...to Give Them Second Chance at Life
Derrie Dedrick/Editor, The Christian Headlines.com
A pastor serving in the African country of Burundi recently shared a blog
disclosing that he had hired two prostitutes for the night. Simon
Guillebaud, founder of ministry Great Lakes Outreach, wrote that he
hired two young women, Divine and Arlette, aged 21 and 22.
The pastor arranged to meet the women at a restaurant, with the intention of changing their lives.
“Their mechanical smiles broke my heart,” Guillebaud wrote in his blog.
“I sat down and introduced myself. I told them how I wanted them to
have the night off. They could order whatever they wanted, enjoy a hot
shower, and then have a night of deep rest. The only rule was not to
solicit any of the hotel guests. I would be back in the morning to pay
them, and after breakfast together, they could go.”
The next morning, Guillebaud met with Divine and Arlette again; after a night of freedom they seemed more trusting.
“I said I thought that as little girls they didn't dream that one day
they'd grow up to be prostitutes. Sometimes terrible things happen in
life, and you're forced into difficult choices. But maybe things could
change – if they wanted to,” Guillebaud wrote.
The pastor learned that they fell into prostitution as a means to
support themselves and their families. They were both orphans and used
the sex trade to pay bills and for their education.
“I asked them what their dreams were. They said they wanted to run a
small business, or maybe go into marketing...I imagined out loud how, if
they made good choices from now on, that in ten years – who knows –
they could be running a healthy business at the market, happily married
with a few kids. Divine's eyes lit up at the thought. Dared she
believe...?”
The pastor planned to meet with the young women again to arrange counseling and get them connected at church.
What do you think of this unique evangelistic approach?
No comments:
Post a Comment