Reflection, Rescue And Redemption

As we draw near to the close of another year, traditionally many of us take time to reflect not just on the past year, but also on the approaching new year. We look back and reflect on past “only God” moments, and are humbled, encouraged and filled with gratitude and hope. We look forward with hopeful anticipation of what “only God” moments we will be blessed to experience in the new year. We sit and reflect on how this amazing, enormous God of ours has moved and worked in ways we could never have imagined.

During the Christmas season, we especially take time to reflect upon the wonder of the birth of the Christ Child, who left heaven to rescue us. He chose to leave the glory and grandeur of heaven and walk among us; to search each one of us out, to give us new life in Him. No judgment, just love. That He should do so moves us to, in turn, rescue others on His behalf. We reach out to those wounded by or trapped in the sex industry, extending the message of God’s love, hope and redemption in tangible ways. We want them to know they too are loved without judgment.

We are there to be the hands of feet of the One who loves them so much; to be a reflection of His grace and mercy. We are there to let them know that redemption is always possible, that life can spring from the ashes. We are there to bring the truth and beauty and power of Christmas to them.

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“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6  

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. Luke 2:10-11

The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. 

—John 1:14 (MSG)

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Super Bowl Prayer Partners needed! Email humantrafficking@willowcreek.org to sign up! 

Join us January 20th at 7:30pm during Midweek for the movie screening of "Amazing Grace". Check Facebook for up to date Room Number or the church monitors at Willow Creek Community Church! 

Holiday Shopping Human Trafficking Awareness Night! See you there!

Only God

Some 20,000 people gathered recently at the United Center to celebrate stories of what “Only God” could have done at Willow Creek the last 40 years. We wanted to take a moment and share a few “only God” stories of our own.

A visit to the Care Center for food led to a dramatic rescue for a mom and her children. Her situation had become dire following the end of a domestic violence relationship. A friend connected her with free housing – “free housing” that, as it turned out, was offered by a sex trafficker, and she found herself caught in the web of sex trafficking. After her initial visit to the Care Center for food, she searched the Care Center website for additional help. On the anti-human trafficking page, she discovered additional resources were available for victims. She emailed the Care Center via humantrafficking@willowcreek.org looking for a way out for herself and her children. She had run from her violent trafficker to different hotels, but he was sending people to find her. 

The Anti-Human Trafficking Ministry Care Center Team met with her, and walked along side her to connect her to local resources. Housing, food and support were provided until she and her children were transported out of state for their safety as recommended by the FBI. They are safe and doing well in their new life.

ONLY GOD could write that story!

Last fall, a happenstance conversation at a grocery store led to a donation of several thousands of dollars worth of surplus Thanksgiving food to our outreach team! They received boxes and boxes of sweet potatoes, beans, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn bread and more. An absolute bounty of food! The outreach team got together to cook turkey and then packed up and distributed the food. The team visited six different spas in Mount Prospect, delivering a huge box of hot food to each location. The team described the utter joy and astonishment that lit up the faces of the women receiving the food! In the words of one of the outreach team volunteers, “The girls faces at the spas were priceless. It was amazing – only God. Even now as we go back to the spas they still don’t understand that everything we do for them is a gift and that we want absolutely nothing in return.”

ONLY GOD could write that story!

200 gift bags for outreach were packed at our recent annual packing event. These gift bags will reach women and girls who are on the streets of Chicago, or who are being exploited in local spas, or were trafficked and are now in safe housing.

One of our team members told her friend, Dina, who lives in Florida, of our packing event and she insisted on making 200 “penny necklaces” with the Ten Commandments and a beautiful cross charm. Each one made with love for these women who need God’s love so badly. The Lovely Candy Company donated 200 beautifully packaged bags of candy for the event. A special treat for the women receiving our gift bags! (If you see their candy on the shelves of your local Costco, please remember their wonderful generosity to our ministry!)

In addition to jewelry, candy, and lip balm, this year’s bags included handmade scarves. Coming up with 200 handmade scarves is no small feat – and the response was incredible! Not only did the Willow Stitchers rise to the task by donating more than 60 scarves, many individuals (too many to list!) jumped at the opportunity to crochet or knit a scarf for the event. And then there was Donna Reiter Brandwein, who rallied support from a group of friends, as well as her amazing team of volunteers from the B’Chavannah Temple – they donated at least 150 scarves! Each scarf a handcrafted masterpiece made with love. Emails are still coming in with offerings of more scarves!

Finally, there was a team of volunteers who worked tirelessly to create 200 beautiful, hand-stamped gifts tags with the message, “know that you are loved” and attach elegant paper-crafted flowers to each tag. Countless hours went into making all of this happen.

ONLY GOD could write that story!

ONLY GOD could use food donated to a food pantry to make connections that led to the rescue of a woman and her children from the pit of sex trafficking and gave them a safe and new life.

ONLY GOD could turn a casual conversation in a grocery store into a feast worth thousands as a way to spread His love and joy to women trapped in a joyless and loveless environment.

ONLY GOD could take a gift bag filled with treats and handmade scarves, and use it to share His love with those who are being trafficked or exploited, making a way to open a conversation that can ultimately lead to freedom and a new life.

ONLY GOD can take our seemingly small offerings and use them to change lives in ways far beyond what we could have ever imagined. Only God indeed!

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“Unto Him who is faithful to do it all again
Be all glory and honor amen” – Only God ©

https://willowcreek.tv/wp-content/uploads/Only-God.mp3

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Get Connected:

humantrafficking@willowcreek.org

Upcoming Events:

New Name Call Center: Pray for women as we offer resources and outreach over the phone to women posted on online ads. Wednesday, November 4th, 7:30 pm at Willow Creek Community Church in the Link (F Lot Parking). For more information, contact Cheryl Csiky at: ccsiky@willowcreek.org.

Film Screening: Join us on in watching the film, In Plain Sight: Stories of Hope and Freedom. This feature-length (69 min) documentary focuses on six modern-day abolitionists as they fight sex trafficking across America. Wednesday, November 18^th at 7 pm, Room B204 at Willow Creek South Barrington.

December Forum – Holiday Shop & Awareness Night: Come ready to do some Christmas shopping! Wonderful gifts will be available for purchase that will benefit the fight against human trafficking. Stories of hope will be shared through poetry and “Ted” talks. Invite a friend! Wednesday, December 9^th from 7:30-9:00 in the Chapel at Willow Creek South Barrington.

Ink 180’s Chris Baker featured on NBC:

http://www.nbcchicago.com/on-air/as-seen-on/Web-5P-Pkg-Mad-Tattoo-Removal---Miranda_Chicago-335302471.html

Being friends with a trafficker

 This past summer I had an experience while volunteering that I would like to share.  To my surprise, the truth of my own story was revealed while serving in this ministry. I hope to share the story so that it can encourage others to seek education on the issue of human trafficking and get involved to help the cause. 

In the past four years, I participated with other volunteers at Willow Creek Community Church to initiate our Human Trafficking Ministry. It was the year 2011 when we launched the first Community Awareness Forum and Nita Belles was our first guest speaker. Nita shared knowledge of what human trafficking looks like in America and with her book In Our Backyard. Her voice helped shape our ministry and we continue to host awareness forums, serve local organizations, and refer resources for survivors. This past September we had the honor to welcome back Nita Belles a second time to discuss her new edition of her book and pack two hundred gift bags for survivors of human trafficking. I read the first edition of In Our Backyard in 2011 and my journey to healing began.

I remember laying in the comfort of my bed when suddenly coming across the story about a gal in the sex industry who was being controlled. Tears rushed down my face and I called my mom to let her know the story resembled the story of someone close to us. It has been years of trying to resolve all the pieces, but I am so thankful I took the time to really educate myself about human trafficking. Becoming aware allowed my family to help rather that further hurt the situation at hand. Though my heart broke to realize how close trafficking was to my life, I became sold out to the mission to raise awareness for other families to understand what is going on beneath the surface.

After six months of volunteering for organizations and raising awareness in the community, I started to feel my own history of fear rise to the surface. As a child I was sexually abused when my older brother came across old porn tapes. This trial deceived me and I fell prey to exploitation at the age of 10. I became involved with a boy on my street who was mimicking the “pimp game”. Honestly, I didn't realize I was being used or tricked to help him gain popularity, drugs, or status. At the time, I only felt fearful because of the shame I carried from my initial abuse in this seemingly predestined “piece of used garbage” lifestyle. I realized I was exploited for the first time while serving and discussing experiences of having dates in cars. Today, it ignites my heart to keep raising awareness to help other parents, teachers, counselors recognize the initial signs of an exploited situation.

So here I was this past summer, assisting in a rescue in the local area and found myself staring at the face of a violent pimp who I shared multiple "mutual friends" with on Facebook and recognized his picture instantly. I couldn't believe it myself. Although I assumed those boys from my past would grow up to be "normal", the truth is, those boys from my past didn't "grow out it".  They grew up to be men who victimize women by luring them with shelter, drugs, and love. What could have been done to initially stop it when I was a child? I am not sure. I can take a wild guess that educating parents, teachers, and others for the future generations wouldn't hurt.

 During my past, I was loved by God unconditionally and that is a book long story to tell. But, because I took the time to become educated I realized someone in my life needed help and a difference was made. I then took the time to volunteer and realized there were times in my life that fear also controlled me and my healing took place. This past summer I took the time to assist in a rescue and realized the street I grew up on bred traffickers and I understood what I needed to do to help prevent one more girl to fall victim to them. I reported.

 I encourage you to take the time and read In Our Backyard. I invite you to join me at the book discussion we are hosting this October. You will discover what you can do to help and make a difference.

In Our Backyard, by Nita Belles

Book Discussion

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

7pm in the Link Room (free child care available)

Willow Creek South Barrington IL

Join the Facebook Invite to RSVP and invite others! 

Join us! September 16th, 2015

Human Trafficking Awareness Event

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Nita Belles, speaker, anti-human trafficking crusader and author of In Our Backyard, will be our guest speaker at the September 16^th  Community Awareness Forum at Willow Creek Community Church. The annual "packing event" will be held the second half of the night. Our goal is to pack two hundred gift bags for local outreach teams! 

Wednesday September 16th, 2015

7:30p.m.-9:00p.m.

In the Chapel of Willow Creek Community Church 

(B parking lot) South Barrington, IL

Nita began studying about human trafficking/modern day slavery back in 2006. This roused a passion in her to no longer sit on the sidelines as these atrocities happened around the world, and in our own backyards. Nita’s years of experience in anti-domestic violence work gives her a deep understanding of both victims and perpetrators. Nita networks with national and international abolitionist organizations, giving her a deep understanding of a broad scope of women’s issues.

Some highlights of Nita’s work in combating human trafficking:

·      Managing Director of In Our Backyard

·      Managing Director of Oregonians Against Trafficking Humans (OATH)

·      Victim rescue to restoration

·      Works with legislators in passing Oregon’s anti-trafficking laws

For the past 5 years, Nita has directed a team doing anti-trafficking work at the Super Bowl. Working with law enforcement and other government officials, they bring justice to the perpetrators, and in cooperation with service providers, deliver the best of services to the recovered victims. The operation begins a year or more prior to the Super Bowl, which Nita oversees in its entirety.

Nita has worked in the business for over 20 years and holds a Master’s Degree in Theology with a concentration in Women’s Concerns. She has a contagious passion, an enthusiasm for life and is known as a powerful motivator who will impact any group.

Limited copies of her book, In Our Backyard, will be for sale at the forum (cash only). Join us for a book discussion of her book on October 21^st – details below.

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Get Connected:

humantrafficking@willowcreek.org

Upcoming Events:

New Name Call Center: Pray for women as we offer resources and outreach over the phone to women posted on online ads. Wednesday, October 7th, 7:30-8:15 pm at Willow Creek Community Church in the Link (F Lot Parking). For more information, contact Cheryl Csiky at: ccsiky@willowcreek.org.

Book Discussion Group: We will be discussing, In Our Backyard, by Nita Belles. Join us on Wednesday, October 21st from 7:00 - 8:30 at Willow Creek Community Church in the Link (F Lot Parking). Please contact Holly at: hkoehler@ameritech.net for further details.