Photo taken by Chip Bush.
Have you ever felt used? Have you had a person take what they wanted from you and then walk away?
It happens every day in business as well as personal relationships. It’s selfish at the very least and at the extreme it’s a form of abuse.
The young ladies I work with have been used, abused and discarded by epic proportions.
They’ve been treated as nothing more than an object to fulfill a twisted desire. One young lady said,
My pimp didn’t see me as a person. He saw me as an ATM. When he wanted to make a withdrawal, he sent me out.”
People were never created to be used and discarded. That should be reserved for objects. For example, we all use our cell phones until they cease to perform the way we want. Then we discard them for another one. People, however, were created in the image of God and, therefore, for relationship [Genesis 1:26].
The Triune God is a picture of relationship: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He sent Jesus to die for our sins so we could maintain relationship with Him [John 3:16]. The cross itself is a picture of relationship, which Christ explained in Matthew 22:36-39,
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’ Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ {Deut. 6:5} ‘This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ {Lev. 19:18}.”
We were commanded to love not use. I’ve met survivors before who have had well meaning people use them and in some cases without even realizing it. One young lady said,
I knew she wanted me to go to Bible study at her church. When I did, she was happy. If I skipped it, she would be mad. I figured out what was expected of me.”
Another said,
…. asked me to speak, to share my story. They made a lot of money that night. My story brought the money in…then what did I get? Nothing.”
When interacting with people in any circumstance, we have to think. Sometimes our actions send more powerful messages than our words, without us knowing it. We especially need to consider this when working with someone who has been victimized. They have learned to read body language as a means of survival.
The last thing we want to become is a different kind of pimp in their world.
This topic is always relevant, but rarely talked about. The first time I’d ever heard of being a different kind of pimp was in relation to rescuing the girls, and how we can’t really do that. Only God can rescue His people, sometimes we just get the opportunity to help them relocate to a safer situation. We cannot force them to get out of their situation, force them to go to a program, force them to try to heal…that’s between them and God. Nothing good will come of us making the decisions for them. We just have to love and encourage them and have protection and resources ready for them when they are ready. We desire the greatest good for these girls, but we need to make sure that we leave their life to them.