All the days of her life...

I was sitting in a small group Bible Study as a little braceface Middle School kid, more concerned with my undeveloped self than the lesson. Then suddenly Christy, the young college girl teaching the class, said something that pierced through my self-absorbed thoughts of insecurity and rocked my world.

“She does him good, not harm, all the days of her life…” (Proverbs 31:12)

To read the rest you can click over HERE, where I am guest posting at Sisters Of Infinite Worth. It is a really awesome blog and I am honored to be able to contribute!

a huge injustice: human trafficking

27 million people are enslaved. It is estimated that human trafficking generates around 32 billion annually. This makes trafficking of persons the second most lucrative crime in the world.

Over 1.2 million children are trafficked annually.

2 Children are sold every minute.

Over 100,000 U.S. children are forcefully engaged in prostitution or pornography each year.

This girl is wearing the same dress for 3 months. She calls it The One Dress Campaign. Why? Because she has to do something. She has to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. This is how she is raising awareness of this injustice.

I cried when I read her story.

 

I want to share this email she sent me the other day. Please read it. This is real. This is an injustice in our world and we can do something about it!

Jennifer,

I cannot claim to be an expert on human trafficking but I would be glad to share a bit of my heart with you. Ever since I first heard about modern day slavery I have been heart broken about how rampant the problem really is. I saw a video from the Organization 'Love 146' in church before I knew Jesus, and even then God broke through my hard shell and I wept for women and children who were being abused. Sexual slavery is the most heinous crime. Women and children are mutilated physically, emotionally, and psychologically-and most times this type of abuse causes victims to feel guilty and dirty, as if they were to blame for this hideous behavior. 

The very idea of commercial sex is a testament to the distortion of our world. My sisters boyfriend Teddy told me about an organization called The Daughter Project, which is a nonprofit organization in Northeast Ohio that is building homes for survivors of human trafficking. In these homes the girls can find healing and restoration. I was drawn to the hopeful and proactive mission of The Daughter Project. When dealing with such a dark issue it is very easy to feel overwhelmed and hopeless-but God is good and faithful, and the Daughter Project is showing the love of God to a broken world. 

It is people who are obedient to God's call on their lives who make an impact in this world. We are called to walk humbly, do justice and love mercy-I am simply trying to do that in anyway I can and for me that meant wearing the same dress every day until June 4th, blogging and engaging in conversations with people about human trafficking. I'm so thankful that we serve a God who does not abandon us to the hopelessness of this world. 

The ways I would suggest people get involved in the fight against human trafficking is to be educated about it, spread awareness, and partner with existing organizations. We are all gifted in different ways so I would encourage everyone to exam their own talents and see where God might have them use those unique talents-we need to get creative! But my experience in talking with people about my One Dress Campaign is that most people are not aware of the issue. Human trafficking is so tragically under the radar that many young women and children are also slipping under the radar. I am struggling through the issue myself and I don't know any quick or easy ways to get involved, other than volunteering time, money and talents to wonderful existing organizations. To name a few, here are some links: 

The Daughter Project - a project based in Ohio

Love146 - Abolition and Restoration! They combat child sex slavery & exploitation with the unexpected and restore survivors with excellence.

The Polaris Project - Their vision is a world without slavery

If I can share any thing else or clarify anything please let me know Jennifer. I would love to answer any specific questions you have to the best of my ability. 

God Bless,

Emily Ewing

You can read more of her story on her blog, She Breathed Deeply. I promise you will leave her page convicted!

We are incredibly blessed here in America, but there are so many people who are taken advantage of in this world. As a Christian, I cannot pretend that these things don't exist and continue in my affluence. I cannot stay silent. I've been praying about what I can do to help in this area. I hope you share it with you all soon.

Here's a few more links you can check out as well:

Compassion

Invisible Children

World Vision


Here's to loving justice and mercy.

Faith Spotlight ~ Arielle

I love to hear people's stories, especially faith stories. I get so excited after hearing how God is working in another life. It's so encouraging and refreshing to share such a special journey with someone else. With that being said, I am going to start hosting a Faith Spotlight every month. My goal is showcase our Great God in the lives of ordinary people. 

For the first one I have a lovely guest, Arielle. She is a young newly-wed, new mom and photographer, as well as a devoted Christ-follower. I can see her love for God radiating from the words I read on her blog. Her posts are always an encouragement to me. Well friends, she is here today to share part of her journey in the faith and I am very excited about it! If you haven't already, you can read her story on A Beautiful Journey.

Just look at her adorable family!

Hello! My name is Arielle and I have a little blog called A Beautiful Journey... I'm so glad to be able to share on this blog. Jennifer is awesome and she truly has a beautiful heart for Jesus. I was going to write out my testimony but, when I sat down to start writing (or, eh, typing) I didn't even know where to begin :) So instead, I'm just going to share a very honest part of my journey...

It seems like all through out my life I have been a quitter. Once upon a time I moved to Texas for a ministry school and...I left. In other words, I quit. Then, I went to a Bible college and I decided college wasn't really for me so, I quit. A while after this, I decided to go to a cosmetology school and guess what? I quit. 

I don't think I can count how many times I have quit different things through out my life. It is quite humbling and it also shows how I needed to learn a big lesson on perseverance. You see, all through out my life I was waiting to hear God's will for my life. "Maybe I should go to this college...but is it His will?"  "I don't feel like this is where I am supposed to be, God is not giving me confirmation that I'm supposed to be here... so I'm going to leave." Instead of taking a leap of faith and sticking with something, I would be afraid that I wasn't doing the right thing, and just give up.

This is a part of my testimony that I am not very proud of. Quitting has taught me many, many lessons. I finally realized that I cannot always sit around waiting for a 'sign from heaven' to see where God is leading me. I can't always quit, or I'm not going to get anywhere, ever.

Sometimes, the Lord does not always show us with some clear sign what we are to do and where we are to be. However, He does give us wisdom, guidance, and dear friends and family to help make important decisions. From there, we have the choice to persevere and give it all we have or shrink back in cowardliness because we are afraid we have made the wrong decision.

I've learned that the Lord leads us and gives us different opportunities. Take those opportunities (even if they are small) and truly make the best of them. He wants to see if we are faithful in the small things, and from there- bigger things will come. Don't be afraid, but instead persevere in faith....and most of all, don't quit! ;)

Blessings,

arielle