Two weeks before heading back to the US for a 3-month furlough, I received the diagnosis of a needed total hip replacement. Unable to change hundreds of details: flights, plans, graduations, meetings, and events I limped with pain through the past 3 months.
We call it the Livingston US Bed tour.
This is how strongly we feel the US needs to hear about the atrocity of child sex trafficking around the world.
We visited 9 different states and dozens of churches where we met amazing people of God and churches who were unaware of this thing called human trafficking. Oh, they’d heard of it but felt helpless to do anything about it.
We slept in 17 different beds: good ones, bad ones, lumpy ones, cold ones, opulent ones. Nothing like the humbling experience of waking up night after night wondering “where am I” or “which way is the bathroom”?
We conducted 32 human trafficking awareness events where we were able to share the Gospel through our work in Cambodia and how God is sustaining us through His Word by His Spirit. We’ve met in churches, living rooms, kitchens, coffee shops, auditoriums, offices and restaurants.
“And Jesus went out…”
I cannot tell you how many people jokingly say to us, “Wow you’re on a 3-month vacation!” I wish.
Yes, we got to spend time with our families. We attended a son’s graduation, moved two of our now adult children to new jobs, visited with Mom, celebrated 8 family birthdays and anniversaries (something we do not get to do when living overseas), had our annual trek to Siesta Key, ate so many good meals our guts are longing for Cambodia and worshiped many times in our own language.
But we are in the US for the Kingdom of God on Earth not our earthy pleasures.
We desperately long for Jesus to be known in every heart.
We desperately long for the end of human trafficking.
We desperately long for children to be protected and cherished.
We desperately long for women to be valued as God created them.
We desperately long for traffickers to repent of their wicked ways.
We desperately long for governments to protect the innocent.
We desperately long for the church to rise up and set the captives free.
We desperately long for the return of the King…
“For in just a very while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay’”. (Hebrews 10:37)
And so we return to our beloved Cambodia on August 1 and again return to fight the fight.
And get a new hip. Pray for me 😊