To tell you the truth, I'd been dragging through one of those seasons when there were simply not enough hours in the day. Too many expectations and obligations were beginning to take their toll. So I'm sure I wasn't particularly tuned in for anything life-altering. I didn't have time for any big revelations. But when God's got something to show you, it's amazing what He can use to get your attention.

I just wanted to zone out in front of the TV. An episode of Law & Order popped on the screen as I curled up in my favorite leather chair with a cup of tea. I knew that the cases portrayed on Law & Order were always based on real issues—"ripped from the headlines," the commercials would blare. But I couldn't believe what I was seeing: 10, 11, 12-year-old girls in cages, shipped over to America to be used as sexual slaves, forced into prostitution. As I sat there in my comfortable home, in my chair with my teacup in hand, I thought to myself, There is no way that is true. I mean, maybe somewhere else in the world, but not here in America. I had never even heard the term "human trafficking."

I grabbed my laptop, Googled the words, and was horrified by what I read, by what I saw. There, on my computer screen, were the faces of beautiful, sweet girls, living in cages, their sad eyes staring out at me. "Do you see me?" they seemed to plead.

The faces and facts were staggering: 6 million children are sold and abused worldwide, some as young as 5 and 6 years old. At least 25,000 children shipped to America, to be used as sex slaves here in the land of the free. As if homelessness and poverty are not tragic enough, some of these children are kept in cages and forced to perform heinous, unfathomable acts 50 and 60 times a day.

"Do you see me?"

Mysterious ways
How could this be happening? Why had I never heard anyone talk about it?

As I stared at the screen, numb from the stories of these sweet children who'd been robbed of their innocence and freedom, I cried. I bawled. I was broken that such evil could exist in the world—and that I could be so unaware, so blind to it.

That night on the Internet, I found two faith-based organizations devoted to rescuing children from prostitution and giving them a chance at a healthy life: Shared Hope and International Justice Mission.

It was like a light went on in my head. The next morning, I called the 800 number for Shared Hope and started rambling like a mad woman about what I'd seen the night before and how I was a singer and that maybe I could help tell people about this tragedy.

The young woman on the phone said, "Okay, slow down. Let's start with your name." When I told her my name, she said, "Natalie Grant? Natalie, I was at your concert last week!"

Now, I'm a firm believer in the truth that "God moves in mysterious ways," but at that moment, God made it all too clear. That episode of Law & Order had been a divine appointment, the beginning of something that would change my life forever.

The streets of Mumbai
Within a matter of months, my husband, Bernie, and I traveled to Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India, with Shared Hope and its founder, former congresswoman Linda Smith. There we were able to see, firsthand, the tragedy of child slavery and what is being done to stop it.

I will never forget what I saw there. I don't want to forget.

There I was in broad daylight, walking down the street in Mumbai, when I spotted a precious little girl looking down on us from an upper-story window. She couldn't have been more than 7. Her piercing, dark eyes stared out at me. Her hand was reaching out from between the bars of a cage, not unlike something people here in the States would keep animals in. My eyes locked on hers, for just a few seconds, and I knew that was her life. There in that cage, that was her life. I knew that every day people walked by on the street below, and they didn't even notice her.

There was an Indian man named Deveraj who runs a rescue ministry walking with us. He said, "That's where they hold the new girls. They only let them out to service clients." It was all I could do not to throw up. I started sobbing, there in the street.

From there, we were able to travel out from the city to a place they call the Village of Hope. When they are able to rescue girls from the brothels in the cities, they take them to this wonderful place—the first real home many of them have ever had. And they feed them, clothe them, give them an education, and teach them about God.

It was amazing to see these little girls, these pre-teen and teenage girls who had experienced the most unimaginable tragedies and abuses in their young lives, safe and happy. Completely restored. Living, breathing pictures of the peace of God.

In particular, I remember two little girls who, to my surprise, reached out to encourage me. The week before we left for India, I ruptured my left vocal chord and was told I couldn't speak a word for 30 days. At first, I didn't think I would be able to make the trip. But in my heart, I knew God still wanted me to go. I had no idea my doctor-imposed silence would be a blessing in disguise. So often I speak before I think and verbalize without fully processing everything. Now I wasn't able to speak a word, and as a result I think I felt deeper and was able to truly listen and understand those I met in a much deeper way.

At the Village of Hope, I met these two little girls, both 5 years of age. One had already been used as a prostitute for a year and the other had aids. Both were now safe and happy, living with newfound hope. Those sweet girls wanted to pray for me, for my sore throat. And did they ever. I had never been prayed for like that before in my life. In their heartfelt prayers, I felt a faith and spiritual wisdom that was far beyond their age. It was a moment that will stay with me forever.

I had grown up in church all my life, and I always felt I had a pretty good grasp of the power of redemption in our lives, but I had never understood it more clearly than I did that day. In the middle of those smiling girls, their eyes full of life and bright hope, I found a treasure I knew I had to share.

A voice for justice
When Bernie and I returned home, I reflected on what I'd seen and experienced in India. I knew I couldn't go back to the status quo. I had never felt more alive, more determined to do something that mattered.

I'd always believed that God had given me a voice to sing and that He had created the opportunities I'd been given to make a career and a living doing what I love. But God used India and those little girls to show me that my work as an artist should be so much bigger than it is. I'm not just here to sing. I'm here to give my life away, to share the knowledge I've been given, to tell others about my experience in India, and to do what I can to support the mission efforts there. I want my music to be more than pleasant songs.

I want to inspire people to be instruments of God's peace and justice in the world. Because when we are open and willing to be used in the lives of others, God can light up even the darkest of places.

Natalie Grant, whose latest CD is the best-selling Awaken, is the author of The Real Me: Being the Girl God Sees (W). Melissa Riddle is a writer based in Nashville.

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