On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church

by Deepak Reju

Publisher:

New Growth Press

, 2014

Overview

“Jimmy” joined the church a year ago. Before long, he volunteered to teach a Sunday School class and got to know eight-year-old “Peter.” Things started innocently. A hug at the end of class. Gifts for Peter. Lots of extra attention. And then it happened. Jimmy took advantage of Peter.

In On Guard, Deepak Reju examines why child predators target churches and offers eleven straightforward strategies to protect children from abuse and to help young victims recover if it does happen. While On Guard does provide practical help for building a child protection policy, it provides much more. Full of pastoral wisdom, On Guard recognizes that the church’s response to abuse must be more comprehensive in line with her calling than a simple legal policy or clinical analysis. On Guard moves church staff and leaders beyond fearful awareness to prayerful preparedness with an actionable plan.

Key Features

• Examines why child predators target churches and offers strategies to protect children
• Provides practical help for building a child protection policy within churches
• Guides church staff and leaders toward prayerful preparedness with an actionable plan

Contents

• Acknowledgments
• Introduction: Why Should You Care?
• Section One: Getting Familiar with the Problem of Child Abuse
• Chapter 1: The Nature of the Problem
• Chapter 2: The Stewardship of Children
• Chapter 3: The False Assumptions We Make
• Chapter 4: Types, Techniques, and Targets of Sexual Predators
• Chapter 5: Why the Church?
• Section Two: Eight Strategies for Protecting Against Abuse
• Chapter 6: Creating and Implementing a Child Protection Policy
• Chapter 7: A Check-in and Checkout Process
• Chapter 8: Membership
• Chapter 9: Screening and Verification
• Chapter 10: Building Design
• Chapter 11: Training Your Staff and Volunteers
• Chapter 12: Preparing Church Leaders, Parents, Children, and Teens Before Abuse Happens
• Chapter 13: Getting to Know the People and Resources in Your Community
• Section Three: Three Strategies for Responding to Abuse
• Chapter 14: Helping a Church to Be Responsible by Reporting Child Abuse
• Chapter 15: Helping a Church to Respond Wisely to Victims, the Congregation, and the Media
• Chapter 16: Helping a Church to Deal Wisely with a Child Abuser
• Conclusion: Our Witness, Our Responsibility, Our Fears, and Our Hope
• Appendices
• Appendix A: A Really Quick Guide to Writing and Implementing a Child Protection Policy
• Appendix B: Child-on-Child Sexual Abuse
• Appendix C: How Do I Talk to My Kids about Sexual Abuse?
• Appendix D: An Example of a Screening Application
• Appendix E: Child Abuse and Neglect Training Sheet
• Appendix F: Training Scenarios for Staff and Volunteers
• Endnotes

Praise for On Guard

Deepak Reju writes with conviction and compassion about the sobering reality of child abuse and the challenge of protecting children in this fallen world. Highlighting both the responsibility and privilege of our stewardship, Deepak’s straightforward, thorough, and well-researched insights will instill in any parent or church leader a healthy fear and God-dependent confidence while providing us with practical steps and effective strategies for fulfilling the calling and responsibility we have as God’s stewards. We earnestly encourage church leaders to embrace Deepak’s concern and apply his counsel for the protection and the joy of the next generation.

—Pastor David and Sally Michael, Founders, Children Desiring God

If I could mandate that at least one leader from every church had to read a single book, I don’t think there are too many I would choose ahead of On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church. Too many times the purpose and witness of the church has been tarnished by her failure to offer safety and protection to children. This book offers assistance where so many churches have failed.

—Tim Challies, Pastor, author, and blogger at Challies.com

Child sexual abuse in the church is a scandal, and yet many of us in church are woefully ill-equipped to identify danger signs, understand our legal responsibilities, or respond in an appropriate pastoral manner to the victims. In this timely book, Deepak Reju addresses all of these areas of concern, offering helpful advice to pastors, elders, and Christians in general on what the reality of this evil requires of them in terms of organization, wisdom, and action. Whether your church is just starting to formulate a child protection policy or seeking to protect the children in its care more effectively, this book will be a very useful resource in addressing the challenges in keeping children safe and giving comfort and care to the victims of abuse.

—Carl R. Trueman, Pastor, Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, Ambler, PA; Paul Woolley Professor of Church History, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia

Product Details

• Title: On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church
• Author: Deepak Reju
• Publisher: New Growth Press
• Print Publication Date: 2014
• Logos Release Date: 2025
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Church work with children; Child abuse › Prevention; Child abuse › Religious aspects--Christianity
• ISBNs: 9781939946997, 1939946999
• Resource ID: LLS:ONGUARDNGP
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2025-07-22T16:18:14Z

About Deepak Reju

Deepak Reju, MDiv, PhD, serves as senior pastor at Ogletown Baptist Church in Newark, Delaware, as well as president for the board of directors of the Biblical Counseling Coalition. He is the author of several books and articles, including Great Kings of the Bible: How Jesus Is Greater than Saul, David and Solomon, The Pastor and Counseling, and On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church. Deepak and his wife Sarah have been married since 2001 and have five children.