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Becoming a voice for the voiceless

19 February 2010

And now that my eyes have been opened and my heart has been burdened, I want to respond to God’s call to become and agent of change...

Becoming a voice for the voiceless…

Last year April I had the God-given opportunity to do a Discipleship Training School (DTS) through YWAM in Kona, Hawaii. The idea behind a DTS is to spend 3 months getting to know God more, and then 3 months on outreach, making Him known to others. The particular school I did was focussed on injustice and photography. And I learned how photography can be used as a tool for evangelism, to show people how God sees them and challenge them on how they see themselves.

I also learned how images can be an awareness-raising tool for issues of injustice, how they can powerfully tell people’s stories and be a voice to the voiceless. God really opened my eyes to so much of what is going on in our world, to the reality of human trafficking, child prostitution, purdah and other gender-based injustices. After I completed my 6 month DTS I spent a further 3 months with YWAM doing a secondary photography school in Muizenberg, where we also focussed on using our cameras as a tool for empowerment and change. And now that my eyes have been opened and my heart has been burdened, I want to respond to God’s call to become and agent of change.

This year I have the privilege of being a part of the ‘Year of your Life’ programme here at MBC. My main focus will be working with the Young Adults ministry, which is awesome. A life stage filled with potential and opportunities to be used by God. The other part of my involvement at MBC is with the advocacy/injustice ministry in the church. I would love to be able to mobilise the young adults (and others from MBC who have a heart for justice) into action around issues such as human trafficking.
 









Human trafficking is basically modern day slavery and the reality is that thousands of vulnerable men, woman and children in South Africa will become trafficking victims during the period of the 2010 World Cup! Some people in the media have been trying to downplay trafficking statistics, worried it’ll be damaging to the high hopes for our economy and tourist industry with the upcoming Soccer World Cup. The sad reality though, is that human trafficking in South Africa is real and it is exacerbated by factors rooted in poverty, inequality, poor education and a lack of job opportunities.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) says that globally, human trafficking earns criminal syndicates between R60-billion and R84-billion a year. Already 28-30,000 children are currently being prostituted in South Africa (half of these are younger than 14 years old). And thousands more children are vulnerable and at risk of becoming victims of human trafficking - a lucrative business for unscrupulous and often sadistic slave drivers who trick them with empty promises and trap them into submission.

God taught me so much last year, and He is still teaching me about His character. That He is a just and merciful God, and that He calls us to respond to the needs of others and to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves and defend the rights of all who are needy (Proverbs 31:8). So my first challenge to you as a Christian would be to pray.

Not a day goes by in our country at the moment when the 2010 World Cup is not mentioned. So next time you hear about it, read about it or count down the number of days until kick off…remember to pray for the woman and children who are being exploited, abused and enslaved during this time. And pray for protection over those who are currently at risk of being trafficked. My second challenge to you is to personally get informed and involved. There are a large number of Christian ministries and organisations who are working to fight against this issue of human trafficking in South Africa. Research around this issue, speak to those who are involved already, and find out ways that you can partner with them. The more aware we are, the more empowered we are to do something to bring about change. Let God’s agenda be our agenda too.

(Cathy Fisher, 2010)