I can't believe the last time I sat to write was Easter. These past few weeks have flown by unusually quickly and I feel like I need to catch up a bit! I haven't neglected the writing due to lack of inspiration, quite the opposite actually! So much has changed lately that I feel a bit overwhelmed and don't even know where to begin. I suppose the biggest change is that I now feel settled in a new Church. I've already made some great friends and am enjoying getting stuck into life with those guys. I feel my heart shifting towards this new place, with this group of people and am excited about where the next few weeks might lead me. Check them out here. They are involved with lots of great community stuff, and this is the place where CAP (Christians Against Poverty) all began.
The main thing that has prompted me to write comes from a book I am reading at the moment. I was finally persuaded to pick it up as I was looking for something that was bound to inspire and stir me up. So far, it has passed that test as I knew it would, with flying colours! The book is called 'Undaunted' and is written by Christine Caine. After reading one of her previous books; 'Stop acting like a Christian and be one,' I fell in love with her honesty and uncompromising style. It's just so refreshing. I actually started reading Undaunted right before a shift at work and found even the first chapter left me heart broken and totally distracted all day.
You see, we all have dreams dont we? As i've said before, i'm a real daydreamer. I sit and think about when I will have my first youth work job, getting paid to do what I really love. Maybe i'll have my own office. Or then i'll be able to have my own home...full of trinkets and bedspreads (as I seem to have a weakness for bed linen.) Or marriage, family, future holidays or places I'd like to travel to. I know we all do it! Imagine if one day, somebody came to you and just offered you your dream. A fresh start, a new country, provision for your family, your dream job - but more than that - a HOPE that you didn't think would ever come to you. Imagine you are feeling hopeless, like you've given up, you're trapped, you'll never get out of this situation. In a dead end job, with little money, a house you hate or in a place you can't stand - and someone comes out of the blue to offer you a way out of that. How likely would it be that you would at least consider it? That glimmer of hope?
Say, you go for it. You trust that person. You move, ready to start your new adventure, a better life that secures a brighter future for you and your family - only to be trapped. It's not the place it was supposed to be. You were moved under false pretences, lied to, beaten, abused repeatedly. Trafficked.
You may have guessed why this book left me distracted. This is the fate of so many people today. 27 million. Even as I write this, or as I continue to read the book this is happening. People are being SOLD. Trapped in shipping containers as if they are a product. Men, women and children. Forced into labour or the sex trade. Slavery is so REAL. It's happening right here, in my community, in my town, in my city and likely in yours too. This issue is bigger than ever before. We need to speak out! We need to educate, to spot the signs, to intervene, to rescue, to act, to pray, to speak out, to END IT. We musn't ignore it, or make it feel distant. This doesn't just happen in far away countries, poorer than ours. You don't have to look far in the news to find it. These people; mothers, daughters, sisters, brothers, fathers - are being BOUGHT and SOLD. Human beings, just like you and I. We can no longer sit back and pretend like this injustice isn't taking place day in, day out. Because it is!
I have blogged about the A21 Campaign before, and the author of this book is the freedom fighter behind this amazing Charity. Even if you aren't a Christian, I would recommend you read even just the first Chapter. It's actually on offer at $2.99/£2.99 as an E-book at the moment so now might be the time to snap it up. Christine writes with much more conviction than I do, but also has real life experiences in rescuing women from trafficking, which are heart breaking accounts - but a necessary read. There are also other great campaigns that speak out - The End It Movement, Restored For, Stop the Traffik, Hope for Justice, MTV Exit and Walk Free.
I think it's important that our hearts break for issues such as this, that we are moved to do something to eradicate it once and for all. Fundraise, talk about it, raise awareness, sign petitions - get involved. Freedom for all is something we must fight and keep on fighting for...
Much Love xxx