Tag Archives: NightLight International
Ask Her Name
“I need talk you!” The tiny woman called to me from the beer bar as I was passing by. Lek stepped out from the noisy bar and pulled me to the side. “NJ is dead.” What? I was stunned. “She kill,” Lek drew her finger across her neck to illustrate. Confused, I asked her for […]
A Beautiful Rescue
A SWAT team waits in full gear at every corner surrounding the brothel. An undercover agent is inside wired for surveillance. At just the right time the SWAT team rushes the scene, there are a few gunshots, and the agent is saved from death and becomes a hero. A bad guy is killed and girls […]
Explosion of Joy in the Red Light Area
“This bar is weird!” exclaimed a Japanese sex tourist. He had been walking through the red light area when the activity inside our outreach center caught his attention. A room full of people joyfully singing and dancing didn’t fit the usual bar scene and he couldn’t quite figure us out. In partnership with Iris Ministries, […]
When Justice Is Out of Reach
It’s rare to find a victim who will testify against her trafficker. The risks are high and the process too often re-traumatizes them. So recently when our partner investigative team found two African women and the women wanted to file charges, I was cautious but hopeful. We accompanied the two women to a special investigative […]
Love Pushes Back the Darkness
“Nkwagala Nyo.” The women’s faces lit up as they heard “I love you!” in their native tongue. One of them grabbed my hand. She said something back in Luganda but “nkwagala nyo” was the extent of Luganda I could speak and after a few laughs, we switched immediately back to English. My team and I […]
Fairytale Endings or Messy Beginnings?
This isn’t one of those “feel good” posts that will be written up in a Sunday bulletin for mission moment of the month. This post is an honest reflection and struggle with the tension between our culture’s need for “happily ever after” and the reality of the pain and brokenness that needs to be addressed. […]
When Death Pays a Visit
When death pays a visit, fear is tangible. Tonight I saw photos of the African woman’s body after she was murdered last week. Two women came to meet us for an interview and to ask for assistance. We had scheduled to meet with one but she brought her friend as well. The friend was mostly […]
Ayumi
Ayumi came by today in a cute white and black dress, a shiny necklace and a girlish hairband with a bow. He wore no shoes though, and that was upsetting to him. Yes, he. Ayumi is not a little girl but a teenage boy who struggles with gender identity and actually Ayumi isn’t even his […]
