Children Need to Be Rescued

We live in a world where children are often abused and even treated as a commodity. Many children grow up without a parent or without both parents, and too many know lives with little hope—but plenty of fear. As a new UNICEF report highlights, “Early exposure [to violence] can cause toxic stress, affecting brain development, and lead to aggression, substance abuse, and criminal behaviour. Children who experience violence are also more likely to be affected by cycles of trauma and violence as adults, impacting entire communities” (UNICEF.org, November 4, 2024).

According to the report, every four minutes a child is killed by violence somewhere in the world. Over 650 million women and girls were subject to sexual violence as children—that is one in six of all women alive! Between 410 and 530 million boys and men experienced sexual violence during childhood. On average, violence claims the lives of approximately 130,000 people under the age of 20 each year. And 90 million children alive today have experienced sexual violence—a number more than 30 percent greater than that of the United Kingdom’s entire population.

Children are vulnerable, weaker than adults, and seldom able to flee or fight back. Thankfully, the Bible reveals that a time of hope and safety for children is coming. The prophet Zechariah records a future vision of elderly people sitting in the streets of Jerusalem while children play around them (Zechariah 8:4–5). Isaiah paints a picture of that coming time, as well, saying, “All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children” (Isaiah 54:13). The statistics we’ve read should move caring individuals to pray for God’s Kingdom to come! To learn more about the wonderful future time when children will finally be safe, read or listen to The World Ahead: What Will It Be Like?