She Seeks Vlog // In Response to Sex-Trafficking

Today, go on over to She Seeks for my video blog in response to my new friend Sarah's post on Mercy Ministries. *Click on the pic to watch*

Love,

Retreat Session Pt. 1: Broken People

**Some of you have been asking me to post a blog series on my session I gave at the RCC  Women's retreat. I was honored and thought it was an absolute splendid idea. I had so much more I wanted to say and ran out of time so this is the perfect opportunity to get it all out! :) Here's Pt. 1. I'll try to do a couple post of it the next 2 weeks.**

I am here more so to humour you than to teach you with my little baby 23 years of lessons and experiences. I was given 2 very big topics and I was grateful to teach on them until this past month or so when the Lord decided I’d teach better if my emotions were more raw and fresh.

I know God has done something here this weekend that the enemy tried very hard to destroy. I wrote Satan a letter the other day on my blog giving him props because his tactics were very much targeted, specific, and potent to my current season of life. I was discouraged and broken and weary and out of control this week. But thank God almighty that the war has already been won!

In fact, the irony of this message is that I had to re-live it in order to teach it this morning. SO if there was every any doubt about the truthes about to be explored this morning, they have been vanished because I am here, teaching, confidently and empowered. 

--This was my intro to my session at the women's retreat. It had been a very hard week, emotionally, physically, and spiritually but God was faithful to let my exhaustion not be in vain. So many women come forward just to tell me that everything I had revealed about my week, my pain, my struggles, and my out-of-control emotions [blogged on that one here] was as if I was speaking about them. They knew what I was talking about and were floundering, just like me, for any ounce of rest. 

But God.

Yes, He knew what He was doing.

I would not have been able to encourage nor motivate those women had I not felt what they felt. I say it all the time, broken people only listen to broken people. We listen to those we most relate to, feel like, think like, and experience life like. 

We find our hope through Real People with Real Lives and Real Victories. 

So this is my challenge to you and to me::

Be real with someone in your life this week. Tell them what you're feeling and what you're thinking and give them that opportunity to respond with, "Me too!" or "I thought I was the only one!" Crazy things happen when we let down our masks of perfection. We begin to really see that no one is perfect and we're all more alike than we care to admit. 

It's ok that we're broken. Because God loves us. That's it. 

Love,

Love is not Silent

I have made it a point to keep my posts relevant to the purpose of the JM blog. Speaking. Singing. Writing. And I try to write and welcome any and every post that fits those 3 categories. Recently a high school girl interviewed me about my involvement with Love146 for a school paper she was writing on abolishing sex-trafficking. I was highly impressed with her thorough and professional questions and interest on the topic.

Well, she wrote it and I read it and I cried. The passion in this girl's writing leaps from the paper directly into her reader's heart. I can feel the urgency and motivation in her frantic typing fingers. Her writing is eloquent and impact full and I want so badly to share it with you. I hope she inspires you as she inspired me. Her name is Sam and she's 16.

*It's a little long but it's worth it*

     Robert Allan, an anti-exploitation activist, declared, “Slavery was abolished 150 years ago, right? While it is true that slavery is illegal almost everywhere on earth, the fact is there are more slaves today than there ever were...”  Slavery is defined as being in bondage, severe toil, drudgery, having one’s inalienable civil rights completely dominated by another. Child sex trafficking is an egregious example of slavery. Sexual exploitation is a basic violation of a human being’s rights. Stripped from their towns, their homes, their families, these children are treated as a sex object, not as a person. Commercial sexual exploitation is a form of coercion and violence against innocent children. This is modern slavery. This is innocence for sale. This is not acceptable.

     Worldwide, 27 million children are trapped in the human sex trafficking business with two new victims ensnared every sixty seconds. It is estimated that trafficking generates $32 billion annually, making it the second most rewarding crime in the world. Regions around the world, including Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean are suffering through this silent epidemic. Every year more than 100,000 children are forced into prostitution and pornography in the United States alone. Perhaps because of the large runaway population of these cities, 86% of those exploited in the U.S. come off the streets of Phoenix, Arizona and Anaheim, California. One of the most dire regions in the world is Asia with Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, India and Nepal all being significant contributors to the trade.

     Regardless of what part of the world a victim is from, homelessness, minority status, poverty and lack of education cause children to become vulnerable to capture. Exploiters even use natural disasters to find young people to populate their brothels. These children, separated from their families, are tragically enticed by the promise of protection. They are lured with promises of security, safety, love, and money, but these false promises eventually crumble to the ground after repetitive beatings and starvation. Children as young as six years old are being forced to sexually perform for endless hours and countless “clients”. Forced to perform multiple times a night, they cannot say no for fear of consequences that range from cigarette burns to being electrocuted through an electric wire that has been inserted into their body. Fear, forced drugs and violence are often part of the slavery equation, creating an environment from which there is no escape. Captors use these methods to break the children until they learn to smile for every pedophile or sex tourist that solicits their establishment. Child slaves are told, “you cannot runaway”; they are told “you cannot escape”; they are told, “this is your life.”

     Unfortunately, some local law enforcement agencies and the international community have often times reinforced this message of “no escape”. Though law enforcement officials are supposed to be a source of safety and refuge, they are often not for the enslaved people, trading free “sessions” to turn a blind eye and look the other way for the brothels. This is a haunting reality to families living in poor regions because if they cannot pay debts owed by the family, officials may take their sons and daughters into the city to “work” off the debt. In actuality they are selling human beings like commodities. One girl recounts how she escaped the brothel only to be hunted down by police and dragged by her hair back to endless days of despair.

     Children trapped in these hopeless situations are broken, with seemingly no repair in sight. Rob Morris is the co-founder of Love146, an organization which helps in the rescue and healing of trafficked children. He remembers a visit to a safe house where he witnessed a girl who had been rescued from the streets, sitting in a corner by herself repeatedly pouring handfuls of dirt over her head. A caretaker explained that since being at the safe home, this shattered 8 year old girl had continually repeated this behavior, trying to make herself disappear. What would cause a child to feel so worthless, to be brought to a place of such self-loathing, brokenness and shame, that she would want to make herself vanish completely? For this girl and those like her, there is no hoping, there is no dreaming, there is no future apart from the torment they experience daily- unless we speak for them.

            “What these victims need above all is to know that they are not alone; that we are not forgetting them, that when their voices are stifled we shall lend them ours, that while their freedom depends on ours, the quality of our freedom depends on theirs,” stated Elie Wiesel. A Nobel Peace Prize recipient known for his work on behalf of the exploited, Elie Wiesel speaks out against indifference, intolerance and injustice worldwide. This man, along with organizations such as Love146 and the International Justice Mission are beginning to awaken the international community to the horrors of human trafficking. They offer safety for those rescued from the sex trade though their safe homes. They participate in undercover operations designed to expose the inner workings of the industry and help conduct raids of brothels involved. 

     The International Justice Mission also works through the justice system, attacking brothels through legal avenues and asking local governments to prevent and punish sex trafficking. Perhaps most importantly, these people and organizations are calling the rest of us to be a voice for those who cannot speak up for themselves. We are being called to shine a light on today’s slavery and to say that this is not acceptable in today’s world.

     On a subsequent trip to the safe home, Rob was taught to dance by a girl so giggly and alive, that she quickly stole his heart. He later asked about the girl’s story and was told that this was the same little person who had tried to bury herself with dirt during his previous visit. Recovery and restoration are possible; there is hope. Love protects, love defends, love restores, love empowers.  Love is not silent.

-Samantha

She Speaks: The Actual Conference

So there is this conference for girls and women who are pursuing to be public speakers and writers...perfect right??!! I mean, the subtitle should be a picture of my face! haha. 


Well Joanna and I have been talking for the last couple months about going but by the time we got talking, it was a little too late to start saving $$. So started saving now, hoping that we'll get to make it to next year's conference. And then...

We found out about this beautiful scholarship opportunity! Can you tell that I am excited?? 

The She Speaks Conference is put on by the women of Proverbs 31 Ministries. I have never met these girls but the content they produce on their site, blog, and conference pages has been incredibly encouraging and influential for me this last year as I have pursued writing and speaking with my whole heart. They have spurred me on to believe, not in myself, but in the goodness of God, the calling of God, and the power of God. That He chooses ordinary people to do His work and impact His people in ways that we could never ever dream of. Boy is that the truth. Never in my life did I anticipate working on this book project. And never did I think I'd be speaking, as a 22 year old, in front of Mom's groups and women's events. 


But this is just proof that God, the original creator, has crafted in each life a story and every story should have the opportunity to be told. Let me say that again: every story should have the opportunity to be told. Mine. Yours. Your parent's. Your children's. Because every story brings light to who God is.


Crazy isn't it?


The two portions of the conference I am most looking forward to are the Speaking and Writing segments [from the conference site]:

She Speaks: (Speakers’ Track) Whether you feel led to speak in a large arena or lead Bible studies in your church, you will be equipped with the tools you need to effectively share your message, build your platform, and market your ministry.

She Writes: (Writers’ Track) Learn everything from basic writing guidelines to preparing an article or manuscript for submission, and everything in between. In addition, you will have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with some of the top editors, publishers, and literary agents in the Christian market.

So this is my entry of chance. 1 out of 200...those are good odds right? :) 

Happy Friday. Oh yea, my sister is getting married tomorrow!!

Love,

Fighting for Love

Last night was one of the best nights of my life. Seeing so many people come and celebrate with us this fight for love, my heart melted more than once. The night started out very cold and rainy. I feared people wouldn't come because of the inconvenient weather. But that just wasn't the case. We had an amazing opener, Miss Jockii, who did a fabulous job. I loved the Ukelele. 

 We had a "plethora" of cupcakes, thanks to dear friends and family. All of them were decorated so cute and appropriately :) 

And we sang our little hearts out.

Passionately belting my new song :) Recording coming soon! I think.

I am not ok with all this pain and sorrow

we must choose today to make a new tomorrow

One girl one girl, one girl at a time

This fight just became mine.

This was my first ever attempt at wearing sequins. It was a little nerve wracking, but if there's any time or place one could wear sequins, it's at a birthday or concert right? 

And did you see my gorgeous choir girls in the back?? All of them talented musicians [yes, Jo, you are a musician!] and all of them have sweet sweet voices. They sang the finale song with me. It was a tear jerker. 

So thank you all who came and made this evening possible. I couldn't have done it without you:

-Kandis, Chelsea, Shereena, Alicia, Jenn, Crystal-Lee, Amanda, Jess, Amber, Rayna, Genee, Dierdre, Brittany, thank you for slaving over your cupcakes.

-Ed and Sydney for helping decorate :) 

-Della, Joanna, Erica, Jockii, and Crystal-lee, thank you for sharing your voices.

-Brian and Adam, thanks for running sound and lights. The show literally depends on you... :) 

-Bob for taking care of the kiddos!

-Andrew for setting up the genius donation bar. Seriously genius.

-My mom and dad for raising me to believe in goodness and justice for the glory of God. 

-Kenny, Danny, Justin and Andrew for playing with us. It is seriously a blessing to have such amazingly talented [and flexible] musicians in my life. I appreciate you guys. Even though I throw last minute songs in the mix...

-And last but definitely not least, my Ty, for believing in this cause and fighting with me. Love you.

I am full with thankfulness. I am full with peace.

Love,

From the Bottom of our Hearts

So we've been raising money for an organization called Love146 that does research, prevention, and aftercare of victims in the sex trade industry. Our goal is to raise $3000 between my husband's birthday and my own. That's 40 days. Within one week {just one!} you guys have helped us raise nearly half of that goal. We are blown away! 

$1036 raised.

$1913 to go.

So here's our thank you to you. From the bottom of our hearts. 

Love,

*Want more information on this whole birthday thing? Click the birthday message @ the top of my page*

Give a Coffee's Worth.

I told myself I would never do this.

Everyone does it.

I thought it was a shame tactic.

Now I'm doing it. But not as a shame tactic.

I'm doing it because I was sorely convicted. 

I'm doing it because, because I'm guilty.

This is my fetish. This is my obsession.

In November I'm pretty sure I had a Gingerbread latte at least every other day.

**This is not to say that buying coffee is bad. On the contrary, buying coffee is good because it stimulates the economy. Plus, Starbucks is for fair trade coffee. So that's good.**

But I am asking you for just this month, or even this week, or even just today, spare the coffee and give these girls the chance to be free.

A chance to live free of fear.

A chance to live free of abuse.

A chance to live free of torment.

A chance to live free, full of hope, and new love.

Our Goal is $3000 and we need $2789 left.

Give a coffee's worth.

Love,

Giving Hope + Love + Freedom.

This is what your birthday presents will do.

Heal my heart and make me clean

Open up my eyes to the things unseen

Show me how to love like you have loved me

Break my heart for what breaks yours

Everything I am for your kingdom cause

As I walk from earth into eternity

Give your gift here.

Love,

40 Days to Celebrate.

::Special announcement from the Morlet Household::

There are exactly 40 days between Tyson's birthday and my birthday. His being January 11 and mine being February 21. This last year of marriage has been an amazing time of revelation for us. We feel that our hearts have been urged to take make a bigger dent in our finances, resources, and platforms for charity organizations. 


Before we were married, Tyson began sponsoring kids with World Vision. His heart was to see every kid have clean water, food, and be able to learn. After we got married, my heart broke when I was exposed to Love146 and the tragedies of child sex-trafficking [read that story here and here]. There are things happening [or not happening] in our world that we are just not ok with. 


So with all this we've decided that for our birthdays we want to invite you to celebrate our 28 [Ty] and 23 [Me] years of freedom, health, and life by giving others a chance to have the same. 


We are asking You, our friends, family, and readers to help us raise $3000 by donating $28 or $23 [or whatever amount you are able to] to Love146 on behalf of our birthday gifts. We want nothing more. [Want more info on this cause: go here]

Celebrate with us. 

You can donate by clicking the button below or the birthday message under my header [It'll be there for the 40 days :)]. 

We thank you ahead of time for your gifts and are ecstatic that you are in this endeavor with us!


**Feel free to 
re-tweet
re-post
re-email
re-facebook
and whatever other "re"s there are now.


*If you have any questions please feel free to email!


Love,

Writing Practice & Resolutions

In lieu of my writing practice I am attempting to write a couple shorter E-books on somethings I am crazy passionate about. Here's a sneak peek.

In my journey as a worship leader I have come to be convicted by one thing. The worth of my worship  is dead if I am not acknowledging the grace and greatness of God. Scripture elaborately describes that worship is not just music. It is not just singing. In fact, the act of singing is just one of many aspects of worship. "Worship is the believer’s response of all that they are – mind, emotions, will, body – to what God is and says and does." [Weirsbe] 

It's a response. An active response. And response urges action. Action to make right. Do right. Love what is right in the eyes of God. Micah 6:8 says, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you?" What exactly does God require of us? Just this: "To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." That's worship. [We have a song about it too! Go here]

[From the Diaries of a Grownup Teenage Girl]

I've always wanted to write a book with my mom. She's the wisest woman I know. Growing up, she learned the fine and skilled art of mothering a teenager while creating an environment of love and respect. I respect both my parents tremendously. I don't know how they did it, but whatever they did...it worked.

Now that's not to say I was never angry, irritated, annoyed, or overly dramatic about how I felt I was being treated, sheltered, and/or denied my rights as an American teenage girl. One skim through my journal will show you otherwise. I was a normal teenage girl with normal teenage drama. We're all [mostly] the same. Yet they maneuvered through those times with such poise, grace, and an overabundance of love. 

This book will be full of funny, inspiring, and hopefully encouraging stories for all moms of teenage girls and all teenage girls of moms. 

Everyone can sing. It's true. Everyone can and everyone does. You know who you are, you showering, hair brushing, radio blasting belters. Ya'll do it because singing is part of who we are. Think about it, people have been singing since the beginning of time. People sing all over the world. Every nation, every tribe, every country utilizes the gift of music. Why is that? 

My E-Course, I {Heart} Singing, will give you the tools you need to understand the method and magic behind singing [I'll give you a hint, it's not as magical as you think ;)]. It will also push you outside of your comfort zone to connect heart, mind, and soul through song.

Everyone loves music. Everyone loves singing. That's a no brainer. 

---

So there you have it. These are a big part of my NY Resolutions. Keep me accountable :) 


What are your NY Resolutions? Comment them or email me them and I'll post the on my blog all day tomorrow. Finale-ing with my own Resolutions and new blog look by Midnight.


[Ahh, so much pressure, so much excitement!]


Love,

Feeding Your Art

"Before I pick up the guitar or sit at the keyboard, I’ve been 'writing' by feeding on the stuff I do want to mark my life and my art… hope, grace, forgiveness. ~Brooke Fraser

What do you feed on to inspire your art?

"If you’re an artist or creative person of some kind, your artistic 'digestive system' is your heart, mind and senses, your soul. So if something affects your soul, it affects your art." ~Brooke Fraser

What has affected your soul lately?

I'm feeding on this, and this, and this and this, and this right now.
[click on links :)]


Love,

She Speaks: New Stories to Tell

Ever since I moved my blog over I seem to have neglected my main site. Hats off to all you moms and wives that maintain a blog, a house, feed your men and children, and find time with your girls. It's a boat load of work and I think I'm finally starting to get into a bit of a routine with good balance. 


That said, I have updated a number of things on the site. Most recently, my sphere of topics that I have decided to speak on. When I am asked to speak at an event or study, my life story of overcoming sexual abuse is usually what is requested. However in the last year and a half I have had opportunities to branch out a bit and speak on a wider array of dramas. I had so much fun in all of them that I added them to my repertoire.


It is absolutely inevitable that a new stage in life causes new stories to be created. New angles on old memories, bursting excitement on new memories, and perspective on the trials and heartache of both.

Here's how they came about: 


Six months after our wedding day I had this overwhelming passion to get together with wives, new and seasoned, and ask questions, share stories, gain wisdom and practical advice. So I did, with 7 girls that I eat, study, and pray with every week. And from that I have prepared a new topic called "The Newlyweds: What I wish I would have known." 

{I did an abbreviated version of this one here @ a Women's Study in Temecula, CA.}


Also, last October our church put on a Girls Conference for high school and middle school girls and Ty and I got to speak at that. We addressed the issues of dating and not-dating, sharing our mess-ups and how we did it right with each other and what God's Word says about the issue...or does it? :) 


And lastly, I have take on a more official role as Worship Leader in my home church, here in Temecula, CA.  Although I have been leading worship in all sorts of environments and churches for 8 years, this new journey has caused me to sink my teeth even deeper into the wide world of Worship Leading, inspiring me to gather worship leaders together, especially within same cities and valleys, to work together for one goal. Creating an environment where the people of God can see clearly His glory and respond in worship; spurring a lifestyle of such. This has been challenging and invigorating, especially as a girl. Age old lessons and fresh new ideas are rapidly racing through this brain of mine. And I'm loving it.

So if you are ever planning an event or you know someone who is planning an event, please think of me. I love sharing with the masses of conferences and teas, and cherish the times with the small groups and home bible studies. You can email me or comment on this blog to inquire on information and dates and if that date is open on my calendar, I am yours. :)


~JM