Girls as young as this one are rescued from sex slavery by Far Corners. (Image courtesy Far Corners Missions)

Last week, an Australian-based charity released the Global Slavery Index. It’s a ranking of 162 countries based on three factors: prevalence of modern slavery by population, child marriage and human trafficking, both in and out of a country.

Its estimate of 29.8 million modern-day slaves around the world is a bump up from ILO and U.S. estimates, which figured 20.9 million and 27 million, respectively.

At roughly 14 million people enslaved, India holds nearly half of the world’s slave population. West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have the highest number of sex trafficking cases last year, according to data from India’s National Crimes Record Bureau (NCRB).

“It’s a big, big problem in Andhra Pradesh,” says Far Corners Missions’ Gary Bishop. “There’s large complexes of them (trafficked girls). My wife and I have been in one complex that is as large as 15,000 girls in one place.”

He says complexes are located “anywhere where the predators can find the traffic for the girls that they have enslaved.”

At 506, Andhra Pradesh had the third-most trafficking cases in 2012. Bishop points to Interstate 5 as a major contributing factor to the prevalence of sexual exploitation and human trafficking in east India. The highway runs north-to-south through the state.

“It makes possible two very prominent factors, and that is the transport of people, and also the itinerant drivers who are involved with women along the way,” notes Bishop.

He says Far Corners has been fighting to free them for 40 years. It all began when the ministry’s founder discovered “the cages of Bombay” during a sight-seeing tour in 1973.

In a Mumbai — also known as Bombay — slum, 15,000 girls were trapped in literal cages, selling their bodies for 8 to 80 rupees (approximately $0.16 to $1.60USD) a day. Each cage held between four and six girls.

“Young women behind bars, actually on display for those looking for prostitution,” Bishop describes.

That began Far Corners Missions’ Operation Rescue. Not only are young girls rescued from the sex trade, they’re taught about Christ and given new life skills training at Far Corners’ New Life Centers.

Bishop says the girls they care for emerge with wounds that are more than skin-deep.

“They’ve lived for several years up to, sometimes, several decades with the emotional scarring of having been enslaved and forced to do things that no human should have to engage in,” he explains.

“A big part of [the healing process] is introducing them to the unconditional love of Jesus, [whereas] the rest of the world has very conditional acceptance of them and most often will disregard them.”

Today, they’ve come across a new challenge: slaves infected with HIV/AIDS.

“That’s a stigma problem in India, kind of like having leprosy,” he explains. “They can’t even escape and go to some place and be cared for, because with that disease, they are often not welcomed into any part of any community.”

Far Corners stepping up as a voice for them, taking a portion of their leprosy hospital and converting it to hospice for former sex slaves with HIV/AIDS.

“We’re providing hospice care for them, of course introducing them to the love of Jesus, but also addressing their medical needs, their emotional needs,” says Bishop.

Want to help? Click here.

Most importantly, pray. “Pray for them to just have that glimmer of hope that will allow them the courage to make that first step.”

Last week, an Australian-based charity released the Global Slavery Index. It's a ranking of 162 countries based on three factors: prevalence of modern slavery by population, child marriage, and human trafficking, both in and out of a country.

Its estimate of 29.8 million modern-day slaves around the world is a bump up from ILO and U.S. estimates, which figured 20.9 million and 27 million, respectively.

At roughly 14 million people enslaved, India holds nearly half of the world's slave population. West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh have the highest number of sex trafficking cases last year, according to data from India's National Crimes Record Bureau (NCRB).

"It's a big, big problem in Andhra Pradesh," says Gary Bishop with Far Corners Missions. "There's large complexes of them [trafficked girls]. My wife and I have been in one complex that is as large as 15,000 girls in one place."

He says complexes are located "anywhere where the predators can find the traffic for the girls that they have enslaved."

At 506, Andhra Pradesh had the third-most trafficking cases in 2012. Bishop points to Interstate 5 as a major contributing factor to the prevalence of sexual exploitation and human trafficking in east India. The highway runs north-to-south through the state.

"It makes possible two very prominent factors: that is the transport of people and also the itinerant drivers who are involved with women along the way," notes Bishop.

He says Far Corners has been fighting to free them for 40 years. It all began when the ministry's founder discovered "the cages of Bombay" during a sight-seeing tour in 1973.

In a Mumbai–also known as Bombay–slum, 15,000 girls were trapped in literal cages, selling their bodies for 8 to 80 rupees (approximately $0.16 to $1.60USD) a day. Each cage held between four and six girls: "Young women behind bars, actually on display for those looking for prostitution," Bishop describes.

That began Far Corners Missions' Operation Rescue. Not only are young girls rescued from the sex trade, they're taught about Christ and given new life skills training at Far Corners' New Life Centers.

Bishop says the girls they care for emerge with wounds that are more than skin-deep.

"They've lived for several years up to, sometimes, several decades with the emotional scarring of having been enslaved and forced to do things that no human should have to engage in," he explains.

"A big part of [the healing process] is introducing them to the unconditional love of Jesus, [whereas] the rest of the world has very conditional acceptance of them and most often will disregard them."

Today, they've come across a new challenge: slaves infected with HIV/AIDS.

"That's a stigma problem in India, kind of like having leprosy," Bishop explains. "They can't even escape and go to some place and be cared for, because with that disease, they are often not welcomed into any part of any community."

Far Corners is stepping up as a voice for them, taking a portion of their leprosy hospital and converting it to hospice for former sex slaves with HIV/AIDS.

"We're providing hospice care for them, of course introducing them to the love of Jesus but also addressing their medical needs, their emotional needs," says Bishop.

Want to help? Click here.

Most importantly, pray. "Pray for them to just have that glimmer of hope that will allow them the courage to make that first step."

Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight were rescued Monday after a neighbor heard Berry screaming for help. Also rescued was Berry's six-year-old daughter. Berry, her daughter, and DeJesus are safe with their families, while Knight remains at a Cleveland hospital.

The women's captor, 52-year-old Ariel Castro, was recently charged with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape. He could face more charges once the case goes to a grand jury.

In charging documents released Wednesday, police said Castro lured Knight into his car in 2002, took her to his home, and "repeatedly sexually assaulted" her. Authorities described a similar scenario for Berry, who was lured into Castro's car in 2003 on the same road as Knight.

The following year, DeJesus was lured into Castro's vehicle and, like the other two women, repeatedly sexually assaulted in the subsequent years.

This story shows how most human trafficking cases start. You see, trafficking doesn't require movement; slavery is at the heart of this global problem.

According to the U.S. Department of State's 2012 Trafficking In Persons (TIP) report, "People may be considered trafficking victims regardless of whether they were born into a state of servitude [or] were transported into the exploitative situation…. At the heart of this phenomenon is the traffickers' goal of exploiting and enslaving their victims."

Cathey Anderson of Operation Mobilization says their annual Freedom Climb helps fight the problem worldwide.

"We're just all out there being this voice for these gals," Andersons states.

Each year, women climb one of the world's toughest mountains to raise awareness of the issue. The first Freedom Climb tackled Mount Kilimanjaro, while this year's group took on the foothills of Mount Everest.

"We walked into it with the anticipation that it would be very similar to our Kilimanjaro hike," Anderson recalls. "But it turned out to be dramatically different in so many different ways."

Along with a longer hike and more difficult terrain, sickness took down a majority of the group.

"Think of the worst stomach flu you've ever had, and that explains it," says Anderson.

"It was a struggle! It was just an absolute push-through, give it everything you got, and just depend on the Lord."

The climb does more than raise awareness though; Freedom Climbers also raise support for OM projects that fight human trafficking. Anderson says their projects tackle the issue in three ways: prevention, development, and rescue. Learn more about them here.

One of the best aspects about this story? You can be a part of it.

"We really need to get out there and be aware, be the voice, be the hands and the feet, and start making a difference," says Anderson.

Click here to learn more about the Freedom Climb and how you can get involved.

Keep praying for the victims of modern-day slavery, and pray for justice for the women in Cleveland.

"Pray for those that are suffering–physically, mentally, emotionally–and oppressed, enslaved, whatever it is, because it doesn't end," says Anderson.

"It's a big, bad stain on all of humanity."

The United Nations (U.N.) reports that one of the many ways women endure violence is modern-day slavery. The U.N. estimates that today there are 1.9 million women and girls in forced labor, and roughly half of them were trafficked specifically for sexual exploitation. They are part of the largest slave trade industry in human history.

According to the Food for the Hungry Web site, Jennifer was one of them. At the age of 14, she was one of 30,000 children abducted by Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) during a brutal 20-year civil war. The boys became ruthless soldiers, sometimes forced to kill their own parents. The girls were given to older soldiers as wives. If they refused, they were beaten into submission. They had a one in 100 chance of rescue, and even less of a chance of escape. Abused. Enslaved. Hopeless.

Jennifer and her daughter were among the lucky ones who came home, but only to find that she and her daughter would be shunned. Fortunately, they received help from Food for the Hungry (FH) at the New Life Center in Northern Uganda. Jennifer grew from hopeless to expectant, from unemployable to skilled, and from lost to alive in Christ.

But there are still 1.9 million women and girls who are victims of a $31.6 billion industry that exploits 2.5 million desperate and vulnerable people who are now modern-day slaves: girls, boys, women, and men. They are laboring against their will in every corner of the earth–maybe even in your own town. They are children working in fields and sweat shops to supply the products we enjoy (such as chocolate and cotton), boys and girls walking the streets as prostitutes, and worse.

The toll to society is great. A breakdown of family and communities are left behind. There's lost economic development. Health risks are higher. Trafficked children are more likely to develop mental health issues, and where human trafficking exists, there's typically more organized crime making rule of law difficult.

What can you do? Research the issue. Speak out on behalf of the voiceless. Write letters to the editor. Seek justice by becoming more actively involved, and give to organizations like Food for the Hungry who are helping victims of human trafficking regain their lives, their self-worth, their livelihoods, and come to know Christ.

Since then, ECM has continued to help these women whose
lives are in desperate need of restoration and rehabilitation.

Sharon Aldrich of ECM says they have just finished a three-week
rehabilitation program where they worked with seven of the freed women. ECM created a personalized plan for each woman's future, held
Bible studies twice a day, and taught them
how to sew. "We also helped them find
a more viable way of making a living, which involved
training them to develop a home business and possibly get a micro-credit
loan."

During the program, Lorella Rouster, co-founder of ECM, spent
an hour each day teaching the women various aspects of running their own
businesses–including basic math skills.

ECM hopes to offer the next step of rehabilitation
to any of the freed women who are interested. This will include more
information about starting a business and learning more skill sets.

Though training, personal attention, and Bible studies are
helping freed women take steps toward a life of wholeness, the process is slow. "It's
difficult for them to go back into the community and feel a part of everyone
because they have been set apart for something they know is wrong,"
Aldrich said.

However, ECM is speaking into their lives and showing them
they are loved and valued by Christ and His followers. For the women who turned
their lives over to Christ, their faith is growing and deepening. Aldrich said
they get excited just to hear Bible stories.

"It's encouraging to see them take the
next step of their growth. They enjoy being in Church, and they enjoy
hearing Bible stories. It was very exciting for me to be able to tell them
about Moses and the way that his mother sent him down the river. They smiled
and clapped just to hear that story,"
Aldrich said.

As for their former priest, "There is a local Christian man who is going to him every week and having prayer and Bible study
with him. And we pray for him," said Aldrich. ECM is keeping in contact
with him and is amazed by his strength as he refuses to return to his idols. "He
simply found the courage to do what many idol worshippers would like to
do," Aldrich said.

These 55 freed slaves, however, are not the end of ECM's quest to
liberate sex slaves. Though this was a slow process–taking five years for
these individuals to finally be free, ECM is already contacting and forming relationships with other
shrines, hoping to free even more slaves.

Pray for ECM as they continue their work in Ghana. Pray for
these freed women to find acceptance in their communities as they try to piece
their lives back together. Pray that they will find redemption and the unconditional
acceptance of Christ. Pray for the priest to remain strong in his faith and for
his fellow priests to turn to Christ through his example.

Support ECM and the work they are doing with trokosi and
vulnerable women and children across Africa at their Web site.

Every Child Ministries is rescuing these women and their children who were born into this environment. ECM co-founder Lorella Rouster says ritual servitude, or shrine slavery, is common.

Recently, Every Child Ministries liberated 55 slaves of the "Thunder god."

Rouster says it was a long process that started five years ago. "We went to the priest's home to meet the wives and to share the Gospel. We also met him and began to share the Gospel with him. At that time he was very interested.

Rouster says that was the beginning of a liberation that was supernatural. "Several members of the ECM team have been visiting [this priest] for the past five years. And, very gradually the priest has come to faith in Christ. He has come to the point where he was willing and even anxious to leave his idolatry and his priesthood and come out as a believer."

Rouster says his conversion led to the release of the slaves. And that's not all. "This priest convened all 63 other priests who were under him and urged all of them to follow Christ, too."

The priest has made a dramatic turnaround. He's now listening to God's Word on a Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) "Proclaimer" given to the priest, and he and his family have been listening to it constantly. But, also in the evening he has been playing it in his yard, and the whole neighborhood has been gathering to listen to it."

This home once used for idolatry is now an outpost for God's Word.

The road hasn't been easy for the priest. Rouster says, "He has really stood firm. Some of the local chiefs have come and argued with him and tried to turn him back, but he has stood firm." They're waiting to see when he gets sick. When he does, they're going to blame it on his conversion to Christ.

Rouster says many of the liberated slaves have already turned to Christ. "Even before the actual liberation took place, the priest allowed us to share the Gospel with the women, and many of them made professions of faith in Christ."

The road ahead is long, says Rouster. "Liberation is an event, but rehabilitation — that's a process. Some of the things we're doing are vocational training, counseling, and we'll continue sharing the Gospel with them and disciple those that have come to Christ.

Funding is needed to help these efforts. If you'd like to help Every Child Ministries with these rehabilitation efforts, click here.