Merry Christmas from Stephanie Freed
Each December, I look forward to seeing all the social media photos of children posing with Santa. Some children run happily into his arms and smile with excitement, while others scream in justifiable outrage at being photographed with this overwhelming stranger!
I wonder what the real St. Nick would think about all the traditions that have developed around him and his story throughout the centuries. In reality, Nikolaos was a Greek Orthodox bishop who lived around 350 AD in what is modern day Turkey. There are several stories that demonstrate his great generosity, but the one that made him a legend was centered around a poverty stricken man who was preparing to sell his daughters into a life of prostitution. Without money to provide for his daughters or to pay for their dowries, survival would be difficult and there would be no opportunity for them to be married. He made the brutal decision to traffick them. The legend tells us that Nikolaos, hearing of the terrible plan for these sisters, tossed a bag of gold into a high window in their home. This act rescued the sisters from an otherwise tragic life of slavery.
Rescue is essential in the life of each survivor. After twenty years of serving vulnerable children, we at Rapha International can confidently say that rescue goes beyond an act of initial retrieval and represents a commitment to a strategic plan of care for each survivor. Without that plan and a commitment to follow it, the mere physical act of retrieval places the survivor in an incredibly vulnerable position to be re-trafficked and re-traumatized.
At Rapha, we know rescue is best understood as an “alongside” act of love–a long term commitment to care and support.
Whether we are serving survivors through residential programming or community based outreach, our desire is to understand and address the needs of those survivors, their families, and their communities, so that they might experience sustainable freedom. We embrace the opportunity to walk alongside survivors in the way that rescue is modeled to us through Jesus Christ. His birth, the embodiment of God’s love for humanity, brought about true hope, healing, and freedom. His extravagant gifts of grace and mercy represent His faithfulness in walking alongside each of us throughout our lives.
In the early years of Rapha, I had the precious opportunity to be present when two young sisters were brought to our survivor care campus in Battambang, Cambodia. They had been trafficked together across the international border of Thailand. After their rescue, government social workers brought them to Rapha to be placed for protection and trauma-focused care. They walked through Rapha’s gates huddled together wearing matching Looney Tunes t-shirts and blue jeans that the social workers had provided for them. Each of the girls carried a small plastic bag in their hands- the sum of their earthly possessions. I immediately observed the fear in their eyes as they clung to each other. They had been living a hell on earth and they were not yet certain that they were safe or that anyone in this new place could be trusted.
Following their rescue and arrival, I had the privilege of watching these sisters bravely embrace the opportunities for hope and healing provided through holistic services at Rapha. I witnessed their desire to learn, the fullness of their laughter on the soccer field, and the sweet way that they continued to care for each other. I admired the commitment of the Rapha staff to be a surrogate family to these sisters as our social workers searched for their biological family and performed the difficult work of determining whether they could one day provide a safe place for the sisters to return. Rescue was not defined by the moment of extraction for these sisters, but continued in the years that followed as Rapha’s team walked alongside them, providing love and holistic opportunities toward sustainable freedom.
Because of you, Rapha’s faithful partners, stories like this take place every day at Rapha International. We are grateful for each of you who have made it possible to offer opportunities for healing and hope over the past twenty years, and we celebrate your commitment to sustainable rescue and freedom for child survivors!
Nikolaos– the real bedrock of our dear old Saint Nick– shared a faith in Jesus that drove him to love not only in word, but in action. He was rescued by the grace of God, and was compelled to provide for the rescue of the sisters who otherwise would have been lost to the worst of the world’s horrors. As we celebrate this Christmas season, may we contemplate the most profound act of “alongside” rescue that has ever taken place for all of humanity. On behalf of the staff and children served by Rapha International, we wish you a beautiful season of joy, warmth shared with family and friends, and the everlasting hope that the birth of Jesus brings to our lives.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Sincerely,
