The Next 25 Years…

By Bob Kuhlman, Executive Director

This year Emmaus celebrates 25 years of ministry to men involved in survival prostitution. As you probably know, it all started with then-college student John Green volunteering with a ministry to women in prostitution. The ministry leader pointed out a group of men on a street corner, saying, “Those guys are prostituting, too. But nobody works with them; nobody cares about them.” In 1990 John founded Emmaus Ministries to show these men that there are people who care.

Since that time, Emmaus has made a tremendous difference in the lives of the men we serve. We have helped hundreds of men escape prostitution and leave the streets. As we move forward, however, the Lord is leading us to grow our ministry in new and exciting ways.

Over the past 18 months, the staff, board of directors, and I have been creating a vision for the ministry over the next 25 years. This includes what we want to see our men achieve, how we can best empower them to reach their goals, and how we can become better allies, mentors, and spiritual leaders for our men to encourage them to embrace a life of health and wholeness in Christ. We want to share our expertise with others seeking to make a difference in male sex trafficking and survival prostitution. We want to form more meaningful relationships with our men who are in prison. We want to develop ongoing support programs for our men who are successful in their recovery. In order to achieve this vision, we as a staff must be better equipped.

To that end, we connected with outside sources and raised funds specifically for staff training in spiritual outreach and addiction issues. James Chambers, the director of A Faith That Overflows—a ministry dedicated to equipping other ministries with tools for evangelism and spiritual outreach—has been leading our staff in an evangelism and discipleship training course specially designed for Emmaus. It centers on our personal relationships with God, and how we can share that with men who, because of their experiences and circumstances, may not believe God loves them. And former Emmaus staff member Andy Young, who is now a licensed clinical professional counselor and a certified alcohol and drug counselor, has been providing monthly training sessions that address issues with which our men struggle, such as addiction, conflict resolution, sexual abuse, and abandonment.

Equipped with these tools, and anticipating what we will be able to do with the space in our new building, we are answering the Lord’s call on Emmaus with renewed conviction and expectation!

And there is more news to share! We are opening a thrift store this year. By training and employing some of the men we serve, we will further expand our services, and the store’s profits will help offset the toll these tough financial times have taken on our bottom line.

Not a bad start for the next 25 years, right? With God’s guidance and your support, we will see Emmaus prosper—in Chicago and beyond!

 
Note: This article appears in Emmaus’s January newsletter.