Love and Hope for All

No one can receive God's love without being dynamically changed by it.  Instead of focusing upon self, love turns its gaze towards God and others.  There is compassion and grace where there was once only selfish preoccupation.  Love makes our hearts grow in breadth and depth.  Knowledge paves the way to feelings of incredible persistence.  God's love is so profound, tangible, and real.  A person who tastes of this love sees it is good, and nothing in or of this world can compare.

God's love seek release through acts of service and salvation.  No one filled with the Holy Spirit and His divine love can read shocking statistics of how many children and adults are trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation and remain unmoved.  The world has sown to the flesh through sexual sin and is reaping a bumper crop of deception, oppression, pain, ruin, disease, horror, addictions, and death people don't even want to think about.  But love won't look away.  Love cannot avert its eyes from suffering and pain.  Love wants to do something:  love must do anything possible to deliver bodies and souls from the pain of physical or sexual abuse.  Love does not falter in the face of sin's ugliness.

Awareness of the issue of sexual slavery is growing.  But awareness of a problem does not mean we have the capacity to fix it ourselves.  So what is to be done?  The Bible tells us that our fight is not against flesh and blood - the pimps, Johns, drug pushers, or people who knowingly sell their children for sex - but against principalities and powers, the demonic rulers of wickedness who increase the sway of Satan in this world.  These are spiritual beings of great power who seek to destroy the bodies and souls of people by their lies and lusts, people young and old created in the image of God.  It is only through God we can do valiantly and bring down the strongholds which daily grow stronger.

If you are someone who has been wounded and damaged through sexual abuse and/or slavery, you are of great value to God and to me.  I love you.  Only in Jesus can you find rest for your soul.  Jesus demonstrated His love for you on the cross and rose again, defeating death.  His love for you is everlasting and there is no stain of sin His precious blood cannot cleanse.  Only God knows how greatly you have suffered:  the tears you have cried, pain you have endured, humiliation words cannot begin describe.  Even when you cannot bring yourself to cry, God knows.  That is why Jesus laid His life down on the cross:  to free you from guilt, to heal your mind and heart, and so you can live with Him forever when you repent and trust in Him.  Perfect love casts out all fear.  Cast your cares upon Christ, for He cares for you.  I am praying that God would set you free physically and spiritually from your bondage!

Let us be faithful to pray for the deliverance and eternal salvation of those who suffer the slow death of sex slavery and abuse.  May the deeds shrouded in secrecy and darkness be overwhelmed with the light of life found only in Christ.  Let us pray that those taken captive by the devil to do his will to be freed, and for the fear and shame of the victims to be swallowed up in victory through Jesus.  May God forgive us for our apathy and for not walking in love as He has demonstrated by dying on the cross for us while we were yet sinners.  Thank you Jesus, for the tangible love you have granted us by your grace.  I am no Saviour, but Jesus is!  Here I am, LORD.  Use me to set the captives free.