lackadaisical.

Us -  “How can we pray with you tonight”

Her – “Oh, I got raped last night, so for protection. Pray that I don’t get raped again tonight”

Jaime continues on to pray with this girl and I just sat there as righteous anger boiled up within me.

She said it so calmly, so lackadaisical, as if it were a frequent prayer request….. as if rape was something that happened so common that she was numb to it.

She was the third woman that night to tell us she was raped.

Women shouldn’t have to live in fear of being raped.

Women shouldn’t have to live in fear of being raped twice in twenty-four hours.

I can’t think of anything more demeaning and demoralizing than rape.
I can’t think of something that makes a woman feel more unworthy.

When God sent Jesus so that we may have life and have it in abundance rape was not a part of that abundance. I just kept asking myself over and over again “God….. what kind of world do we live in?” What kind of world do we live in where men rape women? And worse, what kind of world do we live in where we know that this happens and we do n.o.t.h.i.n.g.? What kind of world do we live in where the City of Detroit Police Department has 11,000 rape kits sitting in their evidence room that havent been tested because they are from prostitutes?

And these are the sort of nights that keep us awake, these are the sort of nights that stir our spirits, these are the kind of nights that turn our stomachs at the disgusting reality of what happens minutes from our front doors.

“If we have hands like God and arms like Christ

we’d reach far we’d take each scar

and we’d never measure the length

we’d never hesitate

we’d never take the time to just think about it and wait

we’d stretch so far we’d have stretch marks of faith

because some people only know the comfort of their chains

some people think God only looks like their abusive fathers face

some people don’t even know there is a possibility to be saved

because they don’t know what we know

that love isn’t something you pay for

lust isn’t something you pay for

sex isn’t something you pay for

sin is something you pay for

and that price has already been paid for

with the blood of a savior

whose arms stretch so far they stretch through time

with limitless relentless restoring grace

who in our world needs to hear that today

who right beside you needs some truth today

who is your neighbor beat up and bleeding

ignored and needing on the side of the way

who is broken in bondage

in that side of the world or on this side of the street

Because they are someone beautiful

they are someone valuable

blood was shed because

they were meant to be someone free”

-Hosanna Wong

the ninety-nine

Part two.

We started outreach on Monday night with the same prayer we ended Sunday with, “God please don’t let us see her…” – we really wanted her to leave the streets, we really wanted her to pursue the stirring in her heart, we really wanted her to encounter the fullness of God and the abundance He has for her. Seeing her meant she didn’t go to rehab.

From an outsiders perspective one may think this is a simple decision, if you want to get off the streets then you can leave at any time… but it is not like that, not in the slightest. Leaving the streets because you are arrested is easy because you are being forced. Leaving the streets because you are sick is easy because you have no other choice. Leaving the streets because you are choosing to get clean from drugs and because you believe in yourself is not easy. Drugs suck you in, manipulate your mind, control your thoughts, and take power of your will.

If drugs are not enough to keep you the chaos of life is. The streets suck you in and pull you into a whirlwind of self-damnation with a whisper of ‘this is all you are good enough for…’ The streets tell a girl she isn’t worthy and if the streets don’t kill her the drugs will.

We prayed with over forty people Monday night. Stopped at a few crack houses, prayed with drug lords, held hands with hopeless women, heard the desperate cries “I just want off the streets”….

As the sun went down over Detroit and the scarcity of street lights flickered… we hadn’t seen her yet. We drove to the crack house we found her at on Sunday and were greeted by the same man… he asked if we were looking for her again and we said we were…. He walked into the crack house, his voice echoed to the streets as he called her name… but there wasn’t a response… he came out of the house and said “I saw her earlier…. She looked so great, she was all dressed up, her hair was done, she said she was leaving and then she left….”

I love how God works because even in that moment as joyous as our hearts were we saw that the harvest was still plentiful and right in front of us. We asked our new friend what happened to his nose, which was so obviously in poor shape…. He shared he was in an altercation and his right nostril was ‘ripped’ off….. so we prayed over him and asked God to grow that back, to rebuild cartilage, to heal him. We told him we would be back on Monday again and expectantly looked forward to seeing a healed nose. She may have left but new relationships built from her exit. Even when the one sheep comes back… there is still 99 more to tend to…

As we drove off, Jaime and I put in our calendars “_________ left the streets today” with a yearly reminder. A yearly reminder that she is worthy, she is good enough, she has a plan… We have learned that God is stronger than any force of a drug addiction, any force of mind manipulation, any force of control –when He puts something in our hearts nothing can stop us. The one sheep returned, but we still have ninety-nine more...... ninety-nine more sheep that need to know about God's redemptive love... ninety-nine more that have a story to fulfill....

What we couldn’t do for ourselves Christ perfected.

the one

I think one of the sweetest things that AWOL has adopted from Donna’s leadership with 70x7 is that she always began ministry and ended ministry in prayer. Each week before we hit the streets our team unites in prayer with expectant hearts and each night we end outreach with filled hearts because God always goes above and beyond our expectations for the night. I love that His word says He prepares good works in advance for us. It’s so comforting to know that it is Him doing all of this…. Not me, not Jaime, not our team or those who serve alongside us… but HIM.

On Sunday we had plans to meet up with the girl I blogged about here. We showed up at 2pm like arranged and then we waited….and waited… truly the thought of her not showing up didn’t cross my mind. I knew we would see her and my mind was resolved on that. At 2:23pm I looked at Jaime and said that doubt had entered my mind and for the first time I thought we weren’t going to see her that day. So in normal Jaime fashion she said “well duh LF let’s just go find her”. We had no idea where she lived because any time that we had gone to her house it was dark out and after going to multiple houses in one night everything sort of bunches together. So we prayed and asked the Holy Spirit to tell us where she lived. Jaime got a word and so we followed through on it and went looking for her word… two streets later we saw a street sign with the word she got in the name of the street….so we went down it. Very quickly in we realized this street was familiar and we had been on it before…. Then we saw the house and we laughed because last time we knocked on the door to this house we were pretty sure we were going to die. But, we both thought that was the house so we went and knocked on the door. Sure enough, it was her house but she wasn’t home. The woman who answered the door told us to go back to the corner she usually is at and wait for her. So we did.. and nothing.

We had driven around and then driven some more and each time we got to this one specific street I turned right. So on the 4^th or 5^th time down this street Jaime says “LF go straight” so I did, passing my right turn. Then Jaime said “wait…. Didn’t we go to a house on this street once before and she was at a house on the corner down here…. Remember the house that you got out of the van and totally bit it and fell on your butt”…. Yeah I remembered, I also remembered Jaime laughing hysterically at me. We pulled up to the house on the corner and thought we would go knock on the door. A man across the street hollered at us and asked if we were looking for _______ and we said yes and he said she was inside that house. So we knocked on the door, someone answered, opened the door, and then walked away… it was eerie. So the guy said “you want me to go in and get her…. You her family” we said “yeah” so he did… and sure enough she came out. She hugged me and said she loved us so much and was so sorry, but she couldn’t have lunch… She told us she was still planning on leaving the streets for rehab the next day.

We drove off and we had a great peace… I think the day was more about her knowing she was worth going after, worth pursuing, worth looking for. People need to know that they are worthy of love. People need to know that someone cares enough about them to seek them out. People need to know that when they don’t show up that they are missed. People need to know that they are worth the extra mile. Just as God lead us to where she was – He is also leading her to where she is going….

What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? Matthew 18:12

We left the neighborhood and our prayer was “God – please don’t let us see her tomorrow night….” because then it would mean she did what she was going to do… it would mean she left the streets, she went to rehab, and she was entering a journey of restoration…

So Monday happened…. Check back tomorrow ;)

54 and 12

Guest Post -- Written by AWOL President, Jaime

“He was the 54th person I knew that has died in 12 years. I’m not talking Facebook friends, I am talking 54 close - inner circle - friends of mine that have died in the last 12 years.”

My heart broke as one of the girls on the streets shared this story with us. Most of us will probably never see 54 close friends die, let alone have the opportunity to have 54 close friends. In a world where you see another friend die due to overdoses or murders as fast as you change your nailpolish, you have nothing left to do but find a new friend and wait for them to die. At least that is how it seems.

She continued on to talk about her 12 year old daughter and how if she died her daughter would never see her again. Her words, “if I die, I’m a nobody, Detroit isn’t going to contact my family, I’m just another dead girl” and as they came out of her mouth my heart sank even further. I come from the background where my brother was a nobody and Detroit couldn’t even tell my family he was dead until 2 weeks after the fact. The only person to see my brother again was my dad when a Detroit morgue vehicle pulled in our driveway and showed my dad his dead face for identification.

We never saw him again. No open casket. We literally never saw him again. And everyone deserves that.

And I told her that. I told her I never got to see my brother again and he died alone In a field in Detroit and nobody cared. And her daughter deserves to see her again. And she cried.

This was the first time ever she has expressed interest in leaving the streets. And for that we are hopeful because if we don’t have hope we have nothing. We will never lose hope for these girls. What we see seems impossible but we belong to a God who is the God of Impossible.

she was the impossibility...

God can answer a prayer in an instant. Last night we asked God to put two specific women in our path and immediately after those prayers we saw both women. God can answer a prayer in an instant but the word tells us to pray without ceasing – that means when the answer doesn’t happen immediately you keep knocking, seeking, and asking. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. – Habakkuk 2:3.

We see a lot of girls on the streets every week, most we see repeatedly, some once or twice and never again. Some girls we can see every week for a year and still not form a deep relationship with them and some we see continuously for a year and build a connection that is deeper than the one I share with my own neighbor. Some girls grip your heart the second you meet them, their face follows you home, and you find yourself praying for them all the time. There is one girl I met a year ago that I instantly loved the second I first met her. T’was love at first sight if you will. Something about her captivated me and I’ve seen God use her to speak into my life countless times. She is one of the faces we see every week that I take with me off the streets. The whole team loves her. She is the girl that you think will never leave the streets – she is the impossibility.

Last night while driving during outreach I said “Jesusssssss….. it would be SO COOL if you could just put ______ in our path!!!!” one block later… boom. “okay… now you are just showing off”. I jumped out of the car and gave her a big hug and told her how much I missed her and she kept telling us how much she loved us and wouldn’t let go. I think we must’ve hugged for a solid five minutes. As she gripped my arm with her hand and reached her other arm around my neck resting on my shoulder, she began sharing with our team how she tracked down her birth mom and left the streets for the first time on her own terms; she wasn’t arrested, wasn’t in jail, not sick…but wanted to leave. She was clean for four days and the happiest any of us have ever seen her.

She told us she had dreams and couldn’t live like this anymore. She told us she had a story, she had a testimony, that she was a human being and not just a prostitute….. she told us she was worthy of love.

We stood on that street corner for twenty minutes listening to her tell us about God’s restoration in her life. If ever I heard the gospel preached it was in that moment. We listened to her tell us that one day she would be riding around with us praying for the girls. We listened to her tell us that God had a plan for her life. She said she was saying good bye to the streets and hello to a new life. It was hands down one of the best moments of my entire life. Before she left Jaime grabbed her hand and looked her right in the eye and told her that God did have a purpose for her life, that she does have a plan and how much he loves her. She is the impossibility God made possible.

She walked away and I started to laugh and then I started to cry… an hour later our team was still in shock. It always blows my mind to see the Sovereignty of our God. How majestic and wondrous His ways are and how beautiful His plans unfold. God doesn’t see a prostitute or a drug addict, He sees His beloved. A whole year I’ve been praying for her….. for this moment, for last night…. To walk in the freedom God has for her. Glory.

Happy Anniversary AWOL!

Today is the one year anniversary of All Worthy of Love! Today is proof that dreams really do come true.

When AWOL first surfaced I was very hesitant. I did not want to start a ministry. I did not want the responsibility. After hearing the statistic that Americans spend $16 billion dollars on Valentine’s Day to show one person that they are worthy of love while $32 billion dollars a year is spent on the human trafficking industry that shows 27 million people that they are not worthy of love, my life was wrecked. I had heard that slavery still existed, I donated money, participated in awareness campaigns here and there but I was not personally affected. I wonder now how that could have ever been true? I was that person that knew about slavery but chose not to allow it to affect my life. I mean it makes sense, it really is an inconvenience to turn a deaf ear to the reality that there are more slaves today than there ever has been before in history. I use the word inconvenience because when that truth resounds in your heart and truly captures your attention it keeps you up at night, it clouds your mind, it surrounds your thoughts, it breaks your heart and takes you to a depth of grief you otherwise would not know.

I started this Facebook event six days before Valentine’s day 2012 and encouraged my 600 Facebook friends (I mean, I probably knew half of them, right?) to donate to an organization that was abolishing slavery to show all people that they are worthy of love in place of flowers and chocolates for one person. I really did not think anything would come from this. But on the 14^th of February 600 people turned into 7,000…. In six days. The consensus of this event was that the majority of the people invited truly had no idea slavery still existed. It was then that I knew I could never revert back into knowing and doing nothing. God began to break my heart to a level I had never known. I began to grieve for the innocent lives that were robbed. I began to feel the pain of bondage. I began to understand more deeply my Makers heart and the pain He feels for the 27 million. So I said yes. I said yes to be a voice for the voiceless. I said yes to being inconvenienced every day of the rest of my life in order to bring one person out of bondage. I said yes to what breaks God’s heart. I said yes to be a part of the solution. I said yes to whatever God wanted to do with my life. I said yes to stepping out in faith on a dream that all people would know they are worthy of love. I said yes.

It has been the absolute best decision I could have ever made next to saying Yes to the saving grace offered by my Savior, Jesus Christ.

The last year has been incredible. I mean I sit here and laugh at all the greatness that I’ve witnessed. If I have learned anything it is to follow your dreams. No matter what. Follow your dreams. What the world sees as impossible, God sees as possible. Even with that truth, I have felt discouraged and inadequate of making this dream a reality because the world says a twenty something year old cannot change a culturally accepted reality of slavery. The world says a young girl from Detroit cannot make any dent in an evil as large as slavery. But what the world says doesn’t hold a candle to what my God says. Yes, I cannot make a dent in slavery on my own --- but with the help of others who have said yes, we can all make a dent, we can all make a difference.  When I think of AWOL two main factors come to my mind:

1. I cannot do anything apart from God.

2. I can accomplish very little apart from a working with a team and being involved in a community.

So today on the one year anniversary – I am not more excited about today than any other day because I have done anything. I am more excited about today because I have single handedly witnessed God move and use a body to make a change. I have seen lives changed. I have seen girls leave the industry. I have seen lives restored and rescued. I have seen abolitionists rise up and say yes. I have seen girls freed from addiction. I have seen organizations come together rather than work in competition. I know that God is a God of justice and He will not stop until it rolls on like a river.

  

Thank you, Jaime Davis for your support, dedication, and heart to seek justice. Thank you for saying yes. I am so thankful to have you on this team and to have walked through the last year with you. You are an amazing President and AWOL is blessed to have you as a leader. Your audacious spirit and committed heart to loving the broken and breaking the chains of injustice encourage me. Thank you for being my sister, best friend, and ministry partner. I couldn’t imagine walking through the last year without you.

Thank you, Donna McCauley for believing in Jaime and me and welcoming us into the incredible ministry you lead. You have been a huge blessing to the two of us and your wisdom has forever changed us. I have never known a woman so obedient to God and so in love with His people. Because you said yes countless lives have come to know Christ, to know restoration, and to be freed from bondage. I cannot thank you enough for supporting AWOL and mentoring us as we walk in the path God has called us to. I love you Mama D!

To the AWOL team & Board of Directors --- greater things are still to be done – thank you for saying yes and for believing in a vision God gave me and being a part of the solution. Thank you for following God and for being HIS answer to injustice. You are world changers and it is an honor to work alongside you all in the abolition of slavery.

And to everyone that reads this, know these truths and let them resound in your heart -- God wants to use YOU to impact this world and no matter what anyone tells you – hear this, you are a world changer, you have a destiny, and your life serves a divine purpose…. SAY YES.

january.

We heard that January was a slow month. We heard that the streets were usually dismal. We heard the girls would be far and few between. We heard that January would be quiet. We heard the weatherman continually forecast temperatures colder than the previous week. Jaime, Jeana, and I entered the month of January with the expectation that everything we heard about January would be different this January…….

Our leader has spent the month of January off the streets but in prayer and fasting over the ministry and seeking the Lord for what is to come. For the first time in eleven years she commissioned three of us to the streets without her physically present…. She has lead this outreach for over 10 years so you understand her surprise when she hears this January is not slow, the streets are not dismal, the girls are not far and few between, and the month is not quiet.

Twenty girls this week, nineteen the last, two dozen the week before… and the numbers increase. But it is not about numbers. The streets are not slow this month because the Spirit is active. The streets are not dismal this month because the encounters have been mind blowing. The girls are not far and few between because no matter how dark of a place you find yourself in the light attracts you and draws you near. We have seen our regular girls and we have prayed with a lot of new girls. Even girls who are still in the womb… one of our girls is 5 days away from her due date and when I laid my hand on her stomach the baby suddenly became an acrobat – she knew the Spirit. The first night out Jeana said God told her to buy cheerios, so she did…. While we were out Jamie felt like she was supposed to give them to a specific girl who then responded “I have an 18 month old and a 6 year old and they both love cheerios, thank you!” We have been able to pass out coats, scarves, gloves, and most importantly hope to more girls than we have seen since the summer.

I also could say it has not been a slow month because the spiritual warfare has been off the hook. The streets have not been dismal because every corner also has a man present guarding territory. This past week it seemed as though every girl we prayed with got a date immediately after. Satan thinks this neighborhood is his playground, but when you bring the Holy Spirit the devil doesn’t stand a chance!

During outreach Jeana had a vision that our car was leaving behind a trail of fire and then I had a vision of heating lamps… Jeana added that the heating lamps were the girls after we drove away from them, the fire of God was upon them and heat beamed off every one of them. The light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds darkness has always got there first – but once light arrives all darkness shudders…..and that is the beauty, my beloved.

the cost is your life

When I traveled to Bangkok and walked the streets of one of the most notorious red light districts in the world the verse that continually resounded in my mind was John 1:5. “the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it”. Outreach this week started with three gunshots… about a street away. It was an interesting tone to start the night off. The next place we went to was a crack house, which is not unusual for us but the gentleman that walked out was an unfamiliar face… I had a moment where I thought “okay this is it… I’m probably going to die” which then followed by praying for this man and looking him into the eyes and telling him that Jesus loves him…..and not dying. The next stop we heard from a sister that her son was gunned down two weeks prior on the street we were standing on. It was a heavy start to the night. It is interesting how we can get lost in focusing on the good that comes with Christ, the easy, the peace, the joy… but there is also a cost to following Jesus and carrying the Cross daily. The cost is your life. Doing outreach can be dark. You truly never know what each outing will bring or what will happen. What I do know is that no matter what comes our way God is on our side, God is our protector, and if I die of anything I pray that it is while I am bringing others closer to Him. As believers we are not called into this cushiony life that is easy and safe… we are called to make disciples, no matter the cost. We are called to give until it hurts like Jesus did. We get the cushiony life and the easy safe life once we are in Heaven for all of eternity. But I can say this; the darkness never overcomes the light. As heavy as this night was we did end up at a house filled with beautiful children who All Worthy of Love was able to bless with an abundance of Christmas presents and the joy that beamed from this home overcame all the darkness we had just encountered. This one home shined so brightly. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. If you are in Christ Jesus and believe that Jesus died for your sins and rose from the dead and is now alive in Heaven seated at the right hand of the Father and is coming back again….. then YOU are this light we found in this home. You are the light that is not overcome by the darkness. You are. We are. But only because He is.

revitilization

Last night I was hanging with my sweet roommate and we were discussing how wild this last year has been. As December creeps in on us (tomorrow) as does the close of the year. 2012 has been such a huge blessing! I have continually seen the goodness of the Lord prevail in all circumstances and I have witnessed His love and His beauty in so many different areas, situations, and events. Over the last year or so my feet have touched ground in Orlando, Vegas, Haiti, Miami, Japan, Thailand, New Jersey, New York, Washington DC, Amsterdam, Florence, Rome, and most importantly, Detroit City. I have been so blessed to travel and see so many things and meet so many different people. Everywhere I go I see the Lord’s beauty. I see the Lord’s goodness. I see the Lord’s faithfulness…in the good, the trials, the lows, and the unknown…He has been so faithful. I have learned that God truly does bring all things to completion. I have watched a City sprout into a re-birth and I’ve been a part of a Community that is hungry and eager to be a part of that revitalization and restoration. I have laughed, cried, loved, hurt, and experienced life. What a joy it is to feel. I cannot express the gratitude I have for my Church community and just how loving and supportive of a family they have been. I have watched a ministry (All Worthy of Love) grow and I’ve witnessed miracles and growth on the streets. The last 12-18 months have been so abundant but truly they have all lead me back to right where I am… in the City of Detroit. Loving out my faith. Dreaming to reality. Not just seeking to witness revitalization, to desire revitalization, but to deeply be saturated in being a part of revitalization…. In Detroit and in my community of friends. I eagerly anticipate the goodness of December and the next year. May it be His will and His Kingdom on Earth as it is in Heaven in my life, your life, and in this City.

Rambled heart strings.

I opened my eyes yesteday morning and the first thing I saw was my computer screen saver, it read “Reach the lost – No matter the cost”

My heart is heavy as I write this…. Someone needs to share her story. There is no obituary. There is no funeral that we know of. There is no certainty as to how it happened. The only certainty I can wrap my mind around and the brokenness I feel in my heart is that the last encounter we had with her she knew that Jesus loved her and as we wrapped our arms around her and prayed over her chains were broken.

I met her one of my first times out on the streets with 70x7… she was so hesitant to come near our van, she didn’t want prayer and she didn’t want to talk. Each week that we saw her she would come a little closer toward the van, soon she would let us pray over her, and sometimes she would let us in to a little of her world. I remember seeing her for the first time and saying “that girl is hard” and Jaime responded “No, she is broken.”  I’ve written about her on this blog numerous times…. She is the girl I wanted to take home with me. She is the girl that kept me awake at night…. often. Each week she looked a little rougher, a little more broken, a little more hurt… the streets were killing her slowly. As time progressed so did her trust in us. She started to come to the window of the van and would share some prayer requests…most always for safety. She then let us get out of the van and hug her. We were there when she was scared. We were there when she got out of jail. We were there after she was beat up and raped. We were there when she got out of rehab and was clean from heroine. We were there when she wanted prayer and we were there when she needed a comforting hug. We were there.

Words fail me…they don’t do justice. Our team loved her. It is easy to recall the last six months of the moments we met with her… but the last two encounters are embedded on my heart. The second to last time we saw her we were on the streets praying with a group of six or seven people and she came running around the corner “can I have one.. Can I have one!!”… Every one of us in the van just started smiling. She was happy to see us; she had been waiting for us. That night she welcomed me out to hug her and pray over her. This was a huge breakthrough. The following week we were out and we ran into our beloved… she had been drinking and was the most talkative we ever saw her. Jeana got out of the van and had a 20 minute conversation with her and she began to pour out her heart. She wasn’t using heroine. She just got out of rehab. She hated being on the streets. She wanted out. She felt trapped. She applied for a job at K-Mart. She didn’t know how things got to this point. She was scared. She wanted to be freed. She wanted to be clean. She passed up a friend who was waiting on her because she WANTED prayer. She had plans. She shared she wanted to get married and have kids one day. She wanted a better life. She also shared she felt hopeless and felt like death was her only option…she didn’t want to live anymore if this was all life had for her. She shared how she got on the streets and about the days before. She opened her heart and we offered her Jesus. Jeana wrapped her arms around her and prayed over her.

Last night we were stopped at the spot she usually is at. We prayed with a few people and then he came over…we asked him where she was and he said “She is no longer with us”…. He went on to share that she died from an overdose. My heart sank. I was numb. I couldn’t move. It seemed like so many people were coming to the van, more than ever in this spot and I felt like I was stuck in time and just couldn’t focus. Even one of the girls on the streets asked if we were okay. As everyone left the van and we rolled up our window our van was silent. I just broke down in a deep cry. The pain was unreal. It was like someone just told me my relative died. I buried my head in my arms and said “Donna you’re gonna have to coach me through this… I don’t know how I get my head back in the game after this”… she said “you don’t….”.

I felt like last night was God saying “do you really know what you are saying yes to” and then showed us a glimpse… the cost is worth it and her death is a reminder of the importance that these girls need to know they are loved and that Jesus Christ died for them. Jaime and I drove home together, a rather quiet drive… we sat in the car in silence and listened to ‘Finish what you started’ by Sean Feucht. “Oh my God, You can do anything…and oh my God, nothing is too hard for you… You’re faithful to the end.. You will finish what You started…” God is faithful until the end. He finishes what He starts. He loved her so much that He sent our team to pray with her every week. As much as it grieves my heart to know that I won’t see her any longer… It encourages me to know that we were used to show her Jesus. Our days are fleeting.. Tomorrow is not promised.. and knowing Jesus is the ONLY thing that matters.

I am so blessed to work with such an amazing team and be a small part in such an incredible outreach. I love our team. Our leader, Donna is like a Mom to us… she called last night to check on us and make sure we were okay… The streets aren’t just an outreach; it’s a part of our lives relationally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. As much as it pains me to see her go, I am blessed beyond words that we were able to know her. I can’t imagine not being on these streets. Not building these relationships. Not offering hope. I can’t imagine not having these amazing relationships with these girls. I’m so thankful for our team and that we have the privilege to reach God’s children and offer them hope. I’m thankful that the feet that deliver the good news are beautiful and that we were able to offer her hope, love, and Jesus.  I can’t imagine doing anything different. Reach the lost – no matter the cost.

stop child trafficking now walk

I had this vision the last week of July (2012) of hosting a Stop Child Trafficking Now walk in Detroit. I was in a season of stillness but eager to do something more to bring awareness to the city I live in that human trafficking exists. Initially I thought my agreement to be the Walk Coordinator was for NEXT September…2013. When I realized the walk was for THIS year I sort of panicked…how in the world could I pull off a 5k in 2 months when most coordinators have 12. I had one week to find a venue. Really at that point I just thought, ‘okay Lord, if this is something you want me to do I need you to do it through me’. I envisioned a walk at Belle Isle, being in the City, being in the place that once brought communities and neighborhoods together. I applied to Belle Isle. I applied at a local park. I applied at a local high school. And then silence. The day of the venue deadline, Belle Isle approved me. 

As the weeks progressed and walk day came closer and closer I was blown away at the support I received. The organization Stop Child Trafficking Now based out of NYC truly has the most helpful staff. My contact, Rachel was incredible and the Detroit walk would not have been possible without her consistent support, encouragement, and assistance. I even received promo materials from the Augusta walk coordinator. It was like a small family. The walk day quickly approached and I was blown away at how things came together. I had never coordinated a 5k before, all I knew was I wanted to stand up as a voice for the voiceless and if one person heard that human trafficking exists that didn’t know before than everything was worth it. The night before the walk a few of my girlfriends came over (Jdavis, Hannah, Sara, Jeana, and Erika…thank you!) to help bake & decorate cookies with facts about human trafficking and to make signs for walkers to carry that also had human trafficking facts. The forecast for walk day changed from sunny and 55 to rainy and 45 the day before. I didn’t accept rain… it was not happening. I believed the Lord would cease rain. But, the walk would be rain or shine. Trafficking is not dependent upon the weather, so neither would the walk be.

The day of the walk. It was raining on our way out to Belle Isle at 6am. I just laughed and kept thanking God that it wasn’t going to rain during the event. I was greeted by friends who showed up early to help me set up and before I knew it walkers were piling up. The walk would not have taken place without the help from my friends… I can’t remember a time in my life where I’ve ever felt so loved and so supported. I truly have the greatest friends I could ever ask for. Some people even drove two hours to participate. We started the event with the National Anthem sung by a good friend of mine (thanks, Tim and thanks Brian for the amazing sound!) I shared a little bit about what the walk would look like and shared some statistics about why we were walking. We were walking for the 300,000+ kids that are trafficked in the United States every year. We were walking for the 27 million enslaved. We were walking for the lives that are sold for $90 (not per night, but per life). We were walking for the children. We prayed and then everyone gathered at the starting point. We had a red ribbon to be cut and for me personally this was the coolest part. Two of my closest friends held the red ribbon; I was in the middle of it and facing 75+ people who were holding signs about abolishing slavery and my generation taking a stand that they will not stand for slavery. It brought me so much joy. As I cut the ribbon to release the walkers I shouted “FOR FREEDOM”. It was a moment I hope I never forget.

Photos by: Stephen McGee

In that moment none of the chaos or stress mattered. I was so full of joy and so thankful. My family was all there. My friends were all there. People I didn’t even know were there (so rad). Channel 4 News was there. It was amazing. It didn’t rain once the whole time we were on the Island..not one drop! We had 94 participants registered for the walk and over $3400 raised (still 11 more days to fundraise). I had some awesome team captains, Hannah, Robin, Jeana, and Erika who all helped make this event happen.

 

 The walkers came back fast and everyone gathered in the seating in front of the stage. This was exactly the vision I had in July and had no idea this venue even had seating. I knew this was the moment God had prepared me for. I shared my heart on why I fight for freedom, I shared about Stop Child Trafficking Now, about my time in Thailand and in Detroit, and most importantly I commissioned the entire group to take a stand against slavery and to not just let this event be a one day movement but a lifestyle change of being an abolitionist. 

Anyone of you who are reading this can make a difference in this world… you were destined to.

Human trafficking is real and awareness is our greatest tool in putting a stop to it. There are more slaves today than ever before in history. It’s time to rise up as a generation and take a stand as one voice, together, and combat trafficking. Now. This is just the beginning. Next year’s goal is $25k and 500 walkers.

SCTNowDetroit - Our first walk was amazing! Thank you to everyone who walked for freedom. Thank you volunteers, you made the day happen! Keep fighting. Keep pushing. Keep dreaming. You are all world changers and modern day abolitionists. Let's be a generation that stands up as a voice for the voiceless!

For freedom,

Lindsey



beautiful feet.

Every week before I hit the streets I jam to this song…

Carlos was born in killa cali/ was walking down an alley/ he caught a bullet in his head that left him bleeding badly. He lost everything at that moment except his life/ he lost his hearing, lost his movement and he lost his sight/ he laid there in a coma/ but man nobody cared/ the Gospel preached in his neighborhood? Nobody dared/ But los got up out the coma got and was able to hear/ a missionary shared the gospel to his open ears/ He got saved got trained got discipled/ back to the hood/ you could find em preaching the bible/ He led a homie to Christ from his same hood/ part of Church plant/ come on now aint his name good/ This is blessing but I'm stressing that this is not the norm/ we need leaders and believers to help carry it on/ but who would minister in a sinister part of town/ I pray if Jesus is calling you that you would be found/Eric used to go to bible study as a kid/ he got older and started doing what the hood did/ a rival gang caught him slippin tried to take his life/ but then the gun jammed up so them beat him nice/ he woke up in the hospital singing bible songs/ praise God he had a place to learn the bible from/ but then he gets saved and wanna preach Christ they make him change his whole culture and whole way of life/ he gotta get him a bachelors wear a suit and tie/ go to seminary/ by then all of his boys will die/ Jesus came to invade culture outta Nazareth and used a couple fisherman who people saw as hazardous/ the feet are beautiful if only they'd go/ if nobody in the hood preaching how will they know?/ Eric is better used taught trues in his context/ somebody please plant a church in his projects./ In Luke 4:16 on down to 21 Jesus says he's messiah says he's the chosen one But more than that he quotes Isaiah/ that shows our savior targets oppressed captive blind and the broke I'm saying/ He had a heart for the poor had a heart for the low/ and 1st John 2:6 is way we should go/ In Deuteronomy even tho they under the law/ the tithes every third year the poor got em all/ I ain't sayin you wrong if you live in burbs/ Im sayin turn your attention to the hood cause we hurting/ man if you ain't burdened please pick up your word an/ tho this world is going down while we here we can serve him/ we bring this to the streets because we knew the streets/ I pray that more would be burdened to have beautiful feet/ you never knew the streets but truth is what you preach/ I pray to God you'd be burdened for beautiful feet. Go, go, go (run with those beautiful feet) Go, go, go You hold the truth that saves so run and shout it to the world They can't believe in something they ain't never heard Go, go, go and run with those beautiful feet - Lecrae "Beautiful Feet"

Part 2 of Reunite

Stop here if you have not read the previous post “Reunite – Guest Post” – go read that first and then come back…. This is a LONG post, but you should read it... I mean it... read the whole thing!

“I didn’t ask for this testimony, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone….but I have it and I will use it for the Glory of God” –Jeana Johnson

Sitting here in preparation to capture what took place on Monday night (October 8, 2012) sends chills up my spine and tears in my eyes just thinking about it… Jaime is my best friend and she has an incredible testimony. Jaime’s brother passed away almost two years ago from a heroin overdose. It is a life event that I so desperately want to be able to walk through and offer words of encouragement for her but it is also a life event that I thankfully cannot relate to. As the friendship between Jaime and I continued to grow I began praying that the Lord would send someone into her life that would be able to talk and relate to losing a sibling and be a friend to Jaime in a way I could not. As you read in the post Jaime wrote, the first night we ran into the familiar face was also the same night Jeana shared about her brother, Jonathon. Sitting in the 70x7 van as I overheard Jeana and Donna talking about Jonathan I was shocked, saddened, and over-joyed at the same time. Jeana’s brother passed away around the same time Jaime’s brother passed away. Mark and Jonathan were the same age and the cause of death was the same. I stared at Jaime and I knew this was a direct answer to a prayer I had prayed. Jaime remained silent and made no mention of Mark. Shocked and with mixed emotions she was speechless. In the coming weeks I was very adamant about praying the two would talk. I nudged Jaime to contact Jeana. I nudged Jeana to contact Jaime. I trusted when they did talk it would be in His perfect timing.

I begin with stating the above as an interlude into how the stories of Jaime and Jeana’s testimonies played such a huge role in part two of running into the girl Jaime mentions in her post.

We met at our usual spot on Monday evening, October 8^th and gathered in a circle united by hands and prayed that the Lord would have His way as we ventured out to love on our sweet sisters on the streets. I had prayed and shared with the team that I was really hoping not to run into the girl that Jaime and I had prayed with the Monday before…. I was really hoping she would have got on a plane to South Dakota for rehab. I didn’t want to see her, seeing her meant she was still on the streets and heroin was still flowing through her veins. I didn’t want to see her, seeing her meant a whole week had gone by that she was still living day to day, or hit by hit. But, if she had not got on that airplane I prayed the Lord would put her in my path. About an hour into our night we saw two young people walking on the opposite side of the road… Jeana pointed them out and we both thought it was someone it wasn’t. We turned around and pulled up to the two of them… my heart sank as I rolled down the window, it was her. I literally got out of that van like my pants were on fire and wrapped my arms around her and hugged her. I met her friend and we talked and talked. We don’t give out personal cell phone numbers on the streets, D has a ministry phone number for the girls to contact…. But, I gave her my number, which is not something I would normally do. I told her that Jaime and I were grabbing dinner later that night and to contact me if she and her friend wanted to come. Her friend seemed interested, she didn’t. I think she was embarrassed to see me and ashamed that she was not at rehab.

We went on with our night and prayed with other amazing women on the streets and shared the love of Christ in each encounter. The night came to a close and Jaime met up with Jeana and I. The girl texted me and said “Hey! Wanted you to have my number! Thanks for the invite, we will let you know”. Momma D shared solid wisdom with us about the potential dinner date. She also prepared us to not be disappointed if things didn’t work out and encouraged us. We purchased two hot ciders and headed out to the neighborhood to drive up and down the main drag. Jeana and Jaime finally talked. The testimonies of Mark and Jonathan filled our car. Their legacies were tangible. The two connected on such a deep hurt but both with such a beautiful hope that the Lord would turn their hurt into beauty…He already has. I just sat there in the front seat, silent. I was praying like a mad woman. Persistent that she would text me again. I was so thankful the two were sharing with each other and I knew God was answering specific prayers I had prayed……but I really wanted my phone to buzz with a text message. I began to think 35 minutes into driving that she was not going to text me for dinner. I began to think all that everything taking place was so that Jaime and Jeana could talk and it was not even about going to dinner with the two girls. I thought maybe when they were finished sharing then I would receive a text message.

We ended up heading back to our meeting spot, no text message. I sort of lost hope. The conversation between Jaime and Jeana came to a close and there were a few moments of awkward silence and waiting and then it happened…. “Hey! Is it too late to grab a bite to eat”…she texted. My heart nearly leaped out of my body. God is so good and His timing is so perfect. Not only was the night about the two connecting and sharing their stories, but it was also about dinner! Double portions! We headed out to pick up the two girls and as we sat in the car awaiting their arrival I prayed with Jeana and Jaime and asked the Lord to remove any expectations from us, to remove any pre-existing motives, that we would befriend these two girls and offer them a night of fellowship and love, that we would just get to know each other and share life with each other…

We headed out for pizza and sat down and didn’t get back up for 3 hours. I know the team at 70x7 realizes what a rare opportunity this is, but for everyone else, having an opportunity to meet two girls off the street for dinner is not common. Our conversation was amazing. We shared our lives together. We laughed A TON! We talked about Mark and about Jonathan. The girls were so honest and it was an amazing learning experience. I’m not sure how it was brought up but the fact that I lived in Texas came up… I shared that in the beginning I did a lot of bad stuff but it became one of the best times of my life. One of the girls then asked what I meant by bad stuff. It was a sweet opportunity to share my testimony. I shared one of my defining moments, my first time serving the homeless community of Austin. A young man came up to me and handed me a fully loaded crack pipe. The man said he didn’t want to live that way anymore and wanted to get his life straight and asked me to pray for him. In that moment I thought if this man who has nothing but the clothes on his back can give up this drug then I can give up all the junk in my life that is hindering me from a life that is honorable to Christ. One of the girls was 23 years old and we learned that we have mutual friends. I cannot even imagine the life she lives on those streets. The girls shared with us that this was the first normal thing they had done in over six months and they could not remember the last time they sat down to eat a meal.

There was never a moment of us and them. There was never a moment of a light shining on their sin and not ours. We were all the same. We were becoming friends. We shared the love of Christ and talked about how Jesus set us free. The two of them desperately want to be free from addiction and get off the streets. I see visions of them sitting down to eat with us again one day… but in my visions they are both healthy and full of life, free from addiction, and setting people free on the streets of Detroit. Death is not easy and as Jeana said, she wouldn’t wish the testimony of losing a brother on anyone, but she has it, Jaime has it, and they both want to use it for the glory of God. The connection to meeting this girl is Mark. Jaime’s brother use to get high with her. If it weren’t for Mark’s life I do not believe that anything would have transpired further than our weekly prayer with this girl. The Lord has used Mark’s life to pave a path for us to reach into a community and relate on a personal level.

Please pray that these two girls go to separate rehab facilities. They’ve tried together and it didn’t work. Please pray that rehab comes soon. Please pray for freedom over their lives and for protection. Please pray that we continue to have an open door with the two of them and that the discipleship that birthed on Monday night would be the beginning to these girls’ testimonies. Give thanks to the Lord for the ministry of 70x7, I firmly believe this ministry is the hands and feet of Jesus Christ

Reunite - Guest Post

I couldn't have put the following night into better words... Below is a post written by my dearest friend Jaime and a night that changed our lives....

She was the girl we met the very first time I went out with the 70x7 prostitution street ministry. She was a white girl. Short hair. Eerily familiar. She was on my side of the van so my window was down and as Donna prayed for her, I just stared at her. Deep desperation ran through her eyes. Broken. Exhausted. Waiting for the next hit. But I KNEW her. How?

We parted ways, she went one way and we drove another way. The moment we hit the end of the street I knew, She was friends with my brother. My brother, who almost two years ago, died of a heroin overdose. My brother, raised in Troy, Michigan - as suburbs as they come. They were friends. I thought to myself, there is no way. She looked too different. Way too different. I graduated with her brother. Good friends with her brother actually. I knew the heavy set, bleached out hair girl. Not the short brown haired, skinny girl wearing raggedy clothes and an old pair of tennis shoes. My heart broke. I was so shook up.

Last night we went out again. When we finished Lindsey and I were not ready to be done, so we got dropped at our cars and went out again. Before this happened we prayed and asked God to show us specific things we needed to know about the people we should find. Our treasure hunt. Among other things REUNITE was on our list . We stopped at a coney island to find a "bridgette" on our list. No dice. So we drive on our way and just outside the coney island is a woman waiting to be bought. We were going to stop and noticed it was the crazy lady we prayed for earlier so Lindsey said, "keep driving." Then we see the girl next to her. Grey ragged shirt, brown scraggily hair, a huge mess. I thought to myself and maybe out loud, "Wait, is that a boy or a girl?" She turns to face us and my immediate response out loud was, "Oh crap , she's the one." Lindsey thinking nothing says, "Hi! We are from the prayer van, we don't have food but we would like to pray for you."

I’m looking into her eyes and my heart is pounding and my hands shaking. Before she answers Lindsey, I look her in the eyes and I point, "What is your last name?" Without hesitation she answers me with the last name I expected to hear. I almost lost it. I fumbled for my seat belt, dropped some choice words, covered my mouth as I cannot believe what just came out of it and ran around the back of my car to her.

I look her dead on and with a hand over my heart I say, "I am Jaime Davis. I am Mark Davis's sister."

"Oh. Crap," She says. Her heart sinks. My heart sinks. I grab her and pull her away from the car and we hug forever it seemed. She cried. I cried. My whole body shook. I couldn't even believe who I was holding in my arms, rubbing her back, feeling her boney spine with my hand.

"How are you? Does your family know what's happening? Are you working the streets? How are you? How are you? Tell me everything"

She explains she's been waiting for her girlfriend for over an hour now. She hasn't come back yet. She is planning on going to rehab in a couple days. She spoke with her family not too long ago and sometimes she works the streets. She has to. There is no other way. We get in my car and I pray some more for her. We talk. "Do you want to be free from this?"

"Everyday"

After Lindsey asks about the relationship she had with my brother she told us, "He was the first person I got high with."

Followed by a mumbled

"It was the hardest funeral I've ever been too."

We prayed for her. We prayed the chains of addiction would be broke. The scars on her arms would be gone. Every area she ever stuck a needle would be healed in the name of Jesus. The blood in her body would run clean and Jesus would replace it with His. That She would never desire another high. That she would have the strength to walk away and to get on the plane to South Dakota and start fresh. That this night would be the first day of the rest of her life. We called out the destiny and purpose for her life.

We prayed three times with her and every time we were done she was wiping away her tears. Lindsey told her she had a vision as we prayed the last time of her living in a nice house, with a family and a husband, with money. That blessings are coming her way.

Lindsey gave me twizzlers I never even intended to eat. And so she, starving, gladly accepted our twizzlers with a, "yeah I want those, I’m fu**ing starving." She got out of the car. I hugged her again, "I Love you. If you need anything call me. Today is a new beginning, I fully believe that." As we drove away, Lindsey looks at me with brokenness and says, "How does someone from Troy, Michigan end up in a place like this??"

Today as I was praying for her, this verse came to me, Hosea 2:14

 “Therefore, behold, I will allure her,

 and bring her into the wilderness,

 and speak tenderly to her" 

"And there I will give her her vineyards

and make the Valley of Achore a door of hope.

And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth,

as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt."

Verse 14 is hers. If you read this, that is what you pray over her. She will walk out of the darkness. Lindsey told me last night that me REUNITING with her gives her hope beyond belief. It reminds her of what will happen if she doesn't get clean. My brother's memory will be a lasting impression of why she needs to get better. My brother through his weakness can be her strength.

Lord give her the strength to move on. Supernaturally intervene. This God - His way is Perfect

light in darkness

Last night we went out for our weekly ministry in Detroit. Each week the of reality of affliction and slavery becomes more and more relevant to me. We meet with so many broken people who are hurting and crying out for love. We are so blessed to be able to provide prayer and to share a glimpse of hope in such a broken area. Last night we met with a sister who moved out of the neighborhood and is clean from drugs. This is the type of story we pray for and hope for.

In the middle of the neighborhood last night I saw the most beautiful sunflower. It was large and bursting with vibrant shades of yellow. It was new life that had sprouted in the middle of a war zone. All around was brokenness and pain…but this sunflower was a glimpse of hope. A reminder that the darkness does not overcome the light and that God is greater!!!

shaken to the core.

I cannot recall a time in my life where I was ever so shaken to my core. And as much as my first impulse is to get it out of my mind and not to think about what took place last night, I can’t. The fear that trembled as each girl retold the same story that took place the night before. The hopelessness in their eyes and deep desire to be removed from their current situation paralyzes me. Eighteen minutes, 14.6 miles from my front door is a man rapping women and slitting their throats. When I first began serving the prostitution community there was a rapist going around and leaving young women to die in abandon fields smothered in a pool of blood from their slit throat. The first week I went out to serve there was three women found dead within the last week. Months have since passed and I’ve begun to build relationships with these women. I recognize them. I know their ‘names’. There is no stronger relationship than one built on the saving grace of Jesus Christ and that is exactly what we have built with these women. We pray with them, cry with them, and hurt with them.

But last night changes everything. A woman I know, someone’s daughter, someone’s friend, a beautiful young woman was found Sunday night in an abandoned house brutally beaten with a 2x4, raped, and left to die in a pool of her own blood flowing from the large slit across her throat. Each girl told us the same story and each girl said they did not know her last name so no one could go visit her in the hospital. It’s so much like Thailand; these girls have street names, heck I don’t even think any of us know their real names. Can you imagine transitioning into a life where you are not only abused, taken advantage of, raped, and the like but then you have you identity removed, too? Can you imagine someone calling you by a number? Can you imagine someone calling you a different name than the name you’ve been called all your life? No one can visit this girl because no one knows her real name. This breaks me.

Devastated to hear the news, we continued on to our next friend. I would have to say that of all the woman we meet with and pray with, this one has captivated my heart in a way I can’t explain. I see right through her hard exterior. I see her pain. I see her hurt. And as my friend said, she has no idea how to function anymore she is so hurt. It is as if she is lifeless. I was in the van the first night we came across this young girl and even then she was fearful to come to us. These streets are NO place for young women. I’ve watched her over the last several months continue to withdraw more and more from us, more and more from life. She is broken. Usually she is timid to come to us for prayer but last night she was completely different. Fear was consuming her. She was afraid to come near us. Afraid to talk to us. Afraid to let us pray for her. Afraid to let us hug her. She had just been raped by two men at the same time and pistol whipped in her head. Blood covered her open wound on the top of her head from where the pistol landed. And all I can think is please let me hold you. Please let me hug you and take you home with me. Please let me cover you in love. Please let me wash your feet. Be my family. Come with me. I want to scream YOU ARE WORTH MORE THAN THIS! YOU DESERVE MORE THAN THIS! GOD LOVES YOU!

Another girl we spoke with had an encounter with the same man over the weekend. He got her naked and raped her in his car. When she fought him he cut her leg up with his knife, opened the car door, and pushed her out of the car while moving…she was naked. I could pour out my guts on this keyboard in despair and anger. Can you even fathom being treated like such a piece of garbage?

We located the van that is allegedly responsible for all you’ve just read. We followed him for blocks until we were close enough to write down his license plate number and description of his van. We then wrote it down and passed out copies to all the girls we could find and told them to stay far away.

Words do not suffice the anguish in my heart today as I write this. 14.6 miles from my front door.

The devil thinks this neighborhood is his playground….. well my response is this: Let our names be feared at the gates of hell as we exalt the Savior and redeem what BELONGS to the LORD! The darkness HAS NOT overcome the light. We need to wake up world. Human trafficking is not a third world problem. It’s a Detroit, Michigan problem. It’s a EVERYWHERE problem. Our war is NOT against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. These girls are worthy of love. They need to know how much Jesus loves them. They need to know that there is hope. They need to know that this is not what they deserve. They need to know that Heaven is real. That Jesus Christ is real. That He loves them with an everlasting love that can never be shaken. Oh dear God, please save my sisters, please rebuke and convict the heart of this man on the streets and lead him to salvation, Lord please deliver the brokenness of my sisters, and God please use me to whatever capacity You will. Send laborers, Lord……. Help me to love these girls like You do. Open doors to remove them from the streets. Protect them, in Jesus name.

Bangkok to Detroit, same same but different

How can two evils be so alike and so different and half a world away from each other?

I’m still processing and working my way through Thailand (I recently went on an anti-human trafficking mission trip). The dark, the evil, the sadness, and also the light, the joy, and the purity of the Father’s love. In Bangkok sex is no secret. It is not hidden and prostitution is socially acceptable. Sex sells on a menu and where there is one girl there is many. One of the hardest realizations for me was the daunting feeling these young girls grow up with knowing the expectation for them to bring in money by way of prostitution is heavily set upon them.....some even from birth. Sixty percent of men that fly into the Bangkok airport fly in for sex. To use, abuse, belittle, and degrade young girls.....because they think they ‘can’ or they feel ‘entitled’, whatever their motive is it is wrong. When you walk down the streets of Pat Pong, the 2^nd largest red light district in the world sex is not hidden. Signs that read ‘Super Pussy’ or ‘Super Girls’ are plastered all over. Every corner is home to 2-3 people asking if you want to go to a ‘ping pong show’ which is a sex show. Every bar leaves open just a large enough crack in the door so you can peer your eyes in and see dozens of teenage girls either half-dressed or naked. Innocent baby girls. Yes, there are brothels hidden in the depths of the city that house continual sex trains off 11 year old girls that most do not know about. Yes, there are hidden sex rooms the higher you travel up in the bars. There are also obvious sexual acts that are so sickening you turn your eye and somehow convince yourself what you see is not real… I’m sure that is how those young baby girls feel too. But for the most part, sex in Bangkok sells itself right in front of your eyes. There is a purpose for these tourists, a plan of action, a pre-determined mind set, and innocent lives fall responsible to fulfill.

Almost an entire world away…across oceans and miles away in Detroit, Michigan some of the same evils listed above take place. The difference? In Detroit for the most part it is hidden. You don’t walk down a designated street for young woman or lady boys. You don’t walk down a four block neighborhood and see 4,000 girls/lady boys selling themselves. You don’t walk up and down streets to see young western men (and old ones, too) purchasing sex before your eyes. In Detroit, Michigan, my home, it’s the same but it’s different… sex is hidden. Now if all you’ve ever been exposed to is prostitution within the United States you won’t fully understand this; you may think ‘prostitution is not hidden here’ but when you travel to the worst of the worst, Detroit appears to be a cake walk when compared… but that is not true. Looks are deceiving. Just because we do not have designated streets or sex sold on a menu does not mean that Detroit is any better off than Thailand – but rather the opposite. It’s the hidden that is worse. If 11 year old girls were the same as the 15 year old we met in ‘Super Girls’ bar in Pat Pong they would not be hidden in a brothel… in the same way, if the women in Detroit who are caught up in the Sex trade industry were ‘not in as bad of conditions’ as the others then the evil wouldn’t be hidden. I’ve been all over Detroit at night, 10pm, midnight, 2am, 4am, in the strip clubs, at the bars, strolled over Michigan Avenue and it is nothing like Bangkok. But when you go deeper into the neighborhoods, drive up and down the streets that look like a war zone, peer into the busted windows, boarded up doors, the crack houses……it is there that you will find Bangkok in Detroit.

I went out last night with a local ministry who offer prayer and pass out bagged lunches and hygiene packets to the afflicted in those very streets and neighborhoods of Detroit. I had gone with the team prior to my trip to Thailand and then again after my return home. Night and Day difference. I left Thailand thinking ‘what in the world… my city is nothing like this’ and after last night I came home and thought ‘they are almost the same’. How can two evils be so alike and so different and half a world away from each other? In Thailand people say ‘same same but different’ that is what I think about Thailand and Detroit – same, same…but different. Here we have to look for the evil, search for the girls… in Thailand it’s all in front of your face. I’m not saying one is better than the other… actually quite the opposite. Both are disgusting and inexcusable. Last night while driving through these broken neighborhoods I thought I was in a war zone. A similar war zone I felt while in Thailand. These girls were afraid for their lives. The same look of desperation, hopelessness, and distress gazed from their eyes. In the last week three girls were found dead in the neighborhood we were in. All left to die in their own pool of blood from their slit throats. One of the girls was only eighteen, her life barely lived. Each girl we came in contact with (which were many) immediately wanted prayer. Similarly each wanted protection.

This morning the Detroit Free Press released an article stating 70 arrests were made in Metro-Detroit within 3 days in connection to sex trafficking. Five girls and one boy recovered from child prostitution, ages ranging from 13-17. Arrests made in the city I grew up in. Sex trafficking is not just in Bangkok, Thailand or Amsterdam, or any other third world country. Sex trafficking is here. It is in our own backyards. It is everywhere. We must do something besides turn a blind eye to the topic that makes us feel uncomfortable.

Find out what you can do in YOUR community. Find out how YOU can make a difference. And be encouraged… Jesus Christ has OVERCOME this world – and no evil, no prostitution, no pimp, NOTHING CAN OVERCOME HIM! Share His hope, love, joy, and goodness; wherever you are is a good place to start. Pray for your city, your state, your country, and this world. Sex trafficking is the 2^nd largest crime in the world and each night thousands and thousands and thousands fall victim. Enough is enough. Let’s change our city.

Google search ‘Human Trafficking in the United States’ = 18,700,000 results

Google search ‘Human Trafficking in Michigan’ = 1,210,000 results

Google search ‘Human Trafficking in Detroit’ = 897,000 results

And pray for me as I seek the Lord on returning to Bangkok in October.

At His Service,

Lindsey