PRAYER
People join together at Nuova Vita church to pray for the Treasures every time we go out for a street outreach. We keep a running list of the women we meet and we ask other believers to adopt them in prayer. Our desire is to see every treasure in Bologna lifted up in prayer before God.
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Hebrews 4:14-16 (ESV)
"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
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Contact us to adopt a Treasure in prayer
STREET OUTREACH & EVANGELISM
We have several outreaches every month. When we meet with the Treasures, we tell them that God loves them and that Jesus has transformed our lives and can transform theirs as well. We leave them with snacks, drinks and evangelistic material that include: Bibles, tracts, CDs, DVDs, and personal messages written by other believers. We translate the material and the personal letters into several languages like Romanian and English.
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Exit strategies
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Phone calls / visits
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Crisis intervention
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Legal needs
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Health needs
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Relational needs
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Housing
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Job training
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Employment
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John 1:5 (ESV)
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
DISCIPLESHIP & HOLISTIC CARE
Holistic Care
The women have different financial situations, families in other countries, debts, burdens, fears, needs, hopes and dreams. By taking into consideration all these factors, we are able to tailor the approach of help. Some want to return to their home countries. Others may not be able to return and instead they hope to find work and start a new life in Italy.
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Holistic care involves networking with other organizations and social services. We are keenly aware that we cannot be the “saviors” for these women, but working together with local churches and social services we can do much more for them. We are collaborating with safe houses and ministries in several other countries and developing partnerships with international organizations that can provide other resources for these ladies. We search for redemptive alternatives. We recognize that one cannot simply say to someone “find another job” or “change your lifestyle”. They need someone to accompany them in job searching, work training and formation, relocating to better and safer housing, and modeling healthy relationships (friendship and counseling).
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Discipleship
Week after week these treasures see us and a relationship of trust begins to form. This first phase of ministry is incredibly important and delicate as we are approaching the darkness head-on and inviting these ladies to come into the light and meet Jesus. When a woman is willing and free, we meet her in a public place or at our drop-in center. With sensitivity, wisdom and gentleness, we discuss her current situation and how we can help her. With those who are interested, we offer to meet with them to read the Bible because we believe that the word of God liberates from the captivity of evil.
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John 3:18 (ESV)
"Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son."
RAISING AWARENESS
We desire to prevent sexual exploitation in Italy by raising awareness in the churches and the general public. We offer seminars, show documentaries (such as Nefarious), go into schools, and teach and train others how to combat this vast problem.
MINISTRY TRAINING & ENCOURAGEMENT
One of our key values is training and equipping others to reach out effectively in the fight against human trafficking in Italy. This aspect of our ministry is directed primarily towards other churches in Italy, and takes shape in the following ways:
Conference and Church based workshops/seminars
VT regularly visits other churches around the country to help them specifically set up a ministry from within their church that will meet the particular needs of their local context. We also participate at national conferences and events.
Helping Hands Curriculum
VT helped the ministry of Tesori Raggianti translate and adapt the curriculum of “Hands that Heal” , which is being used to train volunteers in anti-human trafficking ministries all around the country.