So many people don't get what we do... staying out 'til 2 AM (like last night), handing out roses and chocolates to men and women of the night.
My friend, Carole, wrote an excellent blog post about Midnight Outreach and you can (and should!) read it HERE.
This really happened.
And it's WHY we do it.
17 September 2009
14 September 2009
Sometimes Life Just Doesn't Stop
Ok, well, hopefully it never stops... but could it maybe just slow down a bit??
Life has been crazy (in a good way, for the most part) over the past several weeks and that's why I haven't posted much. Just to update you:
My Christian weight loss support group met for the first time (this semester) last night and I had 26 ladies attend! It was a wonderful turnout and I felt really great about our new location. I am SO thrilled to have a sweet friend, Amanda, helping me with the group this fall... she was amazing! She made copies and took roll and helped me set up and clean up afterward. Honestly, I'd like to hire her as my personal assistant! Ha!
My book -- after encountering some rather difficult setbacks -- is making progress again. The book proposal, as difficult as it was, really helped me to see which areas I need to work on more and what needs to be totally rewritten. I had about a week where I felt absolutely disheartened and defeated, but God is faithful and I now have what I need to press forward. I know I was supposed to write this book and I know the past 2 years have not been in vain. Your prayers for its absolute completion and publication are much appreciated.
Midnight Outreach is taking on a whole 'nother level... I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to divulge here; For now, let's just say we are kicking it up a notch. =)
Our homeschooling year kicked off last week and it's going to be interesting teaching 3 different grade levels at one time, but I think it will be great. We are off to a good start. The girls did a unit study on September 11th last week in memory of the 8th anniversary. It's amazing how even now, 8 years later, it still makes me swallow hard and I feel slightly nauseated by the events of that day. Like so many, I will never forget where I was at the moment I first heard...
Well, it's time to administer a spelling and vocabulary test, so I'm going to sign off. Hopefully, I will have time to post more than once or twice this month!
Life has been crazy (in a good way, for the most part) over the past several weeks and that's why I haven't posted much. Just to update you:
My Christian weight loss support group met for the first time (this semester) last night and I had 26 ladies attend! It was a wonderful turnout and I felt really great about our new location. I am SO thrilled to have a sweet friend, Amanda, helping me with the group this fall... she was amazing! She made copies and took roll and helped me set up and clean up afterward. Honestly, I'd like to hire her as my personal assistant! Ha!
My book -- after encountering some rather difficult setbacks -- is making progress again. The book proposal, as difficult as it was, really helped me to see which areas I need to work on more and what needs to be totally rewritten. I had about a week where I felt absolutely disheartened and defeated, but God is faithful and I now have what I need to press forward. I know I was supposed to write this book and I know the past 2 years have not been in vain. Your prayers for its absolute completion and publication are much appreciated.
Midnight Outreach is taking on a whole 'nother level... I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to divulge here; For now, let's just say we are kicking it up a notch. =)
Our homeschooling year kicked off last week and it's going to be
Well, it's time to administer a spelling and vocabulary test, so I'm going to sign off. Hopefully, I will have time to post more than once or twice this month!
04 September 2009
Taken and Trade(d)
Just because you choose not to see
does not mean it's not there.
Just because you cover your ears or
look the other way, does not alter reality one bit.
And reality is this:
Slavery is worse (and more widespread) today than it ever was before in history... even during the peak of African slave trading a few hundred years ago.
And it has nothing to do with race.
Women, teenagers, children, even young boys -- of every race, color, and nationality -- are being forced into the sex trade industry every day.
But most of us choose to look the other way.
Worldwide estimates for human trafficking are near the 4,000,000 person mark.
Four MILLION people who are being abducted, or traded for drugs or money, and who are now trapped in a living nightmare from which they cannot escape.
4 Million.
If we're not seeing it, it's because we're not looking.
We don't want to know.
It's not convenient for us to know.
We'd rather sit in our safe, middle class, comfort zones and stress about things like gas prices and whether or not we can afford a trip to Disney World. We follow celebrity stories on E or online, hungry for the drama therein; meanwhile, real drama is going on right in our own town, perhaps even right down the street.
To refuse to see or know that human trafficking is taking place makes us, on some level, complicit in the crime itself. I'm not saying that you have to become the next James Bond or join the CIA, but there are things we can ALL do to help bring justice and freedom to these victims of slavery. There are organizations like CYRUS, INT'L and A21 which you can join & support and through which you can educate yourself.
I challenge you to open your eyes and see what is going on right in front of you.
Rent these 2 movies: TAKEN (staring Liam Neeson) and TRADE (starring Kevin Klein).
Take a stand.
Raise awareness.
There's a new abolition movement and it's going to take every ounce of humanity for it to succeed.
Watch these movies & talk about them with your family and your friends.
I dare you.
*Please note: the two films mentioned above are very disturbing and (especially Trade) are very graphic. Even so, they are important films and need to be seen. Do not watch them with children present.
Carole has written an amazing post about this topic over at her blog: Check it out
does not mean it's not there.
Just because you cover your ears or
look the other way, does not alter reality one bit.
And reality is this:
Slavery is worse (and more widespread) today than it ever was before in history... even during the peak of African slave trading a few hundred years ago.
And it has nothing to do with race.
Women, teenagers, children, even young boys -- of every race, color, and nationality -- are being forced into the sex trade industry every day.
But most of us choose to look the other way.
Worldwide estimates for human trafficking are near the 4,000,000 person mark.
Four MILLION people who are being abducted, or traded for drugs or money, and who are now trapped in a living nightmare from which they cannot escape.
4 Million.
If we're not seeing it, it's because we're not looking.
We don't want to know.
It's not convenient for us to know.
We'd rather sit in our safe, middle class, comfort zones and stress about things like gas prices and whether or not we can afford a trip to Disney World. We follow celebrity stories on E or online, hungry for the drama therein; meanwhile, real drama is going on right in our own town, perhaps even right down the street.
To refuse to see or know that human trafficking is taking place makes us, on some level, complicit in the crime itself. I'm not saying that you have to become the next James Bond or join the CIA, but there are things we can ALL do to help bring justice and freedom to these victims of slavery. There are organizations like CYRUS, INT'L and A21 which you can join & support and through which you can educate yourself.
I challenge you to open your eyes and see what is going on right in front of you.
Rent these 2 movies: TAKEN (staring Liam Neeson) and TRADE (starring Kevin Klein).
Take a stand.
Raise awareness.
There's a new abolition movement and it's going to take every ounce of humanity for it to succeed.
Watch these movies & talk about them with your family and your friends.
I dare you.
*Please note: the two films mentioned above are very disturbing and (especially Trade) are very graphic. Even so, they are important films and need to be seen. Do not watch them with children present.
Carole has written an amazing post about this topic over at her blog: Check it out
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