Invocation from the Lincoln Memorial to Child Victims of Sexual Assault

Invocation - November 14, 2009
From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC
FACSA Rally for Victims of Child Sexual Assault
Delivered by Gayle D’Ambrosio Crabtree

Oh lord God,
We come to you today on behalf of child victims of sexual assault who languish in the stronghold of someone else’s sin. Child innocents wait to be rescued from abusers who are too strong for them to conquer alone. These children wait for knowledgeable adults, family and friends to do the right thing and make a phone call that will bring rescue. They wait for CPS and courageous people to bring rescue from abusers who are too strong for children to conquer alone.


We come to you today oh God, on behalf of teen victims of child sexual assault. They wait for youth workers, for clergy, for someone to notice their pain and reach out and take their hands to rescue them from abuse. They wait for comfort, hope and the knowledge that they are valued and loved.


Lord God, we also come to you today on behalf of young adults who are victims of child sexual assault. They valiantly put on brave faces while waiting to be shown a life path that is free from abuse. Their struggles with identity lead to confusion on who they are and what they believe. We pray that young adult victims of child sexual assault might find strong role models who are willing mentor and guide them.


We pray for adults who carry the burden of child sexual assault we pray for rescue. Release these adults, and all victims of child sexual assault, from the shackles of someone else’s shame. Lead them to emotional safety so they may find a new life free from the shackles of abuse.


Lead abusers from the wilderness of manipulative thoughts and harmful actions. Penetrate the hard hearts of abusers with your love. Let them see the wrong of their ways, feel true remorse so they may be healed from their sickness, accept responsibility and go and depart from their evil ways.


Lord, rescue us as a society. Purge the depravity of child sexual assault from among us. Give us judges, lawyers, advocates and staff to shore up a judicial system that sometimes serves more to protect abusers than it does to protect the victims. Give all who are sworn to serve and protect tools and knowledge rescue our streets from perpetrators of child sexual assault.


The task is too much for us to conquer without your help. Hone our eyesight. Sharpen our hearing. Guide and strengthen each of us here today so that we may never fail to hear the cries of the hurting. Give us courage release child victims of sexual assault so that we may all become the people that You want us to be.


It is in Your Name we pray,


Amen

Inspiration for the invocation was taken from Psalm 18:17-18 NIV

     17 “He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from foes who were too strong for me.
     18 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the LORD was my support

Gayle Crabtree at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC

Gayle Crabtree, Founder of Hope for Healing.Org speaks out against child sexual assault at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. The event was organized by FACSA. Accompanying Gayle were 3 members of Hope Youth, Alisha, Allie and Charity. See our Facebook page for photos.

Photos from FACSA Rally at the Lincoln Memorial in DC

We had a life changing rally at the Lincoln Memorial in DC today. Here are a few photos from the event. More photos are now on our Facebook Fan page.

Rapist Murderer Davidson Gets Death Penalty. Does it Bring Relief to Victims' Families?

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The sentencing phase of LeMaricus Davidson has drawn to a close. He is now #90 on the Tennessee Death Row. According to many reports the average length of time an inmate spends on death row, fighting appeals and pleading the case is 20 years. Two decades. That is just about the length of time that Davidson's victims, Channon Christian and boyfriend Chris Newsom had on earth.

Several Knoxville news stations carried live coverage of the Davidson trial. At no other time has Knoxville been riveted around a court case. Reporters were tweeting from the courtroom so that everyone could follow the latest on Twitter. It was perfect for those who could not get to the internet.

The heinous and gruesome rapes and murders of Channon Christian and Chris Newsom will long be remembered after the penalty Davidson received is carried out. May God bring comfort to their families.

But in a case this horrific there are no winners. Everyone lost. No one paid a higher price than Channon Christian or Chris Newsom. Their death left a gaping void in their families that can never be filled. Society as a whole lost out on the contributions that these two young people made and would continue to make if it weren't for such a tragic outcome. And yes, society lost when Davidson and his followers started on their destructive paths before Chris and Channon were ever brought into the picture.

Tennessee is a death penalty state. That knowledge is always bittersweet. It sends a strong message to criminals that there may be a high cost to pay for committing atrocities but it won't bring back the victims. It can never do that. The best that we can hope for is that the sentence of death will bring a measure of comfort to the victims' families. After all that they have been through and will continue to go through the families deserve whatever chances at comfort that they can get.

Help Domestic Violence Victims Call Your Legislators

We just got an action alert from the Tennessee Coalition Against Domestic & Sexual Violence. The alert urges us to conntact our legislators now in support of the Tennessee Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification System. (SAVIN)

This important system makes sure that victims get notification of the custody status of offenders. Right now not all counties are online. Some, like Knox County, are scheduled to go online but are not there yet.

I remember a spring day a few years ago. A teenage victim of domestic violence had found the courage to see her abuser put behind bars. This was something her mother would never do. We were chatting about the day when her cell phone rang. She answered the phone without looking at the caller ID. Then, she gasped. It was him.

Her abuser was out of jail earlier than she had expected. He was mad and looking for her. He wanted to talk with her so she could explain to the judge that it was all her misunderstanding. Her face was still swollen from the beating. She felt the need to get off the road and into safety.

A notification system might have given her warning and provided more time to act.

Information on how to contact your legislator is at the bottom of the page.

Bill SummariesSB 1684 Ketron / HB 1430 Sontany - Creates the TN Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification System (SAVIN) providing access to timely and reliable information about the custody status of offenders in county jails twenty-four hours a day over the telephone, through the internet, or by e-mail. Victims of crime and other concerned citizens can register to be notified immediately in the event of an offender's release, transfer, or escape. Currently, 56 Tennessee counties participate in SAVIN and another 19 counties will come on line by the end of the year bringing the total number of counties on the statewide system to 75.

Implementation of this project was made possible by federal grants and the state must pick up the cost to continuing operating the system when the grant funds end. The bill imposes a privilege tax on litigation of $1 on all criminal cases to support this on-going expense. The bill also authorizes the Department of Finance and Administration to make an annual grant to the Tennessee Sheriff's Association to manage and administer the program. To learn more about SAVIN visit www.appriss.com/tnvine/ . This site includes a map where you can see which counties are currently on-line and those that are scheduled to come on to the system.

How to Contact Your Legislators

To get the contact information for your legislators go to http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/. When calling your members, be sure to tell them that you are from their district. If you email, put the ZIPCODE in the subject line to make sure your email gets read. Please forward this alert to your board, staff, friends and other local nonprofits

Bill Status: Scheduled to be heard in Senate Finance Ways and Means Committee and House Judiciary Committee on May 6. Call or email your State Senators and Representatives now, especially if they are members of either of these committees.

Finding Grace author Donna VanLiere on Voices of Hope

Look for author Donna VanLiere on our Voices of Hope internet radio show on Monday, May 25, 2009 at 8:00 pm. The url is http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hopeforhealing Listen live or call-in during the show to (718) 506-1545

You will be inspired and awed at her story. Most of all, you will find grace. When you read the following excerpt you will see exactly what I mean. See you on Monday, May 11, 2009 at 8:00 pm!

Gayle
___________________________________________________

When the Wheels Come Off

By Donna VanLiere,

Author of Finding Grace: A True Story About Losing Your Way in Life . . . And Finding It Again

I grew up in the 70's and 80's when parents still told their kids to go outside and play. My friends and I would spend all day in the yard and when we got hot and sweaty enough we'd run to the back patio, open the water spigot on the side of the house and get down on our hands and knees so we could get low enough to turn our mouths up for a drink of water that splashed all over our faces and down our necks. In the evenings I remember seeing my parents shaking their heads as they watched the oil crises in the 1970's unfold on the nightly news. Gas prices skyrocketed to 73 cents a gallon! "Turn it off," my mother would say to my dad. "Good grief! The wheel's are coming off but they make it sound like the world's ending."

Like me, as a child you probably hoped for a life that would exceed your dreams but as those dreams collapsed along the way you've simply wished for a soft wing of hope but instead have gotten life in a culture of ungrace. That's not a word but it should be. If you don't know what ungrace is just listen to most people who didn't vote for any sitting president, watch how fast Hollywood turns on a star who no longer sells at the box office or turn on the news anytime during the day. Ungrace pulsates in our workplaces, communities, and in the media and tells us that regardless of what has happened we must do better, look better, and make ourselves better. But to love and accept someone regardless of their flaws and failures is a breath of hope in a world that turns more upside down than right side up. That is the gift of grace. It's being dirty and smelly and turning your face up under the spigot. Sometimes the wheels need to come off and you need to get pretty low before you appreciate grace.

The wheels are coming off for my friend Lisa. She's the owner of a beautiful clothing store for women. She's put her heart and soul into the store but then the economy tanked and people ran scared (even those who still had jobs and owned their homes). Trouble is, she did everything right: paid her mortgage, creditors and bills on time so she doesn't qualify for help. The wheels are coming off for my friend Jacob. When he took his vows he never envisioned this animosity, anger or separation. The wheels are coming off for my friend Gerri. She finished chemotherapy and is beginning nine weeks of radiation for breast cancer. It wasn't her dream but she's added it to her daily schedule: go to work, get groceries, go to hospital for radiation, do laundry, make dinner.

When we plan our lives no one ever says, "When I grow up I want to get a divorce, maybe two!" Or, "When I grow up I want to lose my house, my business and my life savings!" Broken dreams are never part of anyone's plan. We tie our plans up with ribbons and bows and aim for the mountain top but end up in the valley. In Finding Grace (St. Martin's Press, March 2009) I relate a story of walking with my second grade class to the library when a sixth grader spit on me. He didn't intend to spit on me but I was fortunate enough to be the one to pass at that exact moment. My teacher Mrs. Brewer cleaned me up but when I looked down at my maroon polyester blend turtleneck I could see the white tissue particles clinging to where the snot had been. "He blindsided you," Mrs. Brewer said. "That's how it goes sometimes."

At some point, life blindsides us with something far greater than a giant loogie. The diagnosis, abuse, foreclosure, broken marriage, death, or financial collapse brings us to our knees and though we try to clean ourselves up the best we know how we're still left with the stain of it all. "That's how it goes sometimes." True. But isn't there more? The beauty of grace says yes. There's more love after the infidelity, more joy after the diagnosis and more life after the financial ruin. Chris Gardner, the bestselling author of The Pursuit of Happyness was once asked how he and his son were able to overcome the shame of homelessness. Gardner said, "We were homeless, not hopeless!" Chris knew he was living on the streets but he was still living. That's grace. Grace is always present and always near but it's easy to miss -- things aren't always as they appear. I just returned from Winnipeg where The Christmas Hope is being filmed in a house. In previous months the homeowner fell off a ladder and broke several ribs. During x-rays it was discovered that he had cancer. That break-up, closed door to a job, or fall from a ladder may not be as devastating as you think but an act of grace that will save your life and help you discover higher dreams.

In a country of excess we suffer from a deficit of grace. In the last few months I've watched two stories on the news of men losing their jobs then killing their entire families and themselves. In another story a man lost his job after twenty years. "It's heart wrenching," he said. "But I still have my family and we're all together." That's the hope of grace speaking and it beats the alternative any day. Last week my friend Lisa liquidated merchandise and said, "It kills me to close this store but I know God still has a plan for me." That's grace at the end of a shattered dream. My friend Miriam's husband was devastated over their loss of money in the stock market. "How much do we have left?" she asked. Embracing and recognizing what is left is grace at the end of an economically depressed rope. There is life-altering power in that.

I once attended several Alcoholics Anonymous meetings for research. A man said, "I was a drunk for fifteen years. I lost my wife and son because she couldn't take it anymore. One day I woke up and said, ‘What the hell am I doing? I need to live.'" For fifteen years the noise of his life drown out the voice that said he was worthy, needed and loved but then came the day that he finally heard it. That wake-up call to life is a gift from God. With what strength that man had left he turned his face up toward that spigot of grace and let it splash all over him.

Finding grace in a culture of ungrace seems an impossible task but it is present, it is real and it is an indomitable gift that has the power to change your life. It does come with one condition, though -- like any gift you have to reach out and take it.

©2009 Donna VanLiere, author of Finding Grace: A True Story About Losing Your Way in Life . . . And Finding It Again.

Author Bio

Donna Vanliere, author of Finding Grace, is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Christmas Hope series and Angels of Morgan Hill. She lives in Franklin, Tennessee with her husband and three children.

For more information please visit http://www.donnavanliere.com

Need Christmas Toys? Clothes? Strawberry Plains Charity May Be Able to Help

If you are having a hard time this Christmas? Hope for Healing.Org in Strawberry Plains may be able to help.

Some Christmas toys are still available from our location in downtown Strawberry Plains. Items will be freely given to those in need on Wednesday. There is no charge. You will need an appointment. This is available to current clients and residents of the 37871 zip code, in Strawberry Plains and also to those living in the Carter community. Residents of zip codes adjacent to 37871 will also be considered.

Please bring a bill, referral or other proof of residency. If you do not have a Christmas toy or if you need clothing you are welcome to come.

Email gayle@hopeforhealing.org for an appointment or call 964.6673. All items are limited to stock on hand and are available on a first come first served basis. We do not guarantee that something will be available for your child although we will do our best. To receive, you must call or email for an appointment first.

All items are given in the name of Jesus. Please have a merry Christmas.

Hope for Healing.Org is a 501c3 nonprofit charity. The organization maintains a limited food pantry, community clothing closet and distributes free household items upon a referral basis. We also work with victims of domestic and sexual violence, distribute Angel Food and restore the lives of juvenile offenders. Plus, we maintain the largest website on the internet so survivors can have 24/7 access to information and support via our list serves.

Volunteers are needed in many program areas. Do you have a couple of hours a month that you could help? Are you interested in encouraging others? If so, contact us. Training is free. The need is great. The time commitment is minimal. We'd love you have you. Stop by or call our office in Strawberry Plains today.

Yahoo Powered GoodSearch.Com Helps Strawberry Plains Charity

We just received a check for almost $70.00 because you used the Goodsearch.Com link and designated Hope for Healing.Org. Those free searches add up and we couldn't be more grateful. Plus, you've told your friends and put Goodsearch on your toolbar. Since Oct. 1 you have raised almost 1/3 of what we did last year. We can't thank you enough for helping victims of domestic violence by using Goodsearch and the Goodshop shopping portal for online purchases.

As featured on CNN, every search at on the Yahoo powered search engine http://www.goodsearch.com/?charityid=849816 you will help Hope for Healing.Org help others. Simply designate Hope for Healing .Org as the charity of your choice (note our mailing address is in Jefferson City).

But the best news is that last year GoodSearch.Com uses raised almost $70 dollars just by using searching the internet - and it didn't cost the searchers anything! GoodSearch is Yahoo powered and completely free. If you don't think that $70 is much think again.

At Hope for Healing.Org $70 can purchase any one of the following:

• Online expenses for 1 full quarter
• Internet service for1 month
• 2 basic Angel Food boxes for a hungry family ~ plus ~ 1 Angel Food Box special.
• 1 full month of Saturday meals or snacks for juvenile offenders who serve community service hours
• 10 possible domestic violence victims for gasoline assistance
• Partial rent or utilities for Hope for Healing.Org

Would you like to help us raise even more this year? Helping is easy. Put the search box on your toobar. Set the computers up in your office. Tell your friends! Just designate us and search! You can even track our progress on the website. There's never been an easier way to help us help others. Get started today. Just go to www.goodsearch.com to sign up.