The Good Life – March-April 2020

Than and his team have witnessed
a link between faith and human
trafficking. "When you look at spiritual
health and how that relates to folks
who've come out of trafficking, it turns
out it's insanely important," Than
says. "The way my faith plays out in
the work of Unseen is that I get to see
God working around the world as the
hands and feet of Jesus – and I get this
front-row seat to be witness."
With incredible success, it'd be easy to
get comfortable. But, as Unseen's CEO
and co-founder, Than says that's not
something he's willing to do.
"With 150 million children living
without parents and more than 40
million people living in slavery, the
need for Unseen grows daily," he says.
"This work is never going to be done.
We could stop trafficking tomorrow,
and somebody in power would find
someone to exploit. Addressing
the root causes of why people are
vulnerable in the first place is a huge
part of the puzzle."
While "the good life" is undoubtedly
defined differently for each individual,
for Than, it's all about perspective.
"I have two incredible kids and the
greatest, most supportive, human
being as my wife. The good life is
spending time with your family,
creating and advocating for lives of
purpose and meaning for others, and
pointing people to the light," he says.
"I think this is the best version of life I
can imagine. ” •
"Everybody's welcome to
participate in this work.
There's a huge need and
– if you want to make a
lasting and sustainable
massive impact on this
world – this may be one of
the ways you can do it."
– Than Baardson
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