Wolves Among Lambs: My Story of Sexual Abuse & Cover-Ups in the Church

Wolves Among Lambs: My Story of Sexual Abuse & Cover-Ups in the Church
Author: Stacey Shiflett
Publisher:
Total Pages: 402
Release: 2019-02-26
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 9781797029221

At the age of seventeen, Stacey Shiflett was sexually assaulted in his sleep by a Bible College student. His abuser pled guilty and served time in prison. A few years later he was groomed and propositioned by his pastor. His experiences as both a victim and a pastor have uniquely prepared him to address this topic. In May of 2018, the church where he pastors was affected by a sexual abuse scandal. The story made national headlines. Wolves Among Lambs deals with both the terrible crime of sexual abuse within the church and the covering up of those crimes. The author has harsh criticism for those that protect the abuser and make attempts to silence the abused.Section Two is entitled "Restoring Our Credibility" and deals with ways that churches can prevent sexual abuse from happening. It also explains the importance of reporting allegations and how to communicate correctly with the church when it occurs. Wolves Among Lambs emphasizes the church's priority to protect the people within the church and to expose and prosecute the sex offenders. The author uses the Scripture to lay out a set of policies and procedures for how to operate when allegations of sexual abuse surface. The book concludes with words of healing and hope for victims of sexual abuse. If you have been a victim of sexual abuse or you know someone that is a survivor, this book will minister to them in a great way. Wolves Among Lambs is also a great resource for those pastors and church leaders looking for ways to prevent abuse in the church, deal with offenders and restore the victims.

Suffering and the Heart of God

Suffering and the Heart of God
Author: Diane Langberg
Publisher: New Growth Press
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2015-09-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1942572034

She's seen slave dungeons in Ghana. Genocide in Rwanda. Systemic sexual abuse in Brazil. Child abuse and domestic violence in the US. After forty years of counseling abuse survivors around the world, Dr. Diane Langberg, a world renowned trauma expert, remains certain that what trauma destroys, Christ can and does restore. This book will convince you, too, of the healing heart of God. But it's not a fast process, instead much patience is required from family, friends, and counselors as they wisely and respectfully help victims unpack their traumatic suffering through talking, tears, and time. And it's not a process that can be separated from the work of God in both a counselor and counselee. Dr. Langberg calls all of those who wish to help sufferers to model Jesus's sacrificial love and care in how they listen, love, and guide. The heart of God is revealed to sufferers as they grow to understand the cross of Christ and how their God came to this earth and experienced such severe suffering that he too is "well-acquainted with grief." The cross of Christ is the lens that transforms and redeems traumatic suffering and its aftermath, not only for the sufferer, but it also transforms those who walk with the suffering. This book will be a great help to anyone who loves, listens to, and seeks to help someone impacted by trauma and abuse. There is no quick fix, but there is the hope for healing through the love of God in Christ.

Hope for the Hurting

Hope for the Hurting
Author: Ann Wagner
Publisher: WestBow Press
Total Pages: 168
Release: 2012-03-28
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 1449712975

Hope for the Hurting is the most inspirational book I have ever read. Ann Wagner combines her personal insight with sound biblical counsel to bring about both spiritual and emotional healing. As a pastor, I highly value this book. I recommend that every Christian read it and add it to their library. Dr. Keith D. Thibo, pastor and founder of Kings Kids International, Washington, Illinois

I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die

I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die
Author: Sarah J. Robinson
Publisher: WaterBrook
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2021-05-11
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0593193539

A compassionate, shame-free guide for your darkest days “A one-of-a-kind book . . . to read for yourself or give to a struggling friend or loved one without the fear that depression and suicidal thoughts will be minimized, medicalized or over-spiritualized.”—Kay Warren, cofounder of Saddleback Church What happens when loving Jesus doesn’t cure you of depression, anxiety, or suicidal thoughts? You might be crushed by shame over your mental illness, only to be told by well-meaning Christians to “choose joy” and “pray more.” So you beg God to take away the pain, but nothing eases the ache inside. As darkness lingers and color drains from your world, you’re left wondering if God has abandoned you. You just want a way out. But there’s hope. In I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die, Sarah J. Robinson offers a healthy, practical, and shame-free guide for Christians struggling with mental illness. With unflinching honesty, Sarah shares her story of battling depression and fighting to stay alive despite toxic theology that made her afraid to seek help outside the church. Pairing her own story with scriptural insights, mental health research, and simple practices, Sarah helps you reconnect with the God who is present in our deepest anguish and discover that you are worth everything it takes to get better. Beautifully written and full of hard-won wisdom, I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die offers a path toward a rich, hope-filled life in Christ, even when healing doesn’t look like what you expect.

Serpents In the Garden: True Accounts of Sexual Betrayal In The Church!

Serpents In the Garden: True Accounts of Sexual Betrayal In The Church!
Author: Christian Whistle Blower
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 54
Release: 2013-07-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1304214397

The stories in this book are real as far as I know because not all of them came to me first hand. Those that did or the ones I personally knew about I can vouch for. As someone who went to Bible College and spent years as both a layman and ministerial worker in various churches, I heard each of them first hand from either the victim or the perpetrator. Be aware that although I have avoided the use of any sort of foul language or sexual slurs, the accounts of sexual abuse you will read about are real and graphic. I believe they must be in order to bring incidents like these to light and give them credibility. Trust has come too easy in churches and many people have paid the price for that. My own faith was tested over and over again as I came across these horrifying incidents that occurred in churches where I worshiped and worked, as well as others I learned about that occurred in other locations.

The Sense of an Ending

The Sense of an Ending
Author: Julian Barnes
Publisher: Vintage
Total Pages: 158
Release: 2011-10-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0307957330

BOOKER PRIZE WINNER • NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A novel that follows a middle-aged man as he contends with a past he never much thought about—until his closest childhood friends return with a vengeance: one of them from the grave, another maddeningly present. A novel so compelling that it begs to be read in a single setting, The Sense of an Ending has the psychological and emotional depth and sophistication of Henry James at his best, and is a stunning achievement in Julian Barnes's oeuvre. Tony Webster thought he left his past behind as he built a life for himself, and his career has provided him with a secure retirement and an amicable relationship with his ex-wife and daughter, who now has a family of her own. But when he is presented with a mysterious legacy, he is forced to revise his estimation of his own nature and place in the world.

Unholy Charade

Unholy Charade
Author: Jeff Crippen
Publisher:
Total Pages: 208
Release: 2015-10-07
Genre:
ISBN: 9780692533222

Could it be that the one who is smiling at you as he hands you the offering plate is abusing his wife at home? What if your Sunday school teacher, who knows so much about the Bible, is abusing his family behind closed doors? Is it possible that one of the elders or even the pastor of your church is practicing an unholy charade? If the spouse of one of these abusers comes to you for help, would you even be able to recognize the signs? How will you understand the dynamics of this deceiving evil? Pastor and author Jeff Crippen presents Christ's body with a work steeped in Scripture that lays before us a map of the abusive mind, the tactics of abuse, the effects abuse has on its victims, and the tragic way our churches have failed the victims of this sin. He issues a clarion call for those who love Christ to answer the call to love the oppressed and speak for the victims, as Proverbs 31:9 says: "Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy." Together we can root out the wolves in the midst of the flock and unmask the domestic abuser in the church hiding in our pews.

Monastery Mornings

Monastery Mornings
Author: Michael Patrick O'Brien
Publisher: Paraclete Press
Total Pages: 170
Release: 2021-08-17
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1640606505

A love letter to a community of Trappist monks who provided family when it was needed the most. This warmhearted memoir describes how a small, insecure boy with a vibrant imagination found an unlikely family in the company of monks at Holy Trinity Abbey, in the mountains of rural Latter-day Saint Utah. Struggling with his parents' recent divorce, Michael O'Brien discovered a community filled with warmth, humor, idiosyncrasies, and most of all, listening ears. Filled with anecdotes and delightful "behind the scenes" descriptions of his experiences living alongside the monks as they farmed, prayed, buried their dead, ate, and shared the joys of life, Monastery Mornings speaks to the value of spiritual fatherhood, the lasting impact of positive mentoring, and the stability that the spiritual life can offer to people of all ages and walks of life.

Profaned Pulpit

Profaned Pulpit
Author: Jerry D. Kaifetz
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012-10-22
Genre: Baptists
ISBN: 9781479180295

A look at the life, ministry and abuses of Jack Schaap, the disgraced pastor of First Baptist Church of Hammond, a Chicago area megachurch, and the influences they had on the Independent Fundamental Baptist Movement.

Is it Abuse?

Is it Abuse?
Author: Darby A. Strickland
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2020
Genre: Church work with abused women
ISBN: 9781629956947

"Providing practical tools and exercises, counselor Darby Strickland shows how anyone can recognize clues suggesting abuse, identify oppressive behavior, and work with a victim to bring clarity, help, and healing"--