While I'm Waiting...

I was thinking yesterday and today about how I am so excited for my 29 days in a dress. I am excited for what I will learn (and what I learned yesterday and today). I am excited to see what God will do in my heart. I am excited to share what I am learning with others and raise awareness about the issue of human trafficking. I don't want this excitement and passion to die, and I am asking God for it to not only continue, but to grow stronger. I am reading James with some friends, and this week, I read James 1, where it talks about asking God for wisdom in the midst of trials and praying with belief that God will give it to you. I am praying with belief that God will continue to do a work in my heart and in the hearts of others about injustice.

I was listening to a song called "While I'm Waiting" by John Waller today. The lyrics say...

I will serve You while I'm waiting 
I will worship while I'm waiting 
I will serve You while I'm waiting 
I will worship while I'm waiting 
I will serve you while I'm waiting 
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord

This song got me thinking about how I want to embrace what God has given me today and obediently do what he has called me to do today. I don't know if I will be in another country someday, in a career where I am able to actively combat sex slavery or some other injustice. God may call me to that, but he also may not. But today, God is giving me the opportunity to further my knowledge of injustice and help others learn more about it too. I want to embrace this gift God has given me today. 

2 days. Palpably excited. =)

1 Dress, 29 Days

I began this journey over two years ago when I started to become more aware of the issue of human trafficking after watching the documentary At the End of Slavery. Since then, I have been learning more about the injustice that happens around the world, what God thinks about it, and how I can fight against it. I still have a lot to learn, and I still am dreaming about bigger steps I can take to help end modern-day slavery.

This blog marks another venture to try to learn more about how I can fight injustice and help others fight against it as well. A few months ago, I came across this fundraising campaign to help raise money and awareness for child sex slavery in the United States. The fundraising campaign involved women wearing the same dress for a month as well as a button that said, "Ask me about my dress." The idea was that "Participants will proudly and humbly sacrifice comfort for the purpose of growing community awareness about the horrors being afflicted to America's children." After I saw this, it was something that I decided I wanted to do. For the past couple of months, I thought about how I wanted to do it, to make it most beneficial for me and those around me. I wanted to do it for the right reasons, and I wanted it to be something that would shed light on injustice and bring glory to God and not something that was about me. I'm still a little unsure about what this will turn into or what the outcome will be, but I am deciding to go for it, along with one of my fellow lovers of justice, Tristan LaFave. On February 1, I will start wearing the same dress for 29 days. 


Here are my goals for this new adventure: 
1. I want to learn more about injustice and ways to fight against. I will be reading and researching about human trafficking, specifically sex slavery, and posting some of this information each day of this month. Instead of focusing on just the United States (which I still will do), I am going to open it up to sex slavery around the world. Most of you know, I have a huge heart for Pattaya in Thailand, and I will post about my passion for this city during this month (as well as other places around the world). 
2. I want to increase awareness about human trafficking. I am going to wear a button that tells what day I am on in the experiment and tell people who ask about why I am doing this and what I am learning. I also plan on taking a picture each day in a different way (get excited). 
3. I want to at least get a taste of what it is like to wear the same thing every day. There are many people all over the world who have to wear the same thing every day of their life. I know that I will not get the full feeling of this, but at least an idea. I plan to post about how I am feeling and the reactions I get from others during this month. 


I decided not to raise money for this experiment, but if you would like to know where you can donate money to help fight injustice, I would gladly talk with you about that. I challenge you to consider ways that you can give to this cause and I will be posting ways that people can give as I do this. 


I know that God cares about justice and he wants me to care about it too. He wants me to take the knowledge that he has given me and do something about it. I have been blessed to learn more about human trafficking over the past year and see it with my own eyes as well. I know that God is powerful enough to stop this injustice, and I want to be apart of the fight against it. 


I am excited to see where this project is going to take me and what I am going to learn. Please join me.