When Rachel Black was struggling to make sense of her abusive pastor, there was no Christianity Today Mars Hill podcasts and seemingly no books on how an employee in a church is to respond to such disregard. All she knew was the "hairs on her arms stood up" as she sought to understand her boss.
"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.
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.
Are we supposed to respect them . . . or challenge them? Leaders are God's and they are ours.
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.
"Consider it joy! It will make you stronger." Yes, the Bible tells me so. But it so often seems so callous for someone to remind me of it. Rather, Weep.
Biblical repentance is difficult to understand. The word is used freely as though everyone gets it. But identifying the actual repentant heart is not so easy. Restitution can help.
Bad leaders are held to account by the Lord and His people are called to hold them accountable for their failures where they have that ability.
Having spent nearly a decade working for a mission college in Africa, I have a keen interest in African leadership. When I spoke with Praise (not his real name), he shared his own experience with leadership abuse in the African nation in which he grew up.