Today for Missions Monday I wanted to share this fantastic article
from one of our team members at The Exodus Road - Kelley J. Leigh.
Do you ever feel discouraged about how to enter the
enormous gap between human trafficking and life in the suburbs? Exodus Road staffer, Kelley J. Leigh, is an
ordinary middle-aged mom to four sons
and recently wrote an article over at Burnside Writers Collective about the
paralyzation we ‘regular’ people feel about what to do when it comes to sex
trade. She describes her friendship with
the founders of The Exodus Road candidly:
“ … frankly, having social justice superheroes as friends
comes with issues; like, the constant nagging feeling that I am in reality, a
total social justice slacker — like Lois Lane standing outside the empty
telephone booth wondering where Superman went.”
But she offers us an accessible way to begin our own
journey into social justice:
I decided it doesn’t matter who gets to be Batman or who
is Alfred.
We are all in this together.
My former social justice slackitude stemmed from my
belief in super heroes. “Those people” do this stuff, not me. “I’ll just leave
them to their supernatural business and check in on them every once in
awhile.” However, I now see them simply
as ordinary people who have followed God, one harrowing step at a time. They didn’t start out as superheroes. Back alley brothels and hidden cameras only
entered the story after a long series of
small choices stepped them toward the bat cave.
It’s the same for all of us.
After the smallest pause and question, “What now?” "What Next?” is always an invitation. It’s a Jesus invitation. “Follow me.” Steps which obediently follow inevitably lead
us to love God or love people in powerful and unimaginable ways.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with
your God. - Micah 6:8
My friends’ journey to empower rescue started out as a
tangled ball of wire, unwound one turn at a time, until it stretched around the
globe. I have been in a similar tangle,
wondering what to do next. I don’t get to
fly to the places where children are freed, but I do get to support people who
unlock the prisons. And I can’t speak to US diplomats about prosecution and
legislation, but I can write for change. I can redirect my weekly “skinny
cinnamon dolce latte” money to the purchase of needed investigative equipment.
It starts in the little things toward God’s heart.
One turn at a time.
One seed of holy unrest, watered.
One humble step. One choice to say “Yes” to the One true God who has a
heart to rescue us all, one soul at a time.
Start small. Water
the seed. Let it grow.
Be a hero in this larger story.
Join the rescue.
Kelley J. Leigh lives in a quirky little mountain town in
Colorado. At mid-life she decided to
leave behind full-time marketing and consulting work to focus on writing. The rest of her time goes to her husband,
four sons, and the recovery of lost car keys. Someday she hopes to own an old
scooter and embarrass her sons by wearing the very dorky helmet around town.
Read the rest of the article, HERE.
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Blessings,
Wendy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the shout out. I really enjoyed browsing around your blog. This is clearly a place full of grace!
Blessings to you!
Kelley J. Leigh