What Goes Unseen
“Statistics”
Right now the count is that there is 153 million orphaned
children worldwide.
At any given time there are 400,000 children in the foster
system;
There are 100,000 children aside from the 400,000 that are
waiting to be adopted;
This is in the United States alone.
There are 18 million
children worldwide whose mother and father are both deceased.
All of these children need one of these things
Reunification with their families,
Sponsorship; in order to stay alive.
Education so that they can get a job
Or Medical assistance
because of starvation or hereditary HIV.
The grim reality is that we live in a fallen world, a world
of war, famine and disease that ensure that
There will always be orphans among us.
Every day, children are abandoned due to economic need, or
disabilities.
“What Does God Say About All This?”
Understanding our place as Christians in all of this is
extremely critical.
God states our role various times in scripture;
(James. 1:27) “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God
the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing
to let the world corrupt you.” NLT
(Deut. 24:17)
“Do not deny justice to a foreigner or fatherless child”
(Deut. 24:19)
“When you reap the harvest in your field, and you forget a
sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the
foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless
you in all the work of your hands”
(Deut. 27:19)
“Cursed is anyone who denies justice to foreigners, orphans,
or widows”
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Throughout the Old Testament “Orphans” And “Fatherless” are
mentioned forty one times.
And in the Old Testament law, many specific guidelines are
given for interacting with orphans.
I believe God has made it clear as to what our role is
supposed to be as the body of Christ.
“Human Trafficking”
The international Labor Organization estimates that in 2012
there were 20.9 million people in forced labor worldwide, and 26% of these
slaves were children.
The number is roughly equivalent to the number of Africans
in slavery during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, the human trafficking trade is second only to drug dealing as the
largest criminal industry in today’s world.
In many countries, traffickers bribe law enforcement
officials to turn a blind eye to this atrocity. As such, legal consequences for
drug dealing are often more severe than for buying and selling human beings!!!
Different organizations vary on statistics of the average
lifespan of a child once he or she has been trafficked, with estimates ranging
from two to seven years.
The vast majority of victims are never rescued; making the
global market of child trafficking over $ 12 billion a year with over 1.2
million child victims.
Children ranging from ages 5 to 15 are traded domestically
and internationally as a supply for labor and sex.
153 million orphaned and vulnerable children worldwide
guarantee a continued market from which human traffickers can draw.
For children living outside of families, no one will even
know they’re missing.
There is no moral outcry, no legal search, and likely no one
who even cares.
Unlike drugs or other crime markets, people can be sold over
and over again, so there is no cap on the income that one child slave can bring
in.
The profits from one trafficked girl alone can be as much as
250,000.
In 2007 slave traders brought in more profit then Starbucks,
Google, and Nike combined; making the annual total market value of human
trafficking more than $32 billion.
Child Trafficking is a huge issue among orphaned and vulnerable
children, both globally and here in the U.S. It is estimated that 100,000 to
300,000 American kids are victims of sex trafficking annually and that there
are 50,000 sexual predators online at any one time searching for victims.
“What Can We Do?”
You might be asking “now that I am made aware; what are some
steps I can take to act against this injustice?”
.. Research ministries that are working internationally to
rescue children from sex trafficking; Do your homework and find out how you can
offer support to such ministries, not only financially, but in other tangible
ways as well…
…Start a ministry in your own community that can actively be
involved with rescuing trafficking victims…
…Go directly to the source of help by talking to local law
enforcement to determine what is being done in your community…
…Begin to pray and strategize about how local churches can
come together to reach out to trafficking and vulnerable children. Include law enforcement
and social workers in the discussion…
.. Get the word out, share what you know and if nothing else
please PRAY…
