“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves;
ensure justice for those being crushed.”
Proverbs 31:8
I want to scream and wail until the whole world hears. For the children who are trapped in abuse. At home. From people they came to know and trust. From sex traffickers.
As I write this, last night’s news is still haunting me. The fire chief in our city, one who is supposed to be an advocate for public safety, is secretly a viewer of child porn. People who knew him say he was such a “nice man.”
A psychologist discussed this rising horrendous crime in our nation with a reporter. She said many who watch child porn seem “nice” in public, but in their secret life they have a lack of empathy for children who are victims. Some have said, “They’re just pictures.”
No! They are NOT just pictures. Each child in the picture is a precious child created by God. A child who deserves to be loved, valued, and respected. NOT neglected. NOT abused. NOT exploited. Their voices need to be nurtured, not crushed.
Every child deserves to be loved, valued, and respected.
Why, God, why? I know children are precious to You. Why don’t You stop all this evil that victimizes them? Why don’t You keep all children safe?
It’s so hard to understand, but I have learned it’s not God who wants this to happen. Yes, He could stop it in a heartbeat. But we humans were given a choice to choose. And devastatingly, some are choosing the evil and abusing and exploiting children.
Oh God, please help!
“For Those Who Can’t Speak”
by Tenth Avenue North
I hear the unheard screams of a broken heart
Because every day a son dies
27 million slaves but no plantation
27 million slaves, all different races
This is not the picture the Lord painted in Genesis
Silence is our enemy, our voices can end it
Evil drowns in mercy streams
I want to see those rivers of justice
So I use my voice for those who can’t speak
I will use my voice for those who can’t speak
Yeah, yeah, when it’s all said and done
Yeah, I pray that everything we said is done
I don’t want my son to say I was one of the ones
That watched 27 million suffer and never say
No, no, I won’t be that
I don’t deserve a mic if I ain’t got no feedback
Bring back every girl from the west to the east that
He crafted for His glory, not for making you green backs
I dream that
Every ounce of brokenness and disease that
Bring that to the cross, believe that He redeems that
Sees that type of world that my daughters can breathe in
Where the beautiful feet that go where the needs at
Come on, come on
Oh, none of here are just a number
We all have a name like any other
There’s breath inside your lungs
And you are my brother
My God, when will we stand
Stand together
I want to be the kingdom coming where
Evil drowns in mercy streams
Oh, let me see those rivers of justice
So I use my voice for those who can’t speak
I will use my voice for those who can’t speak
I use my voice for those who can’t speak”
If you think you have seen a missing child,
or suspect a child may be sexually exploited,
contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
24-hours a day, 7 days a week.
Freed to Fly 
So powerful Trudy. I shared it out on my Facebook Page. I love the messages of Tenth Avenue North too. They really hit the social injustices that need to be known, but also bring hope that their can be change and healing.
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Thank you for sharing this, Lynn. It’s so heartbreaking, isn’t it? We really do need to speak out for these injustices but also bring hope that there can be change and healing. May we stand together to use our voices for those who can’t speak for themselves!
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Thank you. Quite intense for me. I am an Incest/Trauma survivor, and still struggle 57 years later to find my voice. Keep speaking, even if your voice shakes, because you can’t always see the tender ones that you are ministering to. God bless….
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I’m so, so sorry you were abused! Healing is a lifelong process, isn’t it? I am a survivor, too, so I know how hard it is to find our voice. Your words about speaking even if my voice shakes brings tears to my eyes. The thought that our shaking voices can reach tender ones we don’t know about gives me hope. God bless you, too! I couldn’t find your name at your site, but I guess that doesn’t matter, does it? Because God always knows your name as His beloved! I desire with you – “I am Your kindling my Lord … lay me across Your alter; that Your fire may consume me and burn so brightly that all who see me may see YOU!!! And thereby You will be glorified …. May You be glorified in everything I say, do, or post.” May we together keep posting with our shaking voices for the glory of God and the welfare of other hurting souls!
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My name is Cindi Ruiz…. (From Bakersfield California). Thank you for your kind words. I am humbled. Yes, it is lifelong and though I have gained freedom from some of those hurtful memories, I still have much still in need of victory. I struggle with PTSD and anxiety still. Healing is sometimes a rough journey. May we walk it together…. God bless…
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Hi Cindi! I’m so sorry you still struggle with PTSD and anxiety. Yes, healing is a rough journey. God heals us ever deeper, layer by layer, but it is so hard to allow Him to go deeper as it hurts so much. May God give us days of dancing in the joy of His love instead of just surviving! And someday we will forever be dancing in victory!
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Dear Trudy,
This is so powerful and heartbreaking. I pray with several who have been touched by the awfulness of this evil. It has such a lasting and devastating impact on those childlike hearts. Oh may we lift up our hearts and voices for those who cannot speak! Thank you for sharing on a hard topic today. May the Lord bring HIS help!
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Oh Bettie, thank you so much for praying with those who have been touched with the awful of this evil. They so need to have caring friends who believe in them and who carry their burdens to Jesus. Yes, it has such a lasting and devastating impact. Without God’s help, there would be no hope. Yes! May we together lift our hearts and voices for those who cannot speak!
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Nothing breaks my heart more than hearing about the abuse of children. And as the commentator above reminds us, these scars are carried far into adulthood, even when the best of psychological help is sought. Not only are these abusers stealing the innocence of those who deserve only love and care, they are robbing the future of these precious ones to live normal lives. May we all do our part to help.
Blessings, Trudy!
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Yes, it is so, so heartbreaking, Martha. I am a survivor myself, so I know how those scars are carried far into adulthood. What you say is so true. Abusers steal children’s innocence but also rob them of the ability to live normal lives. May we keep speaking out for them and praying that God will rescue them from that deep, dark pit of abuse and give them hope and healing in Jesus!
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You’ve expressed this so well, Trudy, especially the part about how hard it is to understand why God allows people to hurt children. I’m guessing this was a tough post to write, given your own background, but I know your empathy is providing comfort to those who read it, even if they might not say so. Hugs, friend.
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Yes, it was a tough post to write, and yet I felt empowered by God. To be honest, I was triggered when that news came out, and my default mode in that case is to curl up into a ball inside me and to shut down my feelings. But thanks be to God, He helped me to overcome that and to instead have fight in me to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. Thank you for your kind understanding and encouragement, Lois. Hugs back to you! May we find hope always in the immovable character of God and the Truth in His promises!
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Hi Trudy,
Thank you for calling our attention to this heartbreaking crime and reminding us to lift up in prayer our concerns for those who can’t speak for themselves. xo
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Yes, it is sooo heartbreaking, Valerie. Just to think of all those out there makes one feel so discouraged and helpless. But I’ve had to remind myself I can’t “fix” everything and God still is a God of power and possibilities. May we do what we can and keep praying for God to show His power and rescue them and give them healing!
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Oh dear Trudy. So hard to read and we can’t keep quiet. I question it all…and I trust. I have to. God is good. Always.
I listen to mercy me…”even if”. I ponder, I trust. Thank you.
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Yes, Anita, sometimes it can be too painful to think about, can’t it? So true that we can’t keep quiet. Thank you for reminding me of that song. Yes, even if He doesn’t save with His mighty hand, our hope is in Him alone. I often think also of Lauren Daigle’s “Trust In You.”
“When You don’t move the mountains I’m needing You to move
When You don’t part the waters I wish I could walk through
When You don’t give the answers as I cry out to You
I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You!”
I’m so glad God never condemns us for our questioning or doubting Him. He is so tender and loving. May we learn ever more deeply to trust His plan in all things, even when it hurts, even when it’s hard!
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Hi Trudy- Thanks for sharing this- and for being a voice for those who may have lost theirs somewhere along the way. Thankful for your courage. xoxo
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Thank you, Susie. xoxo to you, too! There are many more than we realize who have lost their voice along the way. It’s so heartbreaking. May we remember abused ones everywhere at the throne of God’s mercy!
I read at Valerie’s that a big part of your ceiling came down! And pipes are leaking! I’m so sorry. What a mess that must be. Sometimes it seems one thing after another piles on, doesn’t it? I pray God gives you strength!
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Thanks Trudy! We got the pipe fixed – now for the ceiling our house is old and something with the copper pipes keeps causing these pin hole leaks that cause a big mess! Just has been a week of unexpected things I guess- Thankful for you and your encouragement along the way- You all help keep me afloat! xox
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I hope the best for you, Susie! xoxo to you, too!
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Powerful! The song alone is so good and the words speak truth. I know that child abuse and porn happen more than we even know. The fact that people continue to stick up for those who are engaged in this action is beyond me. We all can be nice people when we want but are we trying to live and love others as God calls us to do or only when we feel like it?? Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
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Yes, Mary, isn’t that song moving? May we see evil drown in mercy streams! Even in some churches, there is more prayer and support for the abuser than for the victim. I will never understand it. May we daily demonstrate the love of Jesus in all we do or speak, and may we speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves!
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Hi Trudy! This post is so impressive and powerful, I can read your heart in each word, the passion you have for exploited children. I did share this on Twitter.
I suppose this type of abuse has always been with us, but it does seem that we are beginning to hear more and more about it. May we all rise up in it’s face and shout it down, letting all abusers know what they do is NOT okay.
May God bless you for the words you wrote, so heart felt and important,
Ceil
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Thank you, Ceil. Also for spreading the word on Twitter. Yes, I do have a passion for children, especially those who are or have been abused. Yes, I think abuse has always been with us, and I’m glad it’s coming out into the open more. I’m so grateful for the people who have the courage to speak out more and for those who spend their lives finding predators of children, rescuing the abused and exploited, and helping the abused through the healing process. May Jesus rescue, revive, and restore the abused of all ages everywhere!
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Trudy, I found it really hard to read this post, hesitated over it for a few days, because those scars, reminders? They are still so close to the surface sometimes and tears still spill at the unfairness of it all for children suffering like we did. But I’m so glad I found the courage to revisit this topic. You are a voice for the hurting, a survivor who has such a sweet heart for the hurting. And I just want to say thank you, dear friend, for shining a light on this topic again, and a bigger one still on the One who holds us when we’re hurting and can heal us of all life’s ills, one broken piece at a time.., yes? Gentle hugs and blessings to you for being a lovely bright candle for those in dark places. xo ❤
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I’m so sorry this triggered memories, Joy. When I heard the news about the fire chief here, it triggered a lot for me, too. All I can say is all thanks be to God. I easily pull back when I feel triggered. It’s like I curl up in a ball inside of me, shutting off all my feelings. And I have to try to process how and why I’m feeling the way I do. In a special way, God empowered me and told me I needed to speak up for all those suffering children whose voices have been stolen from them. I know you have a special empathy, too, for all who suffer or have suffered this unspeakable horror. Thank you for your loving encouragement. Gentle hugs and blessings to you, too. You are a lovely bright candle, too, much more than you know. Your posts offer such hope to the hurting. As Cindi says above in her comment – “Keep speaking, even if your voice shakes, because you can’t always see the tender ones that you are ministering to.” That gives hope, doesn’t it? God is always working behind the scenes, and there are people we will never hear from, but whose hearts He is ministering to. May God keep helping us to cling to our identity in Christ Jesus!
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Thank you for your courage in speaking up about this, Trudy. I know it wasn’t easy but your words shine a light into the darkness and give hope. I agree, we need to speak up about this issue and for those who cannot speak up for themselves. Love and hugs!
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It’s so heartbreaking and affects us for life, right? I know you know what it’s like to be abused as a child, Lesley. I marvel at how God has helped us on this healing journey. He is so good and faithful. May our cries rise up to Him for the rescue and healing of so many others!
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Dear Trudy,
Thank you for using your voice to speak up for those who can’t…Lord, have mercy. Rescue these children and change the hearts and minds of people who have chosen to believe a lie about child porn and porn, in general. Bring justice. Bring rescue…Love and hugs to you, my friend 🙂
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Thank you for the prayer, Dolly. My heart says AMEN! Yes, Lord, have mercy! Love and hugs to you, too! May we cry out to God for abused souls to be rescued and healed by His love and grace!
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Dear Trudy … you are an advocate of justice, grace, mercy. Your voice is powerful, your words change things.
I thank God upon every remembrance of you, friend.
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Thank you for your kind encouragement, Linda. I truly thank God for you as well! I am blessed to have met you. May we keep traveling this journey together speaking up for and helping the hurting!
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Trudy, what a powerful message and the song by Tenth Avenue North…. They are becoming one of my favorite groups. Their songs are full of truth. I shared this post on facebook and will share it elsewhere, too.
Blessings and love to you, dear sister! xoxo
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Thank you so much for sharing it, Gayl. Tenth Avenue North has such moving songs, don’t they? “Worn” has often been in my heart and given me courage. Now I just listened to “I Have This Hope.” “In the flood or the fire, You’re with me and You won’t let go.” Such comfort in that, isn’t there? Blessings and love to you, too! May we hang onto the hope there is in Jesus, no matter how dark the way is!
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