Stories of Hope

No More Traffik (NMT) is a human trafficking awareness campaign in Northern Ireland. NMT hosted a week-long series of events from May 12-20 with the support of over 30 partners (organizations and businesses). IJM UK hosted an event called Stories of Hope. I was in charge of organizing and running this event! Before I go on to explain more about Stories of Hope, let me just say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who helped organize and facilitate this event. THANK YOU! (:

It was an incredible night!! We expected about 50 people to come along... about 150 came! We still can't believe it. We are so thankful for such a good turn out! As we ran out of seats, more and more people kept coming through the doors. Everyone squeezed in together on sofas and all around the floor. The Dock Cafe in the Titanic Quarter were kind enough to allow us to borrow their venue for the night. The cafe is so lovely I don't think anyone minded too much about the seating issue. There was a real buzz about the place and it felt amazing to know that we had all worked so hard to put the night together- and here it was!

Loads of volunteers helped with the run-up to the event and helped up get all set-up on the night. A special thank you to Laura Hawthorne, who helped us with this event from the very beginning! Starbucks donated coffee and so many IJM supporters donated desserts to make this event really warm and welcoming. Tash of 24/7 Prayer helped us set up a station where people could write down prayers or statements of hope, for Belfast and beyond to become slave free! The photos you see hanging by the station are of a girl called Mien, IJM rescued her in (2006) and we shared her story of hope. To read Mien's story, click here.

Lynda Bryans, a local broadcaster, hosted the event for us. She and Ruth shared a few stories of victims IJM has rescued recently. New Irish Arts were also kind enough to donate some time to us and they played about 4 pieces throughout the night. We alternated between stories and music, which really gave the night a well-rounded feel.

Tim Doak, a local professional photographer, recently went to Cambodia and worked with girls that had been rescued from sexual exploitation, teaching them different photography skills and techniques. Some of them had never even held a camera before! We showed the photos that the girls had taken and Tim shared a bit about his experience in Cambodia. He even got to visit the field office in Phnom Penh! So jealous. If you would like to see some of the photos, click here. For Tim's website, click here.

At the end of the night, we pointed people to the stations to respond with sharing their own hopes and prayers. I would encourage you to comment on this blog post and share your own prayers and hopes for an end to come to slavery. You can also take a look at IJM UK's prayer wall on their Facebook page and pray specifically for the work of IJM. Injustice is too prevalent throughout our world, but I really believe that through prayer and action, we can see great change. Pray. Research. Act. God has a mission of justice and He calls us to join Him in it. I really feel like working with IJM is a great way to follow this mandate. I am thankful that God has given me this opportunity. 

Stories of Hope was a really wonderful night. Thanks to all who came and took part in our event!! For more photos from the night, click here and here. The second album will allow you to see the photos I have included here on the IJM UK's Facebook page. Make sure you "like" their page for further updates! You should also share Mien's story with someone you see today! Stories like Mien's show that we can really see change in the fight for justice. That is definitely worth sharing (: