Warning: the content of this post is not appropriate for all ages!
Today at CornerStone International House of Prayer we watched a movie titled Nefarious: Merchant of Souls about human trafficking. My mind and heart are reeling so I thought I would blog a little [at lot as it turns out :) ] to sort out some thoughts and emotions. First, I will say that I have been outside of the country and seen some amount of poverty, and heard personal stories of evil, depravity, desperation, and God's redemption. I am not naive to the fact that we are in a spiritual battle. But today I was confronted with an evil in this world that reaches far deeper and is more intensely spiritual than I knew! Millions of people right now are living as slaves, barely getting enough to eat, constantly in fear of their lives, devoid of any worth, forced to sell their bodies so that someone else can make money! This is real! It is really shaking me. As I sit in my comfortable home with a very blessed life, so many others are living in possibly the closest thing to hell that people could experience on earth! I learned that some women are forcefully abducted (more than most would care to admit) and then kept like cattle for the pleasure of others. Some are coerced into prostitution by the promise of a better life, only to find that once they get in, it's nearly impossible to get out. Some young girls are sold into prostitution by the parents as a way to make money and get a better life for themselves, with no thought about the abuse and torture that will happen to their child. Maddening! Sickening! I want to scream and rage about it. And in one sense, I think that response is appropriate. How can I hear about such terrible, evil, real things and not react in righteous anger! But raging about it will not help those who are caught in this larger-than-I-know net. What is the appropriate response for me, for the Church? This is part of the reason for this blog. I want to be willing to wrestle with this. It would be so easy for me to leave that room and leave all of the stories, the realities behind me and again get engrossed in my own little world. I am not wanting to belittle my world. This is my reality and I have real struggles and real people that God has placed in my life. And I have responsibility to abide in Christ and walk in the Spirit right here where I am. And that could be its own post about my pursuit to do just that. But right now I am challenged not to forget and look the other way at the plight of so many around the world, even in our own country! I was shocked to learned that there are legal brothels even in America. So why is this stuff going on, here, in a place where so many profess Christ? And why do we not care about other's suffering? Mostly it is hidden, and Satan would like to keep it that way. It is so easy to get self-absorbed, living in our own little bubble. I am so guilty of that! We as a Church are so guilty of that. We want our comforts, our conveniences, our programs, our familiarity, and our eyes so naturally turn inward. And Jesus didn't come to be served, but to serve, and should we walk in His steps? And he saw the suffering and he loved the rejected and he had compassion on the broken ones, and he came to seek and save those who were lost! And shouldn't we, who call ourselves Christians- the Christ-like ones, actually look and love like Christ! Do I care, really, how other people, so far removed from me suffer? Do you? Does Jesus? Wrestling is important and essential if there is to be a victory!
To be continued...
No comments:
Post a Comment