Saving Sex Week 3

last night was a very intense night at 24t7. The night was titled "Wreckage" and we discussed dealilng with and preventing sexual abuse. The statistics on sexual abuse in our country are shocking :

Every two minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted.
Rape
Rape is forced sexual intercourse, including vaginal, anal or oral penetration. Penetration may be by a body part or an object.
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is unwanted sexual contact that stops short of rape or attempted rape. This includes sexual touching and fondling. (But, be aware: Some states use this term interchangeably with rape.)
In 2006, there were 272,350 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual
Women

One in six American women are victims of sexual assault, and one in 33 men.
One out of every six American women have been the victims of anattempted or completed rape in their lifetime. A total of 17.7 million women have been victims of these crimes.

MEN
About three percent of American men — a total of 2.78 million men — have experienced an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime
In 1995, 32,130 males age 12 and older were victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault.

Teens
>Studies indicate that dating violence affects at least 1 in 10 teen couples
>Over 50% of high school boys and 42% of high school girls believe that there are times when it is "acceptable for a male to hold a female down and physically force her to engage in intercourse."

A former member of Ikon who is now in college came in and shared her story of being sexually abused. She talked about how it affected her, how she thought of herself, and her relationships. She also shared how she was able to deal with it with the help of God and the people in her life.
The most amazing part of the story was that now, 5 years, latter she was able to forgive the people that did this to her. She was willing to share her story because she wants to help other people who have been or will be affected by this. She wanted them to know that they are not alone, they are not worthless, and that God has the power to restore our brokenness.

As i said, this story was very powerful and sparked a lot of emotion in many of the kids there.

After this, guys and girls split up in to separate groups to discuss what they had heard. in the end, both gender groups prepared statements to share with the other group. the girls expressed their desire to be respected and protected by guys. The guys wanted the girls to know that they will strive to be Godly men and asked them not to accept any guy who is anything less than their "Knight in Shining Armor". they made a pledge to respect, protect, and stand up for girls and to hold each other accountable. Every guy that was there signed this sheet of promises that were made. we are going to have it enlarged and posted in the YMC. I can't express enough how proud of both the guys and the girls for the statements and promises they made.
The night ended with the singing of "From the inside out" and our normal sending song of "Tell the World"
Though this was a tough and emotional night, we wanted to make sure everyone left last night knowing that no matter what you have been through in life that there is hope in Jesus Christ. It is our prayer that this night brought heeling to some, awareness to others, and hope to everyone.

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me or any other of the Ikon leaders.

In Christ,
Peter L-B