The world has been shining a light on human trafficking for years and there are so many organizations around the world and people who are working diligently to end it. I stepped into the trafficking world in January of 2012 when I went to a Passion Conference while I was in college. The theme of the conference was to challenge indifference and fight human slavery. I was torn by the injustice that I saw playing out in the world both on a national and international level, and I was motivated to act. The scripture that God imprinted on my heart during that time was Matthew 25:35-40.
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I realized that by choosing to be indifferent about injustice that I was actually allowing those things to happen on my watch and in my generation.
At that point, I had no idea where God would lead me or that a few years later I would be raising money to build a refuge home for women rescued out of the sex industry in Peru. But I did know that it was my job and every single believer’s job to act and to do something. Here a few resources and fountains of information that you can look into and also some practical ways to help fight human trafficking.
Practical advice:
- Social media is so awesome and I love the way that we all work together to expose injustice. But if you are going to share a post or paint a red “x” on your hand, I encourage you to actually invest your time and money into the cause. Volunteer and give your time. Become a foster parent. Invest money into a trustworthy organization. Support a missionary. Join an outreach ministry. Do more than just put it on social media.
- Don’t wait until later. Don’t wait to volunteer until you have time. Don’t wait to give until you have extra money. Make the time by planning ahead and intentionally set the money aside. Waiting until later can easily become never. I really believe that the enemy’s most successful scheme against the body of Christ is tricking us into waiting until later and prolonging that until it becomes never.
- Start where you are with what you have. Find the people who are already working in your community and join their effort. A huge part of stopping human trafficking is prevention. People are more likely to become victims of human trafficking when they are in a desperate circumstance. Is there a homeless shelter in your community? Is there a soup kitchen? Is there an after school program that you could volunteer with? A young girls group that you could invest time into? A support group for young single moms? Would you consider being a foster parent? All of these are ways that you can invest into the prevention of trafficking by investing into marginalized individuals.
- Utilize this list (below) that we have compiled for you. Read the articles. Don’t just skim them. Check out the organizations. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you and show you exactly where to get involved.
General Trafficking Information:
Your Impact:
Organizations:
Resources:
Fair Trade:
General articles to read:
7 Facts About Human Trafficking
Articles to read about PERU:
Inequality blamed for trafficking
Peru has third most trafficking victims in the Americas
Standing alongside you to fight for the broken,
Ellyn Hunt
[…] an anti-trafficking training program offered by Out of Darkness in Atlanta. I didn’t have the trafficking lingo yet. I didn’t know what Jons or Natashas were. I didn’t know what “the life” was. I […]