Hey Friends and Family,
As many of you know I am off this week to Kolkata, (formerly Calcutta) India to spend some time in discernment about a long term job/ministry opportunity. This Tuesday at 6:30 am when my plane touches down I officially start an internship with Word Made Flesh (http://www.wordmadeflesh.org/) a holistic Christian organization that ministers to the urban poor. I will be on site for a little less than two months, participating in the community life and work of the WMF team.
The Indian and North American staff of Word Made Flesh in Kolkata seek primarily to reach out to women that have been trafficked into Kolkata’s red light district and forced into the sex trade. Kolkata has one of the largest red light districts in South Asia and there is a steady stream of young girls lured into the city with the promise of labor or prearranged marriages that find themselves being sold to brothel owners against their will. The work of Word Made Flesh Kolkata seeks to offer freedom to these women and their children by providing alternative employment and rehabilitation. By building relationships with women in the red light district, staff are able to discreetly invite them to become employees of Sari Bari, a unique business designed to empower these women with skills and a path out of sexual servitude (www.Saribari.com). At Sari Bari women are employed in the task of repurposing gently used saris into new and beautiful quilts and purses for sale.
What attracted me to work with Sari Bari is the relational and highly contextualized vision that the leadership has for offering freedom and hope in an often hopeless situation. Sari Bari has two locations in Kolkata and currently employs over 70 women. They are expanding into rural communities as well, in a preemptive attempt to stem the causes of trafficking in highly vulnerable areas. I am excited to enter into a period of prayer and on the field learning to see if this is the next step that God has for me.
As I enter into this period of discernment I ask for your prayers
- Please pray for the work of Word Made Flesh in Kolkata, for the full time staff that have dedicated their lives to helping women in the sex trade, for their emotional and physical health, and for the grace to continue in their work.
- For the women of Sari Bari as they seek to liberate themselves from oppressive situations, and for their children. That the One who liberates would continue to be with them.
- For me, that I would remain open to encountering God in the poverty and struggle of the of poor and oppressed.
- For direction as I move forward in the decision making process about whether or not to commit the next three years of my life to this place and this work.
You can follow my progress with weekly updates or reach me at adam.szarzynski@gmail.com
