“A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law, or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law.” (Martin Luther King, Letter from the Birmingham jail)

What is social justice? How does it differ from “Social Justice” (with capital letters), about which we hear so much today? Are they one and the same, or very different? Which most closely represents “Biblical Justice”? Does it really even matter?

“Ideas have consequences, bad ideas have victims.” (John Stonestreet)

A recent news report in Colorado highlighted how legislators voted against making public indecent exposure to kids a felony because it could be used to “ban drag shows and harm transgender people”. In other words, the perpetrator of such exposure becomes the victim.

Is this right? Who is the real victim, the one we should protect? What standard should we use to guide us in understanding whether a law or movement is meant for good or evil? As a GPS guides us on the best route to follow, we must use a moral compass to guide us to true justice.

As someone with 18+ years of ministering in prisons and 7 years ministering in the area of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking, I have seen how laws have impacted those who have been perpetrators, those who have been victimized, and society in general. It is imperative that we view our culture, laws and justice with reliance on the Bible as that moral compass and thus advocate for “Biblical Justice.” It is only through this lens that the world makes sense.

We live in a very turbulent historical moment, a time in which we need to stand for Truth, not confusion or compromise. If we rely on Social Justice, which is based on diversity, identity, and activism, we risk causing greater harm, chaos, and division. Much of what we are witnessing today – confusion in our schools, chaos and crime in our streets, compromise and carnality in churches, corruption in our government, the breakdown in our families – all are the result of Social Justice. “Social Justice” is not the same as “Biblical Justice.” They are not interchangeable terms. Social Justice is built on the premise of equity, a concept far different from equality. “Social Justice” looks through the lens of equity in social and economic factors rather than looking through the lens of God’s moral directives. Social Justice requires that society recognize and hold to beliefs that counter Biblical standards -at the very core is a stealth attack on God’s design, Imago Deo, the value and dignity of life made in the image of God.

“If we want to know what is most sacred in the world, all we need do is look for what is most violently profaned.” ( Christopher West )

As Christians we have a mandate to live out our faith in action, to be “doers of the Word”: to love our neighbors as ourselves, to be a voice for the voiceless, to help the poor and needy, to end slavery, to advocate for racial reconciliation, and to pursue unity without partiality or prejudice. To advocate for Biblical Justice is consistent with our faith, because we are first and foremost “Christ’s Ambassadors.” Our definition of social justice must reflect God’s sovereignty and His dominion over all of life. We are mandated to seek justice (Jeremiah 22:3, Isaiah 1:17, Psalm 82:3-4). However, when we pursue justice with an approach that is not compatible with God’s character, when we seek laws or movements because they sound like good ideas, we run the risk of causing greater harm.

“The problem is not with the quest for justice. The problem is what happens when that quest is undertaken from a framework that is not compatible with the Bible. And this is a very real problem, because the extent to which we unwittingly allow unbiblical worldview assumptions to shape our approach to justice is the extent to which we are inadvertently hurting the very people we seek to help.” (Thaddeus Williams)

“Defend the weak and the fatherless, uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy. Deliver them from the hands of the wicked.” (Ps 82:3-4).

“The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either – but right through every human heart – and through all human hearts.”

(Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn).

In summary, we are to advocate for justice for righteousness’s sake, to bring light into the darkness – to the glory of God alone – Soli Deo Gloria.

Wendy J. Smith
Fellow, Colson Center for Christian Worldview
Ambassador of Hope

Wendy J. Smith, RN, MSN, ACNP- retired, has worked in the medical field for over 40 years, specializing in hematology/oncology. During her healthcare career she published within her profession in both text and peer reviewed journals. She has also been a speaker on the state and national level addressing issues pertinent to hematology/oncology nursing, and advocacy for her patients and profession. Since retiring, Wendy has been able to focus on issues impacting our culture today, primarily writing and focusing on issues pertain to human trafficking and pro-life. Wendy volunteers with 3 different anti-trafficking non-profits and has been involved in prison ministry for 18+ years. She is also a Fellow of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. (www.colsoncenter.org).

Wendy is married to her best friend, Fred. Fred and Wendy enjoy living in Colorado Springs close to their daughter, Sarah, son-in- law, John, three granddaughters and one grandson: Abigail, Anna, Ali and Hunter Stonestreet. Psalms 71:18 “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.” (NIV)

Some examples of publications:

https://sarahshome.us/blog/

https://aaplog.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/revised-AAPLOG-Joint-CO-5-Pornography-Sex-Trafficking-and-Abortion_with-ACPeds-logo-2.pdf

https://townhall.com/columnists/wendysmith/

https://www.liveaction.org/news/author/wendy-smith/

As Ambassadors of Hope, you and I can likely relate in that we can’t help but get on a soapbox when the topic of vulnerable children is raised. We’re passionate about protecting kids and simply want to equip others with tools to keep their kids safe from predators. Admittedly, as a mom of three little boys, I’m not as involved in trafficking prevention as I was previously, but God reminded me recently that I am to sow the seeds; He will do the tending. And occasionally, I’ll get to see Him harvest.

Last August I noticed a missed call and voicemail.

“Hello, Shelby, this is Eleanor Smith* calling and I was hoping you could give me some help. Our grandson Sam* posted some pictures on TikTok and a lady contacted him and said she sent his pictures to a model that she knows. Eventually, this model contacted him and said that he wants to fly him to L.A. for a photoshoot because he’s all wowed by the way he looks. Anyway, this smells like a trafficking scam to me. Any information you have that we could convince him that this is not a good idea, I would greatly appreciate it.”

It had been seven years since I presented on human trafficking at Eleanor’s church, a body that included many people I had known since childhood. At that time, I would have immediately labeled what Eleanor described as a trafficking scam. Now, I have my husband’s voice in my head cautioning me, “Not everything is trafficking.” I paused, prayed (because the Lord knows how out of the loop and uneducated I feel these days!), and got to work. Over the course of a few days, I learned more details from Eleanor and her son Jon*, Sam’s dad.

Sam was 17 years old, a good student who was self-motivated and seemed to have lots of friends. His parents divorced a few years ago and don’t share a common parenting approach. Remarkably, Grandma Eleanor and his dad Jon had maintained very open communication with Sam and he told them a lot, including his handles on Instagram, TikTok and other apps.

Sam had become very active on social media and had amassed over 2.3 million followers on TikTok. A brief look through Sam’s public TikTok profile raised red flags for me. His frequent posts included provocative lip syncs. The slightly more sensual videos of him lip-syncing shirtless on his bed boasted literally millions of views per video.

I cringed. While I didn’t use TikTok personally, I knew that predators frequently flag posts on social media to alert other predators to content they like. I could only assume that Sam, who was hoping to begin a modeling career, naively believed he was impressing the masses. He had been wooed by flattery and the offer of a lifetime: a photoshoot in L.A. with a big-name model.

 I could never have foreseen that the seed sown seven years ago in a DMST presentation to Sam’s grandma would lead to the opportunity to intercede for Sam.

Many of the details didn’t add up, not the least of which was the fact that the modeling industry doesn’t function in the way that Sam was experiencing. Moreover, the COVID pandemic has birthed brazen scams luring young people into modeling and other lifestyles, except that traffickers, not modeling agencies, await those who take the bait. This particular model was also employing all the same “charming” techniques that traffickers are prone to, building trust, inviting Sam’s questions and saying he just wanted to give another young guy the opportunities he had been given. Sam was being lured by what Jon and I believed to be a polished, professional predator.

To make matters worse, with his mom’s blessing, Sam had already purchased his ticket to fly to L.A. two weeks later. Jon had limited time to persuade Sam and Sam’s mom of the potential dangers he might face. I had initially sent Jon links to resources from Shared Hope, but I then reached out to our Director of National Outreach for help. With lightning speed, she crafted a network of support for Sam and his father. This included expert counsel from an intervention organization in L.A., a call with a seasoned FBI victim specialist, calls with a male trafficking survivor, and most importantly, a formidable army of prayer warriors.

Against our hopes and words of caution, Sam flew to L.A. for the photoshoot. Miraculously, the model and photographer were both “unable” to meet Sam and his mom for the photoshoot. On short notice, Sam instead did a photoshoot with a reputable photographer whose sage wisdom about the legitimate modeling industry seemed to strike a chord with Sam. He actually called his dad and said, “I think I dodged a bullet with that other guy”. We all breathed a little easier that day, so very thankful that God answered our prayers and used that photographer, along with so many others, to call Sam back to safety.

Sam is still pursuing modeling and hasn’t yet heeded warnings to rein in his social media activities, but I trust that God will use the network now formed around him to guide Sam on his journey. For my part, I could never have foreseen that the seed sown seven years ago in a DMST presentation to Sam’s grandma would lead to the opportunity to intercede for Sam. Friends, I encourage you to keep sowing your seeds, and trust that God’s watering them for harvest in due time. He, more than any of us, wants to protect vulnerable children.

*All names have been changed*

Shelby, an OH Ambassador

As children across the country begin their transition back to school, Shared Hope offers many resources to help educate and equip schools to bring awareness to DMST (domestic minor sex trafficking).

When the pandemic hit, closing most schools and driving students online, we upped our focus to help further protect our kids online with our internet safety series. In this, regardless if students are attending their schools online or in person, Shared Hope is ready to meet them and their teachers where they are.

But, to do this, we need your help.

Connecting Resources To Needs: One Example

Recently, we received a report from one of Shared Hope’s Ambassadors of Hope on what they are doing to plant a seed with their school district in bringing our curriculum to their schools. If you ever wondered about what you can do to help make a difference in protecting our kids at school, here’s a glimpse of Ambassador’s Butch and Jean meeting with their local school board as well as a great example of what Shared Hope has to offer in resources for schools.

“My wife and I met with the School Board at our local school district this week.  We had requested a month ago to be added to the agenda to talk about DMST and Shared Hope’s education tools we can offer to the district this coming school year.

The meeting went well with fifteen people in attendance. We only had a short time, so we made envelopes of Shared Hope International info for each of the 6 board members, the District Admin. and the new JR/HS Principal.  This seemed to work well and they appreciated the ability to look over examples of what SHI has for resources.  We also had our display poster board as an example titled “It is happening here” to help dispel the myth that we are isolated from DMST.  The meeting went well and we were able to engage the school board to consider working HT into this coming year’s curriculum. We were quickly able to reference our flexibility to meet the need for awareness and prevention for students, staff, as well as parents.

I want to highlight that the letter to parents explaining what “Chosen” is and the talking points tip sheet with bullet points is a great resource to include in the info pkgs.  I was able to reference that sometimes when parents hear that the school is considering having a presentation in their curriculum about Human and Sex Trafficking there may be anxiety and questions. We highlighted that the school could use this letter as a template to help parents understand what is being presented.  We also included the bullets of what Chosen is and other helpful materials, such as the “How to Keep Kids Safe Online” booklet.

The new principal transferred from another school district where we have not yet been able to present. In being able to support him here, we feel it may have opened a door of opportunity to reach that northern district as well.

Overall a good evening and having the info packages was a really good way to give them more information when we only had a short time to speak on the agenda. Looking forward to the upcoming school year and the ability to be in the classroom with students again.”

What If?

Did you know that there are approximately 13,800 public school districts in the United States? These districts collectively educate approximately 55.2 million students. What if we could reach each one with the message of Shared Hope and the awareness that DMST is real and is happening there?

What Are Ambassadors Of Hope?

Ambassadors are trained volunteers, active in their communities preventing trafficking through education.  Whether it is hosting a table at a local event, speaking to students, advocating online for a state bill, or leading a session for parents, Shared Hope equips you with all the training and tools you’ll need to educate  your community and prevent sex trafficking.

Are you passionate about preventing sex trafficking in your community? We invite you to apply to become an Ambassador of Hope and make a difference in your hometown!

Like Butch and Jean, you too, can help make a difference. You can apply to become an Ambassador of Hope here.

What if every school in America had an Ambassador of Hope to help connect resources to needs and to further protect our children from DMST? What if that Ambassador of Hope was you?