INTRODUCTION

Our journey in the fight against slavery has taken us deep into the heart and emotions of God. We have lifted our voices to him in intercession, and seen Him move in miraculous and powerful ways in response to our prayers. God has led us in each step of this incredible journey, from first introducing us to this injustice when we were totally oblivious, to tearing down corrupt government and child brothels half a world away. The God of the Exodus, the Lord God who frees the oppressed and liberates the captives, who plunders the treasures of darkness—He is still alive and moving in the earth today. – Benji Nolot, Director, Exodus Cry

June 2010

In June, Exodus Cry was privy to an exhibition of divine justice, an event that was clearly a convergence of the saints crying out to the courts of heaven while the political intercessors on the earth fought to gain ground. Interstate 70 connects Kansas City with Saint Louis with as straight of a 250 mile stretch of asphalt as you’ll find in all of America. But if you drive the entire length of it, you’ll count more porn shops, strip clubs, and adult-superstores than you will different state license plates. And since the porn shop industry is a battlefront for the greater issue of human trafficking (it fuels the demand for illicit sex), lobbying in the halls of legislature to see these shops heavily regulated is a major fight.

On Saturday, June 24th, Benji Nolot and Lou Engle lead a prayer rally in St. Louis, and one of the highlighted prayer items was a set of bills (586 and 617) that would heavily regulate sex-entertainment venues. The bills addressed everything from zoning restrictions for porn shops, to how late establishments could stay open, to how far from a patron a semi-nude (another restriction) dancer had to keep her distance. If passed, many of the main elements that make these businesses attractive would be reformed, and many of the seedy establishments might have to go out of business entirely. The night of the rally, the bills were poised to be passed or vetoed by the Missouri House of Representatives. After Benji spoke on the injustice of Human Trafficking, the entire room entered into a 2 hour prayer rumble.  During this time they targeted the sex shops between KC and St. Louis on the I-70.  That seemed to be the only real vein of prayer they were able to enter into.  The next day, the bill was passed—the very next day!—  The shop owners believe the new regulations will put them out of business, essentially “shutting them down”

May 2010

When people find out that human trafficking is just as much of a reality on American soil as it is in Eastern European countries or in South East Asia, they are typically shocked. But what is even more disturbing is the degree to which Americans have sanctioned traffickers by adopting their title as the new standard of savvy and cool: Pimp.  Pimping is not only a bonafide form of human trafficking, but some of the most notorious gangs are behind expansive pimping organization.  That is to say, organized crime is thriving on the streets of major American cities (like New York City) and the sex trafficking industry is booming. Throughout May our prayer was that God would expose the lies behind the culture of the pimps, that the nefarious brutality that comprises the pimp culture would be clearly seen, and that the Judge of the Earth would make a judgement on behalf of the saints as we cried out.  Just two days after the month was ended, this dramatic human trafficking bust made headline news:

Bloods gang members went to Brooklyn schools to recruit underage girls as hookers: prosecutors

BY WILLIAM SHERMAN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 2nd 2010, 4:00 AM

Brooklyn prosecutors have busted Bloods gang members on charges of running several sex trafficking rings that recruited girls from junior high schools, the Daily News has learned.

Prostitutes as young as 15 were routinely beaten and deprived of food if they didn’t earn $500 a day selling their bodies, the Brooklyn district attorney’s office found.

Pimps went to schools to find hookers for their operations in Bushwick, Brownsville and East New York, according to indictments that will be announced today.

The teens and older women worked out of hotels, motels and the pimps’ apartments and on the street – known as “the track,” investigators said.

Their services were advertised on sites such as craigslist, Backpage.com and other adult Internet pages – as recently as last month, the court papers say.

Investigators uncovered four distinct operations, three of them run by Bloods gang members. (read full article here)

When God answers prayer, He answers in a specific way. His desire is not only to see victims of human trafficking set free from bondage, but to stun the hearts of His people as they partner with His heart.  These kinds of breakthroughs are meant to give us confidence that no matter how daunting the forces of organized crime may be, the God of Light is able to triumph over all of the works of darkness—”and the darkness cannot overcome the light.”

June 2010

In June, the world was watching South Africa as the international soccer phenomenon, the World Cup, took place in several South African cities. The dark side of global sporting events, however, is human trafficking. An increase in tourism almost always means an increase in the demand for sex. And the grim economics of sex-slavery is that organized crime is always eager to match a spike in demand with a new supply of victims. Experts were predicting that there would be an 80% increase in prostitution during the games, and that young women and children would be trafficked in from nearby countries like Zimbabwe at an atrocious rate. ExodusCry launched a two-pronged intercession strike that included not only Cape Town as the City-in-Focus, but also an intercessory-awareness team that walked the streets of Cape Town, Durbin, and JoBurg, offering up cries of intercession and raising awareness. During the weekly prayer sets at the International House of Prayer, we sang a song over and over in the spirit: Turn it all around, Turn it all around/ Shut it all down, Shut it all down. Like never before did we feel the true weakness of intercession as we cried out for God to intervene with his justice. Not long after the games ended, sometime in July, the news sites and blogs were humming with information about the result. Unanimously credible news sites were reporting that instead of an 80% increase in human trafficking, women in prostitution were reporting an 80% decrease. We know that this was due to answered prayer and the obedience of the saints who went to war to see God turn the entire situation around.

March 2010

During March 2010, Belgrade Serbia was the City-in-Focus. We were deliberately asking God to disrupt the power-base of organized crime in Belgrade, Serbia, a linchpin city for the operations of human trafficking. (You can read more about Belgrade here.) Just a few days ago, we received a report that our prayers were answered: a man known as the “Balkan King of Human Trafficking” was arrested. Not only did God speedily answer our prayers for justice, but there could have been no greater indicator that God was listening to our prayers than this specific answer. Here is the press release:

Serbia arrests trafficking kingpin 12/03/2010
BELGRADE, Serbia — The interior ministry announced on Thursday (March 11th) the arrest of Milivoje Zarubica-Puja, the notorious “Balkan king of human trafficking”. Zarubica-Puja, 45, was detained in a village near the town of Kursumlija, in southern Serbia, carrying fake ID documents. Police believe he spent time in Nis and Leskovac under an assumed name, where he was involved in the illicit trade in archaeological artefacts. Zarubica-Puja was initially arrested in December 1999, during a police operation in Resnik, where 46 girls about to be trafficked illegally were found and about 180,000 Deutsch marks were confiscated. Several charges were filed against him in that case, including human trafficking, and he was sentenced to four years in prison. He failed to appear for sentencing and has been wanted ever since. (Press Online, Tanjug, Blic, MIA – 11/03/10) (source)

October 2009

This testimony was shared on the ExodusCry forums, not long after ExodusCry visited a church and held a prayer meeting for the ending of human trafficking:

Exodus Cry had just visited  my church onFriday and they shared about their mission, and as a result our church quickly got gripped and we started interceding. During the time of prayer I felt like the lord said I needed to cry out for Mexico, so i did; it was really heavy on my heart. Just a few days later, on Tuesday, I got a text from my mom saying that they had arrested the 14 pimps and saved the 7 children who were in the ages of 14-16. The arrest was made on the Saturday after the ExodusCry prayer meeting! God is so good!

August 2009

NOVEMBER 2008

While on a mission trip to Cambodia in September of 2008 we met a wonderful missionary named Ruth who has established a ministry in the slums of Phnom Phen reaching out to prostituted girls and offering them a way out. In November she emailed us with a prayer request for her health. She was feeling she was in a crisis situation due to major health issues and having no money to travel to Bangkok to get proper care. Immediately we began praying for her. Just a few days later she sent me this email:

Dear Benji I want to say firstly, thank you, thank you, thank you, to you and Lauren, and everyone in your church who has been praying for me, it is so very encouraging and touching, you really cannot know how much it means. Secondly, IT WORKED! I woke up on Sunday morning feeling in my body completely healed. Every bit of pain had gone, and I felt completely whole. I also felt the presence of God powerfully, and he spoke to me about always taking care of me in every way. I believe God has healed me. God is so faithful, it makes me fall in love with him all over again because he is so kind, taking care of me when I am vulnerable and in need. Please pass this on to everyone who prayed, I am so grateful to them all for their love and care, it helps me do what I do to know people there pray, love and care for me and for the rest of the team. Much love in Christ. Ruth

NOVEMBER 2008

In early November our friend in Cambodia emailed us a very discouraging update. He had been undercover investigating a child prostitution ring in Cambodia for a month and a half. During this time he, along with other investigators, compiled a mountain of evidence to submit to the authorities with the hope and expectation of quick and decisive action to raid these brothels. To their shock and dismay the authorities shut the whole thing down, turning a blind eye to the entire situation. My friend was struck with discouragement. His heart was aching for the precious girls he was attempting to rescue. In his email I could feel his pain and I knew he was in a difficult place emotionally. When I shared this update with our worship team and other intercessors, a common feeling arose in each one of us that we must cry out to God to remove the roadblocks. For the entire two hours of our Monday night intercession set we did just that. Less than a week later, Hok Lundy, the head of Police in Cambodia, who is notorious for being one of the biggest sex-traffickers in the nation and responsible for widespread police corruption, was struck dead when his helicopter was hit by lightning. The following is an excerpt from an email our friend sent shortly after:

“I think you may have prayed someone to death. The highest-ranking police officer in Cambodia was killed this week when his helicopter crashed. He was considered to be one of the biggest sex and drug traffickers in Cambodia. Oddly enough, when his death hit the papers, everyone was rejoicing and all the Christians were saying, ‘God killed him!’ Preliminary reports said that his helicopter was struck by lightning. I don’t know if you find this encouraging, discouraging, or neutral but it is a great stride in our battle to rescue these girls. Keep up the prayer!”

MAY 2008

February of 2008 was a good month for us in terms of prayer for Cambodia. We were filled with faith as we saw God move in awesome ways. During our prayer meeting on one Monday night a singer from the worship team began to prophesy in song over Cambodia, “Freedom is coming! Freedom is coming! Freedom is coming!” He must have sung this a hundred times. There was an unusual anointing and energy upon this phrase as he sang it. We could all feel the truth and power of this prophetic declaration. Later that night when I got home, I received an email from my friend in Cambodia. He told me that earlier in the night he felt compelled to drive his mo-ped down a brothel filled street in Cambodia. As he road by all the brothels he felt the Spirit well up within him and he began to declare, “Freedom is coming! Freedom is coming! Freedom is Coming!” It turns out that he was saying this at the same time as our singer here in Kansas City! I shared this with my friend from Cambodia and we were all encouraged and filled once again with incredible faith. The next couple months, however, our faith would be tested. Each week our friend implored us to pray for raids to happen so that the poor exploited children of Cambodia would be set free from the tyranny of forced prostitution. Week after week nothing seemed to happen. I was frequently asked if maybe we should focus our prayers in a different direction, but I truly felt impressed that we were confronting a stronghold in the spirit and we just needed to stay steady. Many times I shared that I felt we were on the verge of a large break-through. Finally, on May 5th, I received the following email from our contact:

“What a week. Sometimes the emotional stress of this job makes you want to kick a cat (Only kidding), but then there are weeks like this one that make it all worthwhile. Get ready for the best update yet…. 48 BROTHELS CLOSED AND 255 WORKERS FREED. Bo-ya! This is directly tied to your prayers. This was the area that, two months ago, I was praying and prophesying over as Ben was praying and prophesying at the same time. We were both praying the same thing, “freedom is coming!” You also have been praying for the government over the last few weeks and longer. How crazy is that, Praise God!”

FEBRUARY 2008

In December of 2007 we met an amazing man of God who works as a full-time missionary in Cambodia. This meeting developed into a partnership in which we committed to pray consistently for whatever requests he had from the field. First he asked us to pray for raids to happen so that young girls would be rescued from forced prostitution. After about a month of prayer, we began to see some movement. First the corrupt head of anti-trafficking in Cambodia was replaced enabling NGO’s to get approvals for raids. Next a raid occurred in which 14 girls were rescued, which elated us! Our friend in Cambodia contacted us because their ministry was virtually out of money and had no resources to care for these girls. The After-Care dimension of a rescue is just as critical as the rescue itself. The total expenses for the girls (including medical treatment) were over $100,000. Once again we cried out to God, this time for the release of provision. Incredibly, over the course of the next two weeks, $250,000 dollars poured into the ministry!

OCTOBER 2007

On November 5th, 2007 God demonstrated His zeal over the children of Eastern Europe. After reading “The Natasha’s,” a book by Victor Malarek, my heart was utterly broken for the exploited children throughout Eastern Europe and Russia. On Monday, October 29th we focused our prayers solely on these children for two hours of passionate intercession during a corporate meeting at the House of Prayer (Kansas City). Exactly one week later, on November 5th a child pornography ring was smashed when authorities arrested 92 perpetrators in 8 countries predominantly throughout Eastern Europe.

AUGUST 2007

In late July of 2007 we held another all night solemn assembly to fast and pray for the ending of human trafficking, particularly in Thailand. One week later, on August 7th, a counter trafficking pact was signed between the International Organization for Migration and Thailand’s Ministry of Social Development. This pact was designed to facilitate and strengthen cooperation regarding anti-trafficking efforts in five key areas, outlined in the following quote from an article published in the Bangkok Post:

Cooperation in establishing care and assistance programs for victims of trafficking, including: victim screening and identification procedures; building referral mechanisms and institutionalizing ‘good practice’ shelter management arrangements; and establishing operational standards and arrangements for the return of victims. Training and other capacity building support to Thai MSDHS staff, other relevant government officials, and others responsible for implementing national policies and programs on human trafficking. Extending bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Thailand and other concerned countries on the issue of return and reintegration of victims. Help to develop bilateral and multilateral agreements, MOUs and standard operational procedures supporting bilateral cooperation on trafficking between Thailand and other countries in the best interest of the victims. Developing national awareness-raising and prevention strategies to reduce vulnerability to trafficking though cooperation with the ministry’s provincial offices.

MAY 2007

In May of 2007 God again answered our prayer in a powerful way, resulting in a local bust. At this point we had been praying intensely over the issue of human trafficking for several months. In April of 2007 we decided to host an all-night solemn assembly to pray for the ending of slavery, and on Saturday, April 28th many of us here at the International House of Prayer (Kansas City) gathered together in fasting and prayer until 6 O’clock in the morning. A week and a half later, on May 10th, I began receiving emails that a bust occurred in Kansas City. On The front page of every newspaper was the shocking story that 4 men were busted for trafficking women from China and forcing them to work as prostitutes in 12 different message parlors and 4 residential homes. All in all, 4 arrests were made, 16 locations were shut down, and 15 girls were rescued. This was an amazing answer to prayer that occurred on our very own doorstep, which really drove this issue home for us. We were quickly reminded of the passage in Isaiah 58 in which God said, “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?”

FEBRUARY 2007

In the beginning of February in 2007 we experienced an incredible answer to prayer resulting in the liberation of hundreds of children. Saturday, February 3rd was the first time in my life I had ever heard the term “human trafficking.” Up until that point I had no knowledge that modern-day slavery even existed. My wife Lauren and I went to visit some friends in the hospital who just had a baby. During the course of our conversation they began to talk with us about the horrors of the sex-slave industry. They told us about the vast numbers of women and children who are being forced into lives of prostitution. This information was tremendously disturbing to us, and our hearts suddenly became overwhelmed with a burden for these victims. On Monday night, just a couple days later, I was preparing to lead a prayer meeting with Misty Edwards and her worship team at the International House of Prayer in Kansas City. I shared how the Lord was beginning to stir my heart over the issue of sex-slavery. One of our singers, named Laura, spoke up and told how she had recently dreamed about this very issue. She said that she dreamed that she had been kidnapped by a foreign man and taken to the home of an American man. Once inside the home she realized she was in a brothel, and would be forced into a life of prostitution. She began to see a vision of all the babies she would have to abort as a result of this lifestyle. Then suddenly she began to hear the intercession of Jesus, “Open up the heavens over the weak! Abba! Open up the heavens over the weak!” After Laura shared this dream, our entire team was gripped with an intense burden for prayer. We went out and announced to the room of about 300 people that we would be praying against human trafficking and sex slavery. Suddenly people began to spontaneously weep and cry out to God. For the next two hours we labored in intercession, praying that God would set the captives free and open up doors for authorities to make busts. During the meeting we really felt like God was using the prayer room to birth His will and purposes on the earth. Just a day and a half later I received an email that confirmed our sense that God was moving: an enormous child pornography ring involving over 2,300 child pornographers in 77 countries was busted by federal agents. Federal police called this case “a strike against child pornography unprecedented in Austrian criminal history.” Investigators compared the likelihood of the bust to “finding a needle in a haystack.” Articles released indicated that it was the largest bust of its kind in history. We felt this bust was a direct answer to prayer and a fulfillment of God’s promise that he would release “speedy justice” for His elect who cry out to Him night and day.