly from the mouth of God. He still gets excited just thinking about it!
During the fast, it became clear I had used spending as a way to gain a comfort fix. When I was spending money, I felt carefree and lighthearted. Instead of dwelling on the unpleasantness in my life, I was thinking of my purchases and how they would bring me pleasure. Not until I stopped spending did I realize how short-lived the fix really was. During the fast, when I felt the urge to spend—to anesthetize my pain—I pictured myself running into the arms of Jesus, the Great Comforter. Oh, what comfort I received!
One night, I told good friends my experience of gaining comfort through the power of the Holy Spirit rather than money. I exclaimed that I had never felt so comforted. One friend then told us about a dream he’d had shortly after hearing about the invitation from Uganda. After the dream, he had awoken and recorded the following thoughts:
“. . . this is for Sandy. Christ’s redemption of women is beautiful. Beautiful Womanhood is a result of redemptive wholeness. The visuals the ministry uses on the books, etc., are like a piece of beautifully veneered furniture. There is something going on with the ministry to the brokenness of abused women. In Uganda, there are hurting, abused women, and something is connecting their need and Beautiful Womanhood. Though there is nothing wrong with veneer, it is only the topping—the covering, and without good structure it is shallow and will not hold up. It is time to add a new depth to the ministry.”
Then these verses came to my friend’s mind:
All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 NL
When my friend was finished sharing, everyone in the room broke down in tears, praising God for His work in my life. I’d learned to listen and God had spoken. I’d obeyed, and He’d acted. When He acted, I was changed.
Needless to say, I packed my bags and experienced some of the best days of my life in Uganda—offering God’s comfort to His troubled women.
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Sandy and her husband Tom have been married since 1980 and live near Grand Rapids, Michigan. They have three adult children and a growing number of grandchildren. When not writing and speaking, Sandy enjoys shopping at yard sales for vintage clothing, cooking, travelling, and drinking really good coffee (black is best) with her husband. For more information, contact Sandy at sandy@beautifulwomanhood.com. Subscribe to Sandy’s blog at www.beautifulwomanhood.com/blog. Find Sandy on Facebook at Beautiful Womanhood. Follow Sandy on Twitter @MentoringWives.
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