"I soon realised something was wrong in my marriage, but I couldn’t put my finger on it." How Lisa, a missionary, found freedom from an abusive husband.

Susie's story is not uncommon. Her story is an example of a church work environment that is destructive and extraordinarily complex because highly authoritarian leadership is destructive and extraordinarily complex.

Maybe we could begin to shift our focus by concentrating on the "responsibility" of shepherding people rather than having "authority" when considering the position of Pastor in the local church. 

Beginning in 1643, leaders from the Erastian, Presbyterian, and Independent churches in England and Scotland were called by Parliament to assemble a doctrinal statement for. the Christian church. In this monumental work of theology, the "divines" taught "divine leadership." 

In a few sentences in their "larger catechism" they constructed a beautiful statement of God's call to leaders.

We see our oppressors (as the Bible calls them) winning the battle. But that is only in the short-term. The LORD is my refuge.

I hope these ideas are both biblical and helpful in challenging common misconceptions about our Christian leaders. Leaders are important . . . and so they need to get it right. When speaking with Jada, I was again confronted with the teaching in some churches that leaders are to be obeyed absolutely.

Jada felt like a caged bird set free when she escaped her spiritually and sexually abusive pastor. There is much to learn about clergy sexual abuse from her story.

Jada said she "felt like a prisoner set free" when she left her sexually and spiritually abusive pastor. We have much to learn about clergy sexual abuse from her story.

One of the surest ways to kill an organization is to be driven by image. One of the surest ways to identify a toxic leader is to find one driven by image.

The Bible is repleat with examples and the modern business and Christian organization world is full of them. It is a huge temptation for any organization that feels more dependent on donor funds than God.

Amber, a young adult, was committed to church. She loved the fellowship and teaching. Kayla attempted to warn Pastor Brandon that Kevin had a reputation as possibly an adulterer; she had heard that he had a sexual relationship with a woman, not his wife. The pastor brushed it off and said, “I know Kevin. Of course, he wouldn't do such a thing.”