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Let me first begin by saying that I will be preaching to myself in this post.

We all have passions.  We all have gifts and abilities.  More often that not, these talents directly align with our passions.  Funny how that works…

I’m passionate about music, especially writing it.  I love the creative process of a song coming to life from a simple thought.  While I’m clearly not the best at writing music, I have found that I enjoy it, and the songs themselves don’t sound horrible.  Of course, I’m a little biased when it comes to that.

I’m also passionate about helping the least of these- particularly concerning the issues of human trafficking and extreme poverty.  You can read some earlier posts on these issues by starting at the beginning of this fairly young blog.

I’ve been fortunate to play some of my music in order to raise awareness for the human trafficking problem in Phoenix, which is a much larger problem than people think.  This has caused me to think a lot about how I can use what I’m gifted at to help with the issues that I’m passionate about.  It would make sense to use my gifts that way.

It’s probably the reason I was given the gift in the first place.

You have gifts and passions.  All of you.  And because of that, you all have the potential to be a part of God’s much larger story of redemption on this little planet we live on.  Of course that also means that we get to live a better story as well.

We’re called to.

If you’re afraid to put yourself out there because of fear, I want to encourage you to take that step.  There is much more at stake here than our feelings.  Remember, we’ve been given these talents to use them, not bury them in the ground.

So, I ask you (and me) : What’s your passion?

And, more importantly, what are you (we) doing to invest in them?

Our talents are just as valuable as a million bucks. Sure, if you’ve been blessed with a lot of money, give away.  But, if you’re not a millionaire, give of yourself.  You’re worth more than you’ll ever think.

Folks,we must do something.  There isn’t a lack of need in this world.

We need only to look around.

*NOTE*  Some of you who read this blog are doing some amazing things for the Kingdom of God.  I’d love for you to share what you’re doing as well.  Perhaps there are those that are unaware and would like to partner with you.  Plug away shamelessly in the comments.

image: sam

Last month I wrote about Streetlight, an organization here in Phoenix who is doing some amazing things to combat the problem of human trafficking.  You can read the post here.

I will be the musical guest tonight at [mission], which is a service/venue who’s focused on both creative arts and global missions.  Tonight’s theme is “Glow,” and will center around Streetlight, and allow for brainstorming about what we can do locally to fight human trafficking.  I’ll be playing a few original songs as we start.

Please pray that conversations stir up actions.  And, on a selfish note, please pray that I don’t succumb to nervousness and faint.

January has been declared “National Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month.”  There was a call to highlight local organziations/ministries that are fighting this problem.
Today I will highlight Streetlight Phoenix, an organization here in Phoenix.

Streetlight is an organization here in Phoenix who is rescuing child prostitutes and rehabilitating them physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  They are set to open up a campus around a safehouse in the city in 2010, which will immediately double the number of safehouse beds in all of the U.S.  If you read this blog and are in Arizona, would you consider checking Streetlight out, and perhaps donating to it?  They also have some volunteer opportunities as well if you want to look into that.

The president of Streetlight is a pastor here in the Valley.  The goal is to partner with churches around the city to join in with the fight.  I like the idea of different churches putting aside their differences, denominations, worship style, etc. to help the least of these.  Can you imagine what that would look like?

Let me know what’s going in with regards to this issue in your town or city.  I’d love to know about it.  Perhaps you would consider writing a blog post this month to highlight an organization even.  That’d be great, too!

Feel free to link to your post (only one link or spam filter will catch it) and share it.

Perhaps if we saw signs like these we’d have less of chance to ignore a rampant problem…

Today has been declared National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.  Were you aware?

President Obama proclaimed last week that January 2010 to be National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, calling for greater public awareness of the problem.

An estimated 27 million people worldwide are trapped as victims of human trafficking.  The black market slave trade is lucrative, worth an estimated $9 billion a year, according to the FBI.  One million children are new victims of forced prostitution, and 200,000 American women and children are at high risk for being forced into the sex industry. Human trafficking has become the fastest growing criminal activity in the world.

We must do something… And we can.  There are many ways that we can combat human trafficking, and many organizations that are doing something to fight it.  If you’re looking for something to get involved in, I would highly recommend that you contribute your time, talent and resources to make a difference in the lives of those at risk.

It happens closer to you than you think.  This is not just an third world problem.  This is happening in your city, no doubt about it.  Human trafficking is a crime that takes the voice of so many.  It is commanded that we become a voice for them.

Have you looked into trafficking statistics in your town/city? If so, do you know of any organizations fighting against it?

If so, I’d love to hear what they are so I can list & highlight them here.

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image: FCAHT

Let that sink in for a second……got it?  Ok.

There are 27 million (million!) slaves in the world today.  I have a problem with this.  A big problem.  Children as young as 4 years old are being sold into slavery every day.  Some of them are being sold in your back yard….and mine, being required to service as many as 40 men per day.  Your heart breaking yet?

More after the jump….

So, what can we possibly do about it?  There are several ways.  I’ll start with five that come to mind.  Remember, the core of this here site is to discuss how we, who are all uniquely gifted, can use our different gifts and talents to  give hope to the hopeless, a voice to the voiceless and awareness that will cause a response to action.  So, without further ado, here are five ways we can fight human trafficking:

1.  Pray
–Pray for the victims:  for their hope & healing, their protection and for their trust in Christ
–Pray for the traffickers:  for their repentance & salvation
–Pray for the root causes:  for poverty, greed and prejudice
–Pray for the Church:  that it would unite and speak out for those without a voice

2.  Use your talents
–Write a blog about why we should fight human trafficking
–Use a sports event to raise awareness and funds
–Write a song or talk about human trafficking at a concert
–Create a short film and post it on YouTube
–Create a piece of art and display it publicly to raise awareness
–Use whatever you do best to make a difference in this matter

3.  Sponsor those at risk
–Poverty is one of the main reasons that lead to human trafficking.
–As a response to that, sponsor a child who is at risk.

4.  Volunteer
–Find places that are close to you and see if you can help out in some capacity.
–Google is a powerful tool.  :)

5.  Pray
–in case you forgot to keep doing that while you were doing the other things listed….because if you’re like me, you pray for a while and then stop because you’re always trying to do things.  The Holy Spirit is a much more powerful thing than Google.  :)

That’s all for now.  Feel free to add ways that you think would be helpful in this matter.  If your heart is stirred by the thought of people being sold into slavery, then let it stir you into doing something about it.

image:  enviroblog