As most of you know, for about a year now human trafficking has been something that I have become very passionate about. I can still remember vividly the first times I met women in Guatemala who were trapped in prostitution with no way out. I still remember their names, their faces, and even the bars they worked at. Ministry in the bars was so hard, all we could do was pray with them and speak truth and worth over them. I couldn’t refer them to a ministry that helped women, or give them a job, or feed their children, I felt so helpless. I had to learn to trust the Lord so and know that he was taking care of them when I couldn’t.
When I came back to the states and started school at OU I ended up working with a halfway house in OKC for women getting out of prostitution. I was so thankful to be able to see the other side of ministering to women that gave them a place to stay, helped them find jobs, and got them back in school. The way things worked out, a woman had just started living at the house about the time I began volunteering there. She was trafficked from El Salvador and only spoke Spanish. Not only was the Lord providing an opportunity for ministry with something that I am so passionate about, but I also had to speak Spanish. Ever since the Lord gave me fluency in Spanish while I was in the Dominican Republic in 2009 he has provided so many situations where I have had to use it. I would hang out with her a few times a week, listen to her stories, and pray with her. She gave me a purpose for living in Norman.
And now, even being here and not working specifically with women God has been showing me his sovereignty over trafficking and prostitution. The land that we are staying on has a couple houses, a bathroom, and a main building with a kitchen and a place to eat. The main building used to be a nightclub called the Cotton Club that had a reputation for being one of the worst in the area.
The main part of the club has benches everywhere and two cages in both corners where women would dance. When I first walked into the room I felt so sick because of all the memories that it brought back, but God has been showing me how he’s been redeeming this place. Last night we had worship in that room, and as I was singing I realized that this was territory that had been won and Satan no longer had a hold on it. I began giving thanks that he has allowed me to see through the complete process of restoration. He has power and authority over dark places and I was really able to see that manifested last night. And when I walk into the room underneath the mural painted above the door and into that room I am reminded how powerful our God is.
Katie
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