This morning I read about another ministry leader who had resigned from ministry due to immoral behavior. It seems that few weeks go by that we do not read of a similar instance, many of them pastors and ministry leaders of megachurches. However, the problem is not limited to the leadership of large churches. I have known several pastors of smaller churches, some of them friends of mine, who have experienced similar failures.
I write this blog not to condemn these leaders, but to remind each of us that anytime a person goes into the ministry he or she has a target on their backs. Satan knows if he can ruin the reputation of a ministry leader he can do great damage to the church, to the family of the fallen leader and to the unchurched world who concludes that such leaders cannot be trusted.
Several years ago the Catholic church was under attack for the actions of some of its church leaders. I remember at the time a Protestant leader warning against believing it was only the Catholic church that had such problems with their leaders. He predicted we would soon hear of similar failures within the Protestant churches as well. His prophecy has proven true.
It is a mistake for anyone to think they are above moral failure. Such failures usually do not happen overnight. They are the result of a series of actions on our part and those of others. No doubt some in ministry would be considered sexual predators using their position to lure people into sexual activities. However, I believe that most immoral behavior occurs over a period of time as pastors become more isolated from others and have little accountability in their lives.
Ministry leaders must protect themselves from such failures in their lives. Mike Pence was criticized as Vice President because he would not be along with a woman who was not his wife. He was following a rule Billy Graham followed many years ago. That rule protected both men from even the hint of sexual scandal, and is a rule I have followed for much of my ministry. Isn't it interesting that those who issued such criticisms against both men have not found it necessary to criticize entertainers, politicians and others who have multiple affairs?
Social media is an area where we must be very careful. I once read that Facebook was the number one cause of divorce today as old flames met each other online and began communicating. It's very important that we are careful about what we say in a text message as it is easy to be misunderstood even if we didn't mean anything inappropriate. My phone is always available for my wife to look at, and I often just leave it on the counter even when I go out.
As important as it is for ministry leaders to have guidelines in place for their relationships with others, it is equally important that persons in the church pray for their leaders. Remember that Satan would like nothing more than to destroy your pastor. Keep him or her in your prayers that they will be recognize any attack he might send against them and that they will be able to resist every attack.