Human Trafficking Awareness Month

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month.  Human trafficking is a form of modern slavery—a multi-billion dollar criminal industry that denies freedom to 20.9 million people around the world. And no matter where you live, chances are it’s happening nearby. From the girl forced into prostitution at a truck stop, to the man discovered in a restaurant kitchen, stripped of his passport and held against his will. All trafficking victims share one essential experience: the loss of freedom. (PolarisProject.org)

Did you know there are:

• 20-30 Million people trafficked Worldwide
• 80% female, 50% children
• 1.5 million in the US alone

It breaks our hearts that  trafficking is all around us now.  California harbors 3 of the FBI’s 13 highest child sex trafficking areas on the  nation: Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.  Part of our focus in ministry is partnering with ministries and churches that are fighting sex trafficking within Los Angeles to help prevent children from the lure of traffickers as well as bring hope and the gospel to survivors rescued from trafficking.  A couple months back we were a part of an outreach to the community with a survivor named Emily, who shared her story.  Emily now works to help other women escape from trafficking and find healing.  Through Emily a young girl named *R was rescued by the police out of sex trafficking near us.  Emily connected her to a ministry, Redeeming Love, whom we partner with.  Redeeming Love provides a safe house for sex trafficking survivors and brings them job training, trauma therapy and the love of Jesus.  *R has now been in the program for 2 months working through school and trauma therapy.  Michelle is now connecting with her weekly as a spiritual mentor.  Please pray for *R as she has faced a great deal of spiritual  persecution.  Pray for her as she seeks to know “Who is God and Jesus?” and struggles in her self worth and the path ahead of her in emotional freedom and caring for  herself.  Pray she would come to know Jesus deeply and allow Him to satisfy those painful places of hurt within her. 

• • Average Age Children Enter Trafficking:

Girls: 12-14 yearsold
Boys: 11-13 years old

•  86% were from social services or foster care when they ran away and were lured into trafficking.
  

This is why there is such a need to help these young children know the signs of sex trafficking and how to prevent it from happening to them.  The Lord has opened up so many opportunities for Joseph and 2 interns from a ministry we partner with (EveryOne Free) to speak at JH and HS public schools.  One Christian health teacher of  a JH school in a high risk area has asked us to come every quarter and share with all 800  7th graders in her health classes.

• 76% of sex trafficking incidents begins on the internet or through social media— Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Kik

When we share in the schools we ask a show of hands of how many of them have been approached online through one of these apps by a trafficker.  It saddens us each time to see the many hands raised and then to hear personal stories of many of them who have been approached.

Please continue to pray that the Lord would lead us to the schools He desires to us to share at and  for His protection over the children that traffickers are targeting.

Family Update… 

We hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! We enjoyed a relaxing time at home, exploring LA, finding “fake” snow 🙂 and seeing family.  Thank you for your encouragement, prayers and support to us and the ministry here in Los Angeles!