What Our Youth Suffer- At Risk Youth & Homlessness.

Homelessness & At Risk Youth
This is my hearts desire to see in the university district! Seeing seeds planted and freedom in young peoples lives. They all deserve a second chance at life, and someone to sit down and talk with. They may be on the streets for reasons we don't even know about EXP. being kicked out or abused and no where to go... So I think it would be awesome if we could go out of our four walls at church, and BE the church and reach our harvest. There are so many bible verses in Psalms about reaching out to the poor.God blesses us and anoints us as we take care of the poor. Our lives are not our own, and life is but a vapor, and we need to share are gift of salvation to others. 
God has totally put a burden on my heart for homeless Women/Men, and at risk youth. Let’s look at some detailed facts, and get a better understanding why all this is going on, and where we get some information on getting help, for ourselves, friends, or loved ones we know.
These were percentiles taken in 2009 on the homeless; this gives us a better figure of how many people there actually are out on the street and what types of people. They have also increased through out the years due to losing jobs, low income, kicked out, and the falling economy.
*Single men 44%
*Single women 14%
*Families with children 36%
*More than 66%-85% deal with addictions, alcoholism, drugs, mental disorders
*22% have been physically assaulted
*8% sexually assaulted
*More than 35% of people have been homeless for more than two years. That makes you think, has any of your friends or family been homeless before and they have never told you before?

In addition, most homeless either are addicts to them, or are the “products of dysfunctional families and broken homes, that the families were impacted by addictions themselves such as drugs, anger, depression, alcoholism.
It is hard for the homeless to get much help because, many of the shelters are closing down, and some of them do not have recovery programs. They just get the people back on there feet into the “working world” and not help them with their deeper issues. I Don’t know if that would be their ( the shelters) job or would it be our job as Christians to share the good news with them, and how much God really loves them and cares about them and that he has Such an amazing calling on each and everyone of there lives. All I can think of when I say that, as Christians is Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do Good, Seek justice, help the oppressed, defend the cause of the orphans. Fight for rights of the widows. James 1.27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. It breaks my heart to see these people out on the street and there are so many of them. I cannot believe I used to be one, I can tell you it was defiantly a scary world out there. Now all I see is broken people that are stuck in addictions, or there heart is just broken and they are just crying out for help and not knowing where to get it from, but other places like their addictions. I want to see these people come into the church, to get there lives back, in full restoration, the broken hearts be healed, and finding something else to fill that addiction with. What can we do? We cannot be silent anymore. We only have one opportunity here on earth.
However, did you know, there is more programs targeted for at youth risk than there is homeless people? Studies shown that the younger the teens are, as they get into programs they can break these addictions off. The addictions they deal with are pretty much the same as, the homeless ranging from, drug abuse, alcoholism, pregnancy, dysfunctional families to abuse. They have many of these programs around for teens; they even have them at some schools too. The definition of an at risk teen is, one that is exposed to; Sex, Drugs, Alcohol, Rock ‘n’ roll at an early age. Alternatively, various problems at home; violence at home, inconsistent disincline, poor family function, low parent educations/ income and over controlling. These issues can lead other problems, and be the start of what causes at risk youth (Violence, abuse, suicide, stress, eating disorders.) They also cannot handle themselves in complex situations, such as dealing with peers, teachers, family, or at social events, they may seem very withdrawn from the way they have been in the past. There are still many parents out there who do the best they can, to raise their kids but they still fall into some sort of trouble or addictions. However, let us look at some statistics to see how many kids fall into some sort of addictions, violence or other problems.
*In 2002 877,700 young people, ages 10-24 were injured from a violent crime, and 1:13 were hospitalized.
*In 2001 5,468 Young people, ages 10-24 were murdered, that is an average of someone dying every 15 seconds, everyday through out the year.
*17% of students carry a weapon (gun, knife, club, pepper spray) to school because they fell unsafe.
*33% Reported being in a physical fight one or more times in a 12 month period.
* In 2001 5,468 young people ages 10-24 were involved in homicide. 85% (4,695) were males, and 15% (827) were females.
*In 2005 10.5 million people, ages 12-20 have consumed alcohol underage. Then 3 out of 4 students consume more than just a sip of alcohol before the end of their senior year of high school.
*In 2005 9.9% of youth ages, 12-17 were current drug users; 68% used marijuana, 3.3% prescription drugs, 1.2% inhalants, .8% hallucinogens, .6% cocaine. More than 50% of teens will try a drug before they finish high school!!
* It’s even getting more and more easier to get drugs and alcohol underage.

*My long term goal, is to see the light brought into peoples lives- to see that there is more then there drug and alcohol addictions. One word spoken into there lives or one encounter with God can change there perspectives forever!