he state of Kansas is best known for its industries, rural plains,
wheat and other agriculture, and solid mid-western values. But there is
an industry that operates in secret, one that affects nearly every state
in America–and most countries around the world.
Human sex trafficking does exist in Kansas, the Sunflower State. And some who attend Manhattan’s Westview Community Church (Wesleyan) have actually been among the victims of trafficking.
Deb
Kluttz, Westview’s executive pastor since 2006, attended the Wesleyan
Women Hands of Hope anti-trafficking training at The Wesleyan Church
Headquarters in Fishers, Indiana, in September 2009. At the time she
attended the training, she’d just begun to do her own research on the
topic because she’d had family members in the sex industry.
After
that weekend, a passion developed for Deb, who has attended Westview for
33 years and been in leadership there for 16. She returned home to
Manhattan (located in northeastern Kansas) and told the women’s ministry
team about human trafficking, a form of modern-day slavery that
generates billions of dollars in profits through the sex trade.
Initially,
many of the people wanted to open a safe house for trafficking victims.
But Deb suggested they begin first with prayer, asking God what He
wanted them to do.
“We went into focused prayer mode for two
years,” says Deb. Group members continued to educate themselves and
began to be intentional about taking opportunities to promote awareness
of the issue. They read books on trafficking. They traveled to nearby
Junction City, KS, where they prayed on-site at strip clubs, truck
stops, and the juvenile center.
Almost two years after the Hands
of Hope training, one of Westview’s own members unexpectedly passed
away. After her tragic death, the woman’s husband gave Westview’s
women’s ministry a generous monetary gift in her honor.
READ MORE
No comments:
Post a Comment