We are all devastated to learn about the horrific murder and alleged rape of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu from Tracy, California. Melissa Huckabee, a Sunday school teacher and mother to a little girl herself, has been charged with the murder of little Sandra with special circumstances of kidnapping, the performance of lewd and lascivious acts upon a child under 14 and rape.

Pastor Aaron Jayne from the LA Dream Center was a guest on Wednesday’s Dr. Phil show, which was dedicated to Sandra Cantu. Dr. Phil asked Pastor Aaron if the church was wrong for giving her (Melissa Huckabee) a medal of credibility and allowing her to be involved in the church and Sunday school.

Pastor Aaron replied “this is a huge wake up call to churches all over America that we have a responsibility to create a safe environment for children and minors. Every church in America needs to do a full screening and background check anybody working with minors or children. And if they don’t publish that, if they don’t make that common knowledge within the congregation, I would tell parents do not go to that church, if they are not screening their workers, don’t go to that church. This is a wakeup call.”

I couldn’t agree more. One of the many responsibilities as leaders of the church is to create and preserve a safe environment in which people can know the presence of God and relate to one another without fear of personal violation or exploitation.

A part of that responsibility is exercising due diligence taking reasonable steps to assure the existence of a safe environment for our children and youth. Background checks of church staff, LifeSavers Children’s Ministry volunteers and Grid 29:11 Youth Ministry volunteers are examples of such due diligence. Background checks allow our staff to screen out individuals who might be unsuitable for these particular ministries.

At The Rock Church we communicate that our LifeSavers Children’s Ministry is top notch, our Grid 29:11 youth ministry is like nothing else in this city, and that our leaders are trained, capable and excited to partner with you, to teach your child/youth the truths of Jesus Christ. We also want you to know that safety is our number one priority. Each week, hundreds of parents entrust us with the care and education of their children and we honor, protect and uphold that trust.

If you have any further questions about the policies and procedures related to the training and implementation of our volunteers, or if I can answer any questions, please contact me directly at shannah@trclife.com.

Our prayers are with the Cantu family, may God’s grace be ever present in times ahead.