How Could Someone Do Something Like That?

If you met Marie, you’d be impressed with how sweet and gentle she is. What would make a parent sell a child like her to traffickers? How could someone do something like that?

Evil. Some parents are plain evil. That’s true on this side of the world as it is on the other side of the world. Evil is why some parents sell their children.

Desperation. Poverty causes people to do things that they never would consider otherwise. And for some parents, selling a child is a way out of the type of poverty that few of us have witnessed, except maybe from the comforts of our living room while watching TV. And then the remote control is always nearby when the images become too disturbing or boring. Poverty is why some parents sell their children.

And some parents sell their children in hope. Some, like any parent, want the best for their children. And when traffickers come to the village, they paint a picture of a better life. They claim to represent some wealthy patron looking for a nanny, housekeeper, or cook. Parents are told of a better life where their daughters will be safe, receive an education, live around privilege, and be able to send money home. And so they take the earnest money, sign the contract, and never see their children again.

At Rapha House, we’re committed to providing girls like Marie with real hope for a better life. And because we’re here, they find the hope that they’ve been looking for.

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. (Psalm 62:5)