In February I’ll be going with a team of others from my church, Times Square Church to minister to the women, men, and children that live in the Red Light district of Pune, India. I first heard about how young girls (and some boys) are brought there a few years ago and my heart has been stirred ever since. Many of them are kidnapped from Nepal or swindled from their parents who are told their child will receive an education and a better job. Once there, they become sex-worker slaves. In some brothels, these poor souls are literally chained to a bed…….. Eventually children are born and as soon as they’re old enough, they’re forced into the same depraved industry. Altogether outrageous! And to make matters even worse, once a sex-worker slave with HIV/AIDS starts to show signs of this illness, they are literally kicked out onto the street. So they spend their last days dying, while begging, on the streets. Miraculously, over the last couple of years, attendees from my church have been able to work with another ministry that is based in Pune that ministers solely to these sex-worker slaves. Doors have opened and via a medical clinic and a beauty salon, volunteers have been able to show love and touch the hearts of these people. What’s so amazing is that the love of Christ powerfully pierces through the horror and tragedy and despair that is so thick in Pune’s Red Light district.
I feel honored that I have the opportunity to go and reach out to those who are trapped in this tangled web of darkness. Knowing that I go in the name of Christ and filled with His love for these people is the only reason I have hope. I would otherwise be overwhelmed and just stay here in NYC…….
I’m asking for support via prayer:
1-For the vicious chain of the sex-worker industry to be broken
2-For the enslaved men, women, and children to be able to leave this industry
3-For a hospice for the sex-workers who contract HIV/AIDS
4-That the love of Christ would effectually be poured out on these poor souls; so they’d know that they’re not alone; and that they would receive Christ as their own. (There is such a thing as freedom on the inside and forever! Hallelujah!)
I’m also asking for support via finances. The trip costs $2800 and any donations would be appreciated! Checks can be sent directly to my church’s missions office on my behalf — “India-wendy g” in the memo. Times Square Church will mail a receipt to you for tax purposes. The address is:
Times Square Church Missions
1657 Broadway, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10019
212-541-6300
God Bless you! And thank you for reading all of this! I had so much to say and this is as briefly as I could say it!
wendy g
