Christianity

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Why Human Trafficking?


Several people have asked me recently why I have become so involved in the cause to educate people about human trafficking and the overwhelming need to shine a Light of hope into an incredibly dark and scary part of the world in which we live.

The answer is relatively simple:

I watched a PBS documentary called Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. I read the book. I met people right here in my hometown who were involved in rescuing people from trafficking. I heard and saw the stories of those caught in this nightmare of hopelessness, and I thought, “How can I not be involved? How can I not speak out?”

As a believer, I prayed God would send me like minded believers to work with. A friend began posting on Facebook about a group in India that was involved in raids and rescues of young girls from brothels in India. The same friend then introduced me to Brandi McElheny, the founder of She’s Worth It. One day, Brandi shared her “crazy idea” for the She’s Worth It Campaign with us on Facebook, and a group of us were crazy enough to believe God could work through a rag-tag group of men and women to change the world.

The video below is painful to watch (it is not associated with Half the Sky or She’s Worth It, but the info is accurate and powerful), but it’s reality, everyday, for the children who are being filmed by an undercover camera crew. Everyday, people around the world risk their lives to go into brothels to gather evidence like this so that raids and rescues can take place.

I would ask that you watch this and, painful as it is, let this reality become a part of your reality. We believe that Christ came to set captives free, that He commanded us to seek justice and to care for widows and orphans. If you watch this video and are not compelled to act, I would ask you to check your heart and your claim to both love and obey the One who purchased your freedom with His life. Watch and then act, with your prayers, with your time, and with your money. To donate, go here.

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Identifying Goats, Part Two


Here are four more characteristics of identifying the “Goats” in our lives.

4. Unhealthy and Unsafe people have no problem with lying versus telling the truth.

Have you met someone who you thought “you knew,” only to find out that person was not even close to the person you thought they were? Deception is a strong tool Satan uses to manipulate and to destroy us. Deception can destroy and weakened us spiritually and emotionally.  These individuals are selfish and self-centered. They use lying as a deceptive strategy to cling to and manage lives and relationships for their own personal gain. If one person in a relationship is a liar, the relationship will not grow or prosper.

“But no one who traffics in lies gets a job with me; I have no patience with liars.” Psalm 101:7, MSG

5. Unhealthy and Unsafe people will demand your trust instead of earning your trust.

“Goats” feel they are entitled to your trust.

You will often hear statements like these:

“You just do not trust me.”

“Why are you questioning me about where I was or who I was with?”

“You do not believe me.”

“I really don’t need this, this is your problem not mine.”

And the more you try to put the pieces of the puzzle together, the more defensive the individual gets. They have a superiority of being above any question or explanation you ask. If you really want to upset them, ask them to prove their trustworthiness.

The only Being in the universe we can wholeheartedly trust is God Himself. People can earn trust in our lives by proving themselves to be trustworthy and Christ-seeking.

“Trust God from the bottom of your heart, don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; He is the one who will keep you on track.” Proverbs 3:5-6, The MSG
6. Unhealthy and Unsafe people are self-righteousness instead of humble.

They are charming and delightful– as long as things are going their way.

Unsafe people rarely identify with fellow sinners and their struggles. Why? Because they see themselves as somehow above all of that, almost to the point they project  an “I am better than you” attitude. It will be very difficult for you to be on even ground with these individuals.  Sadly, some individuals who proclaim their Christianity have this type of mentality about sin in general.  They talk about other people “in the world” as if they are somehow not able to identify with them and their struggle with sin.

7. Unhealthy and Unsafe individuals will not be consistent in their behavior; they may appear stable for short periods of time, but they have longer periods of instability.

How does it make you feel when you try to help someone, only to find that all your efforts have been in vain?

What happens when what you do is never enough? Regardless of how many solutions you offer, none quite fits their needs. No solutions will lift them out of their misery. Look in the mirror and realize, “You cannot heal this person. Only God can heal and only individuals can choose to change.” Do not feel guilty about his or her dysfunction.
Important Note: There are legitimate burdens, overwhelming circumstances in which people genuinely need help.  Who we are and how we act are very closely related.  There are unhealthy characteristics in all of us that may be hidden for a period of time, but not for a life time. They will eventually leak out of each of us.

We should all be open to a little character audit, especially from the people we care about. Accountability is needed for personal spiritual, mental and physical health. It improves who we are and creates healthier relationships.  

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness.  Let the Word of Christ – the Message- have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room  in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing; sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives, words, actions, whatever, be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way. Colossians 3:15-17, MSG

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A Teacher’s Thoughts on Senseless Evil


Sometimes, teachers and students can complain about the security measures that have been implemented in schools in response to the world in which we live. Locked doors, key cards, surveillance cameras, safety drills, student uniforms and staff IDs to help identify outsiders. Today reminded me that horror and senseless evil happen regardless of the safety measures we put in place. But we don’t just say, “Why bother?” As parents, as teachers, as adults who love the kids in our lives, we will do whatever it takes to do all that we can to keep the kids we love as safe as possible.

So that is why we keep doors locked and make visitors sign in and have video cameras and do safety drills. Because days like today happen in a broken world, and we want to be as prepared as we can be to deal with the senseless actions of broken people. As a teacher, every time we have an intruder drill, I remind myself that, as the adult responsible for my kids, I am responsible for being willing and able to lay my life down for them if it is required.

Just this week I studied John 10 with my 10th graders, and we studied about Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who was willing to lay down his life for His sheep. As teachers, our kids are our sheep, and many today gave their lives to try to protect their sheep.

We are brokenhearted for the teachers, students and parents in Conn., we will pray for all involved, we will keep our own kids a little closer, we will take our own safety drills a little more seriously, and we will remember that God is near to the brokenhearted. I pray for their comfort and peace.

For parents looking for ways to talk to your children, here is a good article.

For believers looking for ways to talk about a good God and an evil world, here are some good thoughts.

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The Protecting Shadow of Jesus


I read a student essay today that I wanted to share with you all.

The question was: “With which anonymous person in John 7-9 do you relate most and how does this specific story fulfill John’s purpose for writing as stated in John 20:30-31?”

A basic “reflect and let me see you get it” essay. I wasn’t expecting anything too terribly profound. Then I read this.

I hope that, when I grow up, I love Jesus half as much as this 9th grader. She chose to write about the woman caught in adultery:

“I relate to her because I’ve been caught sinning, maybe not as publicly, but I know the humiliation. I also know the feeling of Jesus’ shadow over me, protecting me and standing between me and my accuser. It doesn’t make the situation any less humiliating, but it does help me realize that I don’t need man’s approval because I have a Savior that will back me up every time.”

God has me “teaching” these kids b/c I have SO MUCH to learn from them. What a beautiful description of our Savior.

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BUT, I finished… Lessons in the Renewal of my Mind


I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1-2

I am not good enough.

That’s Satan’s go-to lie for me. That’s the one ingrained into my very fallen DNA. That’s the one I fall for. Every. Single. Time. The one I dwell on. The one I expound upon. The one I can add to, ad infinitum.

Over the years it’s morphed from one thing to another.

I’m not girly enough.

I’m not athletic enough.

I’m not obedient enough.

I’m not assertive enough

I’m not organized enough.

I’m not laid back enough.

I’m not smart enough.

I’m not humble enough.

I’m not pretty enough.

I’m not thin enough.

I’m not short enough.

I’m not tall enough.

I’m not creative enough.

I’m not planned enough

I’m not compliant enough.

I’m not caring enough.

I’m not wealthy enough.

I’m not doing enough.

I’m not resting enough.

I’m not loyal enough.

I’m not disciplined enough.

I’m not conservative enough.

I’m not liberal enough.

I’m not conformed enough.

I’m not rebellious enough.

I’m not ______________ enough. The blank can be filled in with anything depending upon the situation.

The last few months have been a journey with God and me, specifically in regard to the idea of renewing my mind. This year’s theme passage for our Women’s Ministry at church is Romans 12:1-2, and God has convicted me about living out the words of this passage. This past weekend was a lesson in transformation, mind, body, and spirit.

For the last 12 weeks I’ve been a part of a Run for God group, a training program and Bible study designed to help you get in shape both physically and spiritually. We went from running 30 seconds at a time to running a full 5K race on Saturday morning. It has been an amazing journey.

But Saturday morning, I was under attack. I didn’t start my day like I wanted, my focus was on myself and not the Lord, my attitude was WAY off, and my thoughts were NOT renewed.

We started the race and I started too fast. The competition and adrenaline put my first mile almost a minute and a half faster than I had planned. For my first 5K since blowing out my ankle, that was a bad plan.

I started the race with two classmates from high school. It’s been cool to train with them again after years of “recovering” from the years of training together in high school. But about a mile into the race, I saw another girl from our class was also running the race. With her small daughter. On her back. And she was beating me.

I looked up the last half mile and saw she was still ahead of me. Carrying a toddler. And then I realized they were all three beating me.

And here came the “I’m not good enough” deluge.

“After all these years, I’m still not good enough. Bruiser girl in name only. I’m last place. I’m not fast enough, not in shape enough. One of them hasn’t run in years. One of them is pregnant. One of them is literally carrying a child on her back. And I’m going to finish last.”

And I wanted to quit. Nineteen-year-old demons of inadequacy caught up with me and I wanted to sit down on the sidewalk next to the UTC football team practice field and cry and be done.

But then I remembered, “transformation comes from the renewing of your mind.”

I’ve spent devotions with my girls at school this entire year going through the Psalms, showing them how God wants us to pour out our hearts, but then acknowledge His truth to overcome our emotions.

So that’s what I did.

“…And I’m going to finish last. BUT, I’m going to finish. I’m going to run this whole race. I’m going to reach my time goal. In the last 12 weeks I’ve lost almost 15 pounds and I’ve gone from running none to running 3.25 miles last Saturday in 45 minutes. I followed the plan, I didn’t do my own thing, I didn’t overdo and I didn’t get hurt. I committed, I allowed others to hold me accountable, and I finished.”

Finishing was the goal, not winning. And for a moment, I allowed the enemy to distract me from the goal. My natural mind drifted to my comfortable thought process of defeat and inadequacy, but God has empowered me through His Spirit to overcome my natural mind and to renew it, through His mercies.

So how did Saturday end up?IMG_3646 I finished last of the four Bruiser girls. But I finished. With my niece cheering me on at the finish line, I finished with a huge smile on my face. Then we turned around and went back to cheer on and encourage those who were coming up behind us. Because in the last 12 weeks, I’ve been transformed through the renewing of my mind.

How are you allowing God to transform you through the renewing of your mind?