Celebrating Freedom a World Away Kathryn Walters > September 2013
!
1
**Please Note: Team members were not permitted under any circumstance to take photographs at the Rapha House safe houses as a safety precaution for the girls. The title picture was added as a visual aid, and was not taken at a safehouse. The above picture was taken by Ms. Brittany Shoemake, the trip coordinator, and was used with her permission.
On the first night of a team’s visit, the girls at Rapha House throw a welcome party, and they party well! Because I had visited two years prior, I expected the awesome welcome bash, but I did not expect such thoughtfulness... As we entered the open space of the office building, the girls handed us one beautiful, handcrafted, paper flower each; mine was bright blue. “This is an interesting color choice,” I thought as I admired the gesture, “They should put these on Pinterest.” I glanced around at the flowers in the other team members’ hands, and it hit me: RED, WHITE, and BLUE! No way! I examined the room and found traces of the American color scheme all over the space. It was true! It was the 4th of July, and the girls and staff had gone out of their way to celebrate our !
2
culture with us as we were away from our home and families during the holiday. Rain postponed the dance party, but the girls performed traditional Khmer dances in full costume, prepared delicious lychee, dragon fruit, and papaya, and even busted out the sparklers. We enjoyed one another and were able to celebrate freedom together: the freedom American’s celebrate every 4th of July, the freedom the girls are able to experience as they no longer live in the torment and torture of slavery, and the freedom for which Jesus joyfully endured death on a cross.
WHAT IS RAPHA HOUSE? Rapha House is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the rescue, love, and healing of girls brought out of human trafficking. Rapha House does not rescue directly from brothels or pimps; the directors work with other groups and organizations such as International Justice Mission and the country’s law enforcement, which physically rescue the girls and begin the prosecution of traffickers. Rapha House serves as a safe place for girls to heal, learn, play, and receive counseling, care, and love. Rapha House is, unashamedly, a Christian organization. The staff labor in a very difficult position as the members work with these girls who have been repeatedly tricked, abused, and manipulated. Every morning, the staff members gather together in a circle on the floor of the office building to praise God, thank Him for His faithfulness, listen to Him as they study Scripture, and pray He will give each of them strength and guidance as they care for the girls. Jesus is not forced on anyone, and the girls are not required to attend the church service. However, the staff speaks very openly about Jesus and does not shy away from the Gospel. The staff leads devotions with the girls, and a church meets within the Rapha House property. As a result of God’s mercy and grace, 80-90% of the girls have come to know and love Jesus, and many are active members of the church. They love to lead singing and dancing!
80-90% of the girls have come to know and love Jesus,...
!
3
PROGRAMS AT RAPHA HOUSE Sewing and salon vocational programs While there is no age or length of time that limits a girl’s stay at Rapha House, the hope is that each girl will be able to re-enter society safe, healed, and with the education and skills needed to thrive. To provide a work skill, two main programs are in place to teach the girls how to sew or work in a salon. Both options are extremely useful in the country’s culture. The girls who sew offer products such as bags, wallets, hand-made silk scarves, and coin purses. I, personally, love the scarves and silk stuffed elephants! The girls in the salon program learn how to give manicures, pedicures, paint details on nails, and wash, style, and dye hair properly. If a girl shows interest in another area, staff members will work with the girl to gain the education, skill, and experience she needs for that area. For example, one girl currently wants to be an accountant; she is learning to run finances for the sewing items sold at Rapha House.
Check out the “Freedom Store” at www.raphahouse.org! Education Because of devastation left from the Khmer Rouge, education is highly valued and taken seriously in this country. When a girl is brought to Rapha House, if her age and education level match up appropriately, she begins school. If it does not, she is educated at Rapha House and begins vocational training.
The Mushroom Project The families of the girls are not forgotten. Some families are tricked and coerced into selling their children because of a desperate situation such as having no food, little/no education or skill, and little/no materials to sell. A friend of the family comes by and offers a great deal, “I have a good job for your son/ daughter in a restaurant outside of town. Once I take your child there, he/she can wire the family money.” The child leaves. Boom. Sex and labor trafficking. Some families willingly sell or rent their children, but this is almost always because they are in desperate need of money. To alleviate the need of food and living expenses, Rapha House provides the opportunity for families to grow a mushroom farm; this is The Mushroom Project. The amount of mushrooms a farm can produce is enough to help feed the family and sell for profit in the markets. Rapha House also strives to serve the families as opportunities arise. For example, one of the girls was trafficked by her mother. One day, she approached a member of the staff and explained she wanted to bring a pillow and a blanket to her mother in prison. With precautionary measures, a few staff members took her to pick out a beautiful blanket and a pillow from the market and brought her to the prison (supervised) to hand deliver them. !
4
SPECIAL NEEDS Unique to Rapha House is the willingness to take in girls with special needs. Sometimes the brutality of a trafficking experience can leave a child mentally handicapped, physically handicapped, or both. This was one of the most difficult issues for me to wrestle with in my own heart. As I sat and observed one of these girls, I thanked God for the new building Rapha House was able to purchase as a place of extra care for those with special needs. The staff members can only guess the age of this particular girl because of her handicaps, and her mental disabilities make finding her family nearly impossible. My heart burned with anger toward her trafficker. “Who do you (the trafficker) arrogantly think you are to think you can do this to someone? How dare you?” I breathed venomously in my mind. As I churned this girl’s circumstance over in my head, Romans 8:28 came to my mind. I am not going to pretend I understand why God allowed her to be brutally abused to the point of these disabilities. I do not fully understand it, and allowing the traumatic experiences she lived through is not the way I would have gone had I been in control, but I know what Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose”. What does “all” in 'all things' mean in Greek? It means all of the events we can understand. False. All means all,…period. This includes pain, suffering, and sin. God is not limited or lacking in anything. He sees every crevice of the past, present, and future. He knows our hearts, the formula used to create the finger nail polish I wore on my high school prom night, the exact number of particles in the universe, my future children’s grandchildren’s food preference, and the moment in time Jesus will return for His bride. He bends galaxies and hand crafts the exact shape of each individual nose. I cannot even see past the end of my own nose (that He created!) in comparison to Him. While God did allow this trauma, he allowed it promising that it would be used ultimately for His purposes, for good, and He is a good, just God. These atrocities are not pardoned without price. Whether through Jesus’ death on the cross or through her trafficker’s eternal suffering, true justice will be served for what was done this child. She is not merely a girl. She is God’s daughter, and God is a good Father. I watched our co-leader, Malia, repeatedly toss a small wad of paper into the air to the girl’s delight. The girl giggled with each toss. Do I trust that He knows best? Do I trust that He is good? Do I trust that He is in control? Do I trust Him? Yes.
She is God’s daughter, and God is a good Father. !
5
The rest of our days at Rapha House were filled with hand-slap games, devotionals, many intense soccer scrimmages (a soccer player, I am not), painting a mural together, English classes, art classes, a movie night, hand-holding, and enjoying God and each other’s company. During the movie night, we watched a reenactment of Jesus’ ministry and a slap-stick comedy akin to old Abbot and Costello clips. I sat near the door to keep a better eye on the floor (myrmecophobia - the red ones). Apparently, I was acting rather strangely because one of the older girls asked me what was wrong. When I explained my phobia, some of the girls who had overheard smiled and giggled at me. They thought I was silly! “They hurt, and there are so many!” I quietly justified with a smile. They all shook their heads in agreement. The girl who had noticed my strange behavior comforted me and said, “It’s okay, sister. Relax. I will watch for ants.” She glanced around the floor before directing her attention back to the film. As much as I attempted to push past the apprehension, she
The mural the girls painted. It was messy and fabulous. Photo courtesy of Ms. Brittany Shoemake.
sensed I had not quite shaken the anxiety. She scooted across the floor closer and held onto me as she rubbed my arm. “You’re my sister, yes? I protect you.” She leaned her head on my shoulder and patted my arm.
“You’re my sister, yes? I protect you.” There is a profound understanding of the family of God at Rapha House. Knowing and loving Jesus, we are not distant foreigners to the girls or the staff nor are they to us. We are a free family, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters who are free to enjoy our Dad, the Most High King. This pierced my heart with joy as we continued to watch the films together. What a freedom to celebrate. !
6
For questions or comments about “Celebrating Freedom a World Away�, feel free to contact Kathryn via email, social media, or phone.
!
7