Hidden Among Millions

     I've been sharing recently about the worth of the individual.  And I'd like to introduce you to an organization that lives out that value:  International Justice Mission (IJM).
     IJM "is a human rights agency that brings rescue to victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to secure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to ensure that public justice systems - police, courts and laws - effectively protect the poor."


     "Suhana (name changed for her protection) was only 16 when she was rescued by IJM and local police from a Kolkata (India) brothel. Brought to a secure and loving aftercare home, she began to thrive. After more than a year of healing, Suhana and her counselors decided she was ready to start a job outside of the shelter.
      She made a new friend through this job, but the friendship had terrible consequences. The unthinkable happened: Suhana was trafficked to a faraway city. Tricked and betrayed, Suhana was sold to a pimp and returned to the nightmare she thought she had escaped forever. Night after night, she was raped, abused and exploited.  
      But Suhana was not forgotten. IJM was determined to rescue her - no matter how impossible it seemed."

    Please go to IJM's website, www.ijm.org, and see the video of Suhana's story*.  You will be impacted by the concern and love Suhana's caregivers had for her--that in a city of 18 million people, they would not give up their search.
     This story will remind you of another:  of our loving, faithful Shepherd who, even with His sheepfold full, goes and looks for the one who wandered off.  Upon the Shepherd's return with the sheep slung across his shoulders, "he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep!" (Luke 15:3-7)
     Can you relate?


*To find the video, type "Suhana" in the search option at the top right of the IJM home page.  It will give you a quick link to the video.  Sorry I wasn't able to embed this in the blog.