Just received this video from the student ministries department at Northland: A Church Distributed in Orlando, FL.
In short, they hosted a fundraiser for IJM… via food fight.
Note: they used expired food that was no longer viable for giving to others.
This morning, as I was praying through the requests in this week’s Prayer Partner email, I was deeply moved by one story in particular of a widow in Zambia. I cannot even begin to fathom the trauma of having my home stolen from me and my children taken away from me to a shelter as a result of my homelessness—all in the wake of my husband’s death. Compelled to share this with each of you, I’ve copied the story below.
Praise God for the staggering miracle of total restoration he has brought to Melody and her children!
From the Prayer Partner email update:
Give thanks to God for IJM Zambia client Melody Nanga, who recently won her property back through IJM’s legal intervention on her behalf. After going through severe traumatic situations, she now has her house, six rooms to rent and a small shop. She will soon be reunited with her triplets, who had been living in a shelter when Melody was homeless as a result of property seizure. They are returning to her now that she has her home back and a stable source of income.
If you would like to leave a note of encouragement to the Zambia team, simply use the “comment” function below—I know they will receive so much joy from your words.
I’m eager to introduce you to our National Director of Church Mobilization, Jim Martin. I’m sure some of you are already quite familiar with Jim, and I look forward to all of you getting a chance to know him better as he begins to guest blog here at the Institute on a regular basis. Here is an update from Jim on IJM’s brand new documentary, At the End of Slavery and details on how you can be involved in the movement!
******************************************
Dear friends,
As of today more than 85 churches have decided to host a screening of IJM’s new documentary film, At the End of Slavery. The response to the film has overwhelming! We are thankful and excited for the gathering momentum of this movement. Many churches see screening this 30 minute documentary as a rare opportunity for their church to be on the forefront of an issue that really matters to the people of their neighborhoods and community. And by following the simple suggestions contained in the screening kit (what we’re calling a “house party-in-a-box"), churches are not only providing their communities with much-needed education regarding the modern horror of slavery, they are offering something even more essential and rare: concrete action steps that every-day citizens can take to join the battle against violent oppression.
If you would like to encourage your church to screen this film, we can resource you with everything you need. The invitation is a simple one: Host a screening in your church facility and invite everyone to come. The screening kit provides dozens of helpful tips for everything from how to introduce the film to how to move people to action after the screening. The film itself does a wonderful job of presenting to reality of modern-day slavery while offering substantive hope based on real change taking place in our world right now. The kit also provides 2 copies of the film - one for your use, and one for you to give away to someone else who commits to hosting a house party.
Consider connecting your church with these resources:
View the trailer at: http://www.attheendofslavery.com/
Contact IJM directly to host a screening by sending an email to: .
Hoping to see many of you at The Idea Camp DC: Justice Edition at the end of this week. The IJM Institute has been honored to be part of the development of this event founded by Charles Lee (pastor of New Hope South Bay in CA).
For a chance to interact with 40+ global justice NGO’s and receive invaluable coaching and networking opportunities - at no cost (registration is FREE), join us in Arlington, VA (Mt. Olivet UMC, 1500 N. Glebe Rd.) this coming Friday and Saturday, August 28-29. People of all stripes are flying-in literally from all around the country - if you’re local and can catch a train, bus, or carpool, your efforts will surely be more than worthwhile.
For full details - location, schedule of speakers, workshops, bio’s, hotel deals, etc. go to www.http://theideacamp.ning.com
IJM speakers at the event include: Blair Burns (Regional Director of Operations, India), Holly Burkhalter (VP of Government Relations), Eileen Campbell (Director of Justice Campaigns), Larry Martin (Senior VP of Education), and myself (Director of the IJM Institute).
Planning to be there? Leave a comment below - looking forward to meeting in person if we have not yet already!
UPDATE TO THIS POST AS OF JULY 6, 2009: Due to the overwhelming response our team has received from around the country, we currently are not taking more Justice Advocates into the program. Thank you for your interest in this critical volunteer role - I will be sure to let you know when more positions open and in what region. We are so grateful for your willingness to serve with us!
[Previous post:]
This week our Seattle-area Justice Advocates met for training and fellowship. Here’s a little snap-shot of their time together - what a fantastic crew!
If you are interested in our Justice Advocate program, JA’s serve in a volunteer capacity as trained representatives of IJM’s work - reaching out to churches, universities, and other community organizations; speaking, answering questions, building connections. We began this program throught the IJM Institute five years ago, testing it out as a pilot in the Pacific Northwest. The Church Mobilization team now runs the program and is receiving applications for JA’s in many regions of the US - if you are interested, shoot an email to .
Immediately following the Global Prayer Gathering, IJM is hosting a limited-capacity, 2-day opportunity (Sunday noon through Monday 4pm) for individuals to receive advocacy training - and an opportunity to put that training to work. Are you interested in learning more about how to speak-up on behalf of those who suffer violent oppression? Are you interested in calling the U.S. Government to ever-increased action on behalf of victims of trafficking, slavery, and other forms of injustice?
If so, about your interest in pursuing Advocacy with IJM, and let us know what state you vote in. We have a limited number of spaces available for this training and are interested in finding individuals with a passion for action and for mobilizing others. I know that those of you who are involved in the Institute are particularly ready for action at a moment’s notice, so I’m excited to let you know about this opportunity. , will receive your email and respond to your request for involvement.
You’ll want to as soon as possible - there a truly only a few spaces left!
Friends, many of you may know IJM’s Senior Vice President of Justice Operations, Sharon Cohn Wu. Below is a letter she has written to each of you, in amazed gratitude for your outpouring of prayers, and providing an initial update on the operation from today. Your prayers continue to sustain this work…
*****
Team,
I do not use the term lightly. We asked for your immediate partnership in prayer and you responded. I read many of the 300+ posted prayers, words of encouragement and Scripture last night as the team was preparing for the operation. As the Director of the office said simply upon reading them, “I have never seen anything like this.” Let me be presumptuous and ask you for more.
An operation was conducted today (thank you for understanding why it would be imprudent to disclose the location). Three girls were rescued and two suspects were arrested. We give thanks to God for the lives of these girls who have been extraordinarily brave in working with our team and government authorities. We know that there are many other girls connected with this brothel who want to be free, but who were chased by force by the pimps as the police entered the brothel. This brothel used regular beatings and forcible rape to brutalize the girls.
We need your prayers: Please pray for the girls, the suspects, our staff, and the government authorities involved. Pray that other girls might be rescued and that those who have and are brutalizing them might be brought to justice. Please pray.
Gratefully,
Sharon
Ran into Kevin Bales today at a meeting with legal and human rights experts in DC. He has been a wonderful friend to our work. If you have not picked up a copy of one of his many groundbreaking books, I would do so today.
Kevin is one of the foremost statisticians compiling the compelling evidence of slavery’s world-wide prevalence today. In many ways, the issue of modern-day slavery is one that has been alive in the public and media’s eye for only a few years, even as the issue itself has been growing in magnitude for centuries. Many of us, myself included, used to believe slavery was a thing of the past, a crime that came to an end with the Civil War here in the U.S.
Today one of our South Asia teams successfully executed two rescue operations, freeing twenty-six people in an area that is prone to mob violence against slave rescue efforts. Among those rescued was a ten year old boy who is blind. I was so moved by these words of one of our team’s leaders as she wrote to us about this little boy’s rescue:
“As soon as we entered the area, we saw the young visually impaired boy of whom we had heard stories. He had laboured in the mill for approximately twenty-five cents per month, and had been beaten by the owner. We took his hands and walked him out of the facility. Now, at the end of our day we see a smile on his face and a release certificate in his hands. Praise our awesome God!”
Each morning IJM staff take the first half-hour of our workday to be still. With the immensity of what we are working to accomplish in the world, we need this daily reminder that the day in fact belongs to our God, and not to us. That God is, in reality, the one who gives life to our work fruitful and brings glory to His Kingdom.
We call this first half-hour of the workday our “8:30 Stillness.”
At 11am we gather together as a whole staff for prayer, but 8:30 is our time alone. Time to simply talk with the Lord, sit in silence, meditate on scripture, and give the day over in surrender to our God.
It is a gift to have this time disciplined into our day. For me this time becomes more and more a reminder of my deeply desperate need to walk closely with the Lord through this work… a reminder that this work belongs to Him. That I am simply invited to join and experience the wonders of his hand.
Our team in Bolivia works to bring justice for victims of sexual assault and human trafficking. They also passionately pursue transformation of the structures that enable these crimes to flourish. A crucial need in seeking sustainable transformation is to secure the commitment of leaders who hold significant influence and power in the community - certainly government officials, but also of parallel importance: pastors.
I find it a humbling honor to be in the presence of Christian leaders from the Majority World (aka, “2/3 World,” or less favorably, “developing world” or “third world"). The contexts from which these leaders faithfully serve with excellence present daily challenges of a magnitude I may never know. The wisdom distilled from their daily discipleship is, to me, “like apples of gold in settings of pure silver.”
Yesterday I was honored to sit and listen to the Bishop (Anglican) of Mukono who is visiting the U.S. from Uganda. Five of us gathered for a small lunch in Larry Martin’s office to eagerly learn. The Bishop has been a champion for the rights of widows and orphans in his nation, and a champion of fighting rampant, pervasive corruption amongst those who hold power. He has been a significant advocate for IJM’s work of restoring property that has been stolen from the vulnerable - with his help, we are continually meeting more and more pastors to train in the knowledge of their community’s legal rights and protections, and these pastors are making an enormous difference in the lives of women and children who otherwise would be left destitute.
The Bishop joined our entire HQ staff for our daily 11:00 prayer time as well. As he rose to greet us, he asked that we pray for three things—will you join us in these prayers?
Right in this moment, what can you do to impact justice for those who await rescue?
Think of all the tools right at your fingertips…
What can you do in the next 5 minutes?
In the next day as you enjoy the weekend?
In the next week as you go about your work?
Thank you for your prayers for our team in South Asia. The initial raid was delayed due to detracting circumstances in the target city, but we just received word from the field that the raid is now going forward.
Again, for this particular South Asian city, this is the largest raid we (in conjunction with the local authorities, as is our policy) have attempted to date. We have confirmed 6 young girls in the brothel and believe there may be more who are verifiably minors. Please pray for the safety of our staff as they move forward with the authorities. Please pray for the girls who are awaiting rescue. Please pray for the aftercare home that will provide safety and healing for these girls in the days to come. And please pray that the authorities will be successful in securing arrest and conviction of the perpetrators.
We are so grateful for your partnership in prayer.
If you and those you lead have been joining us in prayer, please do let us know - it is a great encouragement!
Right now it is night in South Asia, and another one of our teams is preparing for a rescue operation of sex trafficking victims. Here is what I’ve received from my colleagues in the field—please do be in fervent prayer. We appreciate your partnership with us in this way, so greatly:
“Tonight we will be raiding a large brothel complex. This is a dangerous raid, and we hope to retrieve 6-8 minors—the largest collection of minors in one brothel that we have seen since our operations in [this city] began. Please pray for safety for our team, as well as cooperation and teamwork with the local police with whom we are conducting this operation.”
International Justice Mission is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local governments to ensure victim rescue, to prosecute perpetrators and to strengthen the community and civic factors that promote functioning public justice systems.
Have a question or comment? Let us know.
© 2009 International Justice Mission. All rights reserved.
