Tim Tebow on Combating Spiritual Warfare in the Fight Against Sex Trafficking

Football star and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow spoke to The Christian Post about his foundation’s latest initiative to combat human trafficking and child sexual exploitation and how he and his team are taking on the spiritual battle.

The former University of Florida Gator is the founder of the Tim Tebow Foundation, an organization that advocates for victims of human trafficking and child exploitation, as well as other vulnerable people in need of the Gospel.

Last year, the foundation launched a campaign called “Unknown,” named after the nameless victims of human trafficking. This year, Tebow and his team added “Unfinished” to the campaign title because countless children facing sexual abuse and exploitation still need to be rescued.

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The goals of the “Unknown & Unfinished” campaign include expanding global rescue operations to identify exploited children and providing law enforcement agencies with the resources to increase their capacity to track down victims and perpetrators.

In an interview, the Christian former professional football and baseball player said his team feels like they are fighting something “very dark,” but that they encourage each other on a spiritual level.

Tebow, the son of missionaries, cited John 16:33 as one of the Bible verses that helps the team stand firm against spiritual warfare.

“The night before Jesus goes to the cross, He tells His disciples, and they don’t really get it,” Tebow told CP. “Like me! Sometimes you just don’t really get it. But He said, ‘For in Me you have peace. In the world you’re going to have trials and tribulations, but be of good cheer, I’ve overcome the world.'”

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, one in three victims of human trafficking worldwide is a child. As the Homeland Security Council reported in June, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received more than 36 million tips about suspected online child sexual exploitation and abuse in 2023.

Tebow said Jesus Christ overcame sin and death on behalf of His children through His sacrifice, even though humanity often does not deserve His love. He cited his faith in knowing that Jesus had won the victory.

“And we have to remember that where we find peace is in Him; we know there’s going to be trials and tribulations, but we can take courage,” Tebow said. “We can choose courage.”

Tebow’s interest in this subject began when his father was preaching at an underground pastors’ conference in a place of religious intolerance. Tebow’s father saw four girls for sale at auction and used all the money he had to buy their freedom.

“And he called me afterward, and it’s hard to explain,” Tebow said. “I just knew that this was one of those areas that we were called to be in and I knew I was called to be in. And that we had to stand up and stand up for those four and the rest of them, like those sweet, poor girls.”

Tebow’s latest anti-trafficking campaign has partnered with more than 20 organizations and nonprofits to achieve its goals. Many of the campaign’s partners wish to remain anonymous, Tebow said, because they want to punish criminals and must remain anonymous for safety reasons.

The campaign is working with law enforcement agencies around the world, Tebow said.

According to the campaign’s website, the initiative has helped identify more than 800 sexually exploited children, thanks to collaboration with police.

Regarding the financial support he has received for this latest initiative, Tebow said that many Christians have contributed to the campaign, but that people who care about children and justice also want this initiative to succeed.

The television analyst added that an issue like this “should break our hearts”.

“It has to do something that’s enough to make people say, ‘Oh my God! Look at the number of children in the country and around the world,'” he said. “Around the world and in our backyard, there are so many boys and girls who are in their darkest hour of need. That’s at the heart of why we care so much about this and why we’re trying to mobilize people for this.”