You’re In Their Circle; The Psychological Perks of Your Church to a Troubled Child Part II

Vvgotsky’s View of Child Development

(Be sure to read part one first.)

Another theory that points to hope outside of a child’s home is by Russian psychologist, Lev Vygotsky. It’s known as the sociocultural theory. In this theory, he states that a child’s cultural context has a much greater shaping effect than the child’s natural wiring. He argues that instead of researching the child’s stages of development, focus more on the beliefs, customs, and skills of the surrounding community.  A child desires to emulate the thoughts and behaviors as she grows into a contributing member of her little piece of the world. The village does, in fact, raise the child, not just the parents.

 From the famous Orange curriculum, we know that if a child attends on Wednesdays and Sundays, we will see him around 100 hours a year; whereas the child will be with his family around 3,000 hours (considering school and sleep).  What type of difference could we possibly make in the life of a Bluebonnet Child in just 100 hours a year?

Recently I arrived home from work on a Sunday to find a fifteen-year-old girl leaning against the tree in our front yard. She was crying, well-bawling to be exact. Though I had known Lydia for eleven years, I had not seen her since she started high school. How did she even know where I lived? I only knew her through our church programs. She shared with me that she desperately needed to call her aunt.

She would not stop crying. Once we got back to the church to find the number, she opened up to me. Her parents (Bluebonnet Children themselves-just longer stems) were going through a divorce. Her mother lived an hour away, and she was staying with her dad in town. Earlier that morning, he had told Lydia that he was going to sneak her out of the state. She protested, he slapped her and then she ran two miles to my house.

While she was on the phone with her mother, I stepped out into the office hallway. Her mother’s passionate voice rang through the phone, “You stay at the church. You hear me, he can’t get you there. We trust the church. We’ve known Meg a long time, and you will be safe there.” Lydia and I waited in the church for two hours for her mom to arrive. Our lunch was made of leftover wedding scraps, and we painted in the craft room. It was so good to see Lydia smile while she inhaled her food. We talked some but painted mostly. She painted me an abstract cardboard circle with pure hues and geometric shapes. It still hangs in my office.

Once her mom pulled up, I was able to share with her the helpful resources within our community. She then moved forward in protecting her daughter by gaining full custody of her.  Although our church might have only seen Lydia for 100 hours a year for the past eleven years, it seems as though the impact of our ministry might easily last a lifetime.

Beautiful things happen when the church answers the call and serves the Bluebonnet Child. The hard part is already done-God is already active in these kid’s lives. The Holy Spirit is communicating to their hearts. Studies reveal that fifteen percent of four thousand people interviewed claimed that their relationship with a higher power began when they were children.  Although these persons had no religious upbringing or training, they were able to describe their profound childhood experiences in great detail thirty to forty years later. Whew, there is hope. God’s got this!

Questions to Ponder 

1. How would you summarize the ecological systems theory (in part one of this blog)? 
2. How do these psychological theories affect you as you move forward in serving  Bluebonnet Children? 
3. When have you served a Bluebonnet Family that fully trusted in your church’s ministry? Share this story. What steps made this a healthy and helpful relationship?