Pop quiz time:
What happens in every Tennessee county, every U.S. state, and happens every two minutes?
Human trafficking: a modern-day version of slavery and the second-fastest growing criminal industry in the United States.
The United States is the #1 consumer of commercial sex in the world. We drive the demand for this global business, and when more supply is required traffickers rise to the occasion. Sex trafficking is the use of force, fraud, or coercion to exploit and compel someone to provide a sexual act as part of a transaction. Tragically, the sex industry is a 22-billion-dollar business in the U.S.
These traffickers and sex-buyers are right next to you––your neighbor, your co-worker, your pastor. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation reports that, in 2022,
every county in Tennessee had cases involving human trafficking, most involving sex trafficking and many of them involving children.
What fuels this crime?
The same thing that is behind every desire that draws us away from God and into destruction––sin. We take the gifts of our life-giving God and turn them into poison that will kill us and those around us. The gift of sex to humanity is beautiful and holy. God has called us to enjoy this gift inside a lifelong marriage commitment. This gift is enjoyed not by taking from our spouse, using them to please ourselves, but by mutually and joyfully seeking to please one another.
But what happens when our definition and expectations of sex are distorted? What happens when a person’s view of sex was formed during early childhood abuse? What happens when someone was introduced to pornography and became addicted before even entering puberty? What happens when a teenager reaches out to his or her church for help with a sexual struggle and is ostracized?
The church needs to boldly preach the truth about God’s gift to humanity that we call sex, and the church needs to be a place where people who struggle with broken sexuality can find healing. The church has to be the place for those who have turned sex into an idol and an addiction to repent and experience life-changing forgiveness as well as the place of healing for trafficking victims.
Where does Rescue 1 Global fit in?
Rescue 1 Global (R1G), rescue1global.org, is a Christian nonprofit based in Nashville that fights human trafficking. The first step in this fight is raising awareness. R1G offers training for businesses and congregations in how to identify trafficking and what to do when they see it. In order to prevent trafficking, R1G also has a weekly outreach to those who are vulnerable, providing friendship, meals, and resources to keep them from falling prey.
The second step is rescue. The R1G rescue team provides investigative services, on-scene advocacy, and exit strategies to help victims escape. They run a 24/7 trafficking hotline, assist law enforcement, respond on-scene to the needs of victims, and maintain an urgent safe house for stabilization.
Step three––Rescue 1 Global uses a holistic approach to aftercare and recovery by providing safety, healing, unity, and empowerment to survivors through trained counselors and caregivers in two transitional safe houses in Middle TN.
Where do you fit in?
Rescue 1 Global is hosting a fundraiser on Feb 29 at Thompsons Station Church in Thompsons Station. Carson Peters (The Voice) and comedian Paul Aldrich will lead and entertain for a fun and family-friendly evening. Get your tickets today here (rescue1global.org/2023/12/15/2024-rise-to-freedom-night) and/or donate here (rescue1global.org/donate).
What will you do?
A child is bought or sold for sex every two minutes, according to estimates. The average age of minors sold for sex is 13. Imagine yourself at 13––insecure, beginning the transition from childhood into adulthood, shaping your view of yourself and the world. Can you imagine your body being sold for sex during this formative time?
And now you, reading this article: Do you feel overwhelmed? Defensive? Ashamed? Triggered by past trauma? There is a next step of obedience to which God is calling you. It could be to rest in his arms and let him heal you from past abuses. It could be to join Rescue 1 in their fight against trafficking. It could be to reach out for help with an addiction or temptation. It could be to finally surrender your life and receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord. Be quiet, shut off the distractions, and listen to God. Then, obey.
Survivor story:
Brianna* was raised by her grandparents in an upper-class Christian home. She made good grades and on the outside everything looked great. But her parents were drug addicts, and their abandonment broke something inside Brianna. She felt depressed and alone. She looked for love and acceptance in the wrong places. She started using drugs to numb her pain and boys to fill the void. Then her boyfriend invited her on a road trip to meet some friends. Eventually those friends made her “earn her keep,” and the trauma of sexual exploitation began. Ads were posted, tricks were turned. She tried to run many times, but they caught her and hurt her, even threatening to kill her. Thankfully, Brianna’s grandparents had filed a missing person’s report. Police and Rescue 1 advocates found her, and she began her journey in their restoration program. Brianna still struggles with past demons, but she uses the tools she has learned in recovery to help her move forward. She is thankful for her Rescue 1 family and that they’re just a phone call away as she continues her journey to a full recovery.
* The name has been changed to honor and protect the survivor.
Support a Survivor – www.rescue1global.org
Megan Wilson and Michael Carnes
