Hey Treasures Peeps,

We are moving and shaking with Treasures-Trained ministries popping up all over the US through the Strip Church Network.  We want to keep you all in the loop on all that’s happening!

TREASURES IN THE NEWS  This month Treasures was featured in for LA Weekly as a part of a story they did on Crissy.  Read the Article

Another precious Treasure shared her story for Your Tango. Brave, brave treasure indeed!

TRAFFICKING  January was human trafficking awareness month and I had the opportunity to speak about sex trafficking at a few events. One of them was put on by Sandie Morgan at Vanguard University.  I am especially honored to have been a part of this because Sandie is a LEGEND in the field.  She is a professor at Vanguard, founder of Live2Free, and she is responsible for getting the OC trafficking task force off the ground which lead to a Nationwide initiative to get law enforcement trained in the victim centered approach in dealing with women and children in prostitution. I am SO honored that she entrusted me with this opportunity be a voice!

STRIP CHURCH

The Strip Church Network is strong and growing.  I love spending time mentoring all of these incredible leaders and seeing what God is doing through them!

Check out this map with the locations of all of our Strip Church ministries.  and visit their sites.

MARS HILL

Crissy was invited to Mars Hill Church by Mark Driscoll to share her story and talk about the impact Treasures has had on her life. The event was live streamed and created such a buzz that it crashed the Treasures site!

In about a month, it will be aired on his podcast as a part of a marriage series that is being broadcast to hundreds of churches.  It will be available on his website if you want to check it out.

At the end of his message, he prayed what I have been praying for 8 years–That people who have fueled the sex industry as consumers would use their finances to support organizations helping women recover after sex work. AMEN!

X3’s COMPANY

Remember to check out all of the new episodes of X3’s company where Craig Gross of XXXChurch and I answer viewers questions about sex. Watch Here

Some of what might be considered “busyness” may be justified by the wonderful work I have the honor of doing.  But during the moments I truly had a chance to take a deep breath and rest, it was as if I didn’t know how to slow the momentum.  The train had left the station and there was no stopping it.

So I distracted myself with mindless activities that kept me in a state of unnecessary, busy, buzzing.

Sometime last year I recognized the need to slow down and create some margin so I decided to fast from my favorite distraction…Facebook Poker.  It was a great choice because I had become rather obsessed with it.  Within a matter of months, I built up my virtual chip stack from a mere 1,000 to somewhere in the millions.  I was queen of Zynga.

A few days into my fast, someone introduced me to Words With Friends, another game I could conveniently play on my phone while waiting in line at the grocery store, after my daughter went to bed, and while stuck in traffic. (Don’t judge, I’m a work in progress:)

Technically, it wasn’t Facebook Poker, so in a legalistic sense, it did not breech the terms of my fast.  But it DID defeat its purpose because I remained just as distracted as before.

By the time the fast ended, I had broken my addiction to poker….and exchanged it for an addiction to Words With Friends.  In the recovery word, they call this “replacement”.  Someone gives up alcohol and turns to sex.  Or they give up smoking and turn to food. You get the idea.

I don’t know about you, but I want to make 2012 my best year yet.  I want to make better, stronger choices than before.  I don’t want to be distracted, I want to be present.

My pastor, Philip Wagner invited our church to join him for 21 days of prayer and fasting.  The fast starts tomorrow but I decided to get a jumpstart on it and began January 1st.  I am making some significant adjustments to my eating, but I am also fasting from ALL of my favorite distractions, including TV and electronic games of ANY kind.  No “replacements this time around”.

I am one week in and I can’t believe how invigorating it is.  I feel alive with fresh vision and am beginning to scratch what I assume is only the surface of what it feels like to rest in God in a much deeper way.  My daughter and I even joined some friends and meandered around a Farmer’s Market today—something I am usually too busy or distracted to do.

I wonder what 2012 could look like if I spent my free time doing more of the things that are nourishing to my soul.  What would it look like if I were more present and less distracted? I don’t know about you, but I am ready to find out.

Will you join us for 21 days of prayer and fasting? What are you going to fast from?

Harmony Dust

www.iamatreasure.com

Arise

By Harmony Dust

“Talitha koum!”

Little girl, get up.  Arise.

The first time I read this I felt as though it was a personal call.  It was as if God was speaking life to the little girl in me…asking her to arise.

In Mark 5:41, Jesus says this to a little girl who has been presumed dead by her family. Her father came to Jesus, pleading for him to come heal his daughter before it was too late.

Jesus was on his way to her, pressed in by crowds, when a suffering woman who had been bleeding for 12 years reached out and touched the hem of his robe in a desperate attempt to be healed.

Jesus stopped for her.

He was willing to be interrupted.

He proclaimed healing over her and even as he was still speaking, he was interrupted yet again.

The little girl was declared dead.  Some men came to the girl’s father with a discouraging message.  “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”

Why bother?

I have seen people stunted in their recovery because they don’t want to “bother” God.  They believe that God doesn’t have time for them, or that their issues are not “big” or “important” enough to interrupt God with.  They talk themselves out of reaching out to Him and in doing so miss an opportunity to have a transforming, healing encounter.

God is willing to be interrupted by you.  As a matter of fact, I would venture to say that He is more than willing, he is desirous of this.

It is his desire that we would draw near to Him.  That we would involve him in our life’s cares in an intimate way.  This is relationship. And relationship is what he wants with us.

But it’s too late.

We hear these taunting murmurs. Discouraging.  Squelching hope. But Jesus responds to these untruths with a bold direction, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

And just like in the story of the little girl, despite the whispers of death and hopelessness, Jesus comes to us anyway.

When he arrived at the little girl’s home, he saw the people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. Mark 5:38-40

Jesus took the little girl’s hand and said, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). 42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around. Mark 5:41-42

“Talitha koum!”

“Little girl, I say to you, get up!”

“Arise.”

And I believe this what Jesus asks of us. Much of our deepest brokenness occurred when we were still a child.  Jesus speaks life, hope and healing to the broken little girl in us.

When the world looks at our fractured state, they may say it’s too late.  That all hope is gone.  That we are already dead to this life.

But Jesus sees us as we are, in the state we are in, while recognizing the truth.  We may appear to be dead, but we are only sleeping.

He gently takes our hand, and with a word, he fans the flame of life, purpose, and potential in us.

You are not dead.  You are only sleeping. Little girl, get up. Arise.

www.iamatreasure.com

The Sex Industry Isn’t the Problem

This morning on my way to drop my daughter off at pre-school, I passed by a girl I can only assume was working the Sepulveda track. I say this because nobody else was wearing stilettos, micro mini cut off shorts and no jacket at 8am in 45-degree weather. She walked with her knees slightly bent and wobbling as if to try not to put pressure on her feet, which must have been sore and cold, if she had been out there all night.

When she stopped on the corner, a man waiting for his bus looked at her as he would a store window. It was as though he was imagining himself wearing her like a pair of pants.

She pretended not to notice him. A mannequin never looks at the consumer, their gaze always fixed on some other place. To look would be rude and distracting. Even dangerous if he was another pimp and she was caught “out of pocket” by her own.

Her job is not to see, but to be seen.

I could almost hear the grooming that led her to that corner, echoing the same grooming I experienced. “You’re beautiful. Everyone is looking at you. Everyone wants you. You should take advantage of the beauty that you have been given. Use it. Make money off of it. Get yours. Get ahead. Survive. Oh, and while you’re at it, break me off a piece of that.”

And all this, a product of our culture, which tells us that beauty is a bill of goods. Sexuality is a bill of goods. That people are a bill of goods. Products to be marketed, sold, capitalized off of.

Many of us are so trained in this way of thinking that when someone doesn’t objectify us, we wonder if something is wrong. With them. With us.

I see this often in the women I have the honor of mentoring. Women for whom being an object of lust is so normal it feels like love. Women who have never known non-sexual touch. Not even from their own fathers and brothers.

People often ask me if I am anti-sex industry. I tell them that I don’t chose to define myself by what I am against, but by what I stand for…and I am “for” women living to their fullest potential with an understanding of their value and purpose.

But I would even venture to say that the sex industry isn’t the problem. It is a symptom of a larger issue. It is the byproduct of a cultural standard that normalizes the sexualization and objectification of women.

This is one of the reasons I am so excited about the development of the Men 4 Treasures. This is a group of men that is committed to purity, integrity, and seeks to be a voice in their sphere of influence that will begin to shift mindsets. You will be hearing more about them in 2012 and how you can get involved.

Even as they are in the development phase, their presence here at Treasures has been a healing thing. They are showing us what brotherly, platonic love looks like. They are demonstrating what it looks like to be honored in a way that is truly honoring. For this I am thankful.

It is one thing to tell someone they deserve better or more or different. It is one thing to say that things should be different. That our culture needs to change. But as long as we are simply talking about these ideas, they remain an intangible, hypothetical, theoretical thing.

It is another thing to see this in action, to experience it. It’s a game changer.

As Nelson Mandela said, “For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

Thank you Men 4 Treasures and to all of our partners who are living this way. We are freer because of you.

Love, Harmony Dust
www.iamatreasure.com

Get Involved

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Party with a Purpose this Holiday Season!!!

Many people ask how they can help Treasures in a way that will make an impact.  We are launching a program that gives supporters the BEST resource ever to create awareness and support for all that Treasures does.  We are calling it the “Party With A Purpose” kit and it is now available for purchase online and at Treasures events.

Whether you want to host a Tailgaiting Party, Painting Party, or Poetry Party with a Purpose, your party not only can help people become more aware for the need for Treasures, but you can also help sponsor 1 GIRL, 1 CLUB OR 1 CITY through your Party With A Purpose.

What impact will you make?   You decide!

Click here to join the Party With A Purpose movement and find out more information!

***And thanks to an anonymous matching grant, every dollar you raise is doubled up to $20,000!!!!

Amidst article skimming and salad chewing, I quickly realized the center of this message wasn’t about the son (either son), but rather the character of the father. I knew this character to be loving, accepting, and forgiving but in this particular analysis of these traits, I found myself, almost automatically, relating them to the work we do in Treasures.

Long story short(er), the parable centers on a wealthy father of two sons, the younger of which requested his inheritance early and leaves from the father’s home. Once on his own, the son wastes his money as an economic crisis hits. Realizing his mistake, the son attempts to re-connect with his dad, even if only as a hired hand, but the father embraces the son and restores their rightful relationship.

So here’s how the father parallels what we do at Treasures…

 A PASSIONATE RUN

In the story, found in Luke 15, the father sees the son returning from “a long way off” and “filled with love and compassion” the father immediately takes action.

He runs a long way to meet his son, unaffected by assumptions, past hurts, or even his status as a wealthy man. It was motivated by love.

A recent conversation I had about Treasures comes to mind.

Friend: So you reach out to former strippers?

Me: Yeah… or current ones.

Friend: That’s so great. And you support porn stars who left the business?

Me: Yeah… or ones still in it.

Like the son who planned on simply living as a hired hand, many of the women we serve have plans for themselves. Many of the visions and goals are set against the backdrop of choices made in the past or in context to the vilified sex industry. What a limiting launch pad!

But like that father, Treasures runs to where these women are RIGHT NOW to tell them they are perfectly loved and purposed beyond any limitations RIGHT NOW. This sets up another similarity between Treasures and the father.

ROYALTY REINSTATED

The finest robe! Jewelry for his hand! Verses 22-24 depicts the father proclaiming his son is to be treated as royalty. What better way to show another that they are treasured.  CATCH THAT NAME DROP!!!

The heart of Treasures is to show these women that they are and have always been valued by a Father who is the King above all kings. Their royalty is reinstated. Their righteousness revealed.

TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE

When the older son in the story complains about his rude, wasteful, scandalous brother receiving the VIP treatment, his dad quickly reminds him of a pivotal truth. Verse 33 says “His father said to him, ‘Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours…’”

It was that awakening—that recognition of the value God placed on me- that spurred me to join Treasures. That’s probably the case for most on the team. We minister the revelation of righteousness, royalty, and purpose because we experienced it. WE ARE THE RECIPIENTS JUST LIKE THE LADIES WE SERVE.

And unsatisfied knowing fellow heirs are living unaware of their actual purpose and value, we passionately run to them, declaring this truth about who they are.

This blog is geared towards women but men may comment as well. There is a strength that can only come from a man so if you have anything encouraging or edifying to say I’d love to have your input. 

I save all my church notes and private blogs on my cell phone.  Tonight I went on there to find some notes I needed and decided to scroll all the way down the 58 entries to the very first one.  I read it and thought I would share with some of you because I know a lot of friends who are going through the feelings and emotions I was going through over two years ago.

I was in the desert for a very long time.  Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights there being tested by Satan.  (Matthew 4:1-11)  Satan was in my ear constantly after I left the adult entertainment industry.  He told me I would never be worth anything to any man besides a sexual object.  He told me I should be ashamed because I was dirty and I was not worthy of God’s love.  He told me I didn’t deserve friends because I didn’t know how to be a friend and no one would want to have a friend like me.  He told me I deserved death and I should just kill myself.  He told me to hate myself and I did for a very long time.  I ended up losing my job, my best friend, the one I loved all around the same time and my heart ached to its core. I was afraid to let people close to me after that and when I did it was because I needed to go to the ER for taking pills or I was afraid I was going to hurt myself.

I privately blogged because I was so ashamed of who I was.  I was a Christian but I didn’t feel like one.  Satan was filling my head with so many lies.  His voice had been the only one I had heard for so many years so it was almost comforting in a weird, distorted way.  He told me I was good at something and I was a “star”, a porn star.  He told me people loved me when I was her.  I believed lust and love were the same thing all my adult life.  He tried to tempt me into going back to familiar territory.  I was actually unable to work for 2 years because I was very unstable and most days unable to function.  It took all my strength to just fill my dishwasher.  I spent many days with my face to the kitchen floor praying, crying, drooling and just in a state of full surrender.  I was a mess and all I could do was cling to Him.

Anyway this is the note I wrote to God so long ago and wanted to share. I wrote this when I was not even at my worst yet but Satan was definitely at work.

I struggle to fall asleep. I struggle to stay asleep. Why is my soul so restless, my dreams often haunting or sometimes just comically touching on my deepest fears? It seems my conscience always finds its way to interrupt what should be my peace.

My Father in heaven is around here somewhere. I want my Daddy to come rescue me from the hurts deep inside. Rid myself of this scarlet letter I carry everywhere I go. Hide the evidence because the consequences are killing me. I’m trying so hard, but perhaps not quite hard enough. I feel thankful for my many blessings but I still seem to be losing this fight. I’m restless, hungry, and longing for this thirst inside my soul to be quenched by just one drop of hope.

He is the only One who can give it.

I am trying to be a good girl, I promise. My heart may never be totally pure. Maybe I’ve seen and done too much wrong. But I need something to hold on to that will not be gone in time. I need an anchor in this storm.

God knows the longings of my heart. I pray His will on my life. It’s actually not MY life it’s His. I often seem to forget. My own earthly desires may not be a part of His plan. I hope He won’t deny me of the family I want most. I’ll try so hard to be good.

Until then… I need rest. I need peace. Help me Lord. I’m nothing without you. Give me peace or deliver me from this place. Let me see the face of the One who loves me or place a warm soft blanket around my soul.

I would often look into heaven (well, actually my popcorn ceiling in my apartment) and raise my hands in the air and talk to Him. He was listening to my cries.  He didn’t heal me fully as soon as I left the industry.  It took time.  It’s kind of like an onion and there are layers that needed to be pealed away.  God knew if the hardest part of my healing would have came first I may not have been able to withstand it and it could’ve have driven back into the arms of Satan.  I also had the hardest time accepting His love.  Every time we would sing of His blood or the cross I felt guilty that I would do that to my Savior.  I would become short of breath and unable to sing.  There was something for me to learn though in that.  He did it as a sacrifice for me and no matter what I did He is choosing to love me through it.  That was beyond my control.  It was in spite of me.

I am at a healthy place in the point of my healing.  It took a lot of hard work, persistence and clinging to God to get through it.  The more I surrendered the more He was able to teach me because my heart was fully open and I was moldable.  I am still healing though.  I just want you all to know that there is hope and grace for you no matter what your past is.

I guess the last thing I would like to say is that He loves you.  You are His beloved and lovely daughter.  If you haven’t had an earthly daddy to love you or be there with you- His love is different.  He is faithful to the end.  He loves you like no other.  Here is a verse that came to me as I was writing.

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

 Satan is the enemy and He will try to steal your soul but God is in the midst bidding you to come to Him.  It’s up to you to make the choice.  If you have never heard the gospel and don’t know the way in which to be saved it’s quite simple.  I would suggest reading the four books in the Bible that teach the life and resurrection of Jesus – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  After if you accept Jesus as you Savior (there is no way to the Father except by Him- John 14:6) and believe that He is the Son of God and came to the earth, died and was risen to save your from you sins then say a prayer to Him saying those things.  It’s that simple to be saved.  After that you must pick up your cross and follow Him. (Luke 9:23)   

Healing is a journey.  Don’t get discouraged if things don’t change as fast as you’d like them to.  Most of the time you work on the things at the surface and deep- inner healing later.   If you are or have been in the industry and need support in your recovery journey, we are here for you.  Feel free to email us at contactcare@iamatreasure.com.

“No Ifs Ands or Buts”

At two, my daughter’s favorite word was “no”.

At three, her favorite word seems to be “but”.

While she appreciates the humor in the version of the word ending in doubt “t”, it is the standard “but” that she is particularly fond of.

As in, “Johnny, don’t drink the bath water.  It’s dirty.”

“But Mom…I’m making coffee.” She retorts as she takes another sip of the sudsy concoction.

She means to counteract my instruction.  To contradict me.  I find myself wanting to resort to the same logic my mother did. “No ifs ands or buts about it”.

Believe it or not, God seems to be all about “ifs ands or buts”.  And for this I am thankful.  In the bible, the “if” and “but” statements are usually followed by some pretty good stuff.  There are a few good “if” ones.  But the “but” ones are my favorite J

As in “If God is for us, who can be against us.” (Romans 8:31). Or “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20)

Both of these verses are preceeded by some tough stuff.  Right before Paul says “if God is for us, who can be against us” he talks about suffering and notes that all of “creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”

Joseph tells his brothers “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” He says this in the midst of mourning the death of his father after having been sold into slavery by his own siblings.

But God.

It is the ultimate counteracting statement.  It’s the final say.

Your past doesn’t get to have final say.  Your pain doesn’t get to have final say. The losses, the hurts, the hardships you are facing…they don’t get to have final say.

BUT GOD.  He gets the final say.

Love, Harmony Dust

Here are some of my favorite buts

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” Psalm 73:26

 “…but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved.” Ephesians 2:5

“…but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26)

What happens when she grows up?

At 16 years old, Diamond’s* father sent her to live with his friend. He told her she could make some extra money helping with his business.  Her dad’s friend was a pimp and his business was trafficking.  It wasn’t long before he had Diamond working for him as a prostitute.

It is easy to see here that Diamond was a victim of sexual exploitation.

Today, Diamond is an adult.  She is now working both as a prostitute and a stripper.  What happens to Diamond now that she is “all grown up”?

Ruthi Hoffman Hanchett, Child Well-Being & Rights Advisor at World Vision International, said this when introducing Treasures to a group of peers:

There are an estimated 2 million children in the global commercial sex industry. Children sold in sexual slavery, exploited by adults and some times trading sex for survival. World Vision works around the globe to try and protect these children through strengthening Child Protection systems, reforming laws, caring for survivors, working with parents and communities with vulnerable children to prevent abuse, and empowering children themselves to know their rights and protect themselves and peers.

But what happens when those children grow up?

The average age of entry into prostitution in the US and around the world is between 13-14 years.

Most women in prostitution (up to 90%) have been victims of sexual abuse and incest already. Most say they want to leave, but feel they have no other options. We (as individuals and society) often have compassion for the girl but blame her once she reaches 18 years of age.

We drive past the strip clubs and turn away or even gawk at the broken lives. But they are the same children who have just been abused for too many years.  Treasures is reaching and making a difference in these women’s lives.

I was in tears as I listened to this introduction.

What happens when the girl who has been abused and exploited grows up? How will we respond to her when she makes life choices that are rooted in the brokenness of her youth?

Treasures is committed to being a part of the solution to these questions. We provide her with the support and resources she needs to overcome the pain and exploitation that have occurred in her past.

Last year, we received a small grant to offer a “trial run” of a therapist-led support group.  What began as a “trial run” has since turned into one of the strongest tools for recovery we offer.  Forty weeks out of the year, these women show up and find community, professional insight, encouragement in their faith, and are equipped with tools that are helping them overcome their past so that they can live the healthy, flourishing lives.

This is where you come in.  To continue providing this valuable program, we are looking for 40 people to make a contribution of $150. This is what it costs to have the therapist for each session.

Essentially, your gift of $150 can either be made in one lump sum or you can give $50 a month for the next three months.

Your giving will enable Treasures to bring freedom to a room full of women—women like Diamond

Sincerely,

Harmony Dust

Founder

Donations can be made online at www.iamatreasure.com or mailed to

Treasures

po box2013

North Hills, CA 91343-2013.

*Names and identifying information has been changed to protect confidentiality.

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Confession: When it comes to trafficking, I have been a part of the problem