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Final Thoughts on Embracing Sexual Purity and Preventing Disaster
BY RANDY ALCORN FEBRUARY 24, 2021
I’m glad to say—and some readers will be very glad to hear—this is my final blog in a series about sexual purity, and how best to address the problem of immorality in the body of Christ.
There has been a lot of pushback on my attempts to learn lessons from what happened with Ravi Zacharias. One said, “There is no lesson to learn.” A number said, “I don’t believe Ravi did that.” Someone wrote, “You should repent for speaking this way about God’s servant.” But I’ve simply accepted information delivered by professional investigators and confirmed by the same RZIM board that loved Ravi and defended him over the past years. (I’ve read responses from some Christians who appear to have much more empathy for the fallen leader than for his victims. I don’t believe this is Christ-honoring.)
“Don’t talk about it, and it will go away” has been a common sentiment. But it won’t go away. What follows is not mainly about Ravi or any other Christian leader. This problem isn’t outside of the evangelical church; it’s on the inside. It involves all of us.
One reader wrote:
This must be talked about. If we don’t, more ministries will be swept aside in the dark tide of the enemy. I’m pretty sure the Accuser of the brethren does not want us to talk about it. He’d rather we say, as some have said, “What does it matter now? He’s dead.” It matters because we must understand the why of it… The sad fact is, if we choose not to pursue truth and understanding, we may as well gear up for the next fall from grace and influence for Christ…because it will come. When we sweep evil under the rug, it stays there, waiting for another opportunity to pounce.
It’s not just ministries and churches that have swept this under the rug. In many cases, we as individuals and families have failed to face this head-on. How many parents really know what their children or teenagers are seeing on the Internet? Are they accessing it on their friends’ phones or tablets when an adult is out of the room…or even in it?
Every sad tale of immorality among Christian leaders over the last several years has been a shot fired across the bow. But from my viewpoint, almost nothing has changed. We don’t talk about it—or we say how horrible it is each time a leader falls and then move on, not bothering to change anything.
God calls us to something far better. By the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, may we wake up and yield ourselves to Him and take the necessary steps to protect ourselves, our families, our churches, and those God has entrusted to our care.
What Reader Comments Reveal
Several readers pushed back on accountability groups and on making a list to ponder the consequences of sin. Some don’t think either of those would work.
Of course, no plan is 100% effective. But suppose they are only 50 or 30% effective. Isn’t that better than nothing? Dismissing such tools because they won’t stop all sin is nonsensical. Imagine a discussion about whether there should be guardrails on a new road on a mountain pass. Someone points out another pass where people have crashed through the guardrails and plunged to their deaths. They argue, “Guard rails don’t work.” No, in fact they have saved countless lives, way more than can be measured. The truth is guardrails don’t always work. But sometimes they do! So let’s use them.
Somebody says an accountability group can turn into an accusatory meeting of self-righteous legalists. My answer: there’s no good thing that can’t become legalistic. But the solution isn’t to eliminate Bible study, prayer meetings, or accountability groups because some people aren’t sincere, will lie, or become legalistic. (I detest legalism. However, if we were as zealous about protecting our minds from sexual impurity as we are about avoiding legalism, our families and churches could be radically transformed.)
I honestly believe that most of the people critical of making a list of consequences and being part of an accountability group have never done it themselves. If there’s something else you do that’s helping you successfully live out your purity in Jesus, I’m all for it. Please do that, and let other people do what helps them.
One pastor made this comment about the list of immorality’s consequences:
None of us are immune to temptation and none of us has the strength, on our own, to not fall into sin. Your list of what sin will cost us is a very good tool.…… I think back to the devastation caused in the lives of people I care deeply about by one pastor’s sin and it reminds me that I need to stay strong and run straight to my King. Remembering the damage caused by sin reminds me to run to the only One who has the strength to grant me victory. Thanks for the reminder and I pray many will find your tool of great use.
Let’s Guard Our Hearts and Minds
“Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23). The problem is, left to ourselves we are very bad at watching over our hearts:
The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately sick;
who can understand it?
(Jeremiah 17:9)
The good news is that God makes His resurrection power available to us to walk in victory over sin. Unfortunately, many people think of this as automatic and do not take aggressive efforts to guard themselves.
We need to be careful what television shows and movies we are watching. Much has been written about the significant increase in pornography use during COVID. None of us are immune to this temptation. The same Paul who says we are righteous in Christ also says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1:15). Not was but am. (The closer to God we become, the more we’re aware of our own sin, not just that of others.) As we grow in sanctification, God roots out more of the remnants of the old nature and weaves in the new, demonstrating itself in the fruit of the Spirit (Galatian 5:22-23).
God’s Word says, “Let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires” (Romans 13:12-14).
To make provision for the flesh is to provide what’s necessary for it to thrive. It is to feed our sexual desires that God says are intended for fulfillment in the marriage relationship alone—or to put ourselves in a situation where they will be fed. We make provision for the flesh every time we fail to screen out immorality from the internet, television, and movies. Or every time we hold our eyes where we shouldn’t and fanaticize, in contrast to Job who said, “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman” (Job 31:1).“But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death” (James 1:14-15).
There’s No Contradiction Between God’s Empowerment and Our Efforts
Commenters keep emphasizing that it’s all about Jesus (great words, that’s what I named my latest book). Then they say it’s not about our effort; rather, it’s all about what Jesus does for us. But there’s a problem. When we read the Bible, we see that God actually tells us to do things.
Yes, nothing we can do can earn our salvation. And in several of the previous blogs I stressed our need to love Jesus, and to call upon the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to obey Him.
But God’s Word never says, “Since you’re a sinner, there’s no reason to expend effort to gain victory over sin.” On the contrary, Paul says, “For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me” (Colossians 1:29).
Emptied
As preparation for Easter this year, I am meditating and reading different books on Lent. As I read the first line of God it is on the Cross by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I was reminded of my time in Belfast Bible College where we were taught New Testament theology and the life and ministry of Jesus. Bonhoeffer says that “Christ’s time of passion begins not with Holy Week but with the first day of his preaching.” Every Gospel narrative has this objective; the storyline tells us from the beginning of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Bonhoeffer points out that Jesus’ call and mission was tested more than once, as we see it here in these verses from Luke. “And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’” (Luke 4:5–8 ESV).
Could you imagine if Jesus would have said yes to Satan? The consequences of Jesus saying yes and become the king of this world are not even worth considering. It would have been chaos for all humanity. But thankfully, Jesus resisted. The temptation was a way out of the Cross. This is why Bonhoeffer gets it so right. Jesus passion does not begin with Holy Week but with his first day of ministry.
- By Gail Drake
- Feb 21, 2021
How much influence can a friendship have? For some, a friendship can change the trajectory of their lives as well as the lives of their extended family. In the life of German professor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, an unlikely friendship in Harlem, N.Y., helped redirect his path from pacifist professor to anti-Nazi dissenter.
Gifted 21-year-old Sloane fellow Bonhoeffer arrived in New York City in 1930 to teach at Union Theological Seminary. He met fellow seminarian and lifelong friend Franklin Fisher, an African American who introduced him to Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem. It was the height of the Harlem Renaissance, an explosion of culture and artistry in the NYC neighborhood by those who had migrated from the South to escape discrimination for better jobs in the city. This movement produced some of the greatest African American musicians, artists and writers, including Langston Hughes, W.E.B. DuBois and Duke Ellington. Bonhoeffer became a lifelong fan of African-American spirituals and carried a cherished collection of albums back to Germany.
Abyssinian’s pastor, Adam Clayton Powell Sr., preached “the gospel of Jesus Christ” as well as themes of “Christianity that encompasses all of life.”
“Here one can truly speak and hear about sin and grace and the love of God and ultimate hope,” wrote Bonhoeffer. “The black Christ is preached with rapturous passion and vision.”
He heard the concept of “Jesus the co-sufferer hidden in suffering.” Bonhoeffer taught Sunday School and was invited into church members’ homes. He became sensitive to social injustices suffered by minorities and the ineptitude of churches to relieve oppression.
“We must learn to regard people less in light of what they do … and more in the light of what they suffer,” he wrote.
He observed American racism first-hand when he traveled south with his friend Franklin, who was refused service at restaurants. Later Bonhoeffer referenced his time abroad as the point he “turned from phraseology to reality.”
Abyssinian was a foreign world to the aristocratic-born German
I Owe Rush So Much
Feb 17, 2021 | By Marvin R. Shanken
Rush Limbaugh and Marvin R. Shanken at the 2019 Els for Autism Pro-Am.
In 1994 I held my first Night to Remember cigar dinner at the ‘21’ Club in New York City. The dinner celebrated the cigar, and the proceeds went to Prostate Cancer research. In attendance were a notable number of cigar enthusiasts from all walks of life. During the dinner, we all got to know each other, and I especially remember two guests at my table: Gregory Hines and Rush Limbaugh. The evening conversation centered around the joy that a cigar adds to our lives and its ability to create and build friendships. Gregory and Rush were on different sides of the political aisle, yet through smoking a cigar they became instant friends with mutual respect.
Christ and the Rich Young Ruler / Carl Heinrich Bloch
The One Thing
February 11, 2021 Daily Devotional
By Ed Little
A Reading from the Gospel of Mark 10:17-31
17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’” 20He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” 21Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” 27Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
28 Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” 29Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, 30who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age — houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions — and in the age to come eternal life. 31But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
Meditation
“When Christ calls a man,” Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in The Cost of Discipleship, “he bids him come and die.” Dying, of course, takes many forms. For Bonhoeffer, death was literal: days before the war in Europe came to an end, he was hanged at Flossenburg Concentration Camp. For most of us, the death that Jesus demands is less literal but no less drastic. Jesus calls us to die to self, die to our dreams, die to our prejudices and even to our self-defined convictions, die — as the central character in today’s reading learns — to possessions.
This unnamed character is spiritually earnest. There’s nothing superficial about his faith. He wants to do God’s will. “Good teacher,” he asks, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus dismisses the man’s obsequious use of the word “good,” but quickly reminds him of the commandments. But I’ve done all that for years, the man responds. “Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor… then come, follow me.’” Jesus has correctly diagnosed the man’s problem. He’s utterly attached to his possessions, and the cure is radical. Let them go, Jesus tells him. Don’t allow your possessions to dominate your life and your relationship with God. Tragically, the man is unable to embrace the cure. He “was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.”
By Jessica Lea -February 15, 2021
There are obvious lessons evangelicals ought to be learning from the horrific abuse perpetrated by Ravi Zacharias, says victims advocate Rachael Denhollander. And these lessons emphasize the importance of what she has been requesting for some time: an independent investigation into Sovereign Grace Churches.
“So many of the leaders applauding the step RZIM took today, were silent in urging that this step be taken, and remain silent regarding an organization still co-laboring alongside them or in their communities,” wrote Denhollander in a Facebook post on Feb. 12.
Denhollander was referring to the independent investigation Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) commissioned in September of last year. The decision followed multiple new allegations of sexual abuse against Zacharias (the first known accusation dates back to a lawsuit Zacharias settled in 2017). The investigation’s findings, which were published Feb. 9, revealed that the initial allegations, shocking as they were, pale in comparison to Zacharias’ actual proficiency as a sexual predator. RZIM issued a public apology following the report, but has yet to announce any changes in leadership. RZIM UK has broken with the ministry as a result.
“Speaking up after the hard work has been done is easy,” said Denhollander, who is an attorney known for being the first of more than 400 women to publicly accuse USA gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar of sexual abuse. “Urging for the right things in our own community, before the facade is unmasked, is costly. And very few leaders are willing to take that step even today.”
Rachael Denhollander: Has the Church Really Learned from the Ravi Scandal?
In her statement, Rachael Denhollander listed four lessons from the Ravi Zacharias scandal that ought to be “abundantly clear.” First, it ought to be clear that pastors and ministry leaders are not equipped to conduct investigations into allegations of sexual abuse within their ministries. Second, if there are “credible” claims of sexual misconduct within a ministry, “it is usually the tip of the iceberg.”
Third, said Denhollander, “Failure to get expert help, or commissioning a poor investigation (as RZIM did in 2017) crushes and silences victims, and leaves abusers in power, while giving a false sense of security.” In 2017, Zacharias settled a lawsuit with a woman named Lori Anne Thompson, who said that Zacharias had used his spiritual authority to groom her for a sexual relationship. The apologist’s version of events was that Thompson and her husband were trying to extort money from him. The Thompsons signed an NDA at the time, and the executrix of Zacharias’ estate has yet to release them from it.
Denhollander’s fourth and final point was that expert investigations “should not be feared,” but “welcomed.” She said,
It is for this reason that I have repeatedly recommended that Sovereign Grace Churches, Institute in Basic Life Principles, and several other organizations, welcome this same process, and provided recommendations of ways this can be done without violating principles of church autonomy. The victims are still with us. In many cases alleged perpetrators or those who covered up, are still in leadership. This step should still be taken.
Background on Sovereign Grace Churches
Multiple people have accused Sovereign Grace Churches (SGC) of covering up sexual abuse, and other reports indicate that the church’s culture discourages people from reporting it. C.J. Mahaney, one of the church’s founders, was one of the church leaders cited in a 2012 lawsuit as allegedly covering up sexual abuse for years. The lawsuit ended up being dismissed because of the statute of limitations. Joshua Harris, who was Mahaney’s successor and protegé and who has since renounced his faith, implied in an interview with The Washington Post that concerns over SGC leaders’ handling of sexual abuse allegations contributed to him stepping away from the church.
In 2018, Denhollander publicly called on SGC to launch an independent investigation into the claims of sexual abuse. SGC refused. When the denomination came under scrutiny in 2019 following revelations of abuse within the Southern Baptist Convention, SGC refused again, saying,
We remain persuaded that an investigation of the sort we’ve been challenged to authorize—both in good faith and otherwise—is inappropriate, impractical, unjust, and finally would be unsatisfactory to all interested parties. Most importantly, as far as we’re able to discern, we believe this course, the theological capitulation it would represent, and the precedent it would set, would ultimately dishonor Christ and harm the cause of the gospel.
In her Feb.12 statement, Denhollander listed three SGC churches that have sent letters calling on SGC leaders to conduct an investigation. One of them, Kings Cross Church, has left SGC since sending its letter. While two of the links in Denhollander’s post are broken, you can read the churches’ statements here. Denhollander also responded to several reasons SGC has cited for not conducting an independent investigation, among them that 1) such an investigation implies at the outset that the SGC is guilty and 2) such an investigation would violate church autonomy.
A year with challenges unlike any other year before.
By Carmen Joy Imes
I think it’s safe to say that when 2020 is over, the world will breathe a collective sigh of relief. (Well, those who survive it will, which is clearly not enough of us.) Just when we think we’re nearing the end of one crisis, another begins. We’re only halfway through the year, but it’s been brutal. Absolutely brutal.
Several memes on Facebook have illustrated the general sentiment:
2020: The Movie
Written by Steven King
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
or
Where can I get a refund for 2020? I’m not satisfied.
Others have given 2020 a 1-star rating, saying they wouldn’t recommend it.
But as hard as it has been, I’m beginning to think this was exactly what we needed. I don’t mean that in a masochistic way. I don’t enjoy suffering. I also don’t think God planned the CoronaVirus or the Australian bush fires or the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, or Ahmaud Arbery as a way of testing us. But God has gifts to give us that can only come wrapped in suffering. Chief among them this year is the gift of sight.
As we turned the corner into 2020, I braced myself for the inevitable rush of clever plays on 2020: 20/20 vision, seeing clearly, hindsight, etc. I’ve noticed surprisingly few. But now that we’re nearly halfway through the year, it’s time.
2020 is revealing things about ourselves and our society that we needed to see.
We are connected. Now more than ever, we can see that our entire world is interlaced. Beating the CoronaVirus has required the cooperation of every country on the planet. Planes, trains, and automobiles knit us so tightly together that we cannot face our greatest challenges without a coordinated effort. With borders closed, events cancelled, and gatherings prohibited, we’re feeling acutely how much connecting we actually do.
We need to be together. The wonders of technology have not erased our need for handshakes, hugs, and proximity to each other. We are embodied. We are designed to relate to each other as three-dimensional beings who share the same airspace and the same vibes. Singing along to pre-recorded worship doesn’t cut it. Zoom doesn’t cut it. Relating only on screen further polarizes us because we have fewer social cues by which we can “read the room” and build bridges of understanding. It seems we have less wiggle room for disagreement online than we do in person.
We are divided. We talk past each other more than we talk to each other. Social media becomes either an echo chamber in which we “like” those who sound like us or a boxing ring where we duke it out and nobody wins. Constructive dialogue seems rare. Given that this is an election year in the United States, our divisions are likely to feel even more acute in a few months. When a politician speaks, members of the opposing party tend to hear something quite different from what members of the politician’s own party hear. Both sides respond with “See?!” as if the statement proves their point and vindicates their views. For the nation to survive this season, we’ll need new ways to get at the underlying values that drive public rhetoric.
We do not all experience the same world. The pandemic disproportionately affects communities that lack infrastructure, such as the Navajo Nation. Stay at home orders cause undue hardship for some and feel like a staycation to others. Some of us have jobs that can be done from home. Others have lost jobs or lost wages. Some of us have safe homes. Some of us are in more danger at home than out in the world. Some of us see the police force as our allies and others of us experience repeated profiling and lack confidence that law enforcement will act lawfully.
Most of our work is not as “essential” as we thought. Many of us have discovered that without our work, the world will keep on turning. Some of us who thought that slowing down was impossible have been forced to do so. Perhaps we will begin to take ourselves less seriously. We’ve also gained a new appreciation for essential workers in our communities: grocery store checkers and truck drivers, nurses and mechanics, garbage collectors and cleaning crews. Hopefully this new appreciation will translate into increased respect.
Some things are more important and more urgent than we realized. Just a few short weeks ago the angst of our nation spilled into the streets to confront long-standing inequities felt keenly by the black community. More than ever before in my memory, white pastors and white-led organizations have spoken up and showed up to march alongside our black and brown brothers and sisters. My Facebook and Twitter newsfeeds are dominated by conversations about race. I expect they will be for some time. Organizations of all kinds are issuing statements and discussing the way forward. These conversations are not easy. The potential for misunderstanding is high. People of color among us are understandably skeptical of white hashtag activism, wondering whether it will translate into any lasting change.
You’ve likely heard of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German pastor executed by the Nazi regime for his plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler. He penned some incredibly profound insights on Christian community in his book, Life Together. They have never been more relevant. He warns:
It is easily forgotten that the fellowship of Christian brethren is a gift of grace, a gift of the Kingdom of God that any day may be taken from us, that the time that still separates us from utter loneliness may be brief indeed.
Until now, I had never been prevented from gathering with other believers. 2020 has shown me what a gift it is to meet together, and what a loss it is when such meetings are not allowed.
But there’s more. Bonhoeffer spent formative time in the black church in the United States before returning to Germany to shepherd the church that actively resisted Hitler’s regime. Bonhoeffer knows community. He knows a church divided by politics and a world on fire. He engaged in civil disobedience. And he knows what it costs.
Micah Curtis
is a game and tech journalist from the US. Aside from writing for RT, he hosts the podcast Micah and The Hatman, and is an independent comic book writer. Follow MLGMicah at @MindofMicahC 25 Nov, 2020 12:08
An LGBT activist with a poster on which Pope Francis is drawn with a heart in the colors of the rainbow, during the Avellino Pride 2019 on June 15, 2019 in Atripalda, Italy. © Getty Images / Ivan Romano
Follow RT on Pope Francis is getting ever more political, with recent statements on same-sex relationships, social justice and BLM marches. Christians are entitled to be concerned about this constant pandering to the radical left.
I’m not a Catholic, but like every other Christian on Earth, I tend to keep an eye on what the Pope is doing. With so much of the world Catholic, people naturally pay attention to such a renowned spiritual leader. And ever since Pope Francis became the head of the Holy See, there has been a huge amount of frustration from Christians. After all, whether you’re Catholic or not, you have to acknowledge that many see him as the most well-known Christian on Earth.
Pope Francis is politically the most far-left leaning pope of my lifetime. He has shown sympathy for open borders, has been naively critical of capitalism, and seems to comment on political issues quite a bit more than past popes have. Recently, he has outwardly shared support for same-sex civil unions, and had a meeting about social justice with NBA players. On top of that, he has also praised Black Lives Matter marches and decried protests against Covid restrictions.
A simple question arises from all of this. Is the Pope trying to make Catholicism go woke? I wouldn’t assume to know more about theology or biblical study than Pope Francis. But what I will say is that this pandering behavior comes across like a mix of naivete and stupidity. At this point I’m waiting for the Pope to make the same speech that George Carlin’s character did at the beginning of the film ‘Dogma’.
Whether I agree with the policy prescriptions of Pope Francis is ultimately moot, because my criticism of him is purely spiritual. I think his desire for unity among his fellow man occasionally blinds him to the truth of scripture.
One of my favorite quotes from my favorite theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is “politics are not the task of a Christian.” I understand this might seem hypocritical coming from the mouth of a man who tried to blow up Adolf Hitler, but I do think Bonhoeffer was on to something. I believe it comes from his understanding of “render unto Caesar” and Christ’s statements on and disinterest in government. This relates to the Pope, because I don’t think it’s his business to tell the governments of the world how to do their job. His job is to spread the gospel.
By Jesse T. Jackson – February 5, 2021
The NFL’s 55th Super Bowl kicks off in Tampa Bay this Sunday, February 7th, featuring the reigning Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs (14-2) versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-5). This year’s game represents the first time a team has hosted the Super Bowl in their own city. While the big game makes for good entertainment, the Super Bowl also provides one of the most lucrative opportunities human traffickers and sex traffickers have to promote their dark, criminal trade. However, some see the Super Bowl as a different opportunity: To bring awareness to this great evil of our modern times. One such person is Kirk Cousins.
Outspoken Christian NFL quarterback Kirk Cousins, who plays for the Minnesota Vikings, took to social media to raise awareness regarding human trafficking. Cousins is part of Team Freedom, a pro athlete group with International Justice Mission (IJM) which is a global Christian organization that, according to their website, partners with local authorities to rescue individual victims of violence and restore survivors to safety and stability
Cousins told CBS News earlier this week, “I think about how fragile my boys are… and to think that anybody would take advantage of them or harm them, it makes my blood boil to think that does happen to young people all over the world in the tens of millions. It’s disturbing.” The Vikings quarterback explained operating in the shadows is how the traffickers get away with selling nearly 25 million people worldwide, 1 in 4 of whom are children.
A preacher’s kid who calls faith “the foundation of my life,” Cousins said, “If [trafficking] truly is brought to the light and identified for the horrible evil that it is, people will band together to put an end to it.”
IJM is partnering with Hillsborough County Commission on Human Trafficking to combat trafficking leading up to and during the Super Bowl. According to WUSF News, efforts to train Uber drivers to recognize possible trafficked victims have taken place, as well as large signs placed in the Tampa International Airport designed to inform travelers of the risks of human trafficking.
Florida ranks third in the nation for human trafficking, according to the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s website. The site states that half of the sex victims in the United States are 17 years old or younger, and 96 percent of those in Miami-Dade county are minors who are female. Miami-Dade county is less than a 4.5 hours drive from where the Super Bowl will take place in Tampa.
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