When we were preparing to come, our primary objective was to minister to and train the young women who are rescuing women from the sex trade in Honolulu, Hawaii, and for the individuals and families that have taken them in off the street. Waikiki has become a mecca for foreign tourists who are specifically coming here for sex holidays. It has become quite common, although not nearly as open as in Thailand. We were able to minister to the primary rescuers weekly, but not as frequently to the others as we would like because of their jobs and other conflicts.

It is very tough to win the confidence of the street girls, so we’ve attended birthday parties, picnics and other outings trying to build relationship so we could minister to them. I (Jim) felt like that would be a serious uphill climb for a male, since that’s where much of their personal pain originates from. So our team of ladies moved in and turned the tide. We would have liked to do more with those they’ve taken in off the street, but you can only do what they will allow, and the only time available is what they give you. In addition to other times during the week, Thursday evening each week was dedicated to praying for them and ministering to those who wanted it.

There is some sex trafficking of internationals going on in Hawaii, but it is predominately local American runaways; girls who had a rough home life and left hoping for greener pastures. Actually, the vast majority left home with no plans at all, simply a desperation to get away from what was going on there. In those cases their only option is to try to live on the streets either begging, or to lie about their age and hopefully snag a job somewhere. The street pimps are always on the lookout for new girls. The average life on the street is 7 years and usually ends tragically by either suicide, or a drug overdose. There are very few survivors. One of the girls they rescued is now 17 and is able to finish high school. She left home at 12 and was quickly picked up by a pimp.

On the whole this ministry trip was very effective and yet, you always wish you could do more. The “more” is being done by Nicole and Veronica there on the streets of Hawaii. They continue to make a place for them in their lives and watch over their “normalization” back into a society in a healthy manner. They have become the only loving family that these women have ever really had, one that is for them, no matter what. We were able to minister to all the rescued girls several times during the trip and were able to sow into those who can come around them and support them in the future.

Part of the HOH team went to an informal birthday celebration picnic in a park surrounding Waikiki Beach. It was late in the evening during the first week we were there and was put on for a few of the girls who had been rescued from the street. Waikiki could be any major city on earth. You know it’s somewhere in the Pacific basin simply because of the number of Asian tourists visiting and the number of wedding photos being taken on the beach in the late afternoon. One section of Waikiki has every big name, high end, maker of clothing and accessories you have ever heard of all in a row. I got a bit lost trying to find our way home afterward and inadvertently traveled down the boulevard known as “The Track” where local prostitutes work the street. It didn’t take long to recognize where you were. It was quite a sight to see. The “dead shark stare” is quite common for many of these girls.

We were privileged to pray over the new Safe House (actually it’s a 2 BR/1BA Apartment) for the gals who are being rescued. They need your help. They have a place, but not enough money to furnish it, even modestly. It needs everything; beds, dressers, plates, table ware, cooking utensils, sheets, pillows, towels, soap, toilet paper, you name it. They are happy to pick it up used at Good Will stores here. Anything you can do to help provide accommodations in a safe, secure, furnished home for a week or two prior to them being placed in a private home would be welcomed.

Once the police (HPD, Immigration and the FBI) know that there is a safe place they can be taken, the traffic will pick up. They will see to it. This has always been the biggest need; a safe, secure, supervised place for women to be taken right off the street. This has never been the case anywhere on the island, (much less the mainland) so law enforcement is reluctant to offer sanctuary to those who want out of the game because jail is all they can offer, which for many of them is actually the worst case scenario.  So having a privately funded safe house makes it easier for everyone, including the girls, and the local officers/detectives who are fighting local trafficking.

If you would like to support this effort on any level, you may send your tax deductible contributions to “House of Healing Ministries” with a note attached (Honolulu Safe House) and we’ll see that it gets to them immediately. They are currently working on their own 501c3, so you will soon be able to contribute to them directly.

We had dinner one evening in the home of a Honolulu Police Dept Detective who handles trafficking cases. What he told us both infuriated us and breaks your heart. Hawaii is one of six states in the union without specific laws to prosecute human traffickers. Lobbying groups opposed to trafficking worked very hard last year and early this year to  pass a law forbidding such activity. The Governor vetoed it because of money from the agricultural industry which relies on trafficked laborers. The detective stated that the current laws they are working under are 50 years old and only allows for prosecution under a very strict set of guidelines. Otherwise, the infraction is a misdemeanor punishable by a $250 fine. Consequently, local law enforcement will not pursue them. Following the veto of the proposed anti-trafficking legislation, the Governor disbanded a task force established two years earlier which allowed elements of the FBI, Immigration and HPD to work together.

There is hope that the more hostile political climate toward the legislative status quo will allow some significant legislation to be passed that will put some teeth in pursuit of human traffickers, whether it’s the sex trade or agriculturally targeted. The forced, illegal and immoral use of human beings as fodder for selfish personal gain, both harbored and justified by a corrupt political system must end.

There was a group from the mainland there during the 2nd week from a place called Courage House in northern California. It is being constructed to house underage children who have been rescued from sex trafficking. It is stunning to find that there are only four (4) such places in all the US as of this writing dedicated to children from this background.

We were also able to pray for a couple who had hosted a young lady in their home, but she had left after a couple of months, leaving their family in great disarray. We were able to pray prophetically over each of those who had taken girls in off the street at a Blue Water Mission Leadership meeting during our 2nd week in town.

Before we came, I was able to make contact with Jeannie Hughes, who heads the Alter Workers for Blue Water, and a Sozo team she has assembled. Over the course of two weekends we taught for 14 hours in four separate sessions on numerous inner healing topics. That resulted in us ministering to each of the 10 or 12 folks who attended individually over the next 10 days. I believe that in the process, we were able to salvage their Sozo ministry. It had fallen from 25 (generally inactive people) six months ago, to 7 by the beginning of October. There is much new life and new hope now in the group now. We have received numerous testimonies of how the training and personal ministry changed their lives and focus. That created an avalanche of requests for personal ministry during the last few days we were there.

I (Jim) taught on land cleansing and healing during one of the BW training sessions. Thanks to many of you who prayed for us, we were able to identify the primary spirits that had laid claim to the land (Palama Settlement, check it out on the web. Interesting history.) where the church meets on Sundays and where they rented two offices. That launched some serious prayer to break off the poverty, hopelessness, isolation, despair, death, disillusionment, murder, narcissistic attitude (what’s in it for me) and racial prejudice that had robbed all the joy from the Sunday services and caused the entire church of 250 to turn over once a year. It would be interesting to return in six months to see what changes have been wrought.  Lissa White taught on generational devliverance and Jeannie, the leader used it before we left. Her clients family line worshiped the God Pele, over the years, but had major deliverance.  Don’t you love it when the tools are used immediately.   Pat taught on Life in the Spirit along with Lissa on blessing the spirit.