A Warrior for God’s Truth and Justice - Sandy Yozipovic

A WARRIOR FOR GOD’S TRUTH AND JUSTICE

STANDING IN THE GAP- PART 2

written by Sandy Yozipovic

2020 was a year of trials for many, but through it all, I saw God prevail, living up to His promise, “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28, NLT)

Despite the pandemic, which caused infection in over 141 million people and resulted in death for over 3 million people worldwide, God’s hand was apparent as 97%-98% of those infected have survived. God’s hand was also evident in other ways: did you know that thousands of people accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior during the 2nd half of 2020 right here in the United States? In July alone, over 500 worshippers were baptized in Huntington Beach, California; another 1,000 people were baptized in Newport Beach in September; and, according to CBN, this was happening weekly all up and down the western coast of the United States. New believers were being baptized not only in the waters off the beaches of California, but also in lakes and in swimming pools across the country. These baptisms happened even as many churches throughout the world were forced to close their buildings, as nothing will stop God from drawing people to His kingdom.

Many churches found unconventional ways to meet safely even during the height of the pandemic. My church, for example, The Living Word Bible Church in Mesa, California, hosted drive-in church services in their huge parking lot. They set up a giant stage with lights and screens, and never closed! The parking lot was packed for every service. Other churches met online and saw their numbers grow. Even when Satan attempts to take away our right to worship, God finds a way to make His name known!

Individuals and churches also stepped up to serve others in need, even when many were in need themselves. Church families donated food to hundreds of families who were affected by the shutdown. Some also provided basic home essentials such as toilet paper, paper towels and water. God was moving and His people were serving.

God’s hand also continued to work outside the church. One cause that is near and dear to my own heart is child sex trafficking prevention. I have been involved in creating awareness for child sex trafficking for the last ten years through Women World Changers and can tell you first hand that throughout the pandemic, God continued to bless our efforts There were approximately 200,000 missing children rescued from sex trafficking worldwide during the pandemic. The exact numbers are not available to the public yet as rescue teams are still conducting sex trafficking stings weekly, spearheaded by our US Marshalls and Navy Seal rescue teams. More people became aware of this atrocity during the shutdown than ever before in our history. The attention was brought to light after the arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell and the sentencing of NXVM Sex Cult Leader, Keith Ranieri. Both of these stories became international headlines causing the world to watch – God uses all things for His good.

To date, the number of sex trafficking rescues are not ready to be released as they are SHOCKING!

As for the US, our rescue and recovery partners also cannot release the numbers as they are still involved in active sting operations. At Women World Changers, we were, however, informed by a contact from “Deliver Fund “ that their Navy Seal Rescue Teams are ACTIVE, and we were asked to stay in prayer for the children and the rescue teams and their ongoing efforts. Another partner, a Christian ministry named Saving Innocence, has a $2.8 Million yearly budget with over 70,000 case workers who train extensively for months to help these children rehabilitate and assimilate them back to a normal life. It is not an easy task as these children are victims of horrific abuse, rape, and torture. They have been cheated, lied to, and robbed of their childhood innocence. The average age of entrance into the sex trafficking trade is 12 years old; and striking is that their life expectancy once they are grafted into this industry is a scant seven years. According to Alan Smythe of Saving Innocence, the sex trade activity went up 35% in 2016 from 2015, and has grown every year since.

Satan is working hard in our world, but God is working harder; and God’s plan is for us to be able to see Him clearly despite the storm we are in. Part of that call is that we would clearly see Satan’s schemes and stand strong against him as he loses the battle. We call on every prayer warrior to put on the whole armor of God and stand in the gap for however long it takes - because tough times don’t last, but tough Christians do! When we stand in the gap together and pray for others, we create a God-sized impact on the lives of hurting people. They win, we win and…GOD WINS!

We ask for a call to action for every Christian to stand with us in prayer and join with us in helping these children.

Please go to www.womenworldchangers.org for more information or to join our movement. Once you have signed up, you will receive information for our next ZOOM call, as well as updates on our current and future projects with our partners. May God continue to bless this movement and continue to find those who are willing to STAND UP, SPEAK UP AND SAVE MORE LIVES.