I cannot think of any greater hell on earth than that being lived by those in sexual slavery. The statistics are paralyzing. Each year, almost a million humans will be trafficked across borders to be enslaved in the sex trade. Most are women and children. Many were sold by their parents. All will live their lives being raped by monster after monster. Their days are marked by endless pain and abuse. Their bodies are ravaged by disease. Their children grow up witnessing and eventually being drafted into the horror.

What would your faith or philosophy say to them? Perhaps, “Concentrate on what you want and draw the good of the universe to yourself.” Or, “Find a happy place.” How about, “The terror you are experiencing is because you are paying for sins in a past life. Endure the suffering in the hope of attaining a better life in your next reincarnation.”

Is our faith transferable? Do our beliefs have the power to free and bring hope to the helpless?

The speaker’s voice cracked with emotion. Dr. Beth Grant serves women who have been sold into slavery in Bombay. As young as eight years old, a hundred thousand women work behind bars while children play under their beds. With her co-workers, Beth has established Homes of Hope for those trapped in forced prostitution. She spoke of children receiving education and safe shelter, of women escaping slavery and working with dignity, of weddings and funerals, and, most of all, of the radiance that is reflected on women’s faces as they encounter the One who died to set them free:

What a difference Jesus makes. For you and I? Yes. But for millions of women and children around the world who are literally in hell, the promises of God are just as real and relevant. The promises that are good for a woman here in the boardroom in Baton Rouge are just as good for those women that are in the brothels of Bombay. There is no difference. His promises are real. They are powerful. For those who turn their face toward Him , He brings change and new life.

That is transferability.

Sadly, transferability—the lack thereof—was one of my greatest charges against Christianity as an Atheist. Simply put, I was wrong. I should have researched my accusations and taken the time to learn if followers of Jesus were touching the “untouchables” of the world. I should have contrasted the different results between purely secular rehabs for drug addicts and faith-based centers like Teen Challenge. I should have contrasted the results of spiritually neutral efforts to serve women and children imprisoned in the sex trade to unapologetically Jesus-centric efforts like Grant’s Project Rescue.

Since I accused others freely as an Atheist, I feel compelled to apply this filter fully to my faith as a Theist: Do my beliefs hold their power when transferred to others?

(These thoughts on faith and friction originally appeared in my book, Finding An Unseen God: Reflections of a Former Atheist. Recently I wrote an article on 5 Be’s for those who love Atheists for Today’s Christian Woman. If you’d like to read that article, click here.)