We were Scripture Study in 2012. I had just introduced our speaker that day…and then sat down in the front row. The gentleman’s discussion was fascinating; I was hanging onto every word…until God dropped an image on my heart and I started eagerly sketching it out. It was very simple: a lowercase ‘h’ with the number ‘4’ … combined to form a very abstract capital ‘H’. At the time, I understood it to represent ‘hunger for Him’ (God.)
That was 1.26.2012 … 5 years, 8 months and 21 days before *anything* was produced to be sold. I’d never even heard the term “sex trafficking.”
A couple months later, my friend came over for a rosary, bringing her 9 year old son. When we were finished praying, she asked me to show her son the symbol. I mentioned that I could envision it being silkscreened on shirts. He, a nine-year-old-boy, suggested we make it into jewelry. Like a leather cuff with metal cutout. That sketch remained untouched for quite some time.
Fast forward many years, and a dear friend’s niece, Hannah*, started adult dancing. As a teen. We prayed without ceasing for her life and soul. I learned at the time that there’s a very fine line between dancing, pornography and trafficking. Hannah’s youngest sister, Hadley*, constantly ran away from her group home. She had turned to prostitution to fund her addiction. Tragically, this precious girl passed away before her 17th birthday.
We were driving to St.Louis shortly thereafter, late at night. God spoke to me. Something that rattled me to my core: “You have NO idea of WHO is in that truck!” Not WHAT. But WHO. I still shudder, thinking about that revelation.
About that same time, I was in a small group study with a sweet Mama, Jen. Her adopted daughter Harper* was being repeatedly abused. She was being subjected to horrendous acts by her birth mother and her various perverted “boyfriends.” For *17* years, the courts did nothing and she was forced to return there every other weekend.
Through these young girls’ stories, God reminded me of that “h4” sketch, and He cracked open the larger meaning. Hunger for “her. humanity. hope. healing. help. home. HIM.” And with that revelation, the bridge between the symbol and the eradication of sex trafficking was built. The h4 products I design are available for purchase in our shop.
Somewhere in the mix of all this, I started voraciously reading anything about trafficking. Stats. Rescue Success Stories. Personal Survival Bios. Anything I could get my hands on. I prayed a prayer of protection over my heart, soul and mind, and dug in. Repeatedly. The Holy Spirit’s been behind my passion the entire way.
Working towards the eradication of commercial sexual exploitation (trafficking, the sale of a human being) can oftentimes be overwhelming. After all, it’s a $150 BILLION industry, and the second most profitable criminal activity after drugs.
I choose to believe it’s better to “light a candle rather than curse the darkness.” (Eleanor Roosevelt). Not all of us are called to be creative for a cause. Everyone has a way they can plug in and help. PLEASE contact me if God’s stirring your heart to be an ambassador for change. It can be sharing a hot meal. Volunteering in the center. Helping as a driver or mentor. Financially blessing RPOR and/or ReHope.
* Although all of these young ladies’ names have been changed, their real names “happen” to start with the letter “h” as well. Coincidence? Not a chance.