Growing up in Ethiopia didn't make me the most patriotic soul that has ever sported a US passport. That doesn't mean I don't like a good barbeque with some apple pie thrown in, or that I plan to apply for Australian citizenship anytime soon. It just means I look at our politics from a slightly difference perspective. And I've never celebrated July 4th with much fervor.
But this year we in WMF Bolivia decided that we needed to actually take some of our holidays, instead of using them to catch up on email. So we penciled in July 4th as an actual holiday and left our computers at home for the day.
Well, actually, that's a lie. I did take the day off, mostly, but at about 10 am I found myself reading the Declaration of Independence online. Don't ask why and expect a profound answer. I guess I just wanted to affirm what I know deep in my American heart: that our country was founded on beautiful and even Christian principles which many US citizens still strive after today. I mean, look at this lovely statement we have here at the beginning of that historic document:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men (and women, I'm sure they would have added today) are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
OK, so we've all read that before. But at the end of everything, right before a bunch of illegible John Hancocks (except for John Hancock's, of course), I found something I've never read before:
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
That part gave me shivers that felt surprisingly like patriotism. That's our Founding Fathers writing that, relying on our God for protection of these rights-life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness-and pledging their own lives, wealth, and reputations to pursue these rights!
Suddenly, my day had a new purpose. If white-haired dead guys could pledge their money and reputations to safeguard these things, well dag-nabbit, so could I! I won't bore you guys with the details of my day, much of which involved sharing Chinese food with some new friends who beg on the street, but I did want to let you know about some liberty that's being practiced down here in Bolivia.
About a month ago, International Justice Mission (a high-tech Christian mission that consists largely of ex-FBI agents and Ivy league lawyers) did a brothel raid, and rescued several girls who had been trafficked to La Paz from other Bolivian cities. They were literally trapped in modern-day slavery, having been tricked into the brothel and then kept there without their documentation, forced to prostitute.
Two girls chose to stay in La Paz to testify in the trial against the trafficking ring. We'll call them C and Y. They were housed in a drab and empty domestic violence shelter until their trial. Unfortunately, just as IJM was pushing the trial into courts, the entire Bolivian court system decided to take a month-long vacation. Ah, the joys of majority world bureaucracy!
Poor C and Y are still waiting for a trial that they don't technically have to testify for. In my patriotic attempt to preserve liberty, I joined Heather in regular visits to these dear, sweet underage girls. IJM doesn't have much of an aftercare program, so our short visits are almost all C and Y have in terms of friends who will listen to them. Sometimes, all they want to talk about is movies they've seen. C crochets, so we bring her yarn and projects. Heather brings Bible studies they can do in their long hours alone. But these brave, resilient girls have been given one form of liberty, and are still waiting for the liberty of justice. Please pray for them.
In other, non-July 4th related news, my director Andy Baker broke two ribs in a downhill biking accident. He's in pain but doing well, and his wife isn't surprise in the least that his antics have finally resulted in broken bones. Whether or not he asked for this with his death-defying adventures, please pray that he heals quickly.
Here's my amateur benediction: Praise the Lord for life. Seek liberty and justice. Pursue happiness for others and through that, make God smile.
In Christ,
Cara