By Linda Evans Shepherd

I was snuggled deep in the covers when my eyes popped open and I heard the still, small voice of the Lord whisper to my heart. 

It’s time to pray for the hurting children. 

“What hurting children, Lord?” I asked. 

The children who were molested tonight. 

“But where are they?” I asked. 

In neighborhoods all around you.

I sat up with tears in my eyes.

It was as if I could see the tear-stained faces of kids who had cried themselves back to sleep. I was stunned. 

“Really, Lord, all around me?” 

The Lord gently whispered: For miles; you would be shocked if you could see what I see.

If we could truly see the pain of the children, even in our own neighborhoods, and know who is hurting, maybe we would do something about it. But this kind of trauma and pain is all but invisible because the victims suffer in silence, their abuse hidden. Most child abuse is never reported, according to the National Center for Victims of Crime. This would mean that the National Center’s statistic—that one in five girls and one in twenty boys have been victims of sexual abuse—is far below reality. I sat up in bed and began to pray for the children who had been assaulted that evening. 

I didn’t know who they were, but God knew, and He wanted me to bring them comfort and relief through my prayers.

You can also join me in praying this prayer: 

Dear Lord, I pray for all the hurting children in my community who have been molested or assaulted. Please let them know that You are with them, that You see what’s happened, and that You care. Let them feel Your loving presence and comfort. Appear to these children in their dreams and let them know they are not alone as You hold them close. Meanwhile, I ask you to break the power of sexual assault and abuse over their lives and pray they will grow up in the power of Your love and protection. I pray that these children will heal from their trauma and come to know Your great love and healing. I also ask that You stop the abuse and assaults against these children. I pray against the demons that provoke these attacks and, by the power of the blood of Jesus, I declare that the demons must cease and desist. I also pray for the abusers, that they be set free from their sin. I pray this in the powerful name and blood of Jesus. For those who have also experienced childhood sexual trauma assault, please pray with me: Lord, through the blood of Jesus, You have washed me clean. I give You my trauma, grief, anger, and bitterness caused by these assaults and violent acts committed against me. Lord, I lay down my broken, bitter heart at the foot of the cross and give You all my pain. Lord, restore my heart with Your love and peace, and help me to be forever free as I learn to walk in Your freedom. AMEN.