Back view of woman with brimmed straw hat, standing in field of tall grass, her arms outstretched at her side, her face toward the setting (or rising?) sun

Cries of the shunned

In the middle of that dark-valley time, I often found myself alone with God, crying aloud and writing passionately in my journal. During that time too, I came to identify with David, the shepherd-poet-warrior-king, in ways I had not before. For David was also ostracized by people he trusted. And he cried out in distress - and in faith.

Woman on mountaintop, above the clouds. She stands with her feet toward the camera, but her face turned away into the wind, as she looks out on the clouds behind and below her.

I will change your name

I will change your name! From wounded, outcast, lonely, afraid. To Confidence, Joyfulness, Overcomer, Faithfulness, Friend and Seeker of God.

Black-and-white image of Little Red Riding Hood in the forest, talking to the wolf

Is the SBC capable of Caring Well?

What if the ways the Southern Baptist Convention has handled clergy sexual abuse in its midst reflect the ways a narcissistic abuser handles getting caught out?

Three gray wolves, standing together on a rock ledge, threatening, howling

Cliques in the church

Cliques are by nature, exclusive. Where they occur in the church, they fragment the church. They prevent the people of God from becoming one.

Smoke and mirrors: A looking glass - held up in front of a large, wispy plume of smoke in the distance - reveals only thick, impenetrable smoke, very near at hand.

Beth Moore and LifeWay: The ploy

When the "threat alarm" goes off in an abusive church system, the response is orchestrated and brutal. But it's church: Appearances must be kept up. People loyal to the system confuse while pretending to clarify, cover-up while pretending to address, attack while seeming to answer, put-down while pretending to help.

Closeup of a shiny, multicolored, beaded curtain. Behind it, a haze of green light - and who knows what else.

Behind the scenes at Living Proof Live

This is what happened when I served as onsite leader for a Beth Moore Living Proof Live event. It’s a peek into celebrity culture, the exploitation and manipulation of women and abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention.