MERCY!!

I read an article in the news this morning about child sexual abuse. This particular article dealt with rape of an 18-month-old baby. A BABY. Left in the care of a parent who is supposed to provide safety, security, and love. A baby.

My heart broke. I am a survivor of child sexual abuse. My daughter is a survivor. My granddaughter is a survivor. But NOTHING that we endured even comes close to the depravity, the evil that the small baby endured. And if MY heart is breaking, imagine what the Lord is feeling about these little ones that He considers to be blessings in our lives!

IT HAS TO STOP! A video of that small baby’s rape was circulated on social media. The depth of evil is almost more than I can comprehend. And certainly greater than people are willing to talk about.

Stop It Now! is a world-wide organization in the fight against this horrendous crime. I pulled the following from their website:

The impact of sexual abuse does not end when the abuse ends. Survivors of sexual abuse are at significantly greater risks for severe and chronic mental health issues, including alcoholism, depression, anxiety, PTSD and high risk behaviors.

One in 10 children will experience contact sexual abuse in the U.S. before age 18[iii]
More than 50% of sex abuse survivors were sexually abused before the age of 12.[iv]
One in 25 children (10-17) will receive an online sexual solicitation[v]
Of substantiated reports of child maltreatment in the US, 9% were unique survivors of sexual abuse[vi]
The average age for a minor to enter the sex trade is 12 – 14.[vii]
Globally, prevalence rates show that a range of 7-36% of women and 3-29% of men experience sexual abuse in childhood.[viii]
More than one-third (35.2%) of the women who reported a completed rape before the age of 18 also experienced a completed rape as an adult, Thus, the percentage of women who were raped as children or adolescents and also raped as adults was more than two times higher than the percentage among women without an early rape history. [ix]
42.2% girls experiencing their first completed rape did so before the age of 18 (29.9% between 11-17 years old and 12.3% at or before age 10) [x]
Over one-quarter of male victims of completed rape experienced their first rape at or before the age of 10. [viii]
Children with disabilities are 2.9 times more likely than children without disabilities to be sexually abused.[xi]
Children with intellectual and mental health disabilities appear to be the most at risk, with 4.6 times the risk of sexual abuse as their peers without disabilities.[xii]
At least 31% of girls and 7% of boys involved in the juvenile justice system have been sexually abused.[xiii]

The Situation:

In as many as 93 percent of child sexual cases, the child knows the person that commits the abuse. [xiv]
Males made up almost 88% of perpetrators [xv]
60% of children who are sexually abused do not disclose[xvi] [xvii] [xviii]
Up to 50% of child sexual abuse cases are perpetrated by someone younger than 18 years old[xix]
12 – 24% of sex offenders are known re-offenders [xx]
Most are acquaintances but as many as 47% are family or extended family.[xxi]
Juveniles make up 20% of those arrested for sex offenses [xxii]
The 5-year sexual recidivism rate for high-risk sex offenders is 22% from the time of release, and decreases for this risk level to 4.2% for those who have remained offense-free in the community for 10 years. The recidivism rates of the low-risk offenders are consistently low (1%-5%) for all time periods. [xxiii]

Today I am crying out for mercy for every child. Protection for every child. And for an ARMY to rise up against this evil and take it down!

Matthew 18:6 But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

If you are a victim or know a victim who needs help, or want more information, or want to volunteer / donate to help stop this evil curse around the world, I’ve listed some web sites below. Some localities also have local organizations that have stepped into the fray.

In the USA:

Stop It Now! https://www.stopitnow.org/

Voices for Children https://voicesforchildren.org/

In the UK:

National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children https://www.nspcc.org.uk/

The Lucy Faithfull Foundation https://www.lucyfaithfull.org.uk/

Stop It Now! https://www.stopitnow.org.uk

In Canada:

Red Cross https://www.redcross.ca/how-we-help/violence-bullying-and-abuse-prevention/youth/sexual-abuse

Europe:

Council of Europe https://www.coe.int/en/web/human-rights-channel/stop-child-sexual-abuse-in-sport

Worldwide: