Ever Before Our Eyes: Five Social Media Follows For Those Fighting Slavery

Credit The Exodus Road

Trafficking. Commercial sexual exploitation. Modern day slavery. However you choose to label it, I think we can all agree that the atrocity of human beings bought and sold for the satisfaction of others is a great evil. And the fact that it exists in a day and age with adequate social and legal systems to stamp it out completely is unfathomable.

It is easy for us to shake our heads in pity over the statistic of between 10 and 30 million people trapped in the conditions of slavery today. Easy for us to voice that something must be done to stop the atrocity. But it is more difficult to know what to do. Read the rest at Catholicmom.com

Why I'm Talking to My Boys About Bringing Back Our Girls (and What I'm Saying)

I have been emotionally invested in the abduction and return of the 234 missing Nigerian school girls since last week. It has occupied my thoughts and my prayers and weighed heavy on my mind.

I have bombarded my Facebook feed and Twitter with links and cries to #BringBackOurGirls. I have talked to my husband about it. I know he is watching because, well, he follows me on social media and so can't get away  from it.

But I realized today as the outcry begins to reach fever pitch that I must talk my boys about these girls. Even though I wish very much that they did not live in a world where girls can be abducted and sold into slavery for $12 for going to school, the fact is they do. And the best chance I have of changing that world, better than any hashtag, is to raise children who do not live in blissful ignorance, children who blush first with shock and then with anger over the injustice of modern day slavery. Children with knowledge and education and passion for the poor and the oppressed of the world.

All of my children happen to be boys. The most poor and oppressed of the world happen to be mostly girls and women. It seems easier to figure out how to discuss this atrocity and initiate a call to action among other girls who can picture themselves in these girls school shoes.

But if we are to raise a generation that triumphs over these evils, and I firmly believe we are capable of doing so, we have to stop calling these issues "women's issues" and make them "human issues", "justice issues", "the right thing to do" for all of humanity.

I believe my sons could be part of the solution to the injustices humanity faces. I believe they know girls who are part of those solutions too. I want to ensure they grow into men who believe that with every fiber of conviction they have. I want them to be men who will step up when it is their turn in the ring and have the education and the passion to deliver the knock out punch to injustice. And I want them to be men who will lean over the ropes in the corner, brows beaded with sweat and voices hoarse with overuse from cheering on the women in the ring as they take their turn to strike back at injustice.

For that to happen, I must start now, must build a little fire in their guts to fight injustice and to not be afraid of the reality that most of the world's injustices are commited against women and girls, that girls are the most oppressed people group on the planet. I want them to know it is not a shame to them as men and they do not have to shuffle awkwardly away from that reality. That they can be men who lean into that and begin to change that reality just by being willing to discuss it, sit with it, claim it as their problem.

And I want them to learn to listen to women and the way these realities affect them. To hear the ache of the hearts of women they love and respect, the cries of the mothers, and desperation of the girls. And to not be afraid of the emotion of it all. To take it and hold it in cupped hands and guard it well. And let it be the spark that lights them up to defend their sisters.

I have a house full of boy children. But I want to be sure they know they are not sister-less. And that their sisters, they need them. And this world needs them. And this world needs their sisters too. And that is why they must care about bringing them back. That is why they must care that women are set free. That is why they must care that girls get to go to school.

Because they live and will live in world that is made whole by the women who walk it with them. And their silenced voices and locked away lives leave half the sky missing. And I want my boys to see the whole sky. And love it with all their hearts.

So this is the essence of what I am sharing with them today:

1. The bare facts: 

              234 girls missing
              16-18 years old
              stolen from school in the middle of the night
              why the girls lived at school:

            Families had sent their girls to the rural school in Chibok for a desperately needed education. The northeastern town is part of Borno state, where 72% of primary-age children never attended school, according to the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria.

              in rural northern Nigeria
              by terrorists oppsoed to girls seeking an education
              taken to another country
              being sold for $12 a piece
 

2. Some perspective:
           

              more girls than the number of passengers on Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

              ten classrooms full of girls (based on US average of 23 kids in a classroom)

              families had invented approximately $1200 in these girls' education (based on $100 a year estimate for government school fees and supplies for 12 years)

              In a country where more than half than the people live on less $2 a day that is an investment                 of 1/3 of a family's income

              These girls were sitting for their final exams, just months away from significantly contributing                 to the income of their families

              Explain the impact the fear will have on other families and girls and the domino effect of                       thousands of girls afraid to go to school.


         
3. Lack of and late response of media

            Just doing the best I can to describe this in my own words to them and touching a little on the reality               of institutional racism and that the news media markets to an audience and covers what viewers will               watch. We'll have a conversation about what that says about the perspective of most viewers in                     developed nations.

4. Lack of government and world response:

            Again, doing what I can in my own words here. My kids have lived in developing nations. They are               well aware of how lack of infrastructure affects efficieny and ho long-standing cultural norms affect                 people in those nations. They are also pretty aware of the vulnerability of the poor to violence and                 the lack of protection afforded them. We'll just talk about how all this contributes to the reasons why             no real plan of action to locate the girls has yet been developed and instituted. I will ask them their                 ideas on what they would do if they were in political power in this situation.

5. And lastly, what they can do:

•             Pray...for the girls, for their families. But also for their captors and the government officials                   who can rescue them. I might share Sarah Bessey's beautiful post with them.
•             Read them the story of the Good Shepherd (timely since it will be Good Shepherd Sunday in               the Church this weekend) and ask them to think about why it is our responsibility to act as we             are able on behalf of these girls. How would the shepherd who went after the one lost sheep               want us to respond?
•             Have them sign the Change.org petition and write their note in their own words ( I am not sure             if there is an age for the petition, but I will have them to it anyway for the chance to articulate               their "why" response)
•             Introduce them to a few amazing online friends who are modern day freedom fighters and                   abolitionists

            
           

On Nigeria and Not Looking Away

I wasn't planning to post about slavery and justice and hard stuff that I don't know what to do about tonight.
I wasn't planning to talk about Nigeria and school girls and terrorist kidnappers and abductions.
I wasn't.

But I am.

Even though I do not know what to tell you to think or say or do about it. Even though I cannot think of any possible way we can help this specific situation right now. I am going to make sure I put it before your eyes. Because I have an all too familiar ache in my stomach.

As I read head lines and shared stories tonight and wished the world would wake up from its sleepy acceptance of horrors as far-away issues that have little to do with us, I realized that I had to speak in some way.

Because girls should be able to celebrate making it to the day they sit for their final exams in school with a Coke and shared giggles. They should not be kidnapped in a mass raid by terrorists that have long threatened their region. They should not sit at home afraid that an education may cost them the little freedom they have.

But that is happening, people. Tonight. In your world. In your global neighborhood.

I was going to share all the links here for you to click over and read. But you know what. I'm not. You do it. Google it. Read it. Educate yourself. I'm laying down a challenge. If you don't know what I am talking about, make it your responsibility to find out.

After that, I am not sure what to tell you to do next. Heck, I am typing red-faced fury into the keyboard because I don't know what else to do.

But you know what? I am tired of us ignoring injustice because we can't fix it, because we can't impose a comfortable solution and walk away, raise a little cash and throw it at a problem. And when we can't, squirming uncomfortably and shuffling our feet quietly over to the next conversation.

If we are going to be justice walkers and mercy lovers and freedom fighters, we've got to learn to sit and suffer in the hard stuff. The stuff for which there is no easy fix.

We have to acknowledge the gut-wrenching realities of rape and incest and trafficking and slavery and orphans and AIDS epidemics and tornadoes and floods and our ineptitude in it all and just sit in that brokenness, bleeding sweat if it is all that we can do. But caring passionately enough about the broken ugliness of our world that at the very least its sweat and tears and desperate prayers are worth are our company.

Let us not fall into lazy slumber at the world's agony. At a school girl's agony. At her mother's cries across the oceans of dark night. Please. Sit with them. Sit with me.

I don't know what to do. But I will not look away for my own comfort.

I can pray. I can keep company with the broken and the hurting of the world. I can light a candle and send a flicker of mercy across the oceans of pain.

If you light yours too, if we keep vigil together in the midst of the world's agony, then maybe, just maybe, we can light a path to freedom together. And maybe Spirit fire will blaze in a heart somewhere and someone will discover a calling that leads to a solution, that leads to freedom.

Let's keep company with the more than 230 families wondering where their daughters are right now. Let our legacy be that we refused to look away when there were no easy answers.

I can see your candle flickering from here.

Day 15 of Giving That Gives Back: Riding Their Coat Tails

So, while I was unapologetically not blogging about places to shop that give back, a lot of other really cool, smart ladies were. I know many of you maybe trying to wrap up this whole shopping business, and it may be getting late for reading all these posts and discovering new links, but I think it will be nice to have them all archived in the series and you'll have some things to bookmark for the next time you need to give a gift, so I am going to just keep building our list, all right? There's no way any of us will make a purchase at every one of these places, this year, or ever, but being conscious of the empowering work being done and the relative ease with which you can make conscientious purchases helps inspire and encourage us to keep seeking intention in the way we consume and buy and shop, and that is important.

So here some great lists to browse through. If you are done your shopping, maybe you can find a little treat to congratulate yourself with. If you're stuck on one gift, maybe you'll find inspiration. Choose your five favorites and book mark them for the future. Oh, and poke around a bit at these blogs if you don't know them already. So worth following these ladies.

Tsh Oxenreider's Ethical Shopping Guide at the Art of Simple is comprehensive and inspiring. I found lots of new inspiration there and I know you will too. I am especially loving these new finds: Solo Eyewear, The Giving Keys, and the kids' section at Come Together Trading?  Precious.

Sarah Bessey's guide to shopping that empowers women is another great resource for getting to know businesses and enterprises that empower and support women on a global level. Economic stability for women is one of the best tools we have to fight trafficking as well as just about every other factor contributing to global poverty. Research shows that empowering women is the fastest, most sustainable and widely effective way to transform communities. The effect ripples out in waves and is invested into families, schools, children and other women. So take a look around at her links and give a woman an opportunity to affect change in her community. Hands down my favorite discovery there is Global Mothers. Love, love, love this. If I had a daughter, she would, without a doubt, be getting the mom + baby doll for Christmas.  But I don't, so you've got to go buy it, okay?

Kristen Howerton's guide to gifts that give back (catchy title...great minds) is so pretty and fun to click through. Like everything else on her lovely blog. Make a cup of cocoa and give yourself a few quiet minutes to soak up these beautiful images and do a bit of browsing. It will fill you with the true spirit of Christmas, I promise. I am especially excited to shop around at a couple of the stores that are working directly with sustainability options for trafficking survivors. Like the Not For Sale shop.  And seriously? Punjammies? Pajamas made in after care facilities with discarded saris? Genious. You hear that, Santa? Genius. So bring some this way, jolly old elf. P.S. They had me at the name International Princess Project. Whatever they're selling, I'm buying. Theoretically speaking, of course.

So, enjoy. Go do some good with your dollars. Or save some links for later. But do click around and find a new business to love that does good in this world. It will make your season brighter, I promise.

Follow the whole series here.

Day 14 of Giving That Gives Back: Why I Am Not That Sorry I Bailed On You

So, in case you haven't noticed, I kind of bailed on you guys in the last couple of weeks. I wanted to start this post with an apology and an explanation, but when I began to think about the factors that explain my disappearance, the truth is, I really can't be all that sorry.

First of all, there was a practical factor involved. We had a short term mission to lead in one of our most remote outposts and were away from reliable internet. It was a wonderful week. And it made me realize a few things. I needed to unplug a bit and be present here. I was grasping at community in this wide internet world and ignoring very real relationships. I was pushing toward the future so hard, I was missing the joy of the present. I had lost the simple joy of just loving well and walking in mercy right here, right now. And on the inside, I was having a bit a soul melt down that needed immediate triage.

I can't say I know exactly why I found myself frazzled, feeling deeply broken and unfixable and unwilling to lean in to the one Answer I know is all I need. I know the instability and dependence required by this life I live had something to with it. I know some difficult personal griefs I was facing had a lot to do with it. And I know that getting caught up in how I wish things were instead of doing what I can with what I have was a lot of it. But there was also another component, and it has to do with the reason I started this series in the first place. It was to speak in to the injustice of modern day slavery. And I think I have not done that as well as I would have liked.

The reason is because sometimes I get caught up in talking about an ISSUE. I get fired up about INJUSTICE. I want to become an advocate for change for the WORLD AT LARGE. And then something happens to make me realize this is real. It is not metaphorical justice for an ambiguous world that we are advocating.

It is freedom from slavery. For real people. With names. And mothers who don't know what happened to their babies who were stolen. Who are locked away behind walls and can't even remember how long they've been there. Girls who are daily being ravaged mind, body and soul for the sake of another's perversion.

Last week, one of The Exodus Road's teams raided a "dance bar" in India. They were finally able to successfully execute the raid after a number of tip offs had thwarted their efforts. They raided, made the arrests, and began to process the victims on site. After seven hours of processing victims, they began to hear sounds coming from behind a wall. When they broke through a portion of that wall, they found 22 women and girls trapped there, in a confined space without food, water, or air to breathe. You can read the account for yourself here. And see real video footage of the space where these women were trapped here.

You guys. Not a day has passed that this reality has not stung me at my core. Real women, 18 of them minors, CHILDREN, walled up in a hole by slave traders. Clawing and scratching, desperate for release. Robbed of the very right to breathe the air around them. In utter, desolate darkness. And freedom came. Release came. And I am so, so grateful.

But I am stuck. I cannot figure out how I am supposed to make mashed potatoes for dinner and order sweet gifts for people knowing there are millions more still trapped. MILLIONS. If this is not rocking our humanity like an earthquake, friends, what will?

And then there is this aspect of my life that is breaking me wide open too. It is caring for moms. Real moms. Who have the same hopes and dreams that you and I do as we welcome a baby into the world. They want labor to go well. They want a safe delivery. Even though they will be alone, with no one at their side, they want access to medical care that will keep them and their baby alive in the case of an emergency. They hope they will make enough milk to breastfeed and that the baby is healthy. They hope that baby will grow up and be able to go to school and have opportunities for a good and productive future.

Moms watch their babies die at an alarming rate because of premature births that could be prevented. Because of a FREAKING MOSQUITO BITE. Because of Strep B infections that can be detected by a simple test. You all probably know that I am a mom who has held my child, not breathing, in my arms. Handed him over to paramedics. Placed him in the ground and had to figure out how to walk away. You may not know that I have suffered four subsequent miscarriages, two in the last six months. I cannot compartmentalize the reality that while there may have been nothing I could have done for my own son, there are moms who are holding dying babies in their arms who can be saved by our help. I can't pretend that it is not a really hard thing that God has chosen to redeem my suffering by asking me to love moms and help save their babies while my own have not been saved. I will not pretend that this is easy for me all the time. But I will not back away from the chance to keep one more mama's arms full, one more little one alive and well and with a hope for the future.

And I break sometimes under the weight of needing to figure this out. How do we fix these things? What is our Savior asking of me? of you? of us as the Body of Christ?

And so I find myself a bit quieter these days, because I have got to seek the voice of the only Answer. The only voice that saves. The only one who can heal this brokenness and bring light to the darkness, the one who sets captives free. And me, I am feeling a little bit broken, dark and held captive. And I need an advent. A new beginning. A waiting. A settling into the very real reality of darkness so I can hold fast to the Light when it breaks upon us at Christmas.

I need to read stories to my guys and spend the afternoons with my neighbors. I need to bump along dusty roads and watch a seventeen year old expectant mom change her plastic tarp roof out for a tin one thanks to generous friends. I need to rock baby orphans on my lap and deck the halls of their home and scoop rice and beans into their hungry mouths and love. I need to remember that love conquers all, my friends. And for that, I need to be here. Where I love and am loved.

So, I am going to go ahead and proceed here for what it's worth to those of you following along. But I am not going to force the happy holiday joy of the world. I am going to write the things that are pressing on my heart. And I am going to do so without much fanfare. Without hoping you'll see it as worthy of sharing or applauding or commenting. Just me. Real. In my space. With my heart open and broken and bleeding and waiting for the dawn of something new.

So, I bailed on you guys. But I am not sorry. And I hope you understand why.

Day 10 of Giving that Gives Back: Funding Freedom

So the initial impetus behind this series was a commitment to use Christmas and our consumer power to reduce our slavery footprint and fight the modern day human slavery and trafficking that is one of the greatest evils of our time.

Surely one of the best ways we can do that is to invest in freedom itself. One of the organizations I have supported in their efforts to free slaves is The Exodus Road . I love what they do for a number of reasons.

1. They are forming a a coalition of existing organizations to maximize the opportunities to free slaves and influence local police and power systems. At the root of the evil of slavery are its perpetrators. Getting to them and making their crimes dangerous and unprofitable is the fastest way to drive them out of the "industry". That takes collaborative efforts across the board. That is the philosophy The Exodus Road has espoused and their success is proof that it works.
2. They are a tireless voice for not only raising awareness but empowering advocacy among normal folks like us who want to do something. There are always opportunities to engage with what they are doing from where you are and they value that engagement. Their relationship with their supporters is unique and refreshing. 
3. They are transparent and honest about statistics, the logistics of their work, exactly what they can and cannot do for victims, and how very, very hard and brutal this work is. We need that kind of honesty if we are going to take a broader group of people from advocacy to action.
4. They maintain a near continuous presence on the ground. One part of the investigative coalition is their own team. In addition, you can follow founder Matt Parker on many of his trips to the field, hear from supporters they have taken with them on missions, follow raids in real time. You know that they know what the investigators they work with are doing. Because they are there with them often enough to know. If an organization seeks to empower a certain group of people, they need to know their work inside and out, listen to their struggles, hear their needs, and encourage them personally. This is something unique to The Exodus Road.

So what you can do RIGHT NOW to fund freedom as part of your living Christmas? There are a few things.

1. The Exodus Road is trying to fund a new camera for one of its investigative teams on Pure Charity right now. Can you help them reach their goal and fully fund that equipment? This is the state of the art answer that allows their investigators to gather the evidence they need to free slaves and persecute the criminals who buy and sell them.
2. Buy the book that tells their story. Laura Parker's writing is honest and inspiring at the same time. I learned about The Exodus Road following her blog. This is a read that will show you the realities of modern day slavery as well as inspire you as to how we can actively engage in the fight to end this evil.
3. Become part of a Search and Rescue team. It takes about $35 to fund one night of an investigator's work. By joining a team, you commit to monthly support that allows the team of your choice to send one of their investigators to work. You can read through the page and choose a team to support. There are two teams working in Asia, one in India and one newly formed team in States. 
4. Can't give at this time but love what they are doing? Why not write a note of encouragement to one of their investigators? This post contains a sample of a letter I wrote last Christmas. You can post the note in the comments or e-mail it to me and I will send it along to The Exodus Road staff. Also, you write them a message on Facebook and help share their work with your friends. 
5. 

All post in the series linked here.

Day 5 of Giving that Gives Back: Connected in Hope

CONNECTED IN HOPE

I am so excited today to have the opportunity to introduce you all to a wonderful opportunity to give in a way that gives back. Today, I am highlighting  Connected in Hope, a wonderful enterprise founded by my friend Ryane as a way to "empower women and strengthen families" in Ethiopia. The vision for this enterprise began when Ryane traveled to Ethiopia to adopt and fell in love with more than a child. Ryane has been very generous and supportive to me as I have worked to launch our Mercy Covers enterprise, so I am excited to share Connected in Hope with you today.

Connected in Hope supports the Former Women Fuel Carriers Association in Ethiopia as they work to transition women out of this difficult and often enslaving work into dignified and meaningful artisan crafting.
From the web site:

Subsequent trips to Ethiopia brought us face-to-face with women burdened the job of with carrying enormous bundles of fuel wood. They seemed to almost run as they rushed down the mountains around Addis Ababa to sell their bundles for less than $1. We learned about the enormous challenges they faced every day in an effort to provide even the basics of food and shelter for their families.   We saw the sadness in their eyes as they talked about leaving their sleeping children in the hours before dawn to gather fuel wood in the forest  Wild animals, harassment, rape were part of their daily lives.  We met children forced to quit school and work when the complications of HIV/AIDS left their mothers too ill to support the family.   We saw the realities of their lives – poverty, unsafe water, inadequate sanitation, not enough food.  The faces of the women fuel wood carriers and their children were imprinted on our hearts and left us forever changed- and committed!

I love that Connected in Hope is supporting and empowering local leadership in their efforts to accomplish this for their women. And Connected in Hope not only provides income development for their women, but also is improving education for their children, working to keep families together and prevent children from being orphaned, and addressing the difficult health care crisis in Ethiopia. This is amazing work, you guys!

Women are released from the back breaking and dangerous work of a fuel wood carrier to become artisans and the mothers they hope to be!

Not to mention that they make some of the most lovely scarves you have ever seen! Check out the darling Sarah from Amongst Lovely Things sporting hers. Here's what she has to say about these beautiful products: 

I love that I can wear a beautiful well-made scarf and connect with women and families across the globe. I feel like I'm wearing hope when I wear a CIH piece. And it's one of my favorite gifts to give!

Sarah rocking this whole mom of newborn twins thing in her Connected in Hope scarf.

Connected in Hope gives you a great step-by-step guide as to how you can help. Start with praying. Then go purchase a scarf or two because:

And remember yesterday when we talked about having a different kind of Christmas party? Why not host a Connected in Hope trunk show? 

You know what else is cool? When you make a purchase at Connected in Hope, the item comes signed by the artisan! So you can go find her and see her face and know her story, truly connecting yourself to the hope you are bringing into her life. 

You know what else is cool? Ryane has generously offered us a coupon code for free shipping for any purchases you make from the site! Just plug in GIVEHOPE2 at checkout for free shipping in the online store.

So let's build some hope in Ethiopia today while purchasing high quality, meaningful gifts for the Christmas season. And share this post with your friends and readers too so they can get connected in hope and enjoy our coupon!

Just coming on board today? Follow and share the links to the whole series

here in the original post.

Day 4 of Giving that Gives Back: How Not to Be the Grinch

One of the things that's hard about tackling this issue on a personal level is others' reaction to it. I do not know a single person who would try to become a more intentional consumer for the sake of making others feel bad about themselves. And yet that seems to be the general reaction.

People feel the need to defend themselves or declare us a saint. It's hard not feel pressured to stop talking about this at this point. No one wants to ruin someone else's merry. I am hardly here to try to make another mom feel badly about herself for sticking a candy-cane shaped tube of Hershey's Kisses in someone's stocking. And yet, judging by the comments in my friend Sarah's post at the NC Register today, it seems that this is exactly what happens when we go there.

Here's the thing, I am convinced it is better to do something rather nothing. I know my efforts will never be perfect and I will likely never get the opportunity to physically rescue someone from slavery. I know my best attempts may fail me and I might find out the ethically sourced chocolate I purchased was mailed in bubble wrapped that spreads cancer to workers in a developing nation. It's just unavoidable.

But here's the thing. If I never try to change my actions based on what I know, nothing will change. Not in me and not in the world. Bianca Olthoff, who is fighting trafficking on the front lines with the A21 campaign said something when I heard her speak recently. She summed up perfectly our purpose here with this short phrase: "Awareness should lead to advocacy should lead to action". We cannot be paralyzed by fear or guilt or being simply overwhelmed. We have to live in the tension that we can try and never get it totally right. But if we are aware there is an injustice as grave as modern day slavery rising to epidemic proportions in our time, we must use our voice to advocate for solving it and we must take what action is available to us. Tweaking Christmas is one way we can start.

But we can also find ways to do it without being the Grinch to those around us who would feel indicted by our action. One way is invite them to make merry with you in this. My friend Audrey hosted "A Different Kind of Christmas Party" this weekend.

Nickie's table representing St. Bryce Missions at
Audrey's "Different Kind of Christmas Party"

She invited friends to represent causes they were passionate about with tables set up in her living room. Then her guests made merry with holiday cheer and goodies while they had a chance to get to know the opportunities to give a different kind of gift this Christmas. She had children to sponsor in Ethiopia and items made by social enterprise initiatives. And my dear friend Nickie invited guests to purchase chickens for our St. Bryce Missions Chicken Run Project which provides chickens to families with undernourished children in our area.

A festive little chicken gift bag to bring her gifts home on

She made it lovely and fun and festive for the guests. Just look at those photos! They even took home little gift bags with gift cards in them to give to whomever they had purchased the chicken in honor of.  After the party, Audrey sent all her guests links to the groups that were represented at the party.

Rather than try hard to make changes and end up feeling like the Grinch this Christmas, why not find a way to creatively celebrate your efforts at change? And look, don't freak out about how your baked goods are contributing to slavery while you have a party to help stop it. Just relax. Breathe a little.

Find some friends around you who are passionate about a certain organization or group, invite them to advocate for that group. Don't know anyone to ask? Do a virtual one. Invite your guests to bring their favorite gadgets and introduce them to the links we are sharing here or your personal favorites. Bookmark and pin in holiday style. Encourage them to think not only about products to purchase, but encourage them to choose a non-consumer option or a charity gift for at least three of their gifts this Christmas. Give them permission for it to be yours. Have festive round up friends. Play some Christmas tunes. And change the world without anyone having to feel badly about herself. We have to start somewhere. Why not with a party?

Don't forget that you can find all the posts in this series linked in the original post.

Day 2 of Giving that Gives Back

ORPHAN SUNDAY

Today, the Christian family is invited by the Christian Alliance for Orphans to place our focus on the many orphaned children around the world and our responsibility as Christians and as Church to care for them and to be family for them. They call it Orphan Sunday.

When we talk about our consumer habits in light of our slavery footprint, it is important remember that the world's orphans are the faces and names that we seek to protect. Orphans are one of the most vulnerable populations to become victims of traffickers, cheap labor markets, domestic servitude and other forms of modern day slavery, particularly teens who age our of orphanage systems in developing nations. 

Statistics tell us that more than 90% of orphans in the Ukraine will end up in prostitution or in jail for other reasons. Up to 15% of kids who age out of orphanages will commit suicide during their eighteenth year.

There has been a bit of debate in the last months about what the Christian response to the world's orphans should be, if we are driving a market for orphans with our desire to save them. If we are responsible for encouraging adoption while ignoring ethics, failing to look at ways to care for families and prevent children from being orphaned, and by failing to make an overall impact for these vulnerable children who remain in orphanages alongside our efforts at adoption. This is important. If you want to advocate for orphans publicly, do a quick Google search and read the bevy of posts available on adoption ethics. 

But today, let's take this in a different direction. This series' purpose is not to encourage adoption or educate you on the ethics. But just is case the Holy Spirit wants to tell you something today, go ahead and read this. 

But for our purposes, can we commemorate today in our hearts and minds by making a commitment to give one gift this year that advocates and educates on behalf of the world's countless orphans? Here are some ideas:

Ornaments4Orphans is an organization that sells some of the most lovely hand-crafted ornaments and nativity scenes made in East Africa. The proceeds from the sales benefit children in Uganda. From their web site:

Ornaments4Orphans’ mission is to provide American Christians with a seasonal opportunity to support God’s growing kingdom work in East Africa. When individuals purchase an ornament from Ornaments4Orphans the funds are directed toward annual operational costs and development projects of gospel-centered orphan and children’s ministries in Uganda. As the ornament hangs on your Christmas tree, it serves as a reminder to you and your family to pray for the physical and spiritual wellbeing of the children of Uganda. Ornaments also make meaningful Christmas gifts for your family members, colleagues, and friends. All ornaments come specially packaged with information about the ministries and the children the proceeds benefit.

100Cameras is an amazing organization that empowers vulnerable kids through photography. From their web site: 

100cameras empowers kids to create tangible change in their communities by teaching them to capture their lives through photography. We then sell their photographs and give 100% of purchases back to the community allowing kids to participate in the 100cameras program and to fund local lifeline, education, and healthcare needs.

One of their projects is using photography to provide lifeline services to the 118 kids at St. Bertholomew's orphanage in South Sudan. 

They have some lovely Christmas cards available in their shop. And personally, I would be so, so happy if someone sent me this Sudan card set this Christmas.

For a completely non-consumer option, how cool would it be to adopt a camera in honor of your favorite photography buff?

This link offers you a list of ways to purchase gifts that help orphans. I have not had time to research all the organizations they are linking to, so I encourage you to look closely before you purchase. Know who you are buying from and why. Also, there are a number of options on the linked sites to give gifts to orphans. We so often talk about the perfect gift for the person who has everything. If you need a gift for a person who already has everything this year, how about giving a gift to a child who has nothing in his/her name? 

Lastly, I would encourage to think about child sponsorship as an option this Christmas. It is a lovely way to honor someone who has made a difference in the lives of your children or family. It is giving the gift of friendship with another child to your child. As a mom who has suffered the loss of multiple children, I think it would be a lovely way to honor their memories. If someone in your life has suffered a difficult loss this year, giving life to a child in need would be a lovely way to offer them healing and hope. There are so many ways you could make sponsoring a child in another's name a beautiful gift. 

There are no shortage of sponsorship programs out there and I have no doubt that many of you already have your favorites. I invite you to link them in the comments. There is no way I can highlight them all here. 

Here are two I would encourage you to consider:

Christian Foundation for Children and Aging

Chalice

So now it's your turn to teach me something. Share your favorite Orphan Sunday posts, videos, your favorite orphan advocacy or child sponsorship program in the links below.

Today, I have some friends gathering in the Austin, Texas area for "A Different Kind of Christmas Party". A little holiday cheer focused on giving that gives back. This week I'll share more with you about how to plan a gathering that gives back. And we'll talk coffee. And there might be a coupon code or two for beautiful gifts that give back.

Don't forget that you can find all the posts in this series linked in the initial post. And grab the button below to share the series on your blog.

Day 1 of 31 Days of Giving that Gives Back

I'm the kind of girl who would much rather address the proverbial elephant in the living room than skirt around an issue we all know is affecting what we are trying to talk about but we don't want to admit it. So as we begin to talk about how to change our consumer habits for the sake of others' freedom, can we just be real for today and say the hard thing we all know is true?

The best way for any of us to reduce our slavery footprint is for us to intentionally consume less. Whew. There I said it. This is the hardest part for us to tackle honestly. We all have our reasons why it just won't work to change the way we do Christmas...grandparents who will be angry, family who expects our participation, a husband who thinks we've gone a bit off the deep end. 

And I get that. This process is most effective if it is an opportunity to educate and thus affect those around us. If we alienate and anger everyone around us from our perceived soapbox, well, that's not exactly the point. Nor does it feel very much about the true spirit of Christmas.

And if our goal is renounce consumer craziness and reclaim some of Christmas' earliest message that love is born in humble places we have to be brave about making intentional changes, but we have to find ways to do it that are lavish in love and generous in grace. After all, shepherds and kings both showed up bearing their gifts for the Christ Child and they were all welcomed.

But if we are to begin, we have to begin somewhere. Here are my thoughts on how we can begin to address the hardest part of this process of giving freedom instead of consuming this Christmas.

1. Pray. I do believe that at its heart, this is a spiritual matter for all of us. Christmas and what it means. Our consumption habits and where they come from. Our expectations of ourselves and others. The way we respond to others' expectations of us. This all has to do with the state of our souls and the state of our sin and our relationship with the Lord whose coming we celebrate in the great feast of Christmas. 

When we begin to feel a stirring inside us to change, we can become just as manic about needing to get it right RIGHT NOW as we are tempted to be about consumption. We have to remember the goal here is to slow down and be more intentional about what we are doing. Not to raze Christmas to the ground with a moral wrecking ball. 

That balance is only going to come through prayer. Let's start there. Immerse ourselves in the Word and the mysteries of Christ's birth. Ask ourselves what it means to live those mysteries this season. Make room for the Holy Spirit to inspire and inform our consciences. Confess our consumer sins and willful ignorance of the past. Clean out our hearts with the same vigor we clean out the toy shelves and the kitchen cupboard to make room for Christmas' newness. 

Start living a spiritual advent now, before the consumer craziness hijacks your opportunity. Advent in its more secular form can mean a change or development. The birth of something new. Let's start now so we can make it so.

AND let's resist the temptation to turn Advent into its own consumer frenzy in order to get it right. You and I are both already thinking about just the books we can buy and the cute pinteresty things we can do to live Advent and get it right RIGHT NOW. Again. Sigh. See how insidious that urge to consume more is? 

Look, here's the November supply list:

1. a bag of fair trade coffee or tea

2. a Bible you already have

3. a pen you already have (dig it out from the couch cushions if you must and forget about whether it is colored gel ink in Christmas colors with glittery sparkles. Manger. Food trough. Barn cave. Any pen will do.)

4. Some type of paper bound together in one place. A half stack of Post It notes from the junk drawer will do. You DO NOT need a new prayer journal. Use the last twenty pages of one of the ten you already have.

(I say these things because I love you. And I get you. I am talking to myself. If you were not tempted to do any of those things above, props to you. You're one step ahead of me on this journey.)

Now. Here's where you can have a little fun. Make a space to pray and plan for this Christmas. Choose a space in your home, rearrange a bit, make it feel new and welcoming and waiting. Just like Christmas. Use things you already have as intentional visual reminders in the space about what your goal and purpose is here But your supplies from above there at there at the ready. 

And for the next 30 Days, let's go there together. Every day. And together let's seek the heart of Christmas. And ask God how He would have us change our practices. Let's ask His forgiveness for the ways our need to consume has enslaved His children. Let's beg for their freedom and for ours. Let's pray for those who fight this very real battle on the ground. And those who perpetrate this evil. Let's pray for change. And let us give Him permission to begin with us.

All posts will be linked in the introductory post for the series 
so you can follow along easily if you like

31 Days: Giving That Gives Back

Well, Halloween is over. Today, the world settles into a two month long stretch of utter Christmas mania. And we all begin to internalize it just a little. Gift giving, cookie baking, food shopping, all begin to buzz loudly in our heads, call to us in our sleep, and lure us into a retail frenzy.

It's been a while since I blogged about human trafficking here on the blog. I think as Christmas approaches time to take up the reminder again. The frenzy of Christmas, especially in America, can lull into a sort of coma about the justice issues in the world around us. There is just too much happy to be had. We begin feel the pressure to buy and to make and to gather and to sing. "What can we do about child sex slaves today? Forget about it. Grab another peppermint latte and sing 'Joy to the World'".

But the truth is, there is much we can do to reduce the demand for slaves around the world with our purchasing power. My friend Lisa Hendey ran a great post yesterday asking us to consider how our consumption contributes to slavery. It's important that we all realize that we do not have to be paying for sex create a market for modern day slavery. Much of our consumption of normal goods increases the market for cheap labor, and thus slavery, in developing nations. Want to know how much? Take the time to fine tune your slavery footprint here. It's disconcerting to know how much our purchases drive this evil. And it is a call to be more intentional about the way we use that power. Especially in the height of consumer craziness that is Christmas.

Why not add freedom to the list of gifts you'll give this Christmas? Slow down a bit and try to be intentional in the ways you spend, gift and celebrate this Christmas. There are ways to shop and give that are ethical and responsible and will drastically lower the demand for slavery around the world. And many of these options actually contribute to a better world. We can shop local, support social and micro-enterprises, give gifts of charity, and educate while we give. We can avoid the "no room at the inn" mentality of Christmas that tells us we have no time to be slow and intentional and make room for Christ-like love.

So I will be beginning starting today a series of  31 Days posts about shopping ethically and responsibly this Christmas season. About giving that gives back and giving that gives freedom. Join me, please? Not only will you learn more about the issue of modern day slavery and its implications for our lives, but you will be introduces to some lovely businesses and gifting opportunity that will inspire you and give you the gift of hope in the goodness of humanity.

I'll revisit many of the groups I discussed in the 31 Days of Action series about trafficking last year. And giving you more information about many of the groups listed in the Responsible Shopping links on the tab above. So today, why not read Lisa's post, assess your slavery footprint and set up a bookmarks folder for the links we'll visit over the next 31 days? Grab yourself a fair trade latte each morning and settle in to make a difference this Christmas.

Feel free to use the button below to share this series with your blog readers. Grab the image and link it back to this post. I will add the links to all 31 posts in the series here each day.

Day 1

Day 2: Orphan Sunday

Day 3: Lovely Linens
Day 4: How Not to Be the Grinch
Day 5: Connected in Hope
Day 6: Christmas Clothes
Day 7: The Philippines Disaster Response
Day 8: Meet Mercy Goods
Day 9: Mercy Covers for the Homeless
Day 10:Fund Freedom
Day 11: Old-Fashioned Fun
Day 12: Coffee Talk
Day 13: What She Said

Let's Thank the Guys Doing the Hard Stuff

A couple of weekends ago, a surprise meeting at the immigration office landed me in downtown San Jose with my husband for the evening. We stayed in a lovely old hotel and enjoyed a stroll through the downtown shopping area that afternoon. As evening set in, we strolled past an infamous "hotel/casino" in the heart of downtown that is widely known to be a front for a prostitution ring. You can find it listed in just about any tourist guide to Costa Rica and an image search of its name will give you an eyeful of what's really being marketed there. It is also widely known that most of the women (girls?) working the place are not Costa Rican. They are Columbian, Nicaraguan and who knows what else. Which of course led me to wonder how many of them got here by being trafficked here. And how many of them were under-aged and stolen and trapped.

For a quick moment, I wanted to tell my husband to march in there and have a look around, to scope it out and see if there were any girls who looked too young, who looked afraid, who looked like they had been hit or hurt, who looked like they were there against their will. I wanted to tell him to ask to see their boss. To ask if they were any girls for sale. To ask specifically for foreign girls and see what he said.
About a minute later, I realized, of course, that this was not an option.

We are not equipped for this, us two foreign missionaries. We proclaim the Gospel to an indigenous people. We build chapels in poor areas. We are working to provide meaningful work to women. We have committed ourselves to taking whatever action we can to fight modern slavery. I am humbled and feel a great privilege to be called to this work. God gave us the perfect job for who we are, what we know and  what we feel called to do.

We are not undercover investigators. We do not have the collective experience, the collaborative cooperation, the expensive equipment or the strong sense of purpose that sends us into the world's darkest corners to find, gain the trust of, record the stories of modern day slaves, then coordinate their rescue, the prosecution of their captors and the beginning of their journey to recovery.

But The Exodus Road does. They've got all that. And they're using to set captives free. 

And right now they're inviting those of us who care passionately about the fight to end slavery to offer our support and encouragement to the men on the front lines -- the men who strap themselves up with undercover surveillance equipment and spend their nights in brothels in Southeast Asia collecting the information they need to rescue the underage victims of sexual slavery. That's a hard job description to carry around day in and day out. I am certain there are days they'd rather not do it. I am certain there are nights it feels hopeless. And I am certain they often feel all alone in those dark places full of scum bags thinking not rescue but ruin.

Would you take a moment to write them and express your gratitude some time between now and January 10th. Hand-written notes would be greatly appreciated. They can be mailed to The Exodus Road |  PO Box 7591 |  Woodland Park, Colorado, 80863. 
If you are unable to get a hand-written note in the mail, you can submit a letter online here. 
Could it be any easier than that? For those of us who want with all our hearts to fight this atrocity but have been called to the front lines of a different kind of work, what better way could there be to offer our hope, our support, our encouragement to the guys doing the hard stuff for us. 
I'm taking away your excuse that you don't know what you to say too. Here's Laura's letter. She and her husband Matt founded this work. They lived it on the ground for two years. The lady knows what she's talking it. Let her teach you. And I am pasting mine below too. So there. No excuses. 
Make a little room in your inn this Christmas and shine a little warmth into a dark world. Because really, what better way is there to honor the light of heaven dawning on earth?
So go do it. Do what you can. Don't wait. Night will come quickly in Southeast Asia and these guys will hit the streets once again. Let them know they are not alone in the dark.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dear Investigator,
I just wanted to take the time to tell you thank you for the work you do. I am a wife, mother and foreign missionary with a passion for the cause of ending human slavery and sexual exploitation. I want so badly to run right into all those places, wrap those little girls up in my arms and take them home. But that's not how it works, is it. You know that way better than I do.
The more I learn about what it takes to go nightly into the darkness of the world of human slavery, find and gain the trust of its victims, coordinate their rescue, prosecute their offenders, and put them on the road to recovery, the more I am humbled and grateful for your commitment, your sacrifice, your heroic passion.
I know there must be nights when you don't want to leave the comfort of your home and hang out with scum in dank corners of this broken world. I know there must be moments when you want to scrap the process and just punch someone square in the face, or grab a little girl up in your arms and just run. Yet you don't. You stay the course knowing what real rescue means. You do it night after night, fighting the discouragement and the hopelessness that hangs over these places for the ray of hope that is one person freed from captivity.
For this, I personally am so very grateful. I want to be part of the solution to human trafficking. I want to face the darkness of that reality and shine hope. I want to love enough not turn away from ugly situations. Often it seems that from where I am, there is little I can do. But I hope by letting you know that your work and your sacrifice are deeply appreciated by those of us who do not fight on the front lines, you will feel a little less like no one notices what you are doing,  a little less alone in the darkness, and a little more like you are a part of an army. Your back up might be far away, but we will not leave you alone. And we will not forget you. I will offer a prayer for your safety and the success of your work each night as the darkness creeps over my part of the world and hope it makes its way to you to be a small beacon of encouragement. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for being the one who does the hard thing.
Colleen Mitchell

Let's Take Advantage of An Opportunity

This has got to be the easiest way of taking action against human slavery I have posted yet in this series. And it's lovely too. And full of joy and HOPE. Sweet, sweet Hope.

So here's what you do.

1. You go read over at Ann's blog. You read about Hope. And you read about Ashoka. And you read about Mary and Jesus and Ann and her Mama. And you be moved to your core by the faces and the beauty amidst the ugly and the truth born into the middle of it all.
2. Then you click on over to this amazing story. Don't just click to buy straightaway. Pay the women of Freeset a visit. Get to know them. Get to know their work. Learn how you can fight trafficking with them.
3. Then you can scoop yourself up one of these awesome bags. Buy the message. Buy it and be all in. you are blessed and you can bless. Because He was born and broken for you and turns it all beautiful. Buy a big bag full of hope. For you. For Ashoka. For Hope herself.
4. Then live it. Live the message. Be the message. Be broken and beautiful and blessed. And bless. Bless everyone you meet by leaking the grace given right out of you and into their hands, their lives. 

See, easy. Now, what are you waiting for? Go. The time draws near. He comes. Do you not want to be about His Father's business when the heavens open to announce His presence and sing 1,000 "Hosannas"? Do you not want to already have sung His goodness with your life? I do.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. 

Let's Stand With Those Who Set Captives Free

Early on in this series of posts, I encouraged us to really listen to stories of the victims of trafficking and slavery that we are hoping to help. Of the course of these couple of months that I have been reading, researching and speaking out about trafficking, I have spent a lot of time connecting with those of the front lines of the fight in different ways, visiting their web sites and really getting to know and understand their work, communicating via e-mail, reading their blogs, and even talking to some over the phone. I hope to add a face to face meeting to that list soon with a trip to the Salvando Corazones facility some time this month.

I want to join them in their fight and am passionate about keeping the reality of trafficking and sex slavery in front of people's eyes. But in reality, my mission is not on the front lines, and because of that I lacked the opportunity to give voice to the real stories of this battle. The more I read and connect with this issue, the more strongly I feel we need to be careful how we talk about it. We cannot use these stories to create drama, to sensationalize a situation or to break people's hearts just for the sake of seeing their "oh, how sad" reactions. We have to speak and give voice to the reality behind the "issue" in a way that creates community of soldiers armed to fight, that draws real and committed support to those actually called to do the work, and that catalyzes action in individual hearts and organizational structure. It is important that we know and share the stories of trafficking and slavery, but it is equally important that we know that the source of those stories is first-hand, is trustworthy and has broad knowledge and understanding of the scope of this issue based on collective field experience.

I don't have that. But I do have a voice and a passion to use it to tell those stories. For this reason, I am humbled to begin helping the amazing team at Exodus Road as a part of a team of bloggers that is helping them share the stories of their work, their rescues and the lives they save. In this season we prepare to welcome Him who came to bring glad tidings to the lowly and to set the captives free, what better good news is there to share but that He is still doing it? Still reaching into the ugly dark places of our world, taking the captives and slaves by the hand and bringing them to freedom?

The team at Exodus Road is on the ground in Southeast Asia fighting trafficking with targeted interventions. They have formed a coalition of undercover investigators with years of experience and a broad field of knowledge in this area. These brave souls who enter some of the darkest places of our world and collect invaluable evidence using covert recording equipment. That evidence becomes the key that can unlock the prison doors for one, two, or many modern day slaves being held and sold within the sex industry.

Like a 15 year old girl named Sarah, whom a member of the Exodus Road investigative team met in a brothel in Cambodia three days after her mother sold her for $600 USD to pay off a debt. She was being marketed as "fresh" by the brothel owner, her virginity a prize to purchased. On the investigator's first visit, with Sarah, even though he had been able to record her sale and put her in communication with a social worker who spoke her language and could help her understand that he was there to rescue her, not hurt her, he was not able to gain her trust, make her understand that he could help her escape.

But he went back. Because setting the captives free is unrelenting work. And when he did, Sarah was ready. She slipped him on a note on piece of paper begging, "Please rescue me."

Read the story of Sarah's rescue here.

This is the story of one of the 27 million modern day slaves who do not know, cannot believe, or even imagine that their deliver is coming. But He is. He will come. He will come when we stop turning away and begin to stand beside those who can fight the true fight, like Exodus Road's 15 investigators and their respective support organizations.

Knowing the stories of the faces of slavery, true stories, not sensationalized scenarios, opens our eyes and makes it impossible to dismiss this reality. “You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.” -William Wilberforce

If you don't want to be one to look the other way, if you want to be one who walks beside those who set the captives free, take the time to follow Exodus Road on Facebook today. Subscribe to the Exodus Road newsletter here. Watch this video on how Exodus Road began: 




The Exodus Road: Fighting to End Child Slavery from Justin Lukasavige on Vimeo.

This is a fight no one can win fighting alone. After all these weeks blogging and learning and trying to action, I am honored to stand beside those at Exodus Road and fight together. The captives are waiting. Let's sing to them in one voice that their Deliver is coming. He is standing by. And He is waiting on us to go.