The Free Initiative

FREE
An Anti-Sex Trafficking Initiative

We are so grateful for your partnership and generous support of the FREE Initiative, an anti-sex trafficking initiative of the Evangelical Covenant Church. In 2023, 860 individuals were directly impacted through the work of our nine local and global partners. These individuals represent communities and generations of families that have been transformed. We give thanks to God for the work done through our partners as well as for your prayer and financial support.

In Galatians 6:2, the apostle Paul reminds us we are called to carry each other’s burdens, fulfilling the call of Christ to love God and our neighbor. Through the FREE Initiative, we join as people liberated by Jesus, recognizing that our own freedom is tied to the freedom of others.

The advocacy and leadership of our partner International Justice Mission (IJM) has resulted in a monumental increase in funding for international anti-trafficking programs in the proposed 2025 fiscal budget of the United States. Part of the work of IJM is advocating for biblically just policies that are aimed at preventing and decreasing abuse of vulnerable populations. This advocacy work is necessary for systemic change, especially addressing the online sexual exploitation of children.

Our partner in India, Hindustani Covenant Church, fights sex trafficking and witnesses to the liberating work of Jesus through intervention, prevention, and rehabilitation. They come alongside women impacted by trafficking, providing them with care through a rights-based approach. They also seek to provide special care to the children of women impacted by sex trafficking. These children have unique experiences of pain and trauma and are at the highest risk for exploitation and abuse.

In response to mothers hoping to protect their children, our partners work to break the generational cycle of trafficking by offering quality education, healthcare, psychosocial services, safe spaces, and other essential resources. These holistic services disrupt patterns of poverty and exploitation, helping both mothers and children to thrive. Currently, sixteen children are receiving direct care and being empowered by the Hindustani Covenant Church to break free from the cycles of sex trafficking that threaten their existence. These children have demonstrated extreme resilience and courage amid the violence they have witnessed.

As the Covenant, we live into our call of loving our neighbors by joining God and God’s people in addressing the systems and structures of the world that seek to diminish the value and dignity of human life. We join the work of our partners, like the International Justice Mission and the Hindustani Covenant Church, as they create opportunities for people, communities, and generations to heal and flourish.

We seek to raise $150,000 in 2024 to fund these projects. Please consider making a gift in support of the FREE Initiative. Your gift will enable our partners to continue in their transformative work.