Traffic Not Just Cars

Traffic is a rather innocent word. We usually think of getting in our car and hoping traffic is not too backed up on the interstate. Traffic is fairly light at certain times of the day, and our route is smooth and easy. Other times traffic can be our worst nightmare. Tempers flare, we feel like we will never get to our destination, because others keep getting in our way. Traffic is the movement of vehicles on highways and by-ways, to move from point A to point B. Traffic is controlled by law enforcement, and by obeying the laws, we remain relatively safe. 

Traffic can also be the movement of goods by import and export. Many things we use everyday are brought to us through the traffic of buying and selling goods. Traffic that we hear about often is the drug traffic. The goods are illegal, and dangerous, and even though there are laws, the ones trafficking drugs do not follow the rules. There is a darker side to traffic. It is a side that until recently, few knew existed, and many are trying to put an end to. Human traffic has become a multi-million dollar business, fueled by greed, and lust. It is a horrendous plight that many young boys and girls find themselves in. Most are from poor families, from third world countries, and families get desperate. They sell their children in order to survive. Many of these children are as young as eight years old, and are taken away and hidden until they can be indoctrinated into a world of sex and slavery. They are separated from family they will never see again, abused, and brain washed through terror, to do what they are told. From that point they are bartered, sold, and at the mercy of adults who don't care.

What happens to these children? Do they ever get away? The FBI and many other agencies as well as ministries are beginning to rescue and turn these shattered lives around. I can not even imagine being sold for money, by my parents, and turned over to total strangers. I also can not imagine that at eight, nine, or ten years old. While most are sold for sex, there are those who are sold to wealthy people, who want slave labor in their mansions. Wherever they end up, they have no freedom. Most often these children and youth are given drugs which make them easier to control, and consequently dependent on their captors for more drugs.

There are more articles, stories of redemption, and lives salvaged than ever before. As more people learn that Human Trafficking is in every state, and throughout the world, there is more awareness of the problems. Ministries are working with The FBI and other agencies to get the victims to a safe haven. It is not unlike the Underground Railroad during the Civil War. There are safe houses, scattered across the country, and people stepping up to help. It is no longer a secret and lives are being changed, saved, and given hope. The Human Sex Traffic is probably the most evil of all evils, but as with all money makers, it is the money that is important. My prayer is that this evil will be crushed. My prayer is for more and more people to learn of this evil, and will help in one

area or another. In fact, here is a thought....the next time you are stuck in traffic, say a prayer for these victims. Ask God for their safety, their release, and their restoration to a normal, hope filled way of life. A life they have never known. My prayer is that you will remember that a delay in traffic congestion could be a much needed prayer for one of these victims.