Today is the last day of January 2016.
I can hardly believe January is over and February will be here tomorrow. The first month of 2016 is gone and we are left with only 11 more. As I've gotten older, I realize all the more how quickly time goes by. We don't always notice it, but before we know it, days, weeks, months, and years are gone. So what are we doing with these days? These months? These years? How are we using them? Each day, each moment we get to live, is a gift. A gift that should be treasured. But also a gift that we should give back to the Giver of the gift. God has given us these days. Eleven months of 2016 lie before us and we do not know what they will hold. But we can make the choice to use them for His glory, no matter what. We can choose to honor Him in every moment. You have the ability to change this world for Jesus Christ. You have the gift of making a difference. Of making every moment count. So what will you do today to make it count? Love your family, play with your siblings, be kind to the kids at your church or school who have no one, give food to the homeless man or woman on the street, sponsor a child overseas to give them a new life. There are so many ways you can be changing the world and making a difference today! Because changing the world for even one person is still changing the world...one life at a time. So make today count. Cherish every moment. This is your time. Don't waste it. I dare you.
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In my last blog post, I shared about how January is National Human Trafficking Awareness month and that together we need to rise up and do something about this crime. A friend suggested I share some practical ideas or examples from my own life on how we can do this (Thank you, Grace!). So here are my ideas on how YOU can be a modern-day abolitionist. :)
1) Pray. Prayer is a world-changing battle weapon that we oftentimes forget about or use as a last resort. I used to think that I was doing nothing to fight human trafficking because I didn't know what to do. But I was forgetting that I could fight human trafficking best when I'm on my knees! So pray hard. Don't just say a quick prayer here and there. Seriously and diligently pray for the end of human trafficking. Pray for the victims and the heroes working to find them and set them free. Pray for everyone involved and ask God how He wants you to get involved. 2) Get educated. To know how to fight human trafficking, you must know what it is. Learn about what it is and how you can recognize the signs of human trafficking. Become informed and educated. A good way to do this is to research about human trafficking through organizations fighting against it. Read books to educate yourself. My personal favorites are: Be The Change by Zach Hunter and Not Abandoned by MacKenzie Morganthal. For younger children/teens always check with your parents before using the internet or reading books. 3) Stay connected. Stay up-to-date with what is going on in the fight against human trafficking. Check out the websites of great organizations such as: the International Justice Mission, A21 Campaign, Restore International, and Love 146. A lot of organizations such as these do campaigns or fundraisers that you can be a part of. Subscribe to their newsletters and mailing lists to stay up-to-date on what they're doing to fight human trafficking. 4) Use your voice. Do you have Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+? What about a blog, magazine or newsletter? Use these tools to raise awareness! Awareness leads to change and helping others become aware of human trafficking around them can make a big difference. I have used these social media platforms to raise awareness and speak out about human trafficking. I have written articles for magazines and my blog about human trafficking. Even if you don't have any of these options available to you (I didn't either when I first found out about human trafficking), you still have a voice that you can use to speak to your friends and family about what you have learned and encourage them to get involved. 5) Buy fair trade. Most people who know me know that I do not eat any chocolate unless I know that it is 100% fairly traded. Not only does buying fair trade help break the cycle of human trafficking (even in a small way), but it also helps support fair wages for small farmers. Fair trade chocolate is more common now than it used to be and it's very common to find it in grocery stores now. You can also buy other fairly traded things such as coffee, jewelry and clothing. 6) Use your time, money, and talent. Host fundraisers or raise your money and donate to great organizations like I mentioned above. Are you good at writing, photography, crocheting? Whatever your talent is, use it to make a difference. I have used my gift of writing to share with the world about human trafficking and what we can do to end it. One example of this: If you enjoy crocheting, maybe you could crochet headbands, hats, etc. and sell them, donating all the proceeds from them to an organization fighting human trafficking. You could do this with other crafts too. 7) Connect with others. We can't end this horrific crime on our own. We need to join together and fight against it! Get connected with other modern-day abolitionists who seek freedom and pray together, pursue freedom together, organize fundraisers together, etc. Work together, because together we can end this! Believe in freedom and fight for it. God wants to use us to change human trafficking. What better month to start than in January 2016--National Human Trafficking Awareness Month! Start right here, right now and watch Jesus use you to change things. How will you use the freedom God has given you? January is National Human Trafficking Awareness Month.
From the moment I first found out about human trafficking--modern day slavery--I knew in my heart that I was called to do something about it. My heart ached when I read about this horrific, unthinkable crime that occurs in our very own country. I was angry and moved to use my voice to speak out about modern day slavery. You see, there are an estimated 27 million people in slavery around the world today. And that's only an estimate. In the dark, evil world of human trafficking, millions of men, women, and children are exploited daily. While we get the privilege of choosing our jobs and going to work freely, they don't. They are forced into something they don't want to do and they have no control over the long, dark hours they work every day. Human trafficking is slavery and something needs to be done about it! In my book, "I Dare You" I share more about human trafficking and my passion to do something about it. I also share with you how YOU can step out and use your life to make a difference and fight slavery. This is not something we can be silent about. We must speak out about human trafficking, because together we can end this. During January, I encourage you to read more about human trafficking and what you can do to fight it. Partner with great organizations fighting injustice such as the International Justice Mission, Restore International, and the A21 Campaign. Become informed. Keep the National Human trafficking Hotline number in your phone--888-3737-888--and report any suspicious activity in your community. Raise your voice in January and join the fight. Let's end human trafficking in 2016. Who's with me? |
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