They Will Know Us By Our Love

God is moving in unbelievable ways through the ladies of the Power of Love ministry to area strip clubs. You’ve got the read the story below from ministry leader Jennifer Colella about one lady whose life, through Christ, may never be the same.

I wanted to give you an update on some things that have happened since our last outreach. The Sunday after our October outreach I received a phone call from one of the dancers we met at a lounge. She was very anxious and upset explaining that she had been abandoned, abused and was far away from home. When she told me her name was Susan,* I immediately remembered her and her story from the night of the outreach. When she called, she was a few hours from being homeless, had about $15 to her name and it became clear to me we were in a crisis situation. I told her to sit tight and I would make some phone calls. One of our team members met with her and spent many hours talking and praying with Susan to better understand her situation and figure out how we could help. We realized that Susan had come to a fork in the road. She had been abandoned by a man who had hurt her and would likely continue to do so if she went back to him. She had family members that care about her, have been praying for her and trying to keep her sober and in the church for many years now. Susan knew that going home was the right thing to do but, she was afraid, ashamed, embarrassed and convicted. The bottom line was, we couldn't force her to do the right thing. She had to make that decision for herself. So we explained to her that we wanted to see her start over and begin trusting God with her life. We told her we'd get her a bus ticket back to her family in New Jersey if she decided she wanted to start over. She was still undecided so we told her she could have until 6 PM to make a decision, then the offer expired. The following hours were tough, but we prayed and prepared for whatever would happen next.

Praise God, Susan called and asked us to purchase the ticket! We picked her up at her hotel and drove her to the bus station. As her departure time approached, we reached for her shaky hands and gathered in a circle at the bus station to pray with her. All the time I kept praying, Lord, she's not a waste, please stay close to her and don't let her go. As we departed and walked back to the car, I just kept wondering: What would become of her? Did we do enough? Did we do too much? What would have happened to her if we didn't help her?

All night and the next morning I kept picturing Susan's bloodshot eyes, the weary look on her face from all the years of drug use, abuse and pain. I thought to myself: Will she really try and turn her life around, or did she hop off the bus at the first stop and get herself right into another crisis situation? That afternoon, my outreach partner called me to say Susan has been in touch with her and is “doing fine so far." When Susan finally made it back to New Jersey, she continued calling and my partner has even been on speaker phone with some of Susan's family members! Susan is living with her sister, going to church, asking spiritual questions, considering work and school and still needs lots of prayers. She is working on changing her life. She needs prayers for emotional and mental stability and prayers that she will maintain her sobriety.

Your prayers, encouragement, donations and support are what keep this ministry going into our mission field to help these ladies find their way out of these strip clubs. This is the second time we've met a woman on an outreach in a crisis situation who has called us and we were able to pray with her and see her leave the business. If it weren’t for your faithfulness in donating the items for bags, volunteering your time and the financial support to be able to purchase a bus ticket, we wouldn't be a part of the lives of these ladies. I'm already looking forward to the December 11 outreach, anxious to see what God will do next! Thank you for your commitment to the Kingdom. May God bless your faithfulness. You are all loved and appreciated!

* The lady's name was changed to protect her identity.