th (4)Are you any good at math?  I have to say as far as academics go, mathematics isn’t my strong suit.  I made decent grades in math in school, but I never soared above the class or made the highest grade on a test in any math class.  It was hard for me. Writing was more my comfort zone.  In college, I could land a 100 on an essay exam.  As I’ve said before, I have the spiritual gift of blab.  Math is another story.

It wasn’t until college that I ever enjoyed a math class. It had little to do with the math and more to do with the teacher.  He asked us to call him by his first name, Bill.  He was a short guy with a hairstyle from the 70s who loved to have spirit days in his class.  Strange I know, but he was an amazing teacher.  He picked up on my problem with math instantly.  To this day, I can remember him saying,

Susan, when you look at a math problem, you see this overwhelmingly big problem to solve, when in fact it is nothing more than a bunch of little problems built on one another.  You and I both know you can solve a little math problem.  You can tackle this big problem too… one little problem at a time, one step at at time.

I made an A in his class and it was one of the easiest As I ever made in school.  Bill broke it down for me and as a result, I was able to do the same with my students, not just in math, but in all areas of teaching.

When we look at the issue of human sex trafficking in our nation it would be so easy to get overwhelmed by the magnitude of it. What can one person possibly do to make a difference?  Just like math, we have to take it one step at a time, one smaller problem at a time.

The first step in fighting the issue of sex trafficking in America is to raise awareness.

People can’t become advocates for an issue if they don’t know the issue exists.  We have to raise awareness.  How do we raise awareness? One step at a time.

  • Educate ourselves through reading books and articles, gathering with others fighting the issue, watching movies, and talking with experts in the fight.
  • Use our social media to spread the word to our sphere of influence. Post recent articles about the issue, share when events about the issue are being held in your area, or throw out a thought provoking questions about it to get a conversation started.
  • Invite a speaker into your home, office, church or book club to share.
  • Host a book club and choose a book like Rescuing Hope to get others talking.
  • Talk with your family about the issue.
  • Volunteer with an organization in the fight so when friends and coworkers ask you about your weekend you can share how you’re involved in the fight.
  • Write a letter the editor about any article you see in the newspaper to keep the conversation going when the issue is highlighted in your local newspaper.

These are just the first seven ideas that came to mind.  I’m sure you could add to the list.  What ideas came to your mind? What do you think we could do to raise awareness?

God never intended for any of us to solve the worlds problems alone.  He created us to want and need each other in this journey of life [Ecclesiastes 4:9].  When we work together, problems don’t seem as daunting. We can share ideas, encourage one another, and spur one another on when the fight gets difficult [Hebrews 10:24].

The problem is huge, but we can tackle it together… one step at a time.