Where those who have been abused or traumatized in other ways can find healing.
Introducing the Abuse and Trauma Care Team
From Pastor Chris
This summer, our Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission issued the “Caring Well Challenge” in response to reports of abuse in Southern Baptist Churches. Groveton took the challenge, holding training sessions about abuse care (click here to watch the videos) and live streaming some of the sessions from the Caring Well conference (you can view the survivor stories and talks here).
Perhaps the most important step of the Caring Well Challenge is the formation of a team to address these issues on an ongoing basis. I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you to the Abuse and Trauma Care Team: Leslie Adewale, Candace Gleason, Rachael Davis, and myself. Mark Ramsay and Neal Morgan are also involved in advisory roles as we discuss both policy and implementation of a culture of care.
Our team has met twice to discuss the parameters of our work. Broadly, they fit into two categories: prevention and response. We want to do all we can to prevent abuse from happening at Groveton and we want to be a soft place to land for survivors of abuse.
Each of these carries its own challenge. Prevention is largely a matter of consistency and awareness. We need to have the right policies and procedures, but safety comes through consistent implementation and everyone keeping their radar screens on for unusual behavior. Last week Leslie Adewale and I attended a seminar sponsored by our NorthStar Church Network and our state convention (BGAV) that helped with nuts and bolts like understanding the profile of abusers, doing background checks and personal references for those who will work with the vulnerable, and training workers to protect our little lambs. Our team is currently sorting through the material from this conference and will be meeting to discuss how we can best implement any needed change for our children’s department and Robin Department.
Response carries a different challenge. We want to create opportunities where those who have been abused or traumatized in other ways can find healing. In some situations that may involve recommending quality therapists. Beyond this, one short-term (1-2 years) goal is to also provide healing groups in the church where survivors can work through their painful stories in a safe, healing environment. A long-term goal (3-5 years) is to provide support groups to the community where those who do not have the resources for counseling can find a safe community to be loved and known, learning about the healing that comes through Christ.
The Abuse and Trauma Care Team will also be compiling a community resource list, where we establish personal contacts with law enforcement, Child Protective Services, and abuse healing resources that already exist in our community.
While these specific goals are important initiatives that we take seriously, what will ultimately make Groveton a safe and healing environment begins with each one of us. We must be honest about our own wounds and welcome trusted brothers and sisters into the healing work God wants to do in us. We must put sin to death in our hearts, confessing and repenting of those impulses to use others instead of serve them. And we must be willing to listen to those who are hurting, meeting them with empathy and presence rather than an instinct to minimize or fix.
All of this is part of our highest calling: Magnify God’s Reputation. In Jesus, God came to us, not with a quick fix, but to dwell with us, live in our skin, and take on our guilt and death so that, through his resurrection, we might have life with God forever. When we move toward others and sit with them in their pain, we magnify the sacrifice, compassion, and power of God revealed in the gospel. This often gives us powerful opportunities to point them to Christ and invite them to come home to God’s family though trusting in Jesus. Please pray for our Abuse and Trauma Care Team as we get established and help Groveton toward this end!
More resources:
The Difficult First Step of Caring for the Hurting
Empathy: 5 Tips for Taking the Plunge