Fly With Me?

Just in case you were wondering, signing up to raise $10,000 for the She's Worth It Campaign in one month is one of the scariest things I have ever done.

I have learned that people in my generation have a thing for causes. This is to our glory and to our detriment. There was something about 9/11 that radically rewired our brains to deeply desire to help others in tangible ways. I read about a study years ago about the turning tide back into the trade industry. It's like terrorists not only took lives and buildings, but also tore down the walls we had built up around our humanity.

There is something about justice and the trendy causes that have always tugged my heart. The kind of justice that stands up courageously against INJUSTICE. I have for many years thought that this tug for setting the broken world right, was something that was an optimistic fable fed to me by the media.

And maybe there is a truth ring to that, but what I'm finding is that this pressing, tugging, momentous urge towards JUSTICE is a mirror reflection of the image of my maker. As I am swept into the over-arching love story of God to us, I see a God who is radical about justice. God is a God of justice.

God is just. And rightfully so. If he wasn't, then I would have a VERY hard time standing in awe before him. Because I want justice. I want persecutors to "get what's coming to them", I want slaves to go free and captors to be punished, I want the lawless to be brought before judge and jury tp pay for their crimes. I need justice in this world. It gives me hope in a way that not much else can.

But God is not only just, he is also merciful, and this too resides in me. Mercy as it pertains to scripture is most often connected to God WITHHOLDING judgement. The bible is brimming with examples of this character trait of God. Jesus preaching the sermon on the mount in Matthew 5:43-48 showcases this well:

"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (ESV).

Mercy meets Justice in the way God is perfect. And though I will never be perfect, I have been given the gift of redemption, through the most precious moment of God's Justice intertwining with his radical heart of Mercy: Jesus on the Cross, squarely fit both pieces of God's character. Now when I sin against God and he requires Justice, I have standing before me Jesus Christ who mercifully steps in to take my place.

It seems that the most transformational moments of grace are when they are combined with justice. And here is where knowledge becomes something otherworldly. Because I am made in the image of God and carry with me (on all points in this journey of sanctification) the Imago Dei, then the most radical hope I can have, is when I mirror not only justice or grace, but both together.

 

This is the space where trafficking becomes real for me. For the longest time, I learned of this terrible reality that our broken world actively participates in, I read books, wrote blogs, watched documentaries, wrote papers for school, read blogs, and more. I was a massive sponge for information. I took in as much as I could find. These are not easy realities, with simple solutions. The vastness of this issue, and the enormous hold it has at a world wide level is unfathomable. Taking the time I did to see the multifaceted breadth of Human Trafficking was innately important.

But listening is not enough. At some point you simply become a sieve, information bloats and stagnates, and ultimately you will begin to lose precious information. This happened to me. I became smelly and stale as I continued in my American Consumerist patterns, losing my passion for people as they became overwhelming numbers. Danielle Vermeer wrestles with this reality in her own life and shares:

"You are educated far beyond your level of obedience. Now is the season for being obedient to God's call on my life by sharing my knowledge and experiences on human trafficking with others."

As I have second guessed my partnership with She's Worth It Campaign, these words washed over me in sweet relief. Am I a fundraiser? No way! Am I the best person for this job? Far from it. Will my small voice address the enormity of the issue, or be a perfect representation of justice and mercy? Eh, it will be a mere raindrop in the ocean. But has God called me to this specific battle field? Absolutely.  

Here I am, armed, equipped, prepared and engaged, yet it is all for nought if I never step foot onto the field, and actually fight for what I believe in. I am only another glutton for knowledge feeding on sensationalized media until I burst.

I believe that for me, this means using my voice, my platform and my influence for the glory of God, and to fight human trafficking.

Slavery is not ok. It comes in many forms. The black and white reality of slave labor harvesting cocoa beans on the Ivory Coast for the chocolate industry, and the grey fuzzy lines that surround prostitutes, pimps and the pornography industry. This problem affects children, women, men, and changes how we look at fair-trade, free trade, and what has been termed the sex industry.

This is not going to be an easy battle, nor do I suggest simple solutions. But I do believe in adding my voice to the growing number of people who think it's time somethings changed in the way we live our lives. I am an abolitionist and I will stand for freedom and the sanctity of every human life. I do not have all the answers, or even complete sustainable solutions, but I do have a call on my life, and I cannot keep silent.

I am learning the sacred moment when knowledge sprouts wings and becomes something closer to wisdom. It was about time for this girl to leave the nest. Which just so happens to be terrifying. I'm just learning how to do this, I'm getting stronger, but still finding my voice. Will you fly with me?

The She’s Worth It Campaign is gaining momentum every day! Add your voice to our growing movement! Join my little army here and help us raise $10,000 for Indian Rescue Mission and The Klein Frank Foundation. Be brave, let your wings grow!

 

 

Courage & Hope

This is 2013 my year of Courageous Hope.

You know the kind of year that makes things happen, because courage doesn't mean hiding and because hoping is dreaming with feet to stand on.

I have some insanely hopeful ideas that I will be sharing with you throughout the year. Some are big, some are little, but all take more than just a bit of bravery and more than a bit of looking at the world not as it is, but as it should be.

 

Printed Courage on ETSY

The first one is simple in thought, but maybe a the most difficult in reality. 

 

I want to see an end to slavery in my lifetime. 

 

Yup that's right.

End it. 

February is Black History Month and as I look back into American History and see what has happened in our past, something deep rises up inside me as I see people fight willing to fight for justice.

 The history of our civil war is where people fought, bled and died for freedom. The history of brave souls defying the laws and treasuring life so deeply, they began to do whatever it took to get those in bondage to freedom. I remember Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Rosa Parks, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Martin Luther King Jr., who culled their unique talents and creativity to change the course of our history. 

I look in our history and see courage, vravery, and people willing to give their lives for what they believed in.

 Friends we are in dire need of some of that same character today. This applies to all issues of justice, not simply the one I wave a banner for. The world we live in is dark and twisty. There are many injustices that we need to fight against, but the one that I want to bring to your attention today is the reality of modern day slavery. If you have walked with my blog for a bit, then you have read my reactions to this horrendous reality, or you may have heard me speak on this issue. If you are new to this conversation, let me try to unravel your confusion quickly. 

 Slavery is real. It is happening today. Slaves make a lot of American clothing, they harvest our food abroad, but also in the states, and the most vile reality is that women, and young girls (aged younger than you can stomach) are tricked, coerced, brainwashed, beaten and defiled, used and drugged, then sold for sex acts, and pornography. The reality of this is hard to think about, but the numbers are even harder to understand because they are just too big to imagine.

 There are an estimated 27 million people enslaved all over the world today. That is the almost the same amount of people as the ENTIRE state of Texas

 I know what you are thinking, that's just problem in other countries, right? Wrong. We just celebrated Super Bowl Sunday as a nation. The lowball estimate of young girls and women that were shipped against their will into New Orleans for the explicit use of sex, is about 10,000. That would be as if we packed up every single person living in Monument, and Manitou Springs and moved them out.

Well, then this doesn't happen in Colorado Springs though, that's just big city problems, right? Wrong again. 

According to Stop Child Trafficking now 2.8 million children run away in the U. S. each year. It is estimated that within 48 hours of hitting the streets one-third of those children are lured or recruited by sex traffickers. Go down to Urban Peak and ask them about this stat and they will tell you that in Colorado Springs the numbers are the same.

After I got saved this issue became a hot topic for me. I wrote papers on it, I posted blogs about it, I went to documentary viewings, and conferences, and here's the thing, I'm done listening. I am an abolitionist. I want to see slavery end in my lifetime. This will take Courage, Bravery and being willing to stand up for what I believe in. 

So for the month of February I along with Stephanie Zellar and Lani Rankin, are looking to raise an army of people who are willing to help us. Partnering with the She's Worth It Campaign we are looking for 100 people who will use their influence courageously, by asking 10 of their friends for donations of $10. We are bravely asking to raise $10,000  by the end of this month for two amazing organizations.

1) Indian Rescue Mission Indian Rescue Mission is out for the help and support of impoverished and abandoned little children, to change their destiny for eternity by providing Justice. We love to see these victims from clutches of poverty, discrimination, illiteracy and exploitation and become dynamic personality with a bright future. Irrespective of their religious background or any other social discrimination, we count them as Gods very own and seek to eliminate child sex trafficking in India. 

Our funds will directly go to fund two months of rescues, the hiring of two social workers to meet with rescued girls, or to aid the director for the sewing project that reaches out to women currently trapped in prostitution. http://www.indianrescuemission.org

2) Klein Frank Foundation The mission of the Klein Frank Foundation, a 501c(3) non-profit corporation, is to stop human trafficking whether it be in the sex trade or indentured labor through these values. We are here to inspire, support, grow, and succeed together. 

We are looking to raise funds that will go towards building a phone app linking ALL US healthcare providers to trafficking screening tools in ALL languages, for a training video to be distributed across the US to help professionals recognize the signs of trafficking and for a Colorado State Employee to manage the fund comprised of fines generated from Johns for police and restoration programs. Find out more about their local programs here: http://www.init2endit.com/

Will you be courageous with us? Will you bravely stand for freedom? Will you help us in this mission to see slavery end in our lifetime? We really need your help, these girls are desperate for our help. I would love to answer your questions so please leave a comment, and please be praying for what your part in this movement to end slavery can be. I believe that slavery can end in my lifetime, and that She Is Worth It! Will you be one of our 100? We would love for you to join us! Click here to give!