My New Book Is Here! Announcing the Release of “Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church”
I am pleased to announce the release of my new book, Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church!
Given that it is election day across our nation (Nov 8th), this may seem like a strange date for a book to be released. But since the book is about what godly leadership looks like, election day may be more relevant than it seems.
For those that follow this blog, you will know that the issue of spiritual abuse has been on my mind for the last several years now. Even before Mike Cosper’s excellent podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, put it on … Continue reading...
5 Misconceptions about Spiritual Abuse: #5: “Talking About Spiritual Abuse Will Just Lead to False Accusations Against Pastors”
In anticipation of the Nov 8th release (note: it’s been bumped back a week!) of my new book, Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church, I am making my way through a 5-part blog series on misconceptions and misunderstandings of spiritual abuse. You can read prior installments here, here, here, and here.
We come now to the final misconception in the series: “Talking about spiritual abuse will just lead to false accusations against pastors.”
As I have engaged the topic of spiritual abuse over the last several years, I have observed a repeated sentiment that pops up again and again. … Continue reading...
How Not To Become a Celebrity Pastor
America—and the Western world in general—loves celebrities. That much is not in doubt. Whether they be athletes, actors, or successful CEO’s, we are fascinated with people who are rich, powerful, and at the top of their game.
Indeed, we’ve been taught that the way you make an organization successful is by finding an exceptional person to lead it—a franchise player—who can put it on the map. Whether it’s Lebron James or Jeff Bezos, all organizations need a superstar.
Unfortunately, the church has sometimes adopted this same approach to leadership. If our churches are going to “succeed,” we figure we need our own franchise player to lead us—someone who is strong, … Continue reading...
5 Misconceptions about Spiritual Abuse: #4: “Spiritual Abuse Is Not As Harmful As Other Kinds of Abuse, So We Shouldn’t Worry Too Much About It”
In anticipation of the Nov 1st release of my new book, Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church, I am making my way through a 5-part blog series on misconceptions and misunderstandings of spiritual abuse. You can read prior installments here, here, and here.
We come now to misconception #4: “Spiritual abuse is not as harmful as other kinds of abuse, so we shouldn’t worry too much about it.”
In my research for my forthcoming book, I was a bit surprised to discover how many people think that the harm caused by spiritual abuse is a distant second (or even third) … Continue reading...
5 Misconceptions about Spiritual Abuse: #3: “The Bible Doesn’t Talk about Spiritual Abuse–It’s Just a Modern Psychological Construct”
In anticipation of the Nov 1st release of my new book, Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church, I am making my way through a 5-part blog series on misconceptions and misunderstandings of spiritual abuse. You can read prior installments here and here.
We come now to #3 in the series: “Spiritual abuse is not in the Bible or church history—it’s just a modern psychological construct.”
A number of folks may balk at the idea of spiritual abuse solely on the grounds that the terminology itself is relatively modern. If it does not appear in the Bible (or church history), it is argued, … Continue reading...