ANNA'S STORY

Here is a short story from Dateline about a young Filipino woman. It is only a few minutes long, but it tells a little bit of how these girls are kidnapped and trapped, and how it is almost impossible for some to get help because of the corrupt law enforcement and government officials.



On a related topic, I would like to know why the hell a man, who was proved to have raped 7 Cambodian children, assaulted 3 Vancouver prostitutes and murdered one, only got 7 years in jail. Does that make anyone else what to puke. I don't even think 7 years is enough for the rape of one child, let alone 7.

THE UGLY IS COMING OUT

I never realized what an angry person I can be. Seeing all the evil in the world has brought out the worst in me. I just recently watched a Dateline special about the brothel raid in Cambodia led by Gary Haugen of International Justice Mission. I wanted to reach my hand through the screen, grab those pimps by the neck and strangle them.
It's worth checking out, you can watch the raid episode as well as the follow up they did a couple of years later here.

Personally I think one of the most effective ways of deterring... pimps (I hesitate to use the word because it has lost meaning and has become part of normal conversation, possibly even "cool", ie: shows like Pimp My Ride, or phrases like, "that's pimpin'")
would be to mechanically castrate them then hang them naked in the middle of the ultra red lights areas. I could never do that, but I am sure it would be effective. Currently, the only consequences they receive if they happen to run into a non-corrupt policeman is a few years in prison.

I have a really hard time feeling anything but anger towards these people, but the Lord is helping me to get over that. I don't think the anger is the problem. It is okay to be angry about injustice, God is. But it is more where that anger is directed and what you o with it. It is not to be directed at the Lord's creation, but at the source of evil. For some who is more in the "sin is a personal decision" not the "satan made me do it" camp this is hard.

The most helpful thing for me is that well known armor of God bit, which I believe is in Ephesians 6. I am willing to do spiritual battle, that is how I have to see this if I am to have any kind of love or compassion. I have to separate the creation form the spiritual source of evil. The whole "hate the sin love the sinner thing" is not so easy, it is not easy to seperate the two.

I was shocked when I discovered that many of these pimps themselves are just children, 14 and 15 years old. It's a family business in some cases with the parents teaching these kids to do this. What happened to these people to make them think this is okay? How is it that they can treat another human life so flippantly? The girls who are locked away in these dungeons have lost their childhood, but so have the 14 year olds boys who have been taught to sell human dignity and innocence.

I am getting closer to being able to say that I love these perverts, but I still have ways to go.

Imagine...

GETTING CLOSER

I think everything is coming together now. The first of a series of “ah ha” moments (most of which were “well duh” moments too), happened a couple of weeks ago.

I was pretty much consumed with fear and anger for about a month. I was terrified and mad that God might send me to witness to the men who torture and defile the young girls taken from their families. God never asked me too, didn’t even hint at it. All He said in the midst of my search for how to save these girls was,

“What about the ones committing the crimes?”

From that, I got thinking, "If I try to look at them like God does, what will He ask me to do next?"

That little bit of fear grew faster then Pseudomonas aeruginosa in an armpit lesion. I hid from God so that He couldn't ask me to do what I couldn't do (because I knew that with Him all things are possible). I wasn't willing to abandon my faith, but I wasn't ready to face the One in whom I have placed that faith. It became unbearable though, as I couldn't sleep at night, spent many nights crying, and just missed my Heavenly Father.

I finally decided that enough was enough. I went for a rather long walk, which seemed even longer in -25 degrees. Just as I was approaching home it hit me.

Fear and anger are not of God. There are righteous versions of both, but this did not apply to me. If they are not of God then that only leaves the enemy. I definitely did not want him to win. I don't know how to explain it, but I felt God being excited for me at this re-realization. I felt the burden lift and a new sense of freedom. I still didn't like the idea of what God might ask me to do, but I sure as hell wasn't going to let Satan have his way, and keep me from God.

DRUM ROLL PLEASE

Over the past couple of weeks, amidst my ridonculously busy life, I am as close as I ever have been to being here "I am Lord send me." About three months ago I thought I was there, I so desperatrly wanted to go wherever God would send to put an end to injustice. Then God challenged me by saying,

"What about the ones who commit these injustices?"

"Well, I want them burned at the stake."

Then God said "Try again."

That left me in a "Here I am send me. But..." And that doesn't really work. So I got angry and scared and hid. If I don't talk to You, You can't tell me to do something I don't want to do! But that also doesn't work. So the next phase was "Here I am." That consisted of prayers that went something like this,

Not a chance God. No way, I think not. Not me.
but...
Please don't give up on me.

That is where I was for about a couple weeks. But the last couple of weeks have been fabulous! Full of "Oh I see," and "Uh huh," and "Oh, right." I am still ironing out the kinks, but things are coming together and I am getting back to being able to say "Here I am Lord, send me."