Austins in Thailand

There are 27 million slaves in the world today, 80% of which are women and children. It’s a staggering number. But we must see beyond the numbers: each one has a name and a face and a story. Each one is loved by God.

Isaiah tells us that true fasting is feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and breaking the chains of injustice. Jesus announced that the kingdom of God was here, now, because the good news was being preached to the poor and captives were being set free. John Wesley wrote that slavery was the “execrable sum of all villainies”. In the 19th century some courageous Methodists spoke out against slavery and the Free Methodist Church sprang into being.

History has brought us to this place.

We are compelled to act.
There are many things we can do to fight slavery. We can pray. We can learn more about the issues. We can partner with other organizations. We should do these things, but there is one thing we’ve been doing for 41 years that we can celebrate and continue with passion - we’ve been caring for children in need and in danger through International Child Care Ministries.

Two leading factors leading to the trafficking of children are illiteracy and poverty. Child Care Ministries fights against both of these injustices. ICCM is on the front lines fighting slavery!

Look at it this way: when the housewife in Indianapolis sponsors a girl in Cambodia they are stepping in front of a trafficker who wants to steal that girl into prostitution; when the businessman in Seattle sponsors a boy in Nigeria they are offering an alternative to a life of spiritual darkness. When the family in Chicago sponsors several children in Haiti they are creating whole new worlds of hope.
We are, in fact, changing the world.

Do something concrete to fight slavery - sponsor another child or two or ten or three thousand through International Child Care Ministries.

See the ICCM Link to the Right for more information