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PHASE FOUR:
It’s one
thing we all have in common. We were kids once. Do you remember? Do you remember what it felt like to be full of energy and without a care in the world, reveling in the pure joy of play, embraced and surrounded by the love and support of your parents and extended family, knowing that your every need would be taken care of and all you had to think about was how to have as much fun as possible in the next few hours? Many of us have wonderful memories of our childhood, of growing up in a family where we were loved and appreciated simply because we existed. But not every kid has that going for them - not by a long shot. For some kids - kids right here in Central Arkansas - the scenario of their childhood is playing out in a very different way. Instead of thinking about fun, they’re thinking about food - where their next meal is going to come from, and why it has been so long since they’ve last eaten.
Instead of the pure joy of play, they worry about how to avoid the
abuse, what they can do and where they can hide so that they don’t
face the full brunt of it again, not today, not for the umpteenth
time. Instead of feeling embraced and surrounded by love, they live in fear. Fear that they’ve done something wrong, that somehow they’re the bad ones, that if only they could be better the adults in their lives wouldn’t treat them this way, wouldn’t be angry and shouting and hitting them all the time. For some kids, life is very different than what most of us experienced as children. They’re not easy to spot, these children of neglect and abuse. They don’t sit by the side of the road begging. The bruises on their bodies are often covered by their clothes. And the bruises on their soul won’t surface until much, much later in life, when they begin to process the ravaging effect of a childhood gone awry. But they’re in our midst, nonetheless. As a society, we’re getting better at looking for the telltale signs, noticing when something is not right, and requiring mandatory reporting from childcare workers and teachers when they suspect something is awry. While that’s a giant leap forward from where we used to be, it still leaves a big gap. Where do these kids go, once authorities have stepped in and removed them from the custody of their abusers? At Rock Creek, we think the answer - at least in part - needs to be “here.” Bring them here. Bring them to a place where they can be loved for who they are, showered with dignity and respect, fed and clothed and treated by medical and dental professionals, given a place of safety and security that most of them have never experienced during their entire time on this planet.
As Rock Creek members respond, we’ll break ground on our next ministry campus building: The Rock Creek Children’s Home. The home will be situated just south of our Worship Center, set among the trees and designed to be a place of quiet shelter and safety for those whose young lives have already seen enough turmoil and trouble. When it’s finished, the Children’s Home will be the kind of home you wouldn’t have minded growing up in, able to house up to a dozen kids of all ages for both short-term and extended (up to one year) stays. It will be staffed by licensed and professional childcare workers, those who have a God-sized heart for helping abused and neglected kids gain a new footing in life.
Nobody deserves what abused kids face on a daily basis. While we may
not be able to help all of them, by God’s grace we can help some of
them. What we
cannot do is sit idly by,
content in our own comfort, and hope that someone else addresses the
need. The stakes are just too high - for them and us.
“Let the
little children come to Me; for such is the |
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For more information about Rock Creek's Children's Home, call us at 225-8684. |
We don’t think we can expect the government - not city, county,
state or federal - to do it all. The church must be involved. This
church must be involved. We’ve got to “put our money where our mouth
is,” to stand in the gap and meet the needs of those who are the
most vulnerable in our midst, kids
who deserve far better than what they’re currently experiencing.