The Child Safeguarding Policy Guide for Churches and Ministries
By Basyle Tchividjian & Shira Berkovits
Churches are supposed to be a safe haven, but many deal with the tragic reality of child sexual abuse. This handbook, written by a multidisciplinary team of child abuse experts, helps churches and faith communities formulate policies and procedures to protect children and address possible abuse in their ministries.
What the Bible Says to Abuse Survivors and Those Who Hurt Them
By Victor Vieth
Pastors and church personnel often struggle to apply intentional and appropriate doses of both biblical grace and stringent accountability to victims and perpetrators of child sexual abuse. Churches can regularly be prone to turn the tables on survivors by applying a heavy dosage of conviction to victims and misguided clemency toward perpetrators. The mishandling of abuse incidents in the church will drive victims away from the community of Christ and further embolden offenders, thus debasing the name of our Savior.
Victor Vieth offers a deeper understanding of both abuser and victim dynamics so that church leaders can move past ignorance and prevailing myths to tackle this devastating issue with the power of grace and truth afforded by the good news of Jesus. He explains typical dynamics of how and when child sexual abuse is reported, gives an overview of dynamics of child molesters, and describes healing ways to represent Jesus to survivors. This timely resource will equip churches to wisely and accurately step in to take care of its most vulnerable members.
The Spiritual Impact of Sexual Abuse
By Diane Langberg
Are you ministering to someone whose trauma of sexual abuse has shattered their trust in God? Do you see them wrestling with the dichotomy between what they are told about God and the bitter facts of their wounds? If the abuse happened when they were a child, they may have a particularly fractured understanding of trust, truth, and love. How can you begin to reach out to them? What do you need to understand about their pain?
Diane Langberg walks you through the answers to these questions and provides timely counseling insight based on her years of working with victims of sexual abuse. She explains why it is critical to understand the long-term impact of such trauma, and she considers ways you can wisely incarnate the love of Christ to a survivor searching for true meaning and purpose.
Caring for Survivors of Sexual Abuse
By Basyle Tchividkian & Justin Holcomb
Basyle Tchividjian and Justin Holcomb address the heartbreaking reality that the marginalization of child sexual abuse victims is all too common in the Christian community. They outline specific ways churches have tragically diminished the seriousness of abuse and caused further distress to survivors. Tchividjian and Holcomb skillfully advocate for ways Jesus calls his church to love and serve the wounded among them, so that congregations no longer consign survivors to suffer in silence.
Protecting Children From Abuse In The Church
By Basyle Tchividjian
How do we protect the children in our Christian community from sexual offenders?
We are becoming more and more aware of the prevalence of child abuse, both in society at large and in the church. We want to protect children in our community from abuse, but we don’t always know the best ways to go about that.
From his years of experience as a child abuse prosecutor, Boz Tchividjian unpacks the dynamics of a church environment that allows perpetrators to thrive and offers constructive help for educating and training your church to recognize and deal with potential abuse. Using biblical principles and the example of Jesus, he shows you how to cultivate an attitude and environment in your church that provides safety and protection for these young ones.
God Made All Of Me: A Book To Help Children Protect Their Bodies
By Justin & Lindsey Holcomb
God Made All of Me starts from the fundamental truth that God created everything and applies that truth to kids and their bodies. It equips parents to talk with both boys and girls about their bodies and to help them understand the difference between the appropriate and inappropriate touch of others. God Made All of Me allows families to build a first line of defense against sexual abuse in the safety of their own homes.
For: Parents, Families, Counselors
Suffering and the Heart of God: How Trauma Destroys and Christ Restores
By Diane Langberg
When someone suffers through trauma, can healing happen? And, if yes, how does it happen? Dr. Diane Langberg tackles these complex and difficult questions with the insights she has gained through more than forty years of counseling those whose lives have been destroyed by trauma and abuse. Her answer carefully explained in Suffering and the Heart of God is “Yes, what trauma destroys, Christ can and does restore.”
But it’s not a fast process, instead much patience is required from family, friends, and counselors as they wisely and respectfully help victims unpack their traumatic suffering through talking, tears, and time. And it’s not a process that can be separated from the work of God in both a counselor and counselee. Dr. Langberg calls all of those who wish to help sufferers to model Jesus’s sacrificial love and care in how they listen, love, and guide. The heart of God is revealed to sufferers as they grow to understand the cross of Christ and how their God came to this earth and experienced such severe suffering that he too is “well-acquainted with grief.” The cross of Christ is the lens that transforms and redeems traumatic suffering and its aftermath, not only for the sufferer, but it also transforms those who walk with the suffering. This book will be a great help to anyone who loves, listens to, and seeks to help someone impacted by trauma and abuse. There is no quick fix, but there is the hope for healing through the love of God in Christ.
For: Victims, Counselors, Churches
Counseling Survivors of Sexual Abuse
By Diane Langberg
This powerful book deals with the issue of how Christians—especially those called to counsel—can help survivors of sexual abuse find healing and hope. From twenty years of experience, Diane demonstrates how counselors can walk alongside people deeply wounded by sexual abuse as they face the truth about who they are, who their abuser was, and who God is as the Savior and Redeemer of all life. Counseling Survivors of Sexual Abuse issues a strong call to the Church-at-large to walk with survivors through the long dark nights of their healing.
The Long Journey Home: Understanding and Ministering to the Sexually Abused
By Andrew J. Schmutzer
Maybe the only thing new about sexual abuse is quality discussion from several professions (psychology, theology, and pastoral care). Here are the insights of over two dozen psychologists, theologians, and those in pastoral care, all targeting the issue of sexual abuse. Designed as a resource for Christian educators, therapists, pastors, social workers, group leaders, and survivors, The Long Journey Home combines current research in mental health with rich theological reflection, global concern with fervent pastoral wisdom for the local faith community to create a fresh resource of information for those who have survived abuse and those ministering to them. Whether you are a counselor, professor, pastor, or spouse of a survivor, you hold in your hand a fresh resource of information and advocacy for those suffering from the devastating effects of sexual abuse and rape. The breadth of material, biblical insight, discussion questions, and helpful resources gathered here just may be the tool of a generation.
For: Survivors, Ministry Leaders, Counselors
Predators: Pedophiles, Rapists, And Other Sex Offenders
By Anna C. Salter
What motivates sexual abusers? Why are so few caught? Drawing on the stories of abusers, Anna Salter shows that sexual predators use sophisticated deception techniques and rely on misconceptions surrounding them to evade discovery. Arguing that even the most knowledgeable among us can be fooled, Anna Salter dispels the myths about sexual predators using anecdotes and case histories and gives us the tools to protect our families and ourselves. A must read for all Christian parents, leaders, and church members!
On The Threshold Of Hope
By Diane Langberg
On the Threshold of Hope offers hope and healing to men and women who have been traumatized by sexual abuse. Dr. Langberg's insights and the quotations from many survivors assure readers that they are not alone and that Christ, the Redeemer, can heal their deep wounds.book offers hope and healing to men and women who have been traumatized by sexual abuse. Through stories, Scripture, questions, and encouragement, Dr. Langberg walks with survivors on the road to healing through Christ's love and power.
Rid Of My Disgrace: Hope And Healing For Victims Of Sexual Assault
By Justin Holcomb & Lindsey Holcomb
The statistics are jarring. One in four women and one in six men are or will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. But as sobering as the statistics are, they don’t begin to speak to the darkness and grief experienced by these victims. Because sexual assault causes physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual pain, victims need clear help, hope, and healing. In Rid of My Disgrace, a couple experienced in counseling victims of sexual assault explains how the grace of God can heal the broken and restore the disgraced. Justin and Lindsey Holcomb—who’ve been working with abuse survivors for years —outline an approach here for moving from destruction to redemption. While avoiding platitudes and shallow theology, Rid of My Disgrace combines biblical and theological depth with up-to-date research. This book is primarily written for those who have been assaulted (either as children or adults) but also equips family, friends, pastors, and others to care for victims in ways that are compassionate, practical, and informed. Part of the Re:Lit series.
For: Survivors, Ministry Leaders, Counselors
Discussion Guide: Rid Of My Disgrace
By Justin Holcomb & Lindsey Holcomb, with Stephanie R. Hurter
The Rid of My Disgrace Small Group Discussion Guide answers our questions in an in-depth way, suited for groups and presented to bring healing and hope into the safety of the faith community. Designed to be used with Rid of My Disgrace, the small group discussion guide walks victims of sexual abuse along a biblical path of restoration, helping them to finally be rid of their disgrace.
Is It My Fault? Hope and Healing for those Suffering Domestic Violence
By Justin Holcomb & Lindsey Holcomb, with Elyse M. Fitzpatrick
One in every three women have been beaten, coerced into sex, or abused in their lifetime. The effects of domestic violence impact people physically, socially, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually, often with long-lasting and distressing consequences. It is common for victims of domestic violence to suffer from ongoing depression and recurring nightmares, self-harm, panic attacks, substance abuse, and other levels of trauma.
Is It My Fault? is a message of hope and healing to domestic violence victims who know all too well the depths of destruction and the overwhelming reality of domestic violence. The biblical message of grace and redemption demonstrates how to deal with the devastating and sinful problem of domestic violence, and how doing so honestly and directly can be healing and restorative.
On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus
By Victor Vieth
Jesus was the descendant of sexually exploited women, narrowly survived a child homicide, and grew up to be the world’s most prominent defender of children. Jesus reserved his harshest words for those who abused or neglected children and went so far as to say our treatment of children says everything about our view of God. Although the early church took this message to heart and distinguished itself by its treatment of children, this message has been distorted or ignored by many modern Christian leaders. As a result, the church has often failed to protect children from abuse and, in many instances, has contributed to their maltreatment.