Guest Post By Dinah Monahan
No mother should ever have to hear the words I heard. No father should ever have to grapple with the feeling of failure to protect his child like my husband did. Yet so many do hear these words. Add to this the numbers of parents whose children don’t tell, and you have an epidemic of emotional devastation from child molestation. The results of this sin affect people for a lifetime.
Surveys suggest that, in our country, one out of three women are molested as children and one out of ten men. In every group you are in, every meeting, every church these numbers hold. After I found out my three-year-old daughter was a victim, and after I picked up the shattered pieces of my perfect life illusion, I trained as a lay counselor, specializing in molestation counseling. Through my lifetime working in Pregnancy Care Centers and maternity homes, I never dreamed there was such a need; I kept very busy. Over the years, I have spoken to large groups and small groups of women and when this statistic comes up women will reluctantly admit that it happened to them. One out of three or more always prevails.
It is a difficult thing for parents who know these numbers and want to protect their children to navigate this culture. Because of the internet and pervasive pornography, our children are vulnerable to sexual predators in more ways than ever before. Trusting people is something we want to do but when it comes to our children we cannot blindly trust, and we must instead work to actively protect them.
So how do we navigate this to protect our children?
True to Life Productions has created a DVD that all parents should see. It lays out the problem clearly and offers practical, reasonable ideas to keep our children safe. It is imperative that parents, grandparents, teachers, church leaders and anyone who has contact with children view this DVD.
You can preview and purchase the DVD here: http://www.hh76.com/details.aspx?prod_id=21480 or you can call 1-800-858-3040.
