Hope & Healing for Spiritual Abuse - Chuck DeGroat - 47 - FrontStage BackStage with Jason Daye

In an era of cynicism and cancel culture, how can our local churches provide hope and healing for those who've experienced emotional and spiritual abuse? In this week's conversation on FrontStage BackStage, host Jason Daye is joined by Chuck DeGroat, a licensed therapist and spiritual director, who serves as professor of Counseling and Christian Spirituality at Western Theological Seminary. Chuck has written a number of books, including When Narcissism Comes to Church. Together, Chuck and Jason begin by looking at how narcissism in churches and church leaders has been addressed in recent history, especially the past few years. Then, they explore how the local church can minister to survivors of emotional and spiritual abuse.

Dig deeper into this conversation: Find the free Weekly Toolkit, including the Ministry Leaders Growth Guide, all resource links, and more at http://PastorServe.org/network

Some key takeaways from this conversation:

Chuck DeGroat on how anxiety can play out for ministry leaders who are increasing in their influence and authority: "As you climb the ladder anxiety grows and with that, you become more self-protective and insulated, and you're more apt in situations like that to bully out of your own anxiety."

Chuck DeGroat on shifting from a solitary focus of "getting justice" to working on one's personal healing: "I did want to provide a vision for restoration, recovery, transformation, healing and wholeness for people who have experienced abuse, who have been victimized, who are survivors, who have experienced trauma, and who need to make that shift.... there are processes that we need to engage in order to sort of get justice. But I had to do the work of shifting to: I'm really hurting. And even though some things have been resolved out here, it's still unresolved within me. So what's the work that I need to do to heal and to become whole?"

Chuck DeGroat on how churches can respond to emotional and spiritual abuse: "Can we create the kind of safety and space for people to come and merely be able to tell their stories and be heard...? And then can we set up really good healthy processes, and not just move to peacemaking quickly, but really good processes that will sort of look at these things carefully, investigate carefully, so that we can come to some sort of resolution, maybe even some sort of restoration?"

Looking to dig more deeply into this topic and conversation? FrontStage BackStage is much more than another church leadership show, it is a complete resource to help you and your ministry leaders grow. Every week we go the extra mile and create a free toolkit so you and your ministry team can dive deeper into the topic that is discussed.

Visit http://PastorServe.org/network to find the Weekly Toolkit, including the Ministry Leaders Growth Guide. Our team pulls key insights and quotes from every conversation with our guests. We also create engaging questions for you and your team to consider and process, providing space for you to reflect on how each episode's topic relates to your unique church context. Use these questions in your staff meetings, or other settings, to guide your conversation as you invest in the growth of your ministry leaders.

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