I also know something else. But before I continue, I need to issue a “content advisory.” As I said in my post of last August, there are a lot of people who see horrible things and are get stuck in despair, and there are others who look through the despair and see hope. If you are one of the “despair” crowd, you might be tempted to skip over the next paragraph. But I hope you don’t, because, while these things are unspeakable and unthinkable, they are still things we must think about, things we must speak of, if we are to experience that “God-infused delight that awaits those who seek the welfare of children, especially the ones who have no one else to care for them,” which I spoke of below.
You see, this is what I do know: As I write this, it is 10:00 AM here in Minnesota. That makes it 10:00 PM in Thailand and Cambodia, both major centers for the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC). Right now, tens of thousands of children, mostly girls between the ages of 8 & 14 (some even younger), are beginning another night of serial abuse and rape. Many will be forced to “serve” 20 or more “clients” before the night is over. And when morning comes, some of them might return home, taking the money they have earned with them to help feed their brothers and sisters who may starve without it. Others – the majority – will continue to be held captive while their pimps get rich by selling them again and again. If they try to escape, the police will capture them, return them to the brothel, and receive their unjust reward.
Yet there is hope. In the midst of such darkness, there is light. In the spiritual and emotional (and sometimes even physical) death, there is life.
“Zoe” is Greek for “life.” And Zoe Children’s Home is one of many ministries that bring life and light into this atrocity. They do it by rescuing and providing a safe haven for children who have been sold into sexual slavery, or are at high risk of being sold, as well as orphans. By receiving and enfolding these little ones into a loving family environment where they are shown the love and care of Jesus, the Zoe parents provide healing and wholeness to about 60 girls and an increasing number of young boys. Over time, and often very quickly, these children learn that they are no longer alone, that they are safe, and that they are valued and cherished for who they are. They learn to face their past with courage and victory, as they receive counseling and a full education complete with vocational training that will enable them to graduate to independent lives, often in the service of others who are suffering as they once did.
At the same time, Zoe reaches out into the surrounding community and even ethnic villages in the mountainous regions of Thailand’s northern hill country. Working hand-in-hand with other Christian outreach ministries, they enter the places from which many of the children are taken, where they address the economic, cultural and spiritual issues that often lead to children being sold or tricked into slavery. As they share the Gospel of Christ, they work to start churches in places where the name of Jesus may otherwise have never been known.
For close to 20 years, I have hoped to travel to Chiang Mai to participate in a ministry exactly like Zoe Children’s Home. By God’s grace, I now have the opportunity to do just that. On November 29, I will travel with 20 others from across the US to visit ZCH where we will meet and pour love all over these precious children, assist the staff in their care, and teach them new things. We will also take a few days to travel into the northern highlands to visit a village or two and share Jesus with the local families and perhaps the school children. We will take the message of His Good News into the market places of nearby Chiang Mai, a city of about 150,000 but with an international airport that serves close to 4 million passengers per year.
Clearly, these are places where the enemy is working hard and is jealous of what he thinks is his territory. And he is calling on the forces of hell to thwart anyone who would come to rescue Jesus’ little ones. We are not going there to take a vacation; this will be hard work, both physically and spiritually. So, as I prepare over the next few months, and while I am on this trip, I will need the support of many prayers. If you would like to support me in prayer, and receive periodic updates on my preparation, my trip, and follow-up stories, please send me an email by clicking here.
There are also some costs involved. The total cost of this trip will be approximately $2,950.00, which includes visa, air & ground transportation, food, lodging, training and ministry materials. One-half of that amount is due July 15, 25% is due September 30 and the remainder is due October 30. If you would like to help with these costs, you can donate online here. Please be sure to enter “Craig Rasmussen, December 2012” in the comment box at the bottom of the form. Any amount would be deeply appreciated! Alternatively, if you prefer to send a check, you may send it to: ZOE Children's Homes, P.O. Box 221510, Santa Clarita, CA 91322. Please put my name on the memo line.
If you have any questions at all related to the trip, the costs, or the issue of child sex trafficking, please send me an email, or leave a comment here. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for any response you sense that God would have you make.
Defend the weak and the fatherless;
uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.
Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
Psalm 82:3-4, NIV
