By Karen Chambless

A group of students from Lee University recently traveled with music professor Dr. Jonathan Rodgers to Goa, India, to partner with Rahab’s Rope, a ministry dedicated to combating human trafficking. The 26 Lee students were all members of Ladies of Lee, the university’s women’s choir.

During the nine-day trip, the group conducted a Vacation Bible School program at a local YMCA, home visits with at-risk individuals living in slums, and did prayer walks in the city. In the evenings, they gave concerts in various community centers or churches.

“The opportunity to travel to Goa with the Ladies of Lee was unlike anything I had ever had the pleasure of experiencing before,” said Melanie Mendoza, president of the group. “I’ve been a member of this choir for the last three years, and I’ve seen this group hard-pressed by new things, but this trip—with our smaller group (we were half our usual size), cultural barriers, and astonishingly high heat indexes—proved the most stretching as well as the most uniting of all. Though the reality of human trafficking is harsh and undoubtedly serious, some of the most meaningful moments I experienced were in such seemingly small, maybe even silly things such as singing VBS songs with our audience of giggling preschoolers at a concert in Birla, dancing to Justin Bieber songs with girls close to our own ages in a Rahab’s Rope production center, and in the visible kindness on the faces of believers as they sang along with our attempt to sing ‘Blessed Be Your Name’ in Hindi.”

According to Rodgers, director of Ladies of Lee, he became interested in the work of Rahab’s Rope two years ago at a conference and had looked into opportunities to work with them. This trip is the first time any Lee ensemble has traveled to India.

“Our trip was beyond words, but these moments of delight, of tangible joy between people despite language, culture, or experience are what will stick with me when I look back on our time spent in Goa,” added Mendoza.

In conjunction with Rahab’s Rope, the Ladies of Lee partnered with local pastors to minister to their surrounding communities, specifically in Panjim, Birla, Chimbel, Baina, and Vasco. There are several community programs that are developing as a result of the support of Rahab’s Rope and mission teams that come there. The group was able to supply the manpower for different activities in the community.

“We were able to spend time encouraging, connecting with, and ministering to the women and children in the slums where the risk of human trafficking is very high,” said Rodgers. “Through the connections and associations with Rahab’s Rope and local pastors and community leaders, we were able to bring a message of love, encouragement, and grace to people in need of the Gospel. As much as anything, this trip made us aware about the trafficking and poverty situation in India, and consequently, how we can make our communities and churches more aware of this tragic situation globally. With knowledge comes responsibility.”

For over 50 years now, the Ladies of Lee have traveled the country and the globe spreading the love of God and the hope of the Gospel in song, word, and deed.

“As we concluded our 50th anniversary year, it seemed only appropriate to cap it off by continuing a tradition that started many years ago of going out and spreading joy through spirit-filled singing,” said Rodgers. “Our vision is not only to sing to people, but to share what God has done in our lives (in song, scripture, and testimony), and as we do that we depend on the spirit of God to light a divine spark in the hearts of those who hear our message.”

The mission of Rahab’s Rope is to give hope and opportunity to women and girls that are at risk or have been forced into the commercial sex trade of India. They provide a safe and loving environment that will enable the women and girls to grow both physically and spiritually.

For more information about Rahab’s Rope, visit site.

For more information about Ladies of Lee, visit Ladies.