January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. According to Human Trafficking Search, “Human trafficking [typically separated into sex trafficking and forced labor] is a form of modern-day slavery in which human beings are controlled and exploited for profit.”
Because of your prayers and financial gifts to Alliance ministries, victims of trafficking in Europe, Africa, and Asia have opportunity to find hope and freedom. Here’s how:
Lighthouse, Southeast Asia
Multiple Alliance youth groups, district youth retreats, Alliance colleges, and individuals in Alliance churches rallied together through the Envision Campaign: Reimagine Freedom to raise more than $30,000 for Lighthouse. This Envision ministry serves trafficking victims in Southeast Asia by providing a dormitory-style home and trade-school training for 25 girls, with the goal of having space for more girls.
Each of these girls has a unique story, but there are common threads in all of them: They were betrayed and tricked by someone they trusted, they were forced against their will into the sex trade, and they were raped repeatedly. By giving these young women a quality education, Lighthouse is helping them to become independent, contributing members of society.
NewHope, Cambodia
NewHope schools in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, help to keep children from the bondage of human/sex trafficking. At NewHope, 400 Vietnamese children, all undocumented immigrants, receive elementary education as well as help to become Cambodian citizens. The students then obtain scholarships for ongoing middle-school and high-school education.
C-House, Europe
C-House has had success helping women in Europe who’ve escaped from sex trafficking. Given a safe place to stay and vocational training and opportunities, these women can gain a new sense of identity and purpose, especially when they embrace the full emotional and spiritual healing Christ offers.
This ministry has faced many setbacks from the earliest efforts. Currently, the Alliance worker on this project is creating a business plan for the next phase of ministry. Parts of the plan include setting up an Envision site in the area to help with ongoing vital staffing needs as well as partnering with two local Christian anti-trafficking organizations.
Hands of Honor, Mali
This ministry of Compassion and Mercy Associates (CAMA) assists migrant domestic workers, many of whom are child laborers. Impoverished parents send their girls into the workforce because a daughter’s earnings will provide a large portion of the family’s income. But the girls often end up in homes where they are exploited, treated no better than slaves.
Hands of Honor provides training to these girls in literacy, health, and life/job skills. The program also offers classes on how to make local products to sell to earn some additional money. Each day of class, the students also hear an oral Bible story, after which they break into smaller groups with staff members to talk about the story and pray together.
How You Can Help
Pray for victory in the spiritual battle involved in any Christian anti-trafficking ministry as these teams work behind enemy lines. Pray also that the individuals being reached by these ministries will find their ultimate freedom in Christ.
A gift to The Alliance is another way you can help. More than 700 international workers, supported by the Great Commission Fund, bring the hope of the gospel to some of the most spiritually desolate peoples and regions of our world, including those listed above. Give now!