Today I had the opportunity to share Sex Trafficking 101 with about 20 high school juniors in a Social Justice class. The teacher asked me to connect this social justice issue to human dignity and worth. It was awesome because that's easy to do when you are sitting in a private school since human dignity and worth comes directly from God.
I talked extensively about God's imprinting us with his image and our search to fill an impression that was only meant to be filled by God. Like a hand-print placed on our hearts that only the person who put it there can fill. Other things and people can attempt to, but they will be too small or too big. This substitution fill will leave us either searching for something more or overwhelmed and consumed by something that is so big we can't carry it. The hand-print can only be filled by God (it's creator) and when we allow him to fill it, we find our identity. We find our God given purpose and we find wholeness. Each of us has God's image in us, we just don't realize it. Realizing it involves acknowledging that when we see each other, we should see each other with dignity and worth because we are all children of God. We are all intricately connected. And when we look at each other we should realize that we are looking at God.
At end of the day, I wanted the reality of all that I had shared to sink into each of them. Why is it important to see people in this way? Why is social justice important? I had all of the girls in the class stand up. It just so happened that there were 11 of them and they were three in three rows and 2 in the last row. These young ladies all stood and I said, please understand that I want to share with you a statistic that is shocking and will hurt a bit, but my intention is not to hurt you, but instead to make this real for you. And I'm not naive enough to think that this might not already be real. I counted them out loud and asked each student to look at each other. And then I shared...
Class, the unfortunately statistic is this...it is from the UN Millennium Project...1 in 3 women will be victims of rape or attempted rape in their lifetime. The look on their face was indescribable. The guys in the room had a visible change in them. I continued with the class explaining that this statistic is NOT fair. It's not fair that one girl in each row statistically speaking will experience sexual violence before the end of her life. It's not fair that the responsibility has been placed on her shoulders. It's not fair that something more isn't being done to change it. The truth is --this statistic wouldn't be true if each and everyone of us began to see God in ourselves and God in others. If we began to respect, love and protect, not only ourselves, but others, if we began to live Micah 6:8 (To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.)
Social justice matters and 16-17 year old kids CAN make a difference! There's no question about it! They can change the world! And it starts with our walking the straight line!
I'm excited to see where this class goes! And praying for kingdom breakthrough through these kids in powerful ways!!!!
We had a wonderful response to the panel discussion that our founder, Sharon was invited to sit on yesterday on the National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. It was an amazing way to get the word out about how to love without expectation and without limitation! Not all sex workers are trafficked, some have made a choice that most people could never understand or ever take the time to understand, all no matter their circumstances deserve to be loved unconditionally!! Jesus' love for sex workers is as great as his love for the "religious"!
Many sex workers, in both the legal adult entertainment industry and illegal sex industry, however, have been victims of trafficking or other heinous crimes and for these victims we must help to provide adequate advocacy, support, encouragement and healing! This panel opened a genuine discussion about how faith and spirituality play a positive role in healing from the trauma of sex crimes.
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_Did you know?- Human Trafficking in the 2nd largest and fastest growing criminal activity in the world!
- Toledo is #4 in the nation in terms of arrests & investigations and rescues in sex trafficking.
- 80% of victims are women and 50% are children.
- The Church is called to fight this injustice!
- You don't have to do it alone! Or reinvent the wheel!!! There are organizations in Toledo already fighting the battle! You can partner with them!!!!
Here's 6 ways that your Church can fight Human Trafficking right here in Toledo: 1) FREEDOM SUNDAY - Invite The Free2BMe Project, The Daughter Project, Second Chance, or STOP (all local Toledo organizations combating sex trafficking right here in our home town) to speak (or have a presence) at your Church on SUNDAY, February 26th. 2) Pray - Commit as a Church to pray for freedom in all forms: physical, spiritual and emotional for trafficking victims and survivors. Pray for the above mentioned organizations, the leadership and their volunteers.The A21 Campaign has an awesome prayer guide(http://thea21campaign.org/downloads/a21prayerguide2010.pdf) 3) Build awareness - Educate your Church - host a human trafficking event at your church, recommend books and films that speak on the issue. 4) Localize the issue! Don't keep pretending it's not happening here! We are #4 in the nation! Human trafficking exists in EVERY city! 5) Put information in your bulletin or on your pre-service big screen! 6) Coordinate and lead a donations drive: All of the above organizations need monetary help to fulfill their missions, as well as numerous items to help in their efforts. Also don't forget Cherry Street Mission's Women's Division for new clothes, socks, personal hygiene and much more. Many of their guests are sex trafficking survivors! _
“But this is a people robbed
and plundered; they are all
of them snared in holes
and hidden in houses of
bondage. They have
become a prey, with no one to
deliver them, a spoil, with no one
to say, Restore them!”
Isaiah 42:22
Free2BMe has been busy playing elves for Santa! Last weekend we had our first ever Breakfast for Santa for the children of the women we serve! The event was held at the Eastern YMCA and we had our very own visit from Santa Claus! The kids had fun and we were even able to invite Y guests to join in on the fun!
We have also been working on blessing the ladies we serve with Christmas gifts for their children. Several churches and organizations partnered with us this year to make Christmas happen for several families! Thank you to Genesis Christian Fellowship, Madison Church of the Nazarene and Bay Park Community Hospital.
We also want to send a thank you to Nu-Vizion for our new partnership for our Praise & Prayer Gatherings. They have generously opened their building to Free2BMe once a month! We are excited about this ministry partnership!
Thursday, October 6th through Sunday October 9th, The Free2BMe Project and many of our friends and supporters gave our time and energy to loving and serving the Cherry Street Missions' Sparrow's Nest! The Sparrow's Nest is a woman's shelter in central city Toledo.
One of the coolest parts of this project was the "art therapy" that we had the women participate in. We brought blank canvas' for the women to paint with their own designs.They turned out fabulous! This outreach project was such a blessing to each of us who participated! The ladies we met were amazing! And after hearing their stories we all realized that their stories could have been any one of ours!
 While I worked in the legal sex industry for three years as an adult, my journey began long before I ever entered the club and said "sign me up!" It's hard, real hard to have to look at my life in honest ways and admit that I was a victim of human sex trafficking. Back then, I didn't even consider the facts of my life, the circumstances as part of something that encouraged me to walk into a club and say "Yes, I want to be an exotic dancer." I just knew by 14 years old that's what I wanted to do. But the reality is...that decision, that path was set long before I turned 18 and entered the legal sex industry.
My story is not the story of every woman in the legal sex industry! My story is just that...my story! I realize that many share in my story. Many women in the legal sex industry were victimized as children--abused, raped, touched, sold...but I know many who do not have those recollections, who would tell you they had great childhoods and that they have simply made an empowered choice or that this was where their adult life has found them. No matter the reason they are there, they are no less loved by God than any other person.
The reality of world today is such that there is legalized sex industry and there is an illegal sex trade...where people (women, men, boys and girls) are being forced, coerced, blackmailed into use their bodies for someone else's profit or gain. This should not be happening.
The Free2BMe Project unconditionally loves women in the sex industry --- no matter how they ended up there! Whether it was their choice or a choice made for them by circumstance or other people. We love dancers, managers, floor walkers, door persons, bartenders, dj's, janitors, house moms, owners...everyone in gentlemen's clubs across Toledo! It is our honor to journey with them! And we believe that they are all passionately loved by a HUGE God, who does not push them aside, like our world often does. He loves them right where they are. I know this to be true because I know that God loved me while I danced, that he was with me and that he was watching over me.
Free2BMe does what we can to bring awareness to the children who are caught up in the illegal sex trade. Sex trafficking is a part of my story, and unfortunately it is a part of our crazy world! I had opportunity last month to share my story at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio for the Southwest Ohio Nazarene Church. One thousand people learned about the horrors of child sex trafficking, but praise God when they hear my story they also hear how God calls His people to not look down on the adults (men and women) working in the legal sex industry, but to instead embrace them with unconditional love, to see them as everyday normal people. When they hear my story, they get to hear about how beautiful and precious women in the sex industry are, how to treat them with respect and love and how to love like God does.
God can use our stories in powerful ways. I'm so excited that I am no longer hiding, but instead that I'm able to live a free life because of Jesus Christ--a life in which I am free to be me!
How often are women objectified? We thought we'd turn the tables for a day!!! We asked some of male supporters to come out and raise some money to help fund The Free2BMe Project at the first ever Reverse Bikini Car Wash in Oregon, Ohio. It was a complete success! We raised $334 which will help us provide resources and gifts to women in the sex industry! Thank you to everyone for coming out to support such a great caused!
The Free2BMe Project was invited to share a workshop and have a booth at the Church of the Nazarene's Missions 2011 Conference in Louisville, KY. These are pictures from our experience!
These experiences are always priceless! And we were unsure of how we would be accepted. It went very well! And we were able to share our philosophy with several hundred Christians. We were able to share our heart for women in the industry in a very powerful way! God truly blessed us through this experience and hearts were changed for his glory!
On Saturday, November 13, 2010, The Free2BMe Project was the guest of Lifeline Ministries & The Servant Leadership Center of Toledo at the Fall Gala Gathering hosted by Toledo Area Ministries. The theme was "Come Together." All participants came together as a team in an attempt to fundraise so that they might continue to solve problems in our communities and pave the way for a better and bright future in Toledo. Second Chance was respresented, as well as Cherry Street Mission and many other awesome organizations that are loving and serving our community.
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