Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

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We jumped on the bus  …  We rode the train …  We walked into the streets ….
And we entered into their lives
.
They are the prostitutes. They have been dubbed as the Scum of the Earth.
 
Degraded.      
            Devalued.       
                           Used.      
                                     Dishonored.
Daughters.    
               Mothers.
                           Sisters.
                                       Cousins.
                                                     Wives.
Just 30 minutes away from Mijas, I entered into a world so different from what I have seen before. We got out of the train station and there were rows of warehouses everywhere, a perfect backdrop for what seems could be a dangerous place when the sun sets. A lone woman would be standing on a corner waiting for someone to drive by and pick her up. A madaam sometimes was in close proximity keeping watch. When walking you had to keep an eye out to avoid used condoms and broken glass everywhere.

 
It broke my heart when I spotted a Nigerian woman on the curb in front of us. I prayed God would let us talk to her. I saw on 3 different occasions cars would come up to her and each time when they got closer, they just drove off. An answer to prayer? Yea, but it broke my heart to know the damage that was being done to her heart even in those moments of rejection.
This woman’s name was Vivian.
It was freezing cold on the streets and she wore barely anything as she held herself together with the bit of dignity that she mustered up. She was very open and honest about her life and situation and told us how she didn’t want to live this way. She had hope to find a “good” man who will take care of her and give her the opportunity to have a real job, kids, a home. It was interesting to me how men have taken advantage of her so much throughout her life, and yet to her a �”good” one will also solve all her problems. I know her heart was looking for the best man of all, Jesus.

A friend made a good point to me the other day when she told me how it is truly a privilege that we can dream. These woman are out there on survival mode and dreaming is not even an option. They have nothing and they walk the streets not knowing if tomorrow they will survive it. One of the woman that our outreach continually visits went missing a few weeks ago and no one knows where she was TAKEN. This is the story of their lives.

We came with flowers and cookies. We came to tell them they are loved. We came to tell them that they are beautiful. It’s hard not having a solution. It’s hard to hear them say they want a way out, but have nothing to offer them. I have to trust that our prayers over these woman were altering their futures and disturbing the plans Hell had on their lives.
 
 
Here in Spain, prostitution is legal although 90% of working girls are assumed to be illegal immigrants.
Spain and Italy are known to be the #1 tourist destinations for prostitution.
And unfortunately, there is near NOTHING being done in these countries to help these woman.
 
 
These woman have been trafficked from countries in northern Africa, Eastern Europe, even South America.
Some are convinced by threats of voodoo powers being held over them (mainly from African countries), others at the threat of their lives, others by false propositions for work.

We saw the lower end of the prostitution realm known as “street walking” or “kerb crawling”. These woman make just mere pocket change or are sometimes not even paid because they are considered to be so worthless. In places such as Marbella where prostitution is involved in the upper class and ritzy areas, woman can earn an average of 10,000 Euros a night! Also where an addiction to prostitution can play in as a factor for some of these women.

A friend here in Spain who has gone through the G42 program has a heart for these �”woman of the night” in Spain. Stephanie has partnered with an organization based in the States called MATTOO. MATTOO (Men Against The Trafficking Of Others) is a first-of-its-kind nonprofit that aims to get men involved in the anti-human trafficking movement worldwide by educating and involving men in raising international awareness that leads to effective public policy and cultural changes, and by employing the power of business to abolish human trafficking.

She is in the beginning stages to get these woman on the streets help, and weekly makes visits to them letting them know,�”they are not alone. We are working on something. And there is hope.”

 
 

Having a desire to make a difference in lives of these women, I needed my heart broken and their faces implanted in my memory. I needed to keep the horror of it real and fresh. We can’t let our hearts and minds get desensitized by statistics and problems.

We must hear their stories …. we must look into their eyes….

we must realize They are not just names…..
 
Adella TAKEN from Romania

Vivian TAKEN from Nigeria

Evey TAKEN from Bulgaria

Jasmine TAKEN from Brazil

Jennifer TAKEN from Nigeria

Stella TAKEN from Bulgaria

………………..They are Lives.

�

 

For more information on MATTOO, check out: http://www.mattoo.org/home.html.

For more information on Stephanie, check out her website: http://arise2freedom.com/