A Child Protection Policy is something that has been on our agenda for a very long time. Such a policy seems to be (it in fact is) a no brainer. It is something that must be done. But that does not mean it is an easy task. It is in fact a very difficult task to accomplish because it impacts our way of doing things very deeply. If we want Pittsboro Christian Church to be a safe haven for children and youth always, even when sharing our resources and facilities with others, then of course, it impacts the practices of other groups that we partner with as well.

Being a small church and a family church, it is sometimes too easy to down play the need for an official policy, because we know what is right, and we know who our children and youth are with. We trust one another not just because we bear the name Christian and sit in the pews with one another. We trust one another because we have known each other for years. That faith and trust in God and one another is a true gift, one of the gifts we want to pass on to our children as a congregation.

Without an articulated Child Protection Policy, we are most importantly placing our children at unneeded risk, no matter how great or small. In addition, we are placing our congregation at risk. Something that doesn’t normally occur to us though, is that we are also depriving ourselves of an opportunity to remember and lift up the importance of our children and youth, and to remind ourselves of the holy responsibility of stewardship of God’s people, in particular, God’s youngest people, that we bear with both humility and gladness. We deprive ourselves of opportunities for growing in our abilities to express God’s love to others through training and reflection about caring for God’s children.

We are once again actively shaping a Child Protection Policy for Pittsboro Christian Church, and will have a draft available this month for your reflection. Pray for us as we seek to be the most holy and responsible stewards possible of the greatest gift God bestows upon us, the gift of life as we care for our children and youth.

Grace and Peace, Pastor Alan