Hi!
I hope this letter finds you healthy and well! I just graduated from Union University and after a whole semester of searching and praying for where God wants me to go next, I believe I’ve received His answer- the World Race! The World Race is a Christian organization that will take me to India, Cambodia, Thailand and the United States where I will live among some of the poorest and darkest cities of the world for four months and minister to men, women and children who are held captive by sex-trafficking. I’ll explain more about the trip later in this letter.
I was called to missions at the age of 7 or 8 when I had a miraculous encounter with our God. I didn’t have my hearing aids in and all of the sudden I heard God’s voice AUDIBLY. Clear as day! It was deep and rich and powerful, just as described in Psalm 29:4 and He said to little me, “Sarah, go to Jerusalem and teach other people about Me.” Ever since that moment, it has been my life’s calling to obey that command. I’ve been on countless mission trips nationally and internationally (including one to Israel!), have had the privilege of discipleing and teaching dozens of students and children the Gospel, and have spent hundreds of hours volunteering at crisis pregnancy centers, orphanages and other ministries to the poor.
I know I need to grow in the Spirit more and gain more experience with ministry before I live in Israel. I believe that this trip will uniquely and dynamically equip me for future ministry. God has given me a lot of passion for the oppressed, especially for women and children. I love working within crisis pregnancy centers and orphanages but NOTHING makes my blood boil more than knowing that at least 12 million women, boys and girls are raped and molested daily by adults who pay to have sex with them, who pay to strip them of innocence and dignity. Sex-trafficking is an ugly reality in this world and it is a booming business, even in the United States. My desire is to fight for these precious captives, to fight for their innocence, their dignity, their freedom and their souls.
By going on this World Race mission trip from September 2011 to the end of December 2011 I will have the opportunity to directly minister to the people who are held captive by sex-trafficking, which includes the people used as sex-slaves, the “Johns” (men who buy the sex) and hopefully even the pimps. The specific ministry will vary by country but one of the things I’ll be doing will be bar ministry- going to the bars at night in the Red Light’s districts and building relationships with the girls and the Johns, sharing the Gospel with them and letting them know that there’s a way out by trusting and following Jesus Christ first and foremost, and by going to the Christian run shelters for former sex-slaves and prostitutes to receive job training, schooling, childcare and discipleship. Another ministry will be working at these shelters by training the women, caring for the children, discipleing and encouraging the staff. I will also likely do some construction work, lots of prayer walking, straight up street evangelism, and general teaching and discipleing people in the Word.
To a lot of people, this “trip” sounds so exciting, but that’s a romantic view of missions. I’m fully aware that this ministry is going to be exhausting and stretching in every way- mentally, spiritually, emotionally and physically. I’m overwhelmed by the enormity of the sex-trafficking problem and by the pure-evilness of it. But I’m SUPER excited to get to see firsthand how BIG and POWERFUL and LOVING and REDEEMING our great God is! I’m excited to see how He can work through my teammates and I to usher in more of the Kingdom by being the tools He uses to spread Redemption to the captives! God is fully capable of transforming even the darkest situations into something beautiful and good.
But guess what? This ministry cannot happen without you! I’m just acting as the “feet” of Christ right now but I need you to send me and I need you to act as the rest of the Body of Christ in order for this trip to be fruitful. How can you help? Two ways: First of all, please pray! Pray for my team and I that we would be prepared for this trip, that we would be broken and rebuilt by God into a more Christ-like and Spirit-filled believer, and that we would be strong in and bold with the Word. Pray also for the people we will encounter; pray that they will be saved, transformed and more fully redeemed by the Gospel.
The second way you can help is by giving financially. I’m putting every penny I have into this trip. The total cost is $7,400 and I estimate that I can personally fund $5,000 of that. This means that I still need at least $2,400. If 20 people donate $100 and 10 people donated $40, I will be fully funded! I am not asking for a handout but humbling asking for an investment. This investment will reap fruit on this earth, in India, Cambodia, Thailand, the United States and one day in Israel as well, and this investment will reap eternal fruit- souls will be saved and the everlasting Kingdom will be a little more built up. If you feel convicted to invest in me and in this ministry, by prayer and/or by finances, please see the bottom of this letter for more details on how to do so.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your prayers, support and for being the Body of Christ with me. This ministry cannot happen without you! To see what God is doing through this ministry and how He is using your investment to bear fruit, subscribe to this blog or let me know if you would like to receive my newsletters by mail or email! I am so excited to go toe-to-toe with evil and see God powerfully redeem. May we all grow in the grace and knowledge and image of our Lord and King, Jesus Christ. Peace in Christ!
Much love,
Sarah Garrity
Ways to invest financially:
1) Mail a check or money order to Adventures in Mission (this is the ministry that the World Race is under). Please make payable to AIM and return the attached support card (I can provide this if you can’t find it online) with your donation to Adventures in Missions, PO Box 534470, Atlanta, GA, 30353-4470. Make sure to put my name in the memo line.
2) Click on “Support Me” and follow the guidelines. (Remember that mailing a check is the only way that 100% of the money will go to me, otherwise a percentage will go towards a processing fee.)
"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners."
Isaiah 61:1
