People Are Broken

People are broken … and those inside the church are no exception.

In the past week are so, there have been headlines grabbing people’s attention on misdeeds and malfeasance of some key pastors and key leadership … at some very large (VERY LARGE) churches. Now, even saying the words ‘misdeeds and malfeasance’ may get some people mad for it is not harsh enough. Some want ‘criminal’ or ‘heinous’ or ____________ (you fill in the words you want and let’s just say I said it!)

These stories have hit national news but it is on social media platforms that have turned volatile. X has turned into madness, madness I say. Some are getting their rope out, calling for lynching … others are going all Elsa and crying, “Let it go!”

I have strong connections to these churches. My son works at one. They attend one of the others. I use and support the ministry of all of these churches. It’s tough. And beyond the current headlines, I know many churches, individuals and ministries that have been impacted by such minefield scenarios.

((( It is not the purpose of this article to discuss these specific scenarios.There are plenty out there who are doing that, and you can find information and proposed solutions that will fit what you think, no matter what you think. A great and brief article is by Jim Denison, a daily article I get a lot from a regular basis. Go to here … Jim Denison’s Daily Article.)))

So, if I am not offering solutions, what are the reasons I writing this article?

I want to give some basic thoughts my brain has rattling around inside …

• No church is about any one person (except the person of Christ) even the pastor – no matter how great that pastor may be.

Howard Hendricks once said a pastor, any pastor, is like a hand dipped into a bucket of water. You can stir, splash, agitate, spatter and more. But every hand, once it is removed lets the water go back to a normal state of calm. The point, a leader may really make a big splash, but the bucket will go right back to its normal state. The impact of any human will eventually pass.

This is very humbling. But it is also comforting. The inner change of a person ultimately doesn’t depend on me, it depends on the One who created us.

• The Words of Winston Churchill speaks to me.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.

Yes, consequences need to be faced. Yes, there are repercussions to all decisions. And yes, ‘the courage to continue’ does not mean one can go down a path that is now restricted due to the actions. Even Biblical texts show restrictions due to circumstances. Forgiveness doesn’t mean eliminating repercussions.

Example: a young, non-married couple has a … moment. And because of that … moment, they feel bad … they ask for forgiveness (from God, from each other, etc) … but something has happened (a new life, a disease, etc) … the forgiveness does not take away the repercussions of the act. But, they can continue. They can move forward in many ministries.

I had a friend that had an affair. The marriage ended. However, he confessed the wrong doing. He resigned from all positions of leadership in the church. He publicly confessed and asked for forgiveness from the church family.

So, how did he move forward? He began to share with young married couples and tried to help them put into place hedges/guardrails/protections that would prevent them from getting into a situation like he found himself.

• Nothing is ever completely private, deleted, or gone.

Things get revealed. History is never left in the past … especially in our information crazy world. I warn everyone … never post something online you don’t want seen later. For even deleting something doesn’t delete it … it’s always there in the ether – somewhere. Expect job interviews to do deep dives into your social media.

• There is hope, and hope has a name … JESUS

My son works at a large church. Years ago, even before my son’s birth, the pastor’s illicit love life outside of marriage got exposed. And it was exposed very publicly. He left the church, in scandalous demeanor. Many wrote off the church. But today, the church is blessing thousands more than it ever did in the past millennia.

Was it easy? No. Was everyone happy? No. Did many things get learned? Yes. Will this stop from future stupidity? No.

We may be broken – but He isn’t.

• Even in our muddy life – God gets the glory.

Let me say this again – Even in our muddy life – God gets the glory. Maybe it should be, in spite our muddy life … because of our muddy life … out of our muddy life.

To God be the Glory. Great things He has done (not great things we have done.

People are broken, but our God is bigger.

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• No church is about any one person (except the person of Christ) even the pastor – no matter how great that pastor may be.
• Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
• Nothing is ever completely private, deleted, or gone.
• There is hope, and hope has a name … JESUS
• Even in our muddy life – God gets the glory.