The room is at capacity, some stand in groups whispering or simply lean on the wall, waiting. Bodies alternatively gathering notepads, silencing phones, and readying their recording devices.

Tania a slim brunette with hair past her shoulders walks briskly to the platform. She is “that girl” Attractive, but all business, she is dressed in a dark ‘suit’ of slacks, turtleneck, and jacket. Everyone gathered falls silent as she pulls notes out to place on the pulpit, followed by a pen which she positions on the top of the pages she straightens. Tania clears her throat,

“Good morning, thank you for coming. Her eyes scan the rows, determined to appear friendly, smiling, hating that she can’t stop the dimple from appearing. She knows she looks more like a Shirley Temple than a voice of authority. She slips her hand down to the jacket lapel pulling it tightly against her stomach. Like Atlas under the weight of the world, she continues.

“Yesterday afternoon, Mike Ayers, the pastor of this church was arrested and taken into custody. The board was aware of this imminent development and have accepted his resignation. “She trembled and pursed her lips tightly.

“It is, I know, very upsetting to hear.

Mr. Ayers has been a respected and loved leader of this community for fifteen years.

You brought him your babies for dedication. He visited your mother in hospital. And he gathered your teens to study the bible. You trusted him, and that trust has been broken. There are no words that could convey the compassion that I, and the rest of the board have for each member here.”

Someone sniffed and the air crackled then thickened.

“Do they have proof?” a gruff male voice bellowed from the back.

Tania noted no one was asking what Mike had been arrested for.

They all know.

The rumors had circulated. The alleged victims had come forward. The board had listened — but they had listened to him. His word against theirs. And most believed him.

The wounded were hushed. The church limped along with it’s embattled pastor.

Then a police report was filed.
An investigation followed.
Time passed.
People forgot.

Until suddenly — charges were laid.

And here was Tania.

Left holding a boulder the size of Gibraltar of institutional guilt.

“Help, Lord.”

The prayer barely makes it past her throat.

She breathes in. Out. Twice.

“It may feel like the world has stopped,” she continues. “But God is with us. He will comfort us as we comfort each other.”

Voices rise across the room. Sniffling turns to sobbing.

Then Gail stands.

“You knew, didn’t you? You all knew and you did nothing!”

Her daughter had been the youngest of the three.

Gail pushes past knees and chairs, runs down the aisle, and slams through the thick oak door.

The thud lands like a gavel.

Judgment.

Silence follows.

Tania looks down at the prepared statement in front of her.

Bolded instructions:

Do not apologize.
Do not appear overly empathetic.
The allegations are unproven.

She strikes a line through the script. Then another.

They had royally messed up. And healing would require owning it.

She looks up.

“Listen, everybody.”

The room quiets.

“Gail was right. We should have listened. We should have acted.”

Alarms sound in her mind. She sees the senior board member’s reddened face. His glare warns her.

She continues anyway.

“Our position of defending the perpetrator was not appropriate. It was not helpful.”

She swallows.

“Most importantly, it was not biblical.”

Now she is no longer reading.

“If we had taken this seriously, we would have investigated thoroughly. We should have removed Mr. Ayers from his position.”

The weight begins to lift.

“I… I am so sorry. There is more to say. But first, I need to find Gail.”

She gathers her papers and with a nod, a sigh of relief and a crooked half smile walks out. She had entered in a suit of armor and now she was free.

---

I wish this were fiction. In truth, this imagined scenario is only slightly better than what we see unfolding in church after church. In a more perfect world, there would be no need for exposure. No damage control. No crisis statements crafted by legal teams.

But here we are.

So many dominoes have fallen to bring the Church to this moment. And we are tempted to believe it has nothing to do with us.

But it does.

All of us play a part.

We contribute to celebrity Christian culture when we elevate charisma over character. When we hand international platforms to those who exhibit ‘gifting’ but have no history of proven faithfulness. When confidence is mistaken for anointing.

In 2 Corinthians 11, Paul warns about “super-apostles” Leaders the community gladly tolerated because they appeared impressive.

“For you, being so wise, tolerate the foolish gladly… if anyone exalts himself… if anyone takes advantage of you… if anyone strikes you in the face.”

It is possible to be spiritually infatuated.

We have often shunned the quiet faithfulness of humble local pastors in favor of viral sound bites and polished platforms. Leaders who refuse accountability. They are the experts. They are untouchable.

But Jesus did not seek His own glory.

And Paul said, simply: follow me as I follow Christ. He was able to tell his disciples you can copy my lifestyle, because he was genuine, the real deal.

Ownership is not weakness, it is the beginning of healing. The Church will not be restored by better public statements without genuine repentance.

She will be restored when leaders say, without qualification: We were wrong. We are sorry. We will change. We will follow up by setting in place accountability structures that prevent these things from happening again.

And the rest of us must stop rewarding performance and start valuing character.

Pray with me: Lord if I have valued things that are more in line with the world than with scripture I ask for your forgiveness. Forgive me for any infatuation I have with false teachers and their persuasive words that do not point to You, and the example you gave us.

You can ask for forgiveness if you did not take a stand when people in leadership were abusive.

He is worthy of so much more. He is worthy of leaders that act like Him.

Lord thank You for going after those who have been wounded.

We volunteer to help You to do that.

Lord, we love You.

Please help us to show You our love by caring about what You care about.

Amen.

Sometimes we trust in people instead of the Lord and His word as our foundation.

In that case the Lord allows those things to fail us. They crumble under our feet.

When those things or people fail you, return to Him.

All the love friends.