Being a Banner of Jesus

This fourth of July weekend, I was blessed with a trip to Davis, CA to visit some very special people.
I visited my "spiritual family" from college. They took me in when I was in a very rough patch in life. I spewed anger and threw fits in incredible states of brokenness but they never gave up on me. They knew the love of Jesus and a stable family was the only thing that could restore me.

No matter where I am with them, I can call it home. They have relentlessly pointed me to Jesus the past four years with every aspect of their lives. How they discipline their children, how they react to conflict, how they spend their time, what food they eat, how they live out their daily-life tasks with loving endurance (three young kids can be a handful)...

I always see Jesus when I am with them.

And I hope I can do the same in my life. I want to live as passionately and missionally as they do. I hope to be a bright, shining banner leading women to Christ with my time here at Magdalene Hope. If I fail at everything else but still show these women Christ, then I have succeeded.
Nothing else matters in this life because the glory doesn't go to me.

Our time here is short so lets live it the way Jesus commanded.
This is how lives get transformed. This is how hearts get softened.
Be a bright, shining banner leading others to Jesus!

"So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." -John 13:34-35

Weeds and Truth

"Why do you always have to be right Annie?"

I heard these words again today and I had to cringe.
Many of my friends have said this to me, usually right after I corrected their bad decision or told them a fact about something they didn't know before. I like to coach people. I like to counsel people in making wise decisions when it comes to exercise, spending money, and other daily life decisions. I thought this would be a good trait now that part of my job with Magdalene Hope is to help people grow and realize their true potential....

But sometimes I feel like I overstep my bounds. God has put this topic on my heart all day long. I've been meditating on my actions of the past and present and this is what I feel like I should say:
I am so so so deeply sorry if I have ever made you upset by pushing you to change or to make a different decision in your life. I promise you, every time I do that...it is out of complete love for you. I have never been good at showing my emotional feelings for people. My love comes out in truth-and-logic-oriented motivation to change.
I see so much beauty inside every single one of you and I want to be a catalyst to bring out that beauty.

I've been on my hands and knees in the dirt and rocks, pulling weeds for hours, while thinking and thinking of my actions. And I am almost ashamed of myself. I have been so hard on my friends. The more I care about them, the harder I am! I pushed and pushed my friends and significant others to be more. And I ask myself if this is why so many of my relationships fail.

I should have showed you love.

I need you to understand my heart. I've been pulling weeds until my fingers are rubbed raw all day because  this yard-job should be done right. I don't want to cover up the weeds with mulch and call it a day. I know how beautiful this yard can be and I cannot rest until it comes into fruition. And that is how I am in my relationships. I don't want to see you "just get by", I want to see you shine!

So I want to apologize for being overly motivated, overly truthful, and intense. I want to work on showing grace and love to those around me. Thank you for putting up with me and showing me grace. If you know me, please help me grow by telling me the answers to these questions:

Have I shown you grace and love? Have I been harsh or overly truthful to you? If it has ever felt like I "always had to be right", what would you like to see me do instead?

Thank you so much!

The Great California Adventure

If someone told me 5 years ago that I would be director of an organization like Magdalene Hope at the age of 22, I would've laughed in their face.
I just don't direct things. To be honest, most of my life has been keeping my head low so I could make it out in one piece with as little trouble as possible. I barely spoke in high school and college was a blur. I thought I would settle down quietly with a $30,000 a year job and support those who are being His hands and feet.

But God had different plans.

When I heard about the open position at Magdalene Hope, I felt a push from within myself. I had to go. I have only felt this push two other times in my life (which college I was to attend and going on a Puerto Rico mission trip). All I know is that when you feel the Holy Spirit push you, its to a life-giving abundance. He will always push you into something that brings God glory and fulfills His will. So here I am.

I firmly believe God had me travel 8 hours away from every friendship and family member I have so he can use "the least of these" (me). I am humbled to be here and thrilled to listen to the Holy Spirit on my new life adventure. I cannot wait to learn more and use my talents where they are needed.

Thank you to everyone who has welcomed me with open arms into this organization! I am surround by such beautiful, hard working, and dedicated people. I'm still learning all the names and faces but its an honor to get to know each and every one of you.I'll keep this first one short but I hope to share more about what I'm learning as the months roll on!

-Annie

Liberty and Justice for All

*Liberty: The state or condition of people who are able to act and speak freely.                 Freedom from arbitrary or despotic control.

*Justice: Just behavior or treatment.

Liberty and Justice are powerful words, until I started working with Magdalene Hope and had my eyes opened to the Sex Trafficking world, I took them for granted.  They were just part of a phrase I mumbled at the end of our flag pledge.  When I take those words and use them in the context of women being bought and sold, it's a new revelation.  There is nothing liberal or just about the way these women, children and even sometimes men, are being treated.  A little over one week ago today, crowds gathered at the Liberty Bell in Bakersfield to acknowledge Human Trafficking Awareness Day.  Speeches were given, proclamations were stated and prayer was abundant.  This meeting of officials, public leaders, safety officers and regular citizens was another monumental step forward in Kern County's fight against prostitution and sex trafficking.  We here at Magdalene Hope would personally like to thank all our friends and family who could make it out to show support.  Friday was not only the day of the rally, but that night was a regularly scheduled streetreach for our ministry, and let me tell you, your prayers during the day were powerful! We split up into two teams to hit the streets and were immediately shocked to find hardly one girl in sight! Car one was ministering to the girls who are out walking and car two stopped at all the motels.  As someone who was personally in car one, let me say that we drove up and down union almost three times before being able to hand out a gift bag.  God wanted to reveal himself in a big way that night by affirming to everyone that our prayers were making a difference!  Yes, we love being able to minster to and pray with as many girls as possible.  But, on those rare nights when we pass out only a few bags, it's a reminder that less girls on the street hopefully means they are somewhere safe not "working".  That night, we handed out six bags and almost all of the girls asked for prayer! 

John 1:5 "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not
                 overcome it."

~Our blog has been stagnate for awhile but we are back in full swing now, and hoping to keep all are friends and social media followers completely updated with what's going on at the ministry.~

Wish List for Fighting Human Trafficking

Hello Friends. We here at Magdalene Hope are constantly seeking the Lord in prayer as in which direction to go in the ministry. We have made different tweeks here and there over the last few years as we felt God has lead us in different directions. Our eyes have been opened recently to a rapidly growing concern that has been talked about and reported on for the last few years, Human Trafficking. Until recently I (Doug) was unaware of this form of Modern Day Slavery until last year when I spent some time on the California Coast with some amazing young missionaries who are with Y.W.A.M.Youth With A Mission in Pismo Beach, Ca. It was there I was told of the horrendous acts that Men were performing on Women and Children in Cambodia, Thailand, China, Vietnam and so on. Men, (mainly American and European) were BUYING women and children as SEXSLAVES. My heart broke. I looked into it further and found out that these things were not only true but were almost common place in these parts of the word. Truly if you have enough money you can buy anything you want and get away with anything as well. Imagine for a minute if this were happening in America? I am sorry to inform you that it is. America is the third largest "Trafficked" Country only behind Japan and Australia. Women more than children are sent to this Country daily with the sole purpose to be used as a sex slave. Upon arrival the women are brutally raped and beaten for days on end until they are broken and filled with FEAR! They are told if they go to the authorities that the police will do the same to them and lock them up where they will never see their family again. Can you imagine what must be going through the head of this poor, scared, broken woman? She has been sent to another Country where she dose not know the language or anybody and has just been through a traumatic event. I think that I can imagine what she must be thinking. I am going to die here, my life is over, my dreams will never come to pass, I must survive and so on. I for one and not going to sit back knowing that this is happening in our Country and our City. YES it is happening here in BAKERSFIELD too. These women are being trafficked and PROSTITUTED out of at least 10 massage parlors in town and over 4500 NATION WIDE. Friends we at MH need your help in this matter. It is my desire (Doug) to learn the languages of Thai and Chinese (Mandarin) and then go into these Massage Parlors (Brothels) and talk to these women in their own language and inform them that we have a safe house for them and then I'll take them by the hand and walk them out of the establishment that they are in.. A friend of MH offered to buy BOTH Rosetta Stones (Mandarin and Thai) and they now sit in the office of MH. These are the gold standard of computer based language learning software available. They are so advance that our computer at MH can not meet the minimum system requirements. The computer we have is old and slow. It was given to us as an "In Kind" gift and served this ministry well for the last two years but we need an upgrade. We are asking for help with donations of "In Kind" gifts or Monetary donations of any kind.

 We need the following of new or gently used items;

An Operating System (one of the following):
* Windows XP SP3 or higher
* Windows Vista SP2 or higher
* Windows 7 or higher
* Mac OS X Tiger 10.4.11 or higher
* Mac OS X Leopard 10.5.8 or higher
* Mac OX S Snow Leopard or higher

Computer Hardware (all of the following):
* 1 GHz processor or faster
* 1 GB of Ram or higher
* 600 MB free hard-drive space (per level)
* CD or DVD drive for installation
* 1024 x 768 display resolution
* 1 available USB port (for included headset with microphone)

My friends this can either be a Personal Computer (P.C.) or a Laptop we will take whatever we can get. All Donations are Tax  deductible and you either donate to me or one of our leaders or on-line on our website or you can send in donations at P.O. Box 2631 Bakersfield Ca 93303. Thank you so much and may God's hand continue to be upon this ministry and on your life.

10 Things you need to know about Human Trafficking (Australia)

10 things you need to know about Human Trafficking ^Featured

Written by  Jonathan Hirt ,  21 April 2011

Rate this item

• 
  
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

(5 votes)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fazen/

1. Human trafficking is modern-day slavery.
Human trafficking is modern-day slavery. Human trafficking involves one human being holding another human being against their will, by either physical, emotional, psychological or economic chains, to make profit by forcing that person to work in a variety of inhumane ways. What makes this modern conception of human slavery, "modern", and therefore different from it's historical trans-Atlantic counterpart, is that slavery today is illegal, in fact there are many laws, internationally and domestically, now in place that have outlawed modern slavery in almost all of it's manifestations, in much of the world. Yet modern-day slavery still exists, in truth, there are more human beings enslaved right now than in any other moment in human history.

2. Australia has a History of Slavery – not all that dissimilar to Human Trafficking.
Australia has a history of slavery that is not well known and often omitted from school history curriculum. "Black-birding" as it was called, involved the kidnapping of Pacific Islanders to work for little or no pay on the sugar cane plantations of Queensland. The practice occurred primarily between the 1860s and 1901. In 1901 Queensland became a part of the Commonwealth of Australia and so black-birding as an economic practice ceased, however it is estimated that up to 80,000 indigenous people were trafficked against their will and forced to work in Australia during this time.
3. Human trafficking does not have to involve the movement of a person across borders.
The term "human trafficking" implies the movement of a person across a border, like "drug trafficking". This is a misconception. Both legally and literally, a person does not have to be moved across a border to be a victim of human trafficking. Domestic, or internal trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation does take place; it is particularly prevalent in the United States, however the practice also takes place within Australia. In an inquiry by the Northern Territory Government into the protection of Aboriginal children from sexual abuse undertaken in 2007, and further supported by the 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report put out by the U.S. Department of State, it has been highlighted that cases of child "prostitution" among Indigenous communities have taken place – cases where the child was not trafficked across a border, but exploited within their own country.
4. Human trafficking is happening in your backyard.
The trading in human property exists in 161 countries, on every continent and within every type of economy. The phenomenon of modern slavery is a global problem, however it is also an Australian problem. Australia is a source and destination country for the trafficking of human beings. Men, women and children are trafficked into Australian borders for the purposes of sexual exploitation, supplying its burgeoning sex industry. People are also trafficked into Australia and forced to work in aspects of the hospitality, agricultural, construction and mining industries.
5. You are complicit in modern-day slavery.
Modern-day slavery is embedded in our global economy. We are all complicit in the global slave trade because we all patronize slave made products. From the chocolate we eat, the coffee we drink to the clothing we wear, many of the products we buy come from supply chains that use forced labour. Kevin Bales, author of "Disposable People", clearly describes the connections between the use of human slavery and the consumer,
Slaves in Pakistan may have made the shoes you are wearing and the carpet you stand on. Slaves in the Caribbean may have put sugar in your kitchen and toys in the hands of your children. In India they may have sewn the shirt on your back and polished the ring on your finger.
6. People smuggling is not human trafficking.
Many erroneous beliefs surround the issue of modern-day slavery. One of the greatest misconceptions, especially relevant in the Australian context, surrounding the global event that is human trafficking, is the understanding that people smuggling is a form of modern slavery. Although the two acts have similarities, people smugglers cannot be charged under human trafficking laws and vice versa. Consider it like this; people smuggling is legally a crime against the sovereignty of a nation, human trafficking is a crime against an individuals human rights.
7. The victims of human trafficking are not just "foreigners" – it is happening to people like you and me.
The perpetrators of modern-day slavery do not discriminate on the basis of gender, age, race or religion – the bottom line for the trafficker is profit. The vast majority of trafficking victims are women, and a vast portion of those women are under the age of 18. There are over 2.5 million human beings experiencing the horrors of forced labor at any given time, which includes sexual exploitation. It is estimated that 95% of victims will experience physical or sexual violence during the trafficking process, whether that is domestically or internationally. The International Organization for Migration, goes further to highlight that 43% of victims are used for forced commercial sexual exploitation, of whom 98% are women and girls and 32% of victims are used for forced economic exploitation, of whom 56% are women and girls. Many trafficking victims have at least middle-level education. Within Australia, the majority of prosecuted cases of modern slavery have involved people trafficked into Australia; however cases are emerging that suggest domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation of Australian citizens is also taking place.
8. The traffickers are people who look like you.
Although the re-emergence of the modern slave trade has been greatly perpetuated and proliferated by domestic and transnational organised crime, a significant portion of contemporary slave traders are seemingly "normal" people. Our perceptions of who is committing these crimes against humanity are largely misperceptions. In 2009 there was a case in which a mother from the New South Wales South Coast forced her underage daughter into prostitution in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs.
One would assume that the perpetrators of this transgression are predominately men. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime tells us that 52% of those recruiting victims are men, followed closely by 42% who are women (6% of cases involve both men and women). What is more, in just under half of the cases, the victim knew the recruiter. If we are to end slavery in our lifetime, we need to shift our thinking about the crime - it isn't someone else's problem, this crime isn't being committed by someone unlike you or me. Slavery today is everyone's problem, and it is going to take all of us to see out its end!
9. You have a role to play in the movement to end human slavery.
Modern-day slavery is an Australian problem, it is also a global problem – it is all of our concern, it has to be. The movement to end human trafficking needs all of us, it has a place for all of us – we all have a role to play. One avenue of engaging with the abolitionist movement and learning how to work against slavery in your home context is to take part in training like that of Not For Sale's "Abolitionist Academies" that will be taking place in late June and July in Sydney and Melbourne.
This is a challenge that all people of conscience face working for justice, to find their place in the fray, to hone their skills and own the role. The line, what can I possibly do in the face of such an embedded global problem is oft used. It is also an easy out. Yes the problem is huge and overwhelming and yes it is deeply rooted in the global economic system. Your role may only be to buy ethically and justly. If one quarter of the First World altered their consumer habits consider the change that would ensue – imagine a world where Fair Trade was the norm. We all have a role to play in the movement to end the captivity of millions of human beings, every single one of us.
10. We can end human trafficking in our lifetime.
We can end human trafficking in this generation. We can end human trafficking in this generation. We-can-end-human-trafficking-in-this-generation. Let that statement marinate. We truly can end this horrendous crime against ALL of humanity if and only if we ALL work against it. There is a growing global abolitionist movement mobilising around the world. We need a multifaceted approach. We must engage all spheres of influence that make up society. As Dr. David Batstone, President of Not For Sale often says, we must become "smart-activists". We must buy from companies that have transparent and just supply chains and tell their unjust counterparts that enough is enough! In this global human rights epidemic, education is advocacy. Educate your community, your friends and family – everyone needs to know that slavery still exists. Apathy is hard to change; however ignorance is something we can cure. Together we will end human trafficking in our lifetime, but only together.

Learn more about Modern Day Slavery at http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/australia/

My Trip and First Australian Outreach 2/5/2011

 I will attempt to Blog to the best of my ability what I experienced while going out on the streets to minister in a foreign Country the love of Christ to the prostitutes working in Australia.

    It was back in November that I learned of a ministry in Australia that was ministering inside brothels (more commonly known as whorehouses here in the states). I learned that they would go in and give massages to the girls during the slow times of the day when there weren't as many customers looking for a date. My friend Narelle had told me of Shaz the leader and founder of this ministry and naturally it grabbed my heart. I thought how amazing would that be to minister in another Country and see first hand what prostitution is like in another culture and more importantly what could I pull from this ministry and incorporate back home in the United States. I also heard of Shaz's husband and the work that he was doing as well. I learned from Narelle that he was a former Anglican Priest who had had enough of the religious legalistic crowd and stepped down to do street ministry. He now has a ministry that focuses on ministering God's unconditional love to homosexuals and lesbians in Perth. I then quickly woke up from my day dreaming and thought that that is half way across the world and I am stuck here in Bakersfield...yet I never lost hope of one day teaming up with Shaz for an outreach.

   Well as God would have it He spoke to a friend of mine and said to bless me and pay for my airfare. My friend Narelle had offered me a place to stay if I ever came to Perth, even my own room. I was overwhelmed with the thought of traveling to another Contentment and immediately went to prayer. If God is not in it then I would not want to go. Sometimes you might be presented with a "good thing" but, it might not be a "God thing". Well I asked a couple of my elders for advice and I sought God in prayer and His word. 5 different passages I looked at all had the word "go" or "went" in the scripture that I read. I felt peace and I said yes, I would be honored to come to Australia. I told my friend not only did I want to come down and visit with her but that I wanted and felt as if we would go out and minister with Shaz. I was also feeling as if God was calling me to rest in Him, and that He was giving me and oppertunity to recharge my battery.

   6 weeks came and went and with my affairs in order I boarded a plane for Australia, bright eyed with the whole world in front of me anticipating what my God was going to do. I left not knowing for sure, exactly why I was going to Aussie land I just knew it was to rest and hang out with a friend and that God had showed me in a vision that I would worship Him before we would go to do an outreach (I didn't know where or with who, but that I would minister to prostitutes)...I knew in my spirit it was deeper and much more than just these three things.

   Upon arrival into Perth I met my friend Narelle at the airport and we had dinner. Afterwords I got situated into my room before laying down to sleep (tired and a little weary from traveling 31 hours) I noticed that I had zero jet lag. God woke me at 2:00 am and said for me to read Jer 31. I did and it was on Hope and Restoration. God revealed to me at that time that I was sent by Him to Australia with a message of hope and to encourage the believers in Australia.

   I soon met up with Andrew (Shaz's husband) to encourage him and find out about the work that he and his wife were doing. What an amazing man of God the fellow turned out to be. I had the honor of meeting his wife a few days later and I saw humility in both of them. Shaz and I talked about the wonderful work that God was doing here in the states and she told me of the wonderful things that He was doing in Perth. We set up a time to meet the following week to see about setting up an outreach. I had to be very respectful of the work that God was doing in the city through her and her team and did not want to compromise it in any way. Well, we meet up for coffee and dinner and there were 2 things that stood out to me. They were that (1) she was getting a feel for me and my heart and (2) was something that she said to me. She said that God has called us to go out as sheep among wolves. To be gentle in a hostile environment. She said that often we want to go out and be the aggressor and God has not called us to that. We are to be as gentle as doves and as shrewd as snakes. I agreed wholeheartedly and shared that we must go out as less than. She shared of the importance to go out on their turf and minister to them in an environment that they feel comfortable in. I took one thing from this meeting and that was that Shaz and I were from the same tribe meaning the way that she sees and does outreach and her approach was very similar to mine and that we were both on the same page. We both believe that an approach with love and compassion is the best way to minister to someone not shoving religion down someones throat and telling them if they don't change their ways they are going to hell. That is certainly not the way Jesus went about it.

   We set up a date to go out and minister to the street walkers but , that wasn't going to be easy. There are not that many street walkers in Perth. Narelle and I went out to 3 different times to places we had heard that there might be street walkers but never found one. They all work in the brothels. I never found out how many brothel there were in Perth but it is a city twice the size of the land mass as Bakersfield and a population of 2 million people there, so I believe there were a lot. Also, understand the brothels are not legal nor are they illegal in a sense. They have a business license and most have neon "OPEN" signs in the window not to mention neon "ATM" signs lite up at night as well.n If there is trouble inside one of the brothels the police will come out and help the ladies.

   So on Saturday February 5, 2011 we sat out to minister to the working girls on the streets of Perth, Western Australia. Earlier that day I went shopping and purchased gift bags and girly items to put in them; jewelry, nail polish, candy etc. These are the things that work back home so lets give them out here or so I thought. Shaz did what she knows and she got together the things that work in Australia. She got together tubs, towels, water and lotion to give massages in the camper van that her and her husband purchased for street ministry. It is named the "Pamper Van" rightfully so and it is set up and equipped with mattresses and couches to do massages. Well we got ready and met up at a park in the neighborhood of where we had heard the working girls walked and as we prayed over our night I thanked God for Shaz and her preparation for our outreach. She interrupted me and said that she forgot the water for the massages. I said "That's God". I suggested that we go over to a gas station and get some water. She said no it has to be "Hot" water. She then said well maybe I can ask to get some at a brothel around the corner. I replied, "That's God, lets go". Woo Hoo I knew God was moving.


   Side note; when I heard of the pamper van from Shaz a week or so earlier and that there weren't many street walkers I prayed a simple prayer and that was, "God even if I could be the driver and sit and pray in the parking lot of the brothel while the women are inside ministering, then that is fine with me." That prayer came true as I watched both (Narelle and Shaz) enter the brothel after getting the Ok by the manager. The manager asked Shaz if she would mind talking one on one, to one of the girls who was "in a bad way". She said sure I will. The women working that night found out that these girls Shaz and Narelle were the ones who give massages on Tuesdays and Thursdays and they said we have been waiting for months for you to come here to massages us, will you? Shaz asked Narelle to massage while she went to talk to this one girl who was in a bad way. Don't forget I'm sitting in the parking lot praying like I never have before. Anointed prayers for both of the girls. So Shaz goes in to meet the girl that is in a bad way and the girl asks Shaz if she is a Christian? Shaz said yes...Then the girl asked do you speak in tongues? Shaz said yes...Then the girl said well then I guess you can massage me if you're a Christian. Turns out the girl was a Born Again, Tongue talking, Spirit filled believer who had back slide and started using meth and ended up working in this brothel. Shaz and this girl ended up praying and doing a bible study for two hours!!! How amazing is that??? Narelle listened and talked with two more girls and both asked her if she would come back the following week and she said yes. I had no idea that this was going on inside as I sat and prayed and man did I pray. Wow!!! I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that if God had sent me to Aussie land that there would be a God story of epic proportion. Well there was so much fruit and since we had been invited back that we decided to do it again in a week. My next blog will be about the outreach that we did on February 12th. God bless- Doug Bennett