The local church is meant to function as a healing and helping community that cares for God's people. But what if, instead of grace and care, someone experienced harm and hurt? When the church becomes a place of abuse and silence, the pain leaves people spiritually disoriented and alone. These individuals may wonder if they will ever feel safe around God's people again. Instead of running to God and his people, they run as far away as possible.St. John defines church hurt as any un...

You may be surprised to learn how prevalent domestic abuse really is, even within your church community. Sadly, because spousal abuse pervades every pocket of society, the statistical reality is that we all have people in our church who have suffered as victims of violence within the home. How can the church recognize when a member is caught in this type of situation and step in to help?Pastor and counselor Timothy St. John helps both church leaders and members to recognize the war...

Counselor Timothy St. John offers compassion and hope to individuals who have experienced hurt in emotionally and spiritually damaging church cultures.The local church is meant to function as a healing and helping community that cares for God’s people. But what if, instead of grace and care, someone experienced harm and hurt? When the church becomes a place of abuse and silence, the pain leaves people spiritually disoriented and alone. These individuals may wonder ...