Did you know?

Today there are 27 million people in slavery.

1.2 million children are trafficked every year.

Every minute 2 children are trafficked for sexual exploitation.

Approximately 80% of transnational victims are women and girls, and up to 50% are minors.

The total market value of illicit human trafficking is estimated to be $32 billion.

About $28 billion of this is generated from commercial sexual exploitation.

This makes trafficking in persons 2nd only to the drug trade as the most lucrative crime in the world.

So what does slavery look like today? Most forms of slavery come in bonded and forced labor or sexual exploitation. Every year millions of women and children are forced into prostitution or into the pornography industry. Child sex tourism is also common in Asia. These women and children have been put on my heart by God. My brain cannot comprehend that an 8 year old is raped repeatedly night after night. My brain cannot comprehend that in today's time we are allowing this to happen. How? Why? Because of poverty and the love of money. Corrupt justice systems are full of greed; they are bought off by the traffickers and allow enslaved people to be moved through their country. Because of poverty, there is an endless supply of people to be tricked, coerced, or kidnapped. If a country has a strong democratic government and relatively low poverty, does this mean that they aren't involved in this atrocity? Unfortunately, no. Nearly 200,000 people live enslaved at this moment in the United States, and an additional 17,500 new victims are trafficked across our borders each year. Over 30,000 more slaves are transported through the United States on their way to other international destinations.

I, personally, cannot stand by and allow this to happen anymore. I have to take action, and I hope that you will too. If you are interested in learning more about human trafficking, please check out some of the organizations below. And of course I wouldn't mind you getting involved with me in my fight against sexual slavery. Check out the tab titled "Where is Stephanie now?" to find out more about me, and what I'm doing.

www.Love146.org        This organization has put together statistics, book and movie lists, videos, and resources to bring awareness to your community. I highly recommend you take a look at this one.

www.notforsalecampaign.org        I was first introduced to the world of human trafficking when I heard the founder of this organization speak. I highly recommend reading his book "Not For Sale" if you are interested in getting an up-close and personal look into slavery.

       

www.invisiblechildren.com        This organization is actively working to end the rule of the LRA, who is kidnapping children to serve as soldiers in their rebel army in Uganda Africa.

www.gems-girls.org        This organizations is based out of NYC. They have a great movie titled Very Young Girls. If you are interested in human trafficking right here in the US, then check this one out! 


www.sexandmoneyfilm.com        These guys are based out of YWAM Kona (where I first learned of sex trafficking). They have been working on a documentary for a few years now, and they are about to embark on a 50 state tour where they'll be showing their film. Please check to see if they are coming anywhere near you. Plus they are still looking for places to host a viewing of their film in some states, so maybe you could be of some help!

www.exoduscry.com        This organization is also taking their documentary all over the US. Another easy way to become educated with an up-close look at this thriving industry. 

www.sharedhope.org        This organization was started by a US Congresswoman. It works internationally and domestically to educate and bring awareness about human trafficking.

Quiet

Quietness. Such a multifaceted thing. Too much quiet can drive a person insane.  Too little quiet can, well, drive a person insane. God has been showing me the value of just being quiet. Back in Israel, God began to show me that even when what I have to say is of worth and value, sometimes it is best to be silent. In James it says that if we could learn to control our tongues we would be perfect. Perfect? Wow. I guess I will be working on that one for the rest of my life. Now God is presenting quietness to me in a whole new way. He is teaching me how to enjoy it, and showing me how much I need it. I know this will be a valuable lesson now that I am going to be living right outside the city that never sleeps, never stops, and knows nothing of silence.  Towards the end of my volunteer time in New York, I realized I was yearning for time alone, but it seemed I never could attain it. Had I actually put forth the effort, then yes, I could have had quiet, but when you are surrounded by people who want to be with you and you want to be with them...well you just forget about that need for time alone. I am a social person, so it is hard for me to say "No, I will skip the movie" or whatever it might be. It is funny because I kept thinking "When I get home I can have quiet!", but so far I think it has been louder?! And I do not think it is going to get any better. My idealistic quiet South has eluded me in the face of reality. The point being that quietness is not in one place or in one situation or in one time. It is something that will absolutely evade you unless chased with earnest. It is something that begs to be found.

Ban Suk

Ban Suk is the name of a large Korean Methodist church here in Long Island. We at YWAM NY put on a summer camp for them at their church. There were inspiring teachings, Holy Spirit-filled worship sets, a Prayer Station outreach in the South Bronx, fun games complete with a slip-and-slide, and lots of delicious Korean food! I benefited so much from this week, but it wasn't an easy one to get through. We started out at about 6:30 every morning and ended around midnight or later. For those of you who know me, you know I love to sleep. It was hard for me to function around 60 kids with the amount of rest I was getting, but I survived by finding a quiet room every once in awhile to get a few zzzz's in. Honestly,  kids aren't my forte, and I had to find my place at this camp. Younger kids I am pretty good with, but when you give me middle and high schoolers who roll their eyes and act like their momma forced them to be there...well, I get frustrated. By the end of the camp though, I had seen them start to step out and make a genuine effort to get closer to God. It was a great thing to be a part of. On the first day, these kids would barely speak to us. On the second night though, God dropped a bomb on the place during worship and these kids began to dance and sing and cry out to God! I've never seen anything like it really, especially within the Korean culture. That one night made all the frustration worth it, but God was not even done! It was like that every night after! I was able to step out into leadership like I've never experienced and pray for these kids during those times. In that, God was able to speak and show new things to me. It amazes me how God does not just bless the people you are trying to reach for Him; He turns it around and blesses you equally! 

New Beginnings

In the past, I have been the worst blogger ever. I just never could keep this thing going. BUT, I vow to change, mainly because of all the new things that are going to be happening in my life. Things worth putting into words for people to see. I actually wrote the following story for someone else about a week ago, but it in-depth explains these new beginnings I speak of, so I've posted it here, too. Enjoy!

I arrived here in Smithtown, NY almost 3 weeks ago. Literally, the only thing I knew was that they planned some Christian summer camps. Other than that, I was just playing it by ear, but honestly I don't mind that; I actually like surprises. When I arrived I found that there was plenty to do: a camp at a large Christian Korean church called Ban Suk, and many teams coming from college campuses all over the US that were to be led by us into NYC. I have been quite excited about this because I love being in ministry with other college-age people. I couldn't believe that I had stumbled upon the perfect ministry opportunities. The people here are wonderful as well. It usually takes me a little time to settle in with new people and a place, but I felt at home here almost instantly. I guess that it helped that my roommate and I are very much alike. We became fast friends, and it really feels like I've known her forever, not just 3 weeks. This is very rare for me, so I am extremely thankful for this relationship. These things alone would have made this summer a terrific experience, but God had more to give. As I was getting to know all the people here on base, I begin to hear things about their upcoming DTS. Everyone in the DTS will listen to the same teachers during lecture phase, but the students can pick a track that will determine their local outreaches during lecture phase and their international outreaches. 2 of the 3 tracks are Photography and Compassion. If you know me, you know that I've recently obtained a nice camera and am trying to learn more about photography. I guess you could say that it's my hobby of choice and newly found passion. When I heard about this track, I just thought "Oh that's fun"! It was a few days later that I found out about the Compassion track. The girl that's helping with this track is half-Cambodian and has a heart for girls that have been victims of sex-trafficking, which is huge in Cambodia. If there is one area of ministry that I want to spend a lot of time, it's with this one. At this point I became suspicious of what God was up to. Then, I found out that half of the photography students would go with the 3rd track and the other half with the Compassion track to Cambodia, to help document this awful situation that's going on there for the purpose of raising awareness! After finding all of this out, I couldn't help but to feel overwhelmingly excited deep down in my heart. Around this time, my Mom called to let me know that I had officially received my acceptance letter into the nursing program at the University of South Alabama. I wanted to feel excited over this, but my heart was feeling so conflicted. When you know that God is calling you to something that you aren't sure you want to be called to, this is a popular emotion. "God, how can you want me to put off nursing school for a year when I've been working so hard to get to this point in my education? How could you want me to wait another year when I'm already 24 with no college degree?" After I asked these questions over and over again, God began to show me some things. He impressed on me the importance of time. But not the same principles that most of us want to hear. Time for God and time for man is very different. We think we have everything figured out, but God is truly the only one who knows the exact timing for everything. He knows when we are going to get married, when we'll have kids, and even the minuscule things like the people we will pass on the street tomorrow. He also knows the right time for school, even if you are 24 and feeling like you've wasted a lot of your adult life. I was pretty sure that I knew what God was calling me to do, but I asked Him to confirm it in some way or another. I expressed the wish to hear confirmation from a stranger that knew nothing of my situation. That's never happened to me before, but I've heard about things like that, and I wanted to experience it too. At this same time, I just kept thinking about when I started contemplating nursing school. I wanted to go somewhere out of state, but I didn't want to waste that year having to gain in-state residency to avoid paying out-of-state tuition, which is double the price. But now, if God was calling me to spend a year here in NY, it would work out that I could start school here and be an in-state student. I decided that that probably wasn't the smartest idea because I would have to change everything over from Alabama to New York by the end of Aug. Not a lot of time! I kept this scenario in the back of my head, and just continued asking God for confirmation. I did not want to throw away a nursing school acceptance on a "feeling" that something was perfect for me. Last Friday, a couple from YWAM Romania came to share stories about the things God is doing in their city. This couple has spent almost 11 years there, and have seen their ministry grow drastically. At one point in his talk I swear he looked right at me and said, "It is so important to stay in one place for a long period of time. I encourage you to do this, so that you can really see a community transformed." When he said that, I knew God was talking to me. I knew that the season that I was in while at home had came to an end, but I hadn't really thought about what season would be next. I knew in that brief moment that God was telling me that it is time to put down roots. There's a story in the Bible where it says that God didn't come in the thunder, but in the gentle breeze. That's what I felt like at that moment. Just a brief statement, but one I knew that was directed straight at me. I've wanted to permanently move from my state for a long time, but because of mistakes I've made in the past, I haven't been able to do that. God is telling me that now is the time. There is a reason that I feel at home here. There is a reason that I connect so well with the people here. And there is a reason that I have felt a tug for NYC for most of my life. I used to think it was just a desire to see the big city, but God is showing me that it was Him the whole time. I know that this next season of spiritual growth is going to be one with a lot of new things happening to me. I know that this is a settling down period for me. I have never felt like this in my entire life. I have always known that I was going to leave every place that I've ever been, and I've never told anyone how hard that actually is. I have envied people who felt at home their whole lives. Now, for the first time in my life, I feel like I'm coming home. Not to a people because my family will always be "home", but to a place that is home. A place that I don't want to leave. I haven't been this happy in a long time, yet I am scared to death. There are moments in our lives when God has us stand on the side of a cliff and just jump. He asks us to do this because He wants the opportunity to show us that He can be trusted to catch us when we get to the bottom. I know that God is calling me to staff the September DTS here at YWAM NY, and I know that He is calling me to move here as well. I've never been so sure of something in my life. It makes me feel like I'm crazy, but I know it's right. This is the biggest jump that God has ever asked me to make, but I know that He's doing it only because He  wants me to soar.