This is the last week of my internship with Out of Darkness 🙁
Since some of you might not know about my summer internship and what I did, here is summary of my time with this amazing ministry:
This past summer, I have been interning with Out Of Darkness, which is a branch of The Atlanta Dream Center which helps to serve at risk communities in Atlanta. The purpose of Out Of Darkness is to reach, rescue, and restore victims of commercial sexual exploitation, which can take the formof sex trafficking, prostitution, stipping, or pornography. Commercial sexual exploitation is a huge problem in Atlanta, which frequently ranks in the top 10 if not top 5 cities in the U.S. with the largest sex trade. The goal of Out Of Darkness is to spread awareness about this issue in our community and help to restore those victims of commercial sexual exploitation.
I found out about Out Of Darkness back in January when I randomly came across a news article about them on my Facebook. I was instantly intrigued because I had wanted to help victims of sex trafficking ever since I found out that it was an issue in the US and Atlanta. So I decided to check out the Out Of Darkness webpage. There I found the opportunity to volunteer for their Princess Night, which is when volunteers and staff from Out Of Darkness go to areas of Atlanta where street prostitution is prevalent every Friday night. When in these areas, they spread the love of Christto women on the streets by offering them a rose, a hand written card of encouragement, prayer, and our 24/7 hotline number.
During my time on Princess Night, I was exposed to areas of Atlanta that I had never been to. They were plauged with bars, hotels and strip clubs. I immediately felt the presence of darkness and evil in this area. I had to take a deep breath and give my fear and worries to God. I had to trust in Him to give me the right words to say to these women. Because it was a January night and it was freezing outside, I did not see any women prostituting in the streets (thank God), but we were able to talk to random women who were walking around the streets. That night, I saw first hand how God’s love was SO POWERFUL. When we handed each woman a rose they smiled and were overcome with joy. They accepted our prayers graciously and thanked us for what we were doing. It was so special to see each girl light up when they realized that they were princesses of God. That was the first time I experienced ministering to stranger and spreading the love of Christ, and I LOVED IT!!
After that night, I wanted to become more involved with Out Of Darkness. I did not have any plans for the summer, so I applied for an internship. When I came in for the interview, I knew I was in the right place. All the staff greeted me with open arms and were so friendly and loving. I was amazed by their passion to help these women. I knew I HAD to work here!
During my summer internship, I spent most of the time working in one of Out Of Darkness’ safe homes. Women who call the hotline and are ready to leave their life behind are picked up by a rescue team and taken to one of the safe houses. There, the women recieve a bed, a room, clothes, emotional support, and love. The case manager at the home assesses each woman and works to find a long term program for each of the women that fits their needs and goals. Some of these long term programs address addiction, trauma, and/or life skills.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVED the time that I got to spend with the women in the safe home. I was able to create relationships with the women where we talked about their past, their goals, and their relationship with Christ. Although these women had been through so much trauma and abuse, they were each so uniquely beautiful and I admired their hope and resilience. It was amazing to each woman come alive and be themselves because they were in a safe environment.
I was blown away by how strong some of the women’s faith was in God. They had been through so much hardship but still trusted in Him fully. The believed that God had a plan for them and they had hope. I was so inspired by these women and I hope that some day I have a faith and trust as strong as theirs.
I learned a lot during my time at the safe house. I learned how to trust the Lord in His plan that He has for each woman. Some of the women decided to leave the safe house or their long term program and return to their old life on the streets. This was heart breaking every time it happened and sometimes I would be burdened with sadness, anger, and the “what if I had done ____ differently” questions. When this began to happen, I had to turn myeyes to God and tell Him how I felt. Every time, God would assure me that He had a plan for each lady and that His plan was good. There was nothing I could have done to ruin His plan for her; I just needed to trust in Him.
I also had to learn to trust God with my words in conversations. Sometimes the women would tell me about their past traumas and abuse and it was hard to hear. There were times where I would be at a loss for words because I was just trying to wrap my head around the extremely horrifying stories. That’s when I had to learn to ask the Lord what I should do and He would always give me the right responses. Sometimes God told me just to give them a hug and empathize with them. Sometimes God would give me a bible verse or a prayer for them. Whatever the case, it was amazing to trust in God and see how He could speak through me. I would have never been able to minister to these women without Him. 🙂
I will miss my time with Out Of Darkness a lot! Coming over to the safe house to hang out with the women became the highlight of my week. I always looked forward to being with them. I also had some of the best coworkers I could ever imagine! They were all so supportive and loving on me and the women in the house. Plus, it was great to have someone who I could go to with questions about God and learn more about Him. They definately spoiled me with such an uplifting and loving workplace 😀
For any of the staff who are reading this, I MISS YOU AND LOVE YOU! I hope to see you when I come back!
If you would like to know more about Out Of Darkness, get involved, or donate to them you can visit outofdarkness.org
P.S. There are 11 days until I launch for The World Race! I am so excited!!
I currently need about $3,800 more until I am fully funded! Thank you donors! 😀
