No child should ever experience the abuse Chau suffered for nearly half her life! She was born in a small rural town to a family that was dirt poor. Her father was an alcoholic with no stable job. Eventually her parents divorced, and she moved with her mother, who remarried some time later. But tragically her life did not take a turn for the better. In fact, it was the beginning of more hell on earth for her.

She was often locked in a room all day while her mother and stepfather sold lottery tickets on the street. When she yelled or cried, she was severely punished, but she continued to cry out. She told our mission team,“I was spanked and belt-whipped more times than I had meals. It was terrifying and painful.”

A neighbor who could hear Chau’s screams decided to investigate and found Chau in her “prison room.” Shocked and distraught, the neighbor took Chau to the police.

Mission:RescueLIFE partners were called and asked to take Chau into their care. Chau slowly began to share stories of her suffering from the earliest times she could remember, including beatings and repeated raping by her stepfather over a period of at least three years.

Within hours of her arrival at the Safe House, many children reached out to befriend Chau, as caregivers and other staff tried to help her feel safe and comfortable.

Little by little, God’s love expressed by the mission workers and other children whose lives had also been changed by compassion began to make a difference for Chau.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted . . . to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, a garment of praise instead of despair (Isaiah 61:1, 3).

Chau’s story is a testimony to what love and compassion can do for the most traumatized child. Every day mission workers pray, “God, who can we help today?” This is the HOPE for a rescued and renewed life through the efforts of Mission:RescueLIFE.