by a creative-access worker in Asia
One evening, I was doing some computer work at a café that’s part of a project my wife, Samantha*, and I help with. I sat down to wait for her return from a meeting when a Caucasian man came in with a young Chinese woman. Our café director later learned he was from Eastern Europe.
The man was friendly and said hello to me, making small talk and asking what I recommended from the menu. After ordering his food, he and the girl settled at another table. A few minutes later, they decided to join me at mine.
As they finished eating, the man excused himself to use the bathroom. During the meal, it became apparent to me that the girl was uncomfortable. So I took the opportunity to ask her about the situation.
“Did you just meet him today?”
“Yes,” she said.
“Do you feel safe?”
“No.”
It was a conversation I never expected to have that night.
At this point, several of our expat staff arrived at the café. I discreetly told them about the girl’s discomfort, and we helped her safely leave the premises.
The café director and his brother stayed behind, spending several hours talking with the man about his life and sharing the good news with him.
Stark Realities
That night, our team saw how easily girls can get into situations from which they find it difficult to escape. The program we work with, headed by The Alliance in Canada, seeks to help women at risk of being trafficked and provide them with safe, dignified work.
Our partnership with the group through CAMA Services involves projects and businesses that include a café, a jewelry business, a hair salon training center, a vocational school startup, and safe houses for at-risk girls.
Although this young woman was not a trafficking victim, the realities of vulnerable young people being taken advantage of came to light for many of us that night in a vivid way—even as this is something we all are working to fight against.
We also learned that asking a simple question like, “Do you feel safe?” can be powerful in helping someone.
Please pray for this ministry and for Alliance teams around the world that are working to combat the sex trade and other forms of exploitation. Ask God to intervene to rescue these women and bring them into relationship with Jesus.
*Name changed