Heartbreaks and Immense Joy as the Holidays Approach
Congrats, You’re Pregnant!
As our Christmas parties approach and the end of the year draws near, we had our final outreach of 2024 this past Wednesday. It was a gift to sit with each of our women one more time before the year closes and hear how they are doing.
During one of these conversations, Charlotte*—whom some of you may remember as “Amada C”—shared how her coworker Melanie* discovered she was pregnant. Pregnancy is, sadly, not uncommon in their line of work. What shocked everyone in this case, however, was that Melanie found out when she was already more than five months along.
She immediately started freaking out (as one does in this situation). As she left the doctor’s office to meet Charlotte, she was crying so hard she couldn’t even form words. Seeing her like this, Charlotte grew worried. They had gone in assuming the stomach pain was caused by a hernia, so when Charlotte saw Melanie sobbing, her mind jumped to the worst possibilities: Was it a tumor? Cancer? Something life-threatening?
Finally, between sobs, Melanie shared the real news—she was pregnant.
Without hesitation, Charlotte responded, “Congratulations!!!”
In the moment, Melanie was stunned. Couldn’t Charlotte see how terrified she was? How could she celebrate something so uncertain and life-changing? But now, months later, Melanie says that Charlotte’s reaction is the one part of that day she remembers most clearly. She’s grateful—not only that Charlotte stood with her in a frightening moment, but that her joy helped reshape Melanie’s own attitude toward her pregnancy and baby.
The beautiful part of this story is that the “Charlotte” who encouraged her is the same Amada C I wrote about in August—the woman who deeply loves the Lord but lacks the resources and opportunities to leave prostitution. I have prayed for her for months: that God would give her a path out, and that until that door opened, that he would use her to minister to others in her situation.
This month, God answered both prayers.
I saw God use her to shine hope into Melanie’s life and celebrated with her as she shared that she enrolled in beauty school! Lord-willing, this will be the opportunity she has long hoped for—a way to provide for her family and step out of prostitution.
Please join me in praying for Amada C*, for her studies, and for the future God is preparing for her.
The Served become the Servants
This month, the first two Amadas completed the discipleship course—the first step in their Personal Development Plan (PDP)! To celebrate this milestone, our team took the women currently in the PDP to a small town about an hour outside Quito to spend the day serving at a children’s home. It was incredibly rewarding to watch the women we’ve poured into over the past year begin to pour out that same love into the community. Our mission at End Slavery Ecuador is Women Restored, Communities Transformed, and on this trip, we witnessed the first glimpse of that mission taking shape.
While we were there, we shared the gospel with the children (and with the Amadas), did a craft together, spent quality time with the kids, prayed over them as well as our women, and—right before we left—surprised each child with a personal gift. Seeing the children light up was beautiful, but watching our women be the ones bringing joy to their faces was even more meaningful.
Afterwards, our team gathered with the Amadas to debrief. It was during this conversation that I could clearly see just how deeply God is moving in our community. The women responded with such thoughtfulness and compassion. They spoke of their heartbreak for the children and their desire to do more—reminding me of our team’s desire to serve them. It was truly beautiful to see the heart of the Father reflected and moving among us.
Answered Prayers
• Amada C* and the Lord working in and through her life
• The service project our women participated in with the children’s home
• The blessing of marriage and God’s guidance of my life
• The continued donations to the Emergency Relief Grocery Card program
• A grant that End Slavery Ecuador received to host our Christmas Parties in December!
• A place to celebrate Thanksgiving when so far from home
• Flourishing relationships both in my personal life and with the Amadas
• Continually improving Spanish
• More financial stability (although I am still looking for more partners!)
• The success of all of ESE’s events over the year
Prayer Requests
• For Amada M (Melanie), for her pregnancy and upcoming due date!
• For all of our Amadas searching for new jobs and opportunities
• For provision and stability financially as I have extended my commitment and am preparing to buy a car
• For God’s strength for the team as we pursue his will for our ministry
• For End Slavery Ecuador as we run our end-of-year fundraising campaign
• For our team as we prepare for our annual Christmas Parties that will take place next week, December 9!
• Our marriage as Jasser and I start this new chapter of our lives