Drops of Dew

After an evening of outreach, our group began talking about how we sometimes get discouraged because we want so much for these precious women to be freed from the life they are living. I began to picture these women as beautiful flowers and the words of love we speak to them as drops of dew on their petals.  I pictured our words as a drop of refreshment into their dry world.  It refreshes them at the time and place they are right at that moment.   

Perhaps our words are all they can “drink in” at the moment.  Any more would drown them. 
 

We have to trust that God is placing other drops of dew on their petals and that in His perfect time, when they are ready, he will pour out his flood of love to them.  Love that is perfectly satisfying, perfectly quenching, life giving.
 

Drops of Dew

 

I stand wilted in the hot sun

My petals dry and parched

A moment of relief

A drop of dew

 

Moist, Refreshing. 

but does not penetrate

It clings and lingers,

A glimmer of hope

 

Drops of dew collect on my petals. 

They pool together

They form a stream

that runs down my stem.

 

The water penetrates

and sinks deep into my roots. 

Bringing refreshment

Hope rises up

 

Now comes the rain 

perfectly quenching,

perfectly satisfying

I am beautiful again

 

The End Times for Human Trafficking

Our message at church recently was about Apocalyptic Compassion.  Our pastor talked about our fascination with post apocalyptic movies.  These movies all have the same dark plot where the End Times have come.  The world as we know it has been destroyed and is marked by violence and chaos.  In these movies, the people have learned to just live in the circumstances of their situation.  They have learned to accept that this is the way things are and do nothing to change it.

Sometimes I think we have this attitude toward the issue of Human Trafficking.  The problem is so bad what difference can we possibly make?  We think this issue to too big and runs too deep. We say, well it's not affecting me personally.  We think that there will always be a demand for sex, and a hunger for power and money.  How could possibly eliminate this issue?

But we need to change our mindset from "I can't" to "How Can I?"
If we can't envision the world without Human Trafficking then how can we ever expect it?

If we fall victim to a defeatist attitude we will do nothing. But if we expect that God will do something, then our perspective and actions will be different. We will be motivated to be active in the great work that God is accomplishing.

We are called to reach out to the lost, the hurting and the broken.  We are called to have compassion for them.

We can learn from Mary's example in John 12 where she uses an expensive perfume to anoint Jesus.   The story takes place 1 week before Jesus would die on the cross.  But Mary, knowing the End was near for Jesus did not despair and give up.  She chooses to use this time to pour out her heart to bless Jesus. She demonstrated apocalyptic compassion.

Isaiah 58:10 tells us that if we spend ourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then our light will rise in the darkness, and our night will become like the noonday.

Part of the reason these movies are so popular is that there is always a heroic restoration.  There is someone or some group who steps in to save the day.  To make things right.  To offer a new beginning.

We need to declare that this is the End Times for Human Trafficking! 

 

 

The world tells the victims "You don't matter." 

We can show them that they do!

We can reveal God's power to a hurting world. 

We can give them A New Beginning

We Stand Together

Remember the children's game Red Rover?  There are two teams and each team links hands with their teammates. The two teams would stand facing one another and one team would call out,

"Red Rover, Red Rover, send Billy over"

If your name was the one called, your mission was to run at full speed and attempt to break through the human chain that opposed you.  If the chain was strong enough you would not be able to break through. 

Imagine what the game would be like if everyone lined up and stood next to each other, but did not link arms.  Each person just stood with their arms down to their side, doing their own thing.  Maybe the person chosen to run is bigger that you and you're afraid of getting hurt.  Perhaps you don't like the teammate next to you and don't want to hold their hand.  Maybe you've never won at this game before so why should now be any different?  How easy would it be for the other team to break through?

Obviously, this scenario wouldn't work.  The object of the game is to link arms, making you stronger, and making it as difficult as possible for someone to get through.   

This simple children's game is a great illustration of what needs to happen in the fight against human trafficking. I picture each person as an organization with their arms linked to another.  Each one with a different name; churches, non-profits, government agencies, businesses, law makers, after care programs, individuals - all standing together, arms linked in a united front saying NO! 

"We stand together and Pimps and Traffickers are no longer getting through!"

Ecclesiastes 4:12 New Living Translation (NLT) 
A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. 

I love the NLT version of Ecclesiastes 4:12 because it says we can conquer.  It doesn't matter if the person coming towards us is bigger than us or if the traffickers have been the ones winning at this game for far too long.  We can create partnerships and work together and we can conquer!

We are actually beginning to see collaboration in the Chicago area.  Many organizations and churches are sharing resources and volunteers. It's a beautiful thing to see. 

No one person, organization or church can do it all.  We do what we can with how God has equipped us.  When we link arms and stand together, we create a barrier against the evil of human trafficking and together we can create change.