{"id":4094,"date":"2019-04-01T08:29:35","date_gmt":"2019-04-01T13:29:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.steveblaising.com\/content\/?p=4094"},"modified":"2026-02-04T12:05:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T18:05:46","slug":"choose-joy-when-the-past-says-shame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.steveblaising.com\/content\/choose-joy-when-the-past-says-shame\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Choose Joy When Your Past Says Shame"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Rebekah Charleston was stuck in a life of shame and sex trafficking for ten years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, everything changed when she made a new decision.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Shame
Sex trafficking survivor Rebekah Charleston\/Las Vegas Review Journal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

You can take life in a beautiful direction at any moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just answer three questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

1.<\/mark>What choices do I really have?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Folks are stuck in shame largely because they are numb to choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rebekah Charleston was emotionally struck by . . .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • her brother\u2019s suicide when she was 5<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • her family\u2019s chaos over his death<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • being raped twice before 17<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    So, she drops out of school, runs from her family, and finds friends with drugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    She spends the next ten years being abused and sex trafficked all over the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n

    \u201cIt was horrific, the intense physical abuse, the verbal and emotional abuse which was almost more harmful because that\u2019s psychological torture that you can\u2019t get away from.  Black eyes go away, but that voice in your head doesn\u2019t.\u201d <\/strong> Rebekah Charleston<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Victims like Rebekah are paralyzed every day by fear, shame, and lies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But a breakthrough happens when a victim asks life-changing questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • What if I refuse these bloodsucking vampires?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • What other choices do I have?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      This leads to another prison-shaking question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      2.<\/mark>Who can I really trust?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      This isn\u2019t easy because the world is full of manipulators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n

      \u201cI was sex trafficked all night.  And I worked every birthday, every holiday.\u201d<\/strong>  Rebekah Charleston<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

      Pile on 13 months in prison and a GED with multiple arrests, and Rebekah had plenty of reasons to stay a sex slave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      But the turning point came with a question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \u201cWho can I really trust?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The question launched a new direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      She drove from Las Vegas back to her roots in Texas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Soon after, she visited Gateway Church, engaging in worship and prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      A friend tells her about a group of ladies who want to help strippers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      That\u2019s where she meets Carrie Gurley, the founder of Valiant Hearts.<\/p>\n\n\n

      \n
      \"Ending
      Carrie Gurley, Founder of Valiant Hearts\/Vimeo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

      Valiant Hearts helps women escape sex trafficking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Following a recovery plan, Rebekah emerges from the mire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      3.<\/mark><\/strong>How can I use this?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      Today, Rebekah Charleston is the Executive Director of Valiant Hearts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      She takes a team every month to reach out to women working the strip joints.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      They go in with wrapped gifts to show the girls an escape route from darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      I think Rebekah\u2019s story is insightful because she turned her rescue into a career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n