Fight to Abolish Sex Trafficking
Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:10-18
Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.
Working to end the heinous scourge and share Christ for victory, healing, and grace.
Team Purpose
This team will focus on and work toward ending Human Sex Trafficking, engaging (as appropriate) the St. Mark family. They will work with other ministries and agencies (again, as appropriate) to end this practice – on both the supply as well as demand side. Recognizing the deep darkness of this area, this team will need to ensure they “put on the full armor of God” [Ephesians 6:10-18] and pray and debrief constantly and consistently.
Most of you are aware that I am passionate about this and am looking to spend time and energy here. I am convinced that when the Lord calls me to my next stage of life and ministry, it will be to work in this area.
I am very thankful that so many of you will walk with me through it. Thank you!
Team Tasks
There is so much to do to fight this scourge, but we will take things one step at a time. The first items of business will be:
- Watch “Nefarious” (if you haven’t yet seen it) as a group.
- Watch “Canteneras” as a group
- Take a van tour with Elijah Rising and then discuss some of their programs/ways to get involved
- Get in touch with (and attend a meeting of) “The Freedom Church Alliance” (link below) to understand how they want to address the issue as the Church and Body of Christ.
- Provide opportunities for St. Mark people (of all ages and backgrounds) can be involved in this fight.
- Find ways to advocate for the victims (those who are slaves to others) and help those enslaved by addiction and sin.
- Set policies and protections in place as we look to engage the enemy in this dark place.
- Seek ways to address the problem from both the “supply” and “demand” aspects.
- Explore avenues to address within government, politics, as well as within the public arena.
Resources
I have placed a lot of files and information on Google Drive (see the embedded list on this page) rather than have a long list here.
That said, there are two places I would start with:
- The Freedom Church Alliance (freedomchurchalliance.org) and (www.facebook.com/freedomchurchalliance)
- Elijah Rising (www.elijahrising.org) [Van tours, museum, “adapt a brothel,” direct reaching out, education of hotels, and more.]
- Redeemed Ministries (redeemedministries.com/houston)
- Free The Captives Houston (www.freethecaptiveshouston.com)
There are countless more! Most of the sites above have links to other ministries in this area (not all the same ones). I encourage you to start with the sites above as you get educated and moved as we begin to make a difference in this ministry.
FAST Ministry Files
