How was your weekend?

If you saw my post last week, you know this weekend was the IJM Global Prayer Gathering in D.C. Our Field Office Directors and some field office staff from around the world came to share with us their stories, struggles and requests for prayer. It was both refreshing and draining to hear the stories of our work in the field, from the people who witness it every day. It’s certainly not all glamorous and glorious. Sometimes it’s dangerous and tedious. This weekend was a poignant reminder for me that even though it can seem so far away sometimes, the names and faces behind the stories are real and the heartbreak and pain is intense. Like Tiffany said in Monday’s post, when you hear the stories and see the faces, suddenly any pretense and philosophical argument kind of fades into the background and you just want to hop on a plane to these places and yank these people from their situations. Of course, that isn’t the best and most sustainable method, nor is it at all the way IJM goes about its work.

As I mentioned last week, one of the areas of casework where IJM focuses, and perhaps one that it is best known for, is working against sex trafficking of children and adults. Sometimes women and girls are lured into the sex trafficking world with a promise of a good job, only to find out later what they are really being forced into. Other times, they are sold by complicit family members or drugged and kidnapped into brothels. However they arrive, hell awaits on the other side. The story that Tiffany linked to in her last blog post, while not a story of an IJM client, has many familiar elements to those working in our field offices.

Rescue out of these situations is difficult and a long process, and not always successful. And once women and girls are removed from sex trafficking, the battle doesn’t end. The work of our aftercare teams is long and difficult, as you can imagine the wounds and scars this leaves on the people ground into this industry. I would encourage you to check out this link, http://www.ijm.org/ourwork/whatwedo, and click on the fact sheet about sex trafficking and read a story of an IJM client. It may feel overwhelming at first, but it’s so important that we are awake to the reality of what is happening so we can know how to best respond. Several stories about IJM cases can be found at http://www.ijm.org/newsfromthefield/january-february2011. The individual stories really help to bring reality to the facts and figures.

What I do want you to know is that there are so many stories of hope after this darkness. There are some amazing success stories; there would have to be to make this work sustainable for those who participate every day, right? One such story is Project Lantern: http://www.ijm.org/projectlantern. The success of this story represents rescue and healing in the lives of many, as well as prevention for so many others never have to experience the horror of sex trafficking.

Just as the pain of those going through the experience is intense, so is the joy after the fact. I hope that we have the courage to embrace both.